Prior to tonight’s (Sept. 23) episode of AEW Dynamite, President Tony Khan posted this video on social media gushing about how great Paramount’s acquisition of Warner Bros. is for AEW and its fans.
Khan starts off by talking about how excited he is for the giant media merger, which he thinks is “very close” to becoming official. He also tries to get fans really hyped up for the presence of top Warner Bros. executives in the building for Dynamite.
“I’ve made it no secret, dozens
and dozens of times, I’ve gone on the record and said I look forward to a time when hopefully it will be Paramount and Warner Bros. together. I think it will make AEW stronger. I’ve said it time and time again, and I believe we are very close to that time. And ladies and gentlemen, speaking of our great partners of Warner Bros., who have been with us since the very beginning, the inception of AEW, they’re here tonight for Wednesday night Dynamite!”
Khan has a big smile on his face and then goes overboard sucking up to Paramount CEO David Ellison.
“As far as the merger goes, I’m just gonna say it one more time. What a fantastic announcement for AEW and our fans, to have the leadership of the great David Ellison coming in!
I’ve said it time and time again, this is somebody who loves professional wrestling, and loves sports. It’s somebody who I’ve worked with in the National Football League, whether it’s NFL Films, or now CBS and the great partnership with the NFL. This is a great TV producer, a great film producer, and somebody who I think is gonna be a great leader for Warner Bros. just like he is now for Paramount.
I am excited about what’s happening in the world of media, and you should be too if you’re an AEW fan, because ladies and gentleman, this is a great time for us.
And I expect, coming off the great success we’ve had with AEW All In, our biggest pay-per-view yet on HBO Max, and having one of our best viewerships ever last week, including in the network’s coveted 25-to-54 [year-old] demographic, being the number one show on cable, on all of Wednesday last week…thank you Warner Bros. for sending your top people here today…”
Khan’s entire video pretty much turns my stomach from start to finish. Sure, I want AEW to have a stable future and all that, but the way Khan is shamelessly kissing corporate ass and telling fans they should be excited about “what’s happening in the world of media” is sickening.
I don’t know too many people who love price gouging, mass layoffs in the entertainment industry, and damaging the freedom of the press. I guess Tony Khan loves those things because he’s a billionaire and his pockets are some of the ones being lined, but media consolidation at this scale is a bad thing for most people, including a lot of AEW fans. “What’s happening in the world of media” shouldn’t be celebrated, even if this merger ends up being a net positive for AEW as a company.
Do you share Khan’s excitement for “the great David Ellison,” as well as all these nameless executive suits at Warner Bros. being at Dynamite tonight? Let me know your reaction to his ass-kissing video in the comments below, Cagesiders.
