Update: This post has been updated with additional contacts including the Securities and Exchange Commission and state attorneys general. I’ve also edited the sample letter to eliminate references to Netflix since the company withdrew its attempt to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery.
I recently posted an editorial about the imminent sale of Warner Bros. to either Netflix or Paramount. And as I have previously stated, this merger will be a disaster for the movie industry and for consumers. It will probably kill movie theaters, which will be followed by the implosion of the entire United States film industry.
The Warner Bros. sale has to pass through regulators and there is an opportunity to make your voice heard. Contact your congressional legislators and your senators and tell them to oppose the merger. Contacts for the the US Senate Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition, and Consumer Rights can be found here. Your state attorney general can also stop this merger.
Also, contact the United States Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the President of the United States and tell them to oppose the merger.
At the DOJ reach out to:
Omeed A. Assefi, Acting Assistant Attorney General
U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington DC 20530Dr. Chetan Sanghvi
U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20530-0001
At the FTC reach out to:
Chairman Andrew N. Ferguson
Federal Trade Commission
600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20580
Commissioner Mark R. Meador
Federal Trade Commission
600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20580
At the SEC reach out to:
Chairman Paul S. Atkins
Securities and Exchange Commission
100 F Street, NE
Washington, DC 20549
Chairman@sec.gov
Commissioner Hester M. Peirce
Securities and Exchange Commission
100 F Street, NE
Washington, DC 20549
CommissionerPeirce@sec.gov
Commissioner Mark T. Uyeda
Securities and Exchange Commission
100 F Street, NE
Washington, DC 20549
CommissionerUyeda@sec.gov
James Moloney
Director, Division of Corporation Finance
Securities and Exchange Commission
100 F Street, NE
Washington, DC 20549
Margaret Ryan
Director, Division of Enforcement
Securities and Exchange Commission
100 F Street, NE
Washington, DC 20549
Here is a sample letter you can use to contact government officials and anyone else who might be influential in stopping the Warner Bros. Discovery sale.
Dear [TITLE/NAME],
I’m writing to you regarding the possible sale of Warner Bros. Discovery to Paramount. This deal would be a disaster for consumers, for workers, and for the film and television industry and it should be stopped.
The sale of Warner Bros. Discovery to Paramount will result in mass layoffs, cripple the exhibition industry, and create a monopoly that will hurt workers and consumers. Filmmakers will have fewer options to get their projects financed or distributed. Theaters will have no leverage to negotiate exhibition deals. Consumers will suffer from reduced competition between streaming services.
We need the federal government to protect the film industry and the public from this unnecessary, monopolistic, and illegal merger.
I hope you will lend your efforts to stop the Warner Bros. Discovery sale.
Sincerely,
[Signature]
Edit the above message as necessary but please remember to be concise, impassioned, and respectful. We need to persuade, not to bully.