By Brian Stelter, CNN

(CNN) — Control of Paramount, the legendary but troubled TV and movie maker, shifted to Silicon Valley scion David Ellison on Thursday, following a protracted and politically tainted merger process.

The transition was full of symbolism: The Redstone family, which built the company into a cable-era giant that lagged in the streaming era, handed off to the son of billionaire Oracle founder Larry Ellison.

David Ellison, 42, who headed the much smaller media company Skydance and is now CEO of the combined company, used the word “tech” ten times in an introductory letter. ?At a press conference Thursday afternoon, he pledged to invest in Paramount’s streaming businesses and upgrade the company’s outdated technology systems.

Ellison’s first act as CEO was also symbolic: He visited the offices of Paramount’s CBS News division, which was dragged through the mud by President Trump during the merger review process.

Trump filed a legally dubious lawsuit against the newsmagazine “60 Minutes” last fall, prompting Paramount’s controlling shareholder, Shari Redstone, to authorize her board to seek a settlement rather than fight the case in court.

Redstone had hundreds of millions of dollars riding on the completion of the Paramount-Skydance merger, and many onlookers concluded that Paramount felt it had to pay off Trump to win administration approval of the merger.

The ensuing $16 million settlement and the regulatory review approval were both announced last month, though officials involved in the matter denied that the two were connected.

Trump told reporters that he also has an understanding with Ellison for CBS and other Paramount-owned channels to air public service announcements for Trump-aligned causes.

Ellison would not confirm or deny a deal with Trump on Thursday. “We’re focused on the future,” he said, dodging reporter follow-ups on the matter.

Ellison noticeably perked up when asked about entertainment, sports, gaming and other aspects of the combined company. He and his lieutenants emphasized the long-term nature of the Paramount turnaround plan.

“There is a lot of plumbing that needs to be fixed at this company,” said Jeff Shell, Paramount’s new president.

Employees are bracing for yet another round of layoffs since Ellison has signaled to Wall Street that he expects “to not only achieve — but meaningfully exceed — the $2 billion in real efficiencies we previously announced.”

During his CBS News visit, Ellison acknowledged the stresses of the past year, alluding to the “60 Minutes” lawsuit indirectly. He also expressed his admiration for the news division and the importance of “fact-based journalism,” a person in attendance said.

After brief remarks to the assembled journalists, he was given a tour of the “60 Minutes” offices.

Speaking later, Ellison said he wants CBS News to “speak to the biggest audience possible,” and he suggested that its journalism could appeal to “70%” of Americans ranging “from center left to center right,” pointedly excluding the hyperpartisan extremes.

He said he asks observers of the news division to “judge us by the work,” not external noise.

He declined to comment on the status of his previously reported talks with Bari Weiss, founder of The Free Press, about a possible deal to buy the startup and integrate it with CBS News.

When Skydance was seeking Trump administration approval of the merger last month, the company committed to hiring an ombudsman that would review complaints of bias.

Shell said the ombudsman is “a transparency vehicle, not an oversight vehicle,” adding, “we’re not being overseen by the FCC or anybody else.”

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