There have been many defining moments revealed in the months-long battle for ownership of Warner Bros. Acquisition: Sit down to impress President Trump, a high-profile Congressional hearing, a brutal bidding war, and a tampon.
Yes, a tampon.
During the deal negotiations, while Netflix was courting GOP lawmakers who were skeptical that it wasn’t a left-wing company that wanted to gain more power by snapping up WBD, a delegation of lawmakers visited its headquarters, and one was shocked and disturbed to find a basket containing tampons in the men’s restroom.
To be clear, there are other factors involved in CEO Ted Sarandos’ decision to cancel his near-completed purchase of the WBD studio and streaming service. But the “Tampon Incident,” as it has come to be known on Capitol Hill, has weighed on consistent political opposition from the GOP to Sarandos’ wishes.
“This is 2026, not 2020,” said one GOP staffer with firsthand knowledge of the matter. “What were they thinking?”
According to a spin from Netflix, Sarandos’ purchase of 73 billion dollars of the company known as WBD came to an end last Thursday because he did not want to enter into a battle of billions with Paramount Skydance, which recently made a “hostile” offer for the company up to $ 80.5 billion.
David Ellison’s Paramount is a small media company with a large bank account. Ellison’s father is Larry Ellison, the founder of Oracle worth about 200 billion dollars His deep pockets support his son’s most expensive offers throughout the company.
Sarandos, on the other hand, runs a public company, whose market value has plummeted by $200 billion during a costly takeover process that his existing shareholders clearly disliked. As Sarandos put it: “This deal was always a ‘nice to have’ at the right price, not a ‘must have’ at any price.”
Perhaps, but price wasn’t Sarandos’ only obstacle. During the 6-month bidding war, many Republicans in the congress, in the offices of the AG in the state and the White House believed that Netflix wanted to create independence in broadcasting – the most important way that Americans use entertainment.
Netflix has denied this, saying it faces consumer competition from social media and YouTube, although opposition appears to have grown in recent weeks. One big concern: Netflix will use the market power that WBD can provide to continue to drive progress on its programming.
Sarandos has long said that Netflix’s programs appeal to all political tastes, but groups fighting for the rights of the elderly have produced research that their programs and documentaries often push themes such as transgenderism, Diversity Equity and Inclusion, and other issues near and dear to the cultural left.
Sarandos and Netflix founder Reed Hastings, on the other hand, are both big supporters of Democrats and progressive policies. Susan Rice, a senior Obama administration official on the left and critic of Trump, remains on its board. It was Rice’s inappropriate comments on the podcast attacking companies that do business with Trump that allegedly cost Sarandos more White House support for the WBD deal.
Last month, Sarandos was briefed on the news by the Senate Judiciary antitrust subcommittee chaired by GOP Nevada Senator Mike Lee. Not long after, Sarandos delivered a scathing speech to GOP lawmakers and the White House, worried that the closeness of WBDs and antitrust consequences could turn into a challenge against the deal if he doesn’t drop political concerns, people close to the matter said.
His job became more difficult when a group of GOP lawmakers visited Netflix HQ in Los Angeles a few weeks ago, according to three people with direct knowledge of the matter. They were part of the congressional delegation that visits various Hollywood studios every year during the Grammy Awards.
Also in attendance was Missouri GOP congressman Jason Smith, chairman of the powerful House’s Ways and Means committee, and a lawyer who questions Netflix’s spin on being a politically neutral programming provider.
What’s more, according to the source who spoke to him, while he was talking to him he went to the men’s room in the company’s offices and saw a basket of tampons.
“Let’s say the chairman is very disturbed,” added this person.
In recent years many technology companies have made tampons available in men’s rooms to promote diversity and inclusion in the transgender workforce. But conservationists believe that such attempts at gender reassignment generally have negative consequences for society, because they turn children into dangerous surgeries, undermine the nuclear family and lead to men competing in women’s sports.
They also believe that these values are front and center on Netflix’s agenda, and the Tampon Incident, as it filtered through the conference halls, was proof that the company was not changing its politics.
A spokesman for Smith declined to comment; A Netflix spokesperson had no comment.
