Time Warner shares declined nearly 7 percent midday Wednesday after AT&T’s chief financial officer John Stephens said the timing of its merger deal close with the company is “now uncertain.”
The Financial Times later reported the Justice Department told AT&T and Time Warner would need to sell CNN, Time Warner’s cable news network, as a condition in order for the acquisition to go through, according to three people with knowledge of the negotiations.
CNBC has confirmed the Justice Department has asked AT&T to sell Turner Broadcasting, which includes CNN, for merger approval.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized CNN as fake news on his social media Twitter account in the past year.
[contentcards url=”https://www.cnbc.com/2017/11/08/att-cfo-says-timing-of-time-warner-deal-closing-now-uncertain-dj.html” target=”_blank”]