As the Sumner Turns

We don't hear much anymore from CBS/Viacom chairman Sumner Redstone. He's in his 90s now and he's clearly not in the kind of shape he was in just a few years ago. However...whenever the subject of succession comes up, Sumner hops out of his wheelchair to smack it down. From Tom Taylor's NOW column...

Sumner Redstone disputes reports of a CBS/Viacom turnover to daughter Shari. Yesterday’s New York Post report that Sumner would “transfer CBS, Viacom control to daughter” spurred this statement – “Decisions about who will succeed me as Chairman of CBS and Viacom will be made by the boards of the respective companies, and not by any individual. Despite press reports to the contrary, such decisions have not yet been made.” No doubt the Post report about 61-year-old daughter Shari likely winning the support of both boards got CBS and Viacom employees digging through the Internet to learn more about her. She’s already on the board of National Amusements, which controls those companies, and the Post quotes a recent Vanity Fair report about what could happen next. Namely, that the two independent directors who will serve on the seven-person board of the National Amusements trust have previously done work for Shari and her mom. The Post says Shari will become “the irrevocable chairman of CBS and Viacom” – and the guessing game is just beginning.

Over the years Sumner has held this over his daughter's head, telling her she could have it, then changing his mind. It's very similar to the dysfunctional Murdoch clan.