How tampons in the men’s room helped derail the Netflix-Warner Bros. deal

NY Post ^ | 3/01/26 | Charles Gasparino

[Libloather]

There were many defining moments featured in the months-long battle for the ownership of Warner Bros. Discovery: Sit-downs to woo President Trump, high-profile Congressional hearings, a brutal bidding war, and a tampon.

Yes, a tampon.

During the deal negotiations, while Netflix was wooing skeptical GOP lawmakers that it wasn’t a left-wing company looking to get more powerful by snapping up WBD, a delegation of lawmakers paid a visit to its headquarters, and one was both 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’s decision to cancel his nearly completed purchase of WBD’s studio and streaming service. But the “Tampon Incident,” as it has become known on Capitol Hill, does carry some weight in the unwavering political opposition from the GOP to Sarandos’ ambitions.

“This is 2026, not 2020,” said one GOP staffer with first-hand knowledge of the matter. “What were they thinking?”

According to the spin coming from Netflix, Sarandos $73 billion purchase of vast chunks of the company known as WBD came to a grinding halt last Thursday because he didn’t want to get into a bidding war with Paramount Skydance, which had just sweetened a “hostile” offer for the company to $80.5 billion.

David Ellison’s Paramount is a smallish media company with a big bank account. Ellison’s father is Larry Ellison, the Oracle co-founder worth nearly $200 billion His deep pockets backed his son’s ever more expensive offers for the entire company.

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TOPICS: Business/Economy; Health/Medicine; History; Local News
KEYWORDS: deal; netflix; tampons; warner

[AndyJackson]

What does 2020 or 2026 have to do with it? They were thinking with an organ that actual real males don't even have, whatever their delusions about the number of hexadecimal digits it takes to encompass their concepts about nonbinary genders despite the fact that you are either born a 0 or a 1.

It is unimaginable that someone who needed tampons would choose the men's bathroom. In fact isn't it sort of bizarre that you can imagine that gender is fluid, but if you want to use a facility you have two choices unless the shared choice is available.

[Biblebelter]

Charlie just filling up a Sunday column blowing smoke.

I think board member Susan Rice’s comment had MORE effect of giving Sarandos the cold shoulder when he made his final pitch to the WH.

The major thing was probably Sarandos who has more power than any single stakeholder inside Netflix wanted this as he personal project.

There was resistance inside Netflix for the merger as well as pushback from stockholders.

Finally the price just got to high.

If Netflix wanted to cripple Paramount by making it overpay it succeeded as Paramount started the bidding at 19 a share and ended up paying nearly 31 not counting it agreed to cover the 2.5 billion fee Netflix owed WBD when it backed out.

Netflix won by losing.

Paramount lost by winning.

[Jamestown1630]

I don’t think that’s the point of the article.

(And the loss of $$$ is probably the most likely thing to end all of the nonsense.)

[ZOOKER]

Maybe Netflix provided the tampons as a sanitary measure, not necessarily for women.

Nobody likes anal leakage and stinky thumbs...

[DeplorablePaul]

Tampons are really good for gunshot wounds. Think of them as first aid.

[Prince of Space]

Thanks for the visual. Except it would be hilarious to see men try to function all day with a tampon up their ass, lol.

[Beowulf9]

Besides the ridiculousness of it, the obvious insult to the males using the men’s room, what did that cost the taxpayers?

[Opinionated Blowhard]

Tampons in the bathroom should not make one damn bit of difference. What should matter is Obama’s creative deal with the company and all the hard-Left propaganda that they inflict on their viewing audience. There are dozens of puff pieces on Dem politicians and Lefties (including Michelle Obama) and slander against anything rightwing, especially anythign Christian. Any GOP officeholder who took a meeting with Netflix is either stupid or willfully ignorant.

[MayflowerMadam]

“It is unimaginable that someone who needed tampons would choose the men’s bathroom.”

I chose to use the men’s room just last week. There was a situation in the ladies’ room that would tie it up for a while, and I didn’t want to wait in line. I have no problem doing that.

I didn’t expect to see feminine hygiene products, and I didn’t.

[KitJ]

I’m informed by the interwebs that tampons were first invented to treat bullet wounds in the early 1900s. Only some decades later were they marketed for ladies hygiene.

[Texas Eagle]

A basket full of tampons just free for the taking? I’ve done building maintenance for churches and hospitals in the past and whenever I refilled the tampon dispensers in the ladies’ rooms’ I also collected the quarters. Seems kind of sexist to me that men don’t have to pay for their tampons.

[j.havenfarm]

I dont share your criticism. The Board was within its authority to approve the sale. Getting regulatory approval is another matter. Undoubtedly Netflix made soothing reassurances as to ideology. It was entirely appropriate for GOP to meet with them to discuss the transaction. Whatever the assurances, the tampons demonstrated it was all BS.

Happy to report I made a small bundle on my WBD stock. I voted for the Paramount bid for the upcoming special meeting, now canceled I assume

[Fireone]

And...Tim Walz is still not in jail, and is still Governor of MN. Nothing ever happens to these grifting wierdos!

[circlecity]

I think the prospect of getting the deal past the justice department’s anti trust division had more to do with it.