The LMS is back. And with the FCC’s all-important online hub for transactions operational again following the longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history, Nexstar Media Group has submitted its paperwork needed for regulatory approval of the proposed TEGNA mega-deal.
Ahead of the closing bell on Wall Street, Nexstar announced that in connection with its pending acquisition of TEGNA Inc., the companies have filed applications with the Federal Communications Commission seeking consent to the transfer of the broadcast licenses currently controlled by TEGNA to Nexstar.
As Nexstar sees it, “The applications
address why, if certain of the FCC’s rules governing television ownership remain in effect, waiver of the rules would serve the public interest, especially in the local communities Nexstar’s stations will serve.”
A company spokesman said Nexstar would not comment beyond the prepared statement, which clearly states a waiver could be in play — something anti-consolidation interests including the American Television Alliance (ATVA) would likely push.
In connection with the filing, Nexstar’s Founder and Chairman/CEO, Perry Sook, commented at length.
He said, “Nexstar’s acquisition of TEGNA is vitally important to the future of local television and local journalism. We are grateful that the Trump administration and the FCC recognize that the current
television ownership regulations are outdated and do not reflect the competitive media landscape as it has evolved over the past 25+ years. Like the Trump administration, we are focused on achieving deregulation, and we continue to advocate for the elimination of the
antiquated constraints on local television ownership as the best solution to level the competitive playing field for all media.
“While waiting for the FCC to complete its rule-making process, we submitted waiver requests to bypass the major barriers that prevent us from competing fairly—including with legacy media and
Big Tech— massive entities with vast resources that afford them enormous influence that extends into every pocket, purse and backpack of Americans everywhere.”
Sook then took a self-promotional tone, stating, “Nexstar was built on a commitment to serve its local communities by producing and airing the best possible broadcast journalism and programming. We remain true to that commitment today … To be clear, in an age of disinformation and political agendas, we are the anti-fake news. Our news is delivered by trusted, familiar voices—journalists who live in the community—not a chat-bot or social media influencers. And yet, we are prohibited from broadcasting trusted local news and programming to hundreds of communities across the country because of antiquated regulatory constraints. In an era where political discourse has turned increasingly polarized and violent, our democracy requires that Americans have easy access to reliable fact-based journalism and community forums to debate the issues of the day safely and respectfully.”
Sook concluded that the acquisition of TEGNA will provide the company “with the scale necessary for local journalism to thrive amidst a media landscape that is dominated by Big Tech and the legacy media companies, enabling us to continue not only investing in high-quality journalism and local news, but in serving our local communities in the best possible way.”
