the HOT List

With all eyes today on the Senate and a hearing focused on whether the 39% national television owner reach cap should change, the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee penned a letter to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr "sounding the alarm on his efforts to eliminate all media ownership restrictions."

Less than seven years after Katz Networks and Scripps rebooted Court TV as a digital multicast offering in an environment where cord-cutting is fueling over-the-air broadcast TV consumption, Scripps has decided to sell it. Who's the buyer? Look no further than a company created by Dan Abrams.

On Capitol Hill, the most important hearing in more than two decades for broadcast television will be held on Tuesday morning. And it is now known who will round out the roster of four witnesses that includes Newsmax CEO Chris Ruddy and NAB President/CEO Curtis LeGeyt.

After expressing statements that suggested he wasn't fond of the combination of the nation's largest single owner of broadcast television stations with the company formerly known as Gannett, President Trump took to his own social media website to express a change of heart.

A 30-second political ad paid for by an organization devoted to bringing U.S. Hispanic voters to the polls on Election Day warns of the potential higher bills MVPD subscribers will pay should TEGNA and Nexstar Media Group merge. The ad takes aim at both FCC Chairman Brendan Carr and President Trump.

Make no mistake: Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) does not align itself with the view expressed by the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) organization that "modernization" of the FCC's national television ownership cap should be shunned.

An arm of the publicly traded broadcast TV station ownership group led by President/CEO Chris Ripley has agreed to pay thousands of dollars to a group of plaintiffs who sued Sinclair and several of its broadcast TV peers in October 2018. They filed antitrust claims linked to alleged price fixing for advertising.

What is the FCC's ability to amend rules codified by Congress in the early 2000s? Sen. Ted Cruz understands this is a concern for some parties. That's why he's scheduled a Senate Commerce Committee hearing that will focus on broadcast television's 39% national TV household reach. Who's testifying could raise eyebrows.

As Townsquare Media CEO Bill Wilson, CFO Stu Rosenstein, and Investor Relations and Corporate Communications head Claire Yenicay see it, broadcast radio is "an incredibly powerful media." Add in the publicly traded company's Townsquare Interactive unit, and they believe the company is poised for a good year.

Josh D'Amaro is the individual who will succeed Bob Iger ... Disney shareholders and board members hope, as the naming of Bob Chapek as Iger's heir didn't work out so well. D'Amaro on Tuesday received a congratulatory letter — and open thoughts on the company — from MoffettNathanson Senior Analyst Robert Fishman.

Eight months after Sinclair Inc. informed an LMA partner that it has decided to execute a purchase option forged in November 2012, the FCC has given its stamp of approval. The Commission also said yes to the sale of stations to Sinclair from a cozy shared services partner, thwarting a DirecTV block attempt.

Some 16 1/2 years after gaining ownership of the properties, Mary Quass-led NRG Media is selling its remaining stations serving Omaha. News regarding the bigger buyer of five stations was revealed Monday in an announcement from broker of record Kalil & Co. A sixth is poised to gain NPR membership.

The NAB has released the results of a "new nationwide survey" that it hopes will fuel the association's lobbying efforts inside the Beltway to not only thaw the nation's broadcast ownership cap, but altogether melt it away.

Jim Schwartzel is one step closer to owning the FOX affiliate serving Southwest Florida. Concurrently. the Commission has granted a waiver that pushes the sale of Beasley Media Group's Fort Myers-Naples stations to his Sun Broadcasting to closing.

Kelli Turner has joined Radio Ink and RBR+TVBR's Forecast 2027 as Radio Co-Chair for its November 12 return to the Harvard Club of New York, bringing heavyweight broadcast and finance leadership to broadcasting's most prestigious conference. Register now before prices go up on Monday, February 2!