the HOT List

The single-largest owner of broadcast television stations, which also owns WGN Radio, the NewsNation cable news channel, Capitol Hill-focused news brand The Hill and a majority stake in The CW Network, has decided when it will share its financial results for the second quarter of 2026.

The life of a transmitter is a critical conversation topic one in the C-Suite must have working knowledge of. Nautel Chief Executive Officer Kevin Rodgers is just the person to explain why. In this interview, he outlines the tell-tale signs that it's time for a replacement — and why continued repairs are a dollar-sucker.

On June 23, RBR+TVBR detailed the dismissal by the FCC's Media Bureau of a Petition for Special Relief filed by "a number of former FCC officials" who requested the Commission “repeal its news distortion policy in full.” Now, the lone Democrat on the Commission has spoken out by offering her "dissent" of the decision.

For more than a decade, Gray Media and the former Raycom Media, prior to Raycom's merger with Gray, provided back-office services to five television stations licensed to a company founded in 2003 by Thomas B. Henson. Gray and Raycom also produced local newscasts for four of the stations. Now, Gray is buying them.

A battle that has been waged for more than three years regarding union certification of employees at a CBS affiliate owned by Nexstar Media Group appears to be at an end, as a federal appeals court has sided with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) — ordering the company to recognize and bargain with NABET-CWA.

Chairman Carr has proposed an Order the Commission will consider at its July Open Meeting that would allow the agency to hold an auction of 160 MHz of spectrum in the Upper C-Band in 2027. That's above the 100 MHz clearing proposal of the NAB, and puts into question the impact to radio and TV.

David Bozell has continued the Media Research Center's mission of serving as "a stronghold against misinformation, media bias, and distortion, promoting a culture of fairness, accuracy, and accountability" by petitioning the FCC to deny the early license renewals of ABC Owned Stations' eight properties. Here's why.

The founder and Chairman/CEO of Nexstar Media Group, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year as the nation's biggest single owner of broadcast TV stations, has snapped up nearly 12,500 Class A shares in the company. It's an investment of nearly $2 million, and comes at a high-profile time for Perry Sook.

The U.S. Supreme Court rejected the government's "halfhearted contention" that Fed board member Lisa Cook "in fact received due process" when purportedly fired by the president. At the same time, the Supreme Court reversed and remanded a case involving former FTC Commissioners — a warning for the FCC's Anna Gomez.

The Supreme Court's decision in "Trump v. Slaughter" upends some 90 years of precedent in how much leeway a president has in dismissing a Commissioner at a federal agency, including the FCC. One noted attorney doesn't believe the ruling will have an immediate impact on the Commission, however.

Upon completion of the transaction, Comcast shareholders will own shares in both Comcast and NBCUniversal, creating “two focused industry leaders, each with significant scale, strong financial profiles and distinct strategic opportunities.”

A public interest organization has been joined by a "group of concerned citizens" in filing a Petition to Deny the early license renewals of ABC Owned Stations' properties. To be clear, Media Action Center and Frequency Forward are not trying to block the stations' license renewals. Rather, they see the action as the lone way to gain standing.

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr has taken aim at a campaign from ABC designed to gain viewer support in its quest to maintain the "bona fide news program" equal time exemption for daytime chat program "The View."  As Carr sees it, "We're going to follow the facts and the law wherever they take us."

The annual Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has been a regular epicenter of ad partnership pitches for iHeartMedia for the last several years, and this year is no exception. From C-Suite leaders to Questlove, Ryan Seacrest, Eva Longoria and Diplo, three days of activity have already been seen.

Four Democrats took the FCC's Media Bureau to federal court this week, arguing a March guidance document unlawfully extended discounted political advertising rates beyond what Congress authorized, potentially affecting how broadcast stations price political inventory.