the HOT List

It's not so much a surprise that it happened, but that it happened on March 19 perhaps caught some industry observers off-guard. The $6.2 billion transaction that rewrites local media ownership rules is now complete, with both the Department of Justice and the FCC granting approval of TEGNA's takeover by Nexstar.

It played an integral role in getting the word out that eight Attorneys General have sued to try to stop Nexstar from completing its merger with TEGNA. Now, DirecTV has confirmed that it has filed its own federal antitrust lawsuit with the aim of doing what Washington lobbyists couldn't — killing the transaction.

A new study released Wednesday by Pearl TV, the NEXTGEN TV marketing arm, suggests a large majority of viewers of broadcast TV that rely on an antenna would invest in a set-top box to get ATSC 3.0-powered channels — a move that would "preserve access to free local television."

A new study from the Video Advertising Bureau finds that Americans "overwhelmingly trust" TV news over any other digital media source. When isolating that group of respondents to potential voters, the VAB finds that they are almost nine times more likely to trust TV news than social media platforms.

As of July 1, 2026, the Arkansas PBS operation was to transform to "Arkansas TV" with the elimination of PBS programming as a result of a contract lapse. That was the result of a 6-2 vote by Arkansas PBS's governing body to not renew the PBS contract. It seems there's a bit of a change of heart.

Townsquare Media CEO Bill Wilson says "strong expense management" helped the NYSE-traded operator of radio stations in mid-sized and small U.S. markets achieve year-over-year adjusted EBITDA margins that were "constant," ex-political, during the final three months of 2025.

Don't let the glum spending habits of today cloud what's to come. For Brian Wieser and Luke Stillman of Madison & Wall, it's "so far so good, with meaningful risks" for the economy. That's why they are raising their U.S. advertising forecast again. But is the upward momentum absent of broadcast media?

He spent 11 years as an "Eyewitness News" anchor, and later helmed local newscasts for the CBS and FOX-owned stations serving the New York market. He was also heard on the radio, at WABC-AM. Now, many across the region are pausing to remember Ernie Anastos, who has died at the age of 82.

Saga maintains "the most pristine balance sheet" in the business, CEO Chris Forgy said to open the company's Q4 and full-year 2025 earnings call. That's not to say challenges do not persist, as the fourth quarter was one in which a wider net loss was seen.

Gray Media-owned television stations whose viewers rely on Dish for their local channels are now prevented from accessing any Gray-owned property. Blame it on the latest retransmission consent impasse to impact consumers.

The Smullin family's South West Oregon TV Broadcasting Corp. has struck a deal that will see Sinclair Inc. fully acquire a full-power property and four associated TV translators serving Douglas County, Ore., for nearly 70 years. The deal comes four years after a transaction in Eugene, Ore., involving Cox Media Group.

One of the nation's largest financial institutions, home to veteran media industry analyst Jessica Reif Ehrlich, has reportedly teamed with other undisclosed banks in launching a leveraged loan to assist the nation's largest single owner of broadcast television stations in its quest to acquire TEGNA.

Welcome to the latest retransmission consent negotiation to result in the removal, by law, of broadcast television stations from a MVPD — this time frequent "blackout" artist DirecTV. Sticking to its guns is the Wisconsin TV station ownership group founded with a newspaper in 1890 that remains family-controlled today.

Cumulus Media's days as a publicly traded broadcaster are at an end. The company's prepackaged Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan lays out a reorganization that wipes out current shareholders entirely, sees an entirely new board, and could lead to new executive leaders.

In recent years, Global Weather has emerged as a frequent plaintiff in copyright infringement lawsuits over alleged unauthorized use of its extreme weather footage. Two radio broadcasting companies are the latest to be sued by the entity linked to such "storm chasers" as Aaron James Jayjack.