Two months ago, Sinclair Inc. moved forward with a plan to create a duopoly in Southern New England. This saw the company snag the non-licensed assets of the station branded as “ABC6,” in the Providence, R.I., market — a move that came following a July acquisition of the “non-licensed assets” of two Paducah, Ky., stations.
Now, those three stations and the lone remaining Standard General property, in Lincoln, Neb., are being acquired by Todd Parkin.
An “Equity Acquisition Agreement” dated September 21 details a transfer of control request submitted for regulatory approval in the FCC’s LMS that would allow Parkin’s Rincon Broadcasting Group LLC to purchase the following properties:
- WDKA “My 49” and KBSI “FOX 23 in Paducah, Ky.-Cape Girardeau, Mo.
- KLKN-8 in Lincoln, Neb.
- WLNE-TV “ABC6” in New Bedford, Ma.
The seller is “CNM Television Holdings I LLC,” a Standard Media-affiliated licensee under the leadership of Deb McDermott.
The transaction is the result of the Soohyung Kim-backed Standard Media unloading its TV stations following its failed attempt to merge with TEGNA. Terms of the transaction, disclosed in Form 314 filings with the FCC, state that Rincon shall deliver to CNM at closing “consideration with an aggregate value of $50 million less the aggregate amount of the principal amount and accrued interest outstanding under the indebtedness of the company and its subsidiaries as of closing.”
WLNE has had a complex ownership history over the last 20 years. From 1983 until 2007, it was owned by Freedom Communications, the Irvine, Calif.-based operation known in that era as the owner of The Orange County Register. In March 2007, in a deal brokered by Kalil & Co., Freedom sold WLNE to Global Broadcasting LLC — a locally based operation headed by Kevin O’Brien and Robinson Ewert.
Under Global, WLNE would endure the “Great Recession” and a severe downturn in the American economy due to a home mortgage crisis. By July 2010, the $14 million acquisition of WLNE became untenable, with declining ratings and revenue leading Global to turn the station over to a receiver — local attorney Matthew McGowan. This act was equivalent to a bankruptcy.
By February 2011, Citadel Communications — the licensee linked to iconic media industry figure and Broadcasting Foundation of America Chairman Emeritus Phil Lombardo — emerged as a “stalking horse” bidder for WLNE. Citadel snagged the station for a mere $4 million.
Under Lombardo, WLNE would grow. And, when it came time to sell it in May 2019, Citadel cashed out with a big payout as Standard Media would agree to purchase WLNE and KLKN-8 in Lincoln, Neb., for $83 million.
In Nebraska, Standard General and its Standard Media arm are unwinding a transaction consummated in January 2021, three months after Sinclair agreed to sell WDKA and KBSI to Standard General affiliate Community News Media LLC for $28 million.
