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\n\tFive new state attorneys general \u2013 some of them Republican \u2013 have joined an antitrust lawsuit seeking to block the $6.2 billion merger of local TV station owners Nexstar and Tegna. <\/p>\n
\n\tThe transaction, which technically closed March 19 after the FCC and the U.S. Department of Justice approved it, is a game-changer because it would create a giant entity whose stations would reach 80% of U.S. households. Federal law to this point has limited station reach by a single owner to 39% of households. DirecTV and eight state AGs sued to block the deal, and a federal judge backed the complaint, freezing the deal via a \u201cstand-still provision\u201d limiting integration efforts by the companies.<\/p>\n
\n\tAGs in Indiana, Kansas, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Vermont were added to an amended complaint, according to California AG Rob Bonta.<\/p>\n
\n\tNexstar says it will appeal the case. CEO Perry Sook said last week he expects the appeal to play out over several months.<\/p>\n
\n\tPresident Trump has expressed strong support for the merger, as has FCC Chairman Brendan Carr. The FCC\u2019s Media Bureau issued an order approving the deal, though it was never voted on by the full commission. <\/p>\n
\n\tIn a statement about the new states boarding the lawsuit, Bonta said their involvement makes the suit \u201ca bipartisan effort.\u201d He called the merger \u201cillegal,\u201d and said it will allow Nexstar and Tegna to \u201ccontrol and raise prices, fire journalists, and dominate the media landscape.\u201d The combination, he added, is \u201ca rotten deal \u2026 for consumers, for workers, for affordability, and for our local news.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tNexstar hit back in its own statement, calling the AGs \u201cmisguided\u201d and saying they are \u201cstrangling local journalism \u2013 the most trusted source of independent, fact-based news available to Americans. The AGs, none of whom has a track record of advocating for local media, would do well to understand the industry they purport to protect.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tThe company said the plaintiffs \u201cshould be far more wary of the real drivers of the decline of local news: the unchecked rise of Big Tech platforms, the spread of misinformation on social media, and the economic pressures that have already led to widespread newsroom closures.\u201d Undoing the deal would bring about \u201cthe demise of your local broadcast station,\u201d the statement concluded.<\/p>\n
\n\tNexstar also pointed to a settlement it reached Thursday with Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost. The\u00a0memorandum of understanding\u00a0agreed to by the parties includes stipulations for local news programming and the management of WBNS-TV in Columbus and WKYC-TV in Cleveland, the two markets where the combined company would operate two stations.
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\u201cJournalistic independence is a cornerstone principle of our democracy,\u201d Yost said. \u201cI\u2019m pleased that Nexstar has committed to upholding local news standards without going to court.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n