FCC Approves Mega TV Merger, Sparks Legal Battle

0:00On March 20th, the Federal Communications Commission just greenlit the $6.2 billion merger between NexStar Media Group and Tegna, making it the biggest television broadcasting company in United States history. Chairman Brendan Carr's team approved it at the administrative level through the Media Bureau, skipping a full commission vote, and NexStar closed the deal with an hours of getting clearance from both the FCC and the Department of Justice. This past move came with waivers letting NexStar exceed the National Ownership Cap of 39 percent, and local market limits in nearly three dozen areas. As a trade-off, NexStar promised to sell off six stations in two years and boost local news production, legal pushback hit immediately. With attorneys general from eight states like California, New York, and Colorado suing on anti-trust grounds, claiming, it will hike fees to cable providers and raise costs for viewers. Direct TV and smaller operators jumped in, too, worried about leverage in negotiations hurting rural markets.

1:01Opposition spans the political aisle from Democratic Commissioner Anna Gomez calling out the secretive process to conservative groups like Newsmax, O-A-N-N, and CPAC blasting the power grab that could limit diverse voices. Even as NexStar's CEO says, bigger scale saves local journalism, past mergers saw heavy newsroom cuts. With lawsuits piling up and profits projected to jump from $1.8 billion to over $2.3 billion in earnings before, interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, mostly from passing fees to consumers. This mergers sets the stage for a fierce courtroom battle over. Media consolidation