Federal Judge Halts Nexstar-Tegna TV Station Merger Pending Resolution of Antitrust Lawsuit

Federal Judge Blocks $6.2 Billion Merger of Nexstar and Tegna

A federal judge has blocked a $6.2 billion merger of local television giants Nexstar Media Group and rival Tegna until an antitrust lawsuit is resolved. U.S. District Court Chief Judge Troy L. Nunley made the ruling late Friday afternoon, finding that eight attorneys general and DirecTV were likely to prevail in their legal bid to stop the merger.

The deal, announced last year and approved by the Federal Communications Commission, would create a company that owns 265 television stations in 44 states and the District of Columbia, most of them local affiliates of one of the "Big Four" national networks: ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC. The proposed merger has been a subject of controversy, with critics arguing that it will lead to higher prices for consumers, stifle local journalism, and run afoul of federal laws designed to protect against monopolies.

The attorneys general, all Democrats, and DirecTV contend that the merger will result in reduced competition, leading to higher prices for consumers. They also argue that the deal will stifle local journalism and programming. In response, Nexstar's attorneys argued that the deal has already been reviewed and cleared by the FCC and the Department of Justice. They claimed that the FCC order commits the company to expand local journalism and programming, not shrink it.

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Comparison of Nexstar's Proposed Ownership Structure

According to the judge's ruling, the merger would make Nexstar the owner of two or even three of the "Big Four" local affiliates in 31 local television markets. This would give the company significant leverage over multichannel video programming distributors such as DirecTV, potentially leading to higher broadcast fees or loss of access to popular programming like Sunday NFL football games.

The judge had already issued an emergency order blocking the deal for three weeks. On April 7, he heard arguments over whether that block should be extended until a lawsuit brought by attorneys general in eight states and DirecTV is resolved. The FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said in March that the company had agreed to divest itself of six stations.

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