station trading

Thwarted in his bid to buy Tegna by an overlong and deal-breaking FCC review process, Soo Kim (and his right hand Deb McDermott) is indeed a victim of prejudice and discrimination. Only it’s probably not the sort you may think.

The purchase of WSNN-LD Sarasota, Fla., by Nexstar Media Group tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

The purchase of WADL Detroit by Mission Broadcasting tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

Television station operator Tegna Inc. said on Monday it has terminated its merger agreement with hedge fund Standard General after several regulatory hurdles. Tegna last year agreed to be taken private by Standard General in a deal valued at $8.6 billion, including debt. At the time, the acquisition was expected to close in the second half of 2022. However, the deal attracted criticism from some members of Congress on concerns of potentially higher TV prices for consumers and job losses. Then, in February, the FCC decided to hold a hearing on the hedge fund’s bid in a step that has historically led deals to collapse.

The purchase of the MNT affiliate from Adell Broadcasting gives Mission its 30^th station and its second in Michigan.

The purchase of three low-power stations by Gray Television tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

The purchase of KUSI San Diego, by Nexstar Media Group tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

It’s paying $35 million to McKinnon Broadcasting to add the independent to its station portfolio that already includes the market’s Fox affiliate, KWSB.

There will now definitely not be any action from the FCC, or its administrative law judge, on Standard General’s acquisition of station group Tegna deal before the plug is expected to be pulled on its financing. That’s because that ALJ Jane Hinckley Halprin has suspended her review “until further notice” after holding a status conference.

Earlier this week, U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (N.J.) took to the Senate floor to express his concerns over the Federal Communications Commission’s review of the proposed Standard General-Tegna transaction. His is the latest in a chorus of alarm bells sounding over a flawed merger review process that risks undermining both investment in local television stations’ free service to the public and media diversity.

The leadership of the FCC is facing a possible reshuffling as a powerful Democratic senator threatened to hold up a key confirmation if the agency didn’t vote on a stalled cable deal, sources told the New York Post. New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez railed on the Senate floor about the FCC jeopardizing the offer by Soo Kim’s Standard General to buy Tegna, the owner of 64 television stations, “through, in essence, inaction.”

The purchase of WILC-CD Sugar Grove, Ill., by Daystar TV Network tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

Even before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit denied Standard General’s petition to force the FCC to vote on its proposed $8.6 billion acquisition of Tegna, company founder Soo Kim knew his last-ditch legal maneuvers were a long shot. Nevertheless, Kim seemed disappointed, frustrated and chagrined that the deal appears likely to die when the financing he assembled expires on May 22.

The purchase of WBXZ-LD Buffalo, N.Y., by Bridge News LLC tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

Standard General and Tegna filed their reply brief asking the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to force the FCC to rule in their proposed merger before financing expires on May 22, effectively killing the deal. The FCC and its Media Bureau have been examining the deal since last February, an unprecedentedly lengthy review and twice as long as the FCC’s guidelines.

The purchase of WBBH Fort Myers Fla., by Hearst Television tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

The purchase of the NBC affiliate in DMA 55 from Waterman Broadcasting will give Hearst its fifth station in Florida.

The purchase of seven low-power stations by Bridge News tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

Opponents of the Standard General-Tegna merger say the companies’ application for “emergency” expedited court review of the FCC’s designation of the deal to a hearing before an administrative law judge should be rejected. In opposition to an expedited court review of the FCC decision filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, The NewsGuild, the National Association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians-CWA, United Church of Christ and Common Cause, told the court that the designation is not an appealable final order.

The purchase of KFLA-LD Los Angeles AND KILA-LD Cherry Valley, Calif., by Bridge News tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

Standard General said it filed a lawsuit asking a U.S. Appeals Court to order the FCC to reverse a decision by its Media Bureau to extend the review of its acquisition of Tegna and to instruct the commission to approve the $8.6 billion deal. “That superficially procedural directive (the hearing order) is in substance a denial of the broadcasters’ license-transfer applications,” Standard General said in its filings. “And by refusing to countermand the Media Bureau’s action — despite the broadcasters’ urgent requests — the FCC has embraced that de facto denial as its own. The commission will thus derail the deal without having  to justify that denial and back it up with substantial record evidence.”

Soo Kim, managing partner of Standard General, calls the FCC Media Bureau’s decision to refer his company’s proposed $1.6 billion acquisition of Tegna to review by an administrative law judge an “unaccountable power grab.”

The purchase of WJGN-CD Chesapeake, Va., by Bridge News tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

Standard General, Tegna and Cox Media Group on Friday formally filed an application asking the Federal Communications Commission to review its Media Bureau’s decision to have a administrative law judge hold a hearing on Standard General’s pending acquisition of Tegna.

The purchase of KVHC-LD Kerrville, Texas, by Bridge News tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

Various unions that opposed the Standard General-Tegna merger have told the FCC that it should not review a Media Bureau decision to refer the deal to an administrative law judge over FCC questions about the deal’s impact on retransmission consent and localism. That came in a petition filed Thursday by NABET-CWA and The News Guild, which oppose the merger.

Former FCC Chairman Mark Fowler on the commission ordering a Media Bureau formal hearing on the Standard General-Tegna merger: “The commission has applied the standard in an unprecedented, unconstitutional way by modifying the intended purpose of the statute to its customized purpose.”

The FCC chairwoman doesn’t see (or doesn’t care) that by weakening retrans, she is chipping away at the viability of the station business and a “cornerstone” of the agency’s longstanding broadcast policy: localism.

The purchase of KUFS-LD Fort Smith, Ark., by Daystar TV Network tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

The purchase of WHKY Hickory, N.C., by Family Worship Center Church tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

Gray will give its KNIN Boise, Idaho, to Marquee for its WPGA Macon, Ga.

The purchase of five stations by Voz Media tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

The purchase of W25FQ-D Florence, S.C., by J&J Winemiller tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

Gil Cisneros, CEO of the Chamber of the Americas, says the proposed merger will give local TV a much-needed boost.

Media mogul Byron Allen appears to be courting major Democratic politicians once again as he attempts to stop hedge fund Standard General’s $8.6 billion acquisition of TV station giant Tegna, according to a prominent Beltway research firm. Last Friday he hosted an event at his Los Angeles home for House Minority Leader Hakeem Jefferies (D-N.Y.) and Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) with guests that also included Nancy Pelosi.

The purchase of WUCB-LD Cobleskill, N.Y., by Foxwood Partners tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

Regulatory hurdles, opposition, continue to thwart deal closure. Kim reiterates his reasons for urging approval before a Feb. 22 fee kicks in, saying Standard General is committed to not reducing staffing at any of the stations it’s acquiring for at least two years as well as increasing local news production in those markets.

Cable operators say various commitments made by Standard General to address their concerns about its deal to acquire station group Tegna need to be modified and expanded before the FCC considers signing off on the $8 billion-plus merger. NCTA–The Internet & Television Association has signaled to the FCC in comments on those commitments that while Standard General was close to addressing NCTA’s concerns, it was not ready to hand out cigars.

The purchase of WDVZ-CD Greensboro, Ala., by East Coast Christian TV Broadcasting tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.

Standard General managing partner Soo Kim has asked to meet with Sen. Elizabeth Warren after the legislator wrote to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel last week asking the FCC to block Standard General’s proposed purchase of Tegna assets for north of $8 billion.