Standard General Asks Court To Review FCC Media Bureau’s Move To Kill Tegna Deal

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.”