California Gov. Gavin Newsom has taken aim at the FCC’s approval of the Nexstar-Tegna merger, calling both the $6.2 billion deal and the agency’s chairman Brendan Carr a “disgrace.”
“What’s going on in this country should scare the hell out of everybody. This Nexstar deal is an outrage. The fact that he provided that waiver — this is the same Brendan Carr that’s celebrating Nexstar for trying to censor Jimmy Kimmel. The same Brendan Carr was out there demanding better coverage of the president of the United States during a time of war,” Newsom said in a video posted to X by HQNewsNow on Tuesday. “I don’t care what side of the political aisle you’re on. This is the kind of behavior you would see in Hungary, the kind of behavior you would see in Turkey, the kind of behavior that makes Putin blush. Brendan Carr is a disgrace and this deal is an outrage and disgrace.”
The deal gives Nexstar 265 television stations in 44 states and the District of Columbia, representing 80% of U.S. television households, adding Big-4 affiliate stations in Phoenix, Atlanta, Toledo, Portland and Maine. The combined company will also have stations in nine of the top 10 markets, and in 41 of the top 50.
After the merger’s approval by the FCC, state attorneys general from California, New York and six other states filed an emergency motion to block the deal, warning it would reduce competition and provide fewer checks on power.
Newsom said he’s “very proud” of California for leading the charge and urged more states to join the lawsuit. He added that the “consolidation of right wing media parroting right wing talking points is happening in plain sight” and that there needs to be a “real and honest conversation about what the hell is going on with the FCC and the takeover of the public broadcast.”
In addition to the challenge by state AGs, DirecTV has also filed an antitrust lawsuit, arguing that the deal will “irreparably drive up consumer costs, reduce local competition [and] shutter local newsrooms.”
Approval of the Nexstar-Tegna deal was subject to raising or eliminating the 39% national TV ownership cap put in place by Congress in 2004 to ensure viewpoint diversity and prevent monopolization.
Rather than modify the ownership rules, FCC chairman Brendan Carr granted the companies a waiver and said the decision was made to empower broadcast TV stations and foster local journalism.
“The D.C. Circuit has already determined that the relevant media ownership regulation is an agency rule, not a firm statutory limit, and the full Commission has reached the same determination on multiple occasions,” Carr added. “Waiving that rule here is consistent with longstanding FCC authorities and doing so promotes the underlying purpose of the FCC’s media regulations by promoting competition, localism and diversity.”
In order to close the deal, Nexstar agreed to divest six stations across six different DMAs and agreed to make commitments to affordability and localism.
“By bringing these two outstanding companies together, Nexstar will be a stronger, more dynamic enterprise — better positioned to deliver exceptional journalism and local programming with enhanced assets, capabilities and talent,” Nexstar CEO Perry Sook said. “We are grateful to President Trump, Chairman Carr and the DOJ for recognizing the dynamic forces shaping the media landscape and enabling this transaction to move forward.”
