The Federal Communications Commission has signed off on broadcast station owner Nexstar’s $6.2 billion deal to acquire rival company Tegna, a merger that would create the largest operator of local television stations in the country.
In a news release Thursday, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said the agency waived a rule that bars a single company from owning TV stations reaching more than 39% of U.S. households. The combined entity would cover at least 60%.
“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,” Carr said in a statement.
The FCC’s announcement came less than a day after a coalition of attorneys general for eight states, including California and New York, filed a lawsuit seeking to block the merger, arguing that the tie-up violates federal antitrust law.
Nexstar also secured regulatory approval from the Department of
...Keep reading this article on NBC News.
