Attorney General William Tong has joined seven state attorneys general in filing a federal lawsuit to block the $6.2 billion acquisition of TEGNA Inc. by Nexstar Media Group Inc., arguing the deal would create the largest broadcast station group in the country and harm competition, local journalism and consumers.
Attorney General William Tong has joined seven state attorneys general in filing a federal lawsuit to block the $6.2 billion acquisition of TEGNA Inc. by Nexstar Media Group Inc., arguing the deal would create the largest broadcast station group in the country and harm competition, local journalism and consumers.
The lawsuit was filed Thursday in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California. It alleges the merger violates Section 7 of the Clayton Act, which prohibits acquisitions that substantially lessen competition or tend to create a monopoly.
If the deal is approved, Nexstar would control 63.6% of the Connecticut “Big Four” network television market — one of the largest post-merger increases in market concentration, according to the lawsuit. The filing contends the combination would likely lead to the consolidation of local television newsrooms, with Nexstar’s News 8 merging with TEGNA’s Fox 61, leaving only NBC CT and Eyewitness News 3 as independent outlets in the state.
Nationally, the merged company would reach about 80% of U.S. television households.
“This merger would hand even more power to the largest local television broadcasting company in the country, while threatening to reduce competition, drive up costs, and weaken local journalism,” Tong said. “We are going to court to stop it because the public deserves independent journalism, not consolidated control at an inflated cost.”
The deal faces scrutiny from both the Justice Department and the Federal Communications Commission.
President Donald Trump posted on social media Feb. 7 urging the companies to merge as a way to counter what he described as “Fake News National TV Networks.” FCC Chairman Brendan Carr responded publicly: “Let’s get it done.”
Tong joins the attorneys general of California, New York, Colorado, Illinois, Oregon, North Carolina and Virginia in the action.
His office said the case is part of a broader pattern of state-level intervention in federal antitrust matters, citing Tong’s involvement in challenges to the Hewlett Packard Enterprise/Juniper Networks merger and the Justice Department’s settlement in the Live Nation/Ticketmaster litigation.
