Senator Elizabeth Warren and a handful of other top Democrats have sent a letter to FCC chairman Brendan Carr and Department of Justice antitrust chief Gail Slater, asking them to take a close look at Nexstar‘s proposed deal for Tegna, and to block it if they find it anticompetitive.
“We write to urge you to closely scrutinize Nexstar Media Group, Inc’s (‘Nexstar’) proposed acquisition of Tegna Inc. (‘Tegna’) and to block this deal if you determine that it violates federal telecommunications or antitrust laws,” the letter says, a copy of which was viewed by The Hollywood Reporter.
The letter was signed by Warren, Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and Representatives Summer Lee (D-PA), Maxwell Frost (D-FL) and Doris Matsui (D-CA), who’s Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Communications & Technology in the House. They sent the letter late Monday night.
The Senators and Representatives raise a number of concerns in the letter, including the combined Nexstar-Tegna’s scale in local TV; concerns that the deal would “Increase costs, drive job losses, and harm local journalism”; and that it would exceed the 39 percent national ownership cap as spelled out in the Telecommunications Act.
“Nexstar’s proposed acquisition of Tegna would create a media giant that would likely raise prices, drive layoffs, and reduce independent news coverage,” they write. “If your agencies approve the deal, the country’s largest TV station owner would double its audience reach to 80% of TV households and cement a market-dominant position. The industry’s attempt to boost profits for executives through consolidation ultimately comes at the expense of viewers across the country and independent, local TV journalism.
“We urge the FCC to carefully review the deal, including by holding public hearings, and block it if Nexstar cannot affirmatively prove that the deal will benefit the public, not just its shareholders,” the letter continues. “We additionally urge the DOJ to consider the anticompetitive effects of a Nexstar-Tegna merger as it scrutinizes this deal and block the acquisition if it illegally harms competition in violation of federal law.”
The letter comes a day before Carr and fellow FCC commissioners Anna Gomez and Olivia Trusty are set to testify in an FCC oversight hearing on Wednesday, in front of the Senate Commerce Committee, which is led by Ted Cruz (R-TX). The proposed Nexstar-Tegna deal, the Jimmy Kimmel fiasco and other issues are likely to arise in the hearing.
You can read the full letter, below.
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