Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones has thrown his support behind a federal lawsuit seeking to block the merger of broadcast giants Nexstar Media Group, which owns local NBC affiliates WAVY and FOX43 (WVBT), and Tegna Inc., which owns local ABC affiliate 13 News Now (WVEC).
The merger would create the largest broadcast media giant in the United States, and is contingent on the Federal Communications Commission changing a long-standing rule barring a single company from owning TV stations that reach more than 39% of households.
Broadcast ownership groups have wanted the FCC to dismantle the 39% rule, established by Congress in 2004, arguing that it unfairly favors streaming services like Netflix, HBO Max, Hulu, Apple TV, etc... which have unfettered access to any household in the U.S. with an internet connection (about 95%).
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President Donald Trump posted to social media last month in support of the merger.
"GET THAT DEAL DONE!" he wrote. "We need more competition against THE ENEMY, the Fake News National TV Networks."
In a press release announcing his participation in the lawsuit, AG Jones said the deal would put "more broadcast programming in the hands of fewer people, removing control from the communities they report to, cutting local jobs, and significantly impacting the delivery of news and other media content to Americans nationwide."
Jones also cited the Norfolk market consolidation of WAVY/FOX43 and WVEC.
“Our free press is under constant threat from Donald Trump, and Virginians simply cannot afford to lose more independent local news voices,” said Attorney General Jones. "Unfortunately, we already know what happens when Nexstar comes to town to buy local television stations – stations close, jobs are cut, and local news quality is reduced."
The lawsuit was filed by Jones and seven other attorneys general in the U.S. District Court for the eastern District of California, alleging the proposed merger would violate the Clayton Act. The 1914 antitrust act was meant to prevent mergers that lessen competition or create a monopoly.
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FCC Chairman Brendan Carr — an appointee of Trump's who has recently threatened to not renew broadcast licenses for network news stations, and who has the power to dismantle the 39% rule — has also voiced support of the merger. "Let's get it done," he wrote on social media shortly following Trump's post.
New York, California, Colorado, Illinois, Oregon, Connecticut, and North Carolina have also joined the suit.
According to the Associated Press, 30 cities with both a Nexstar and Tegna station would be impacted by this merger — most in the formation of a local duopoly. The Norfolk market is one of three where the merger would create a local triopoly.
