Fish with Nexstar logo swallowing fish with tegna logo.
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Nexstar Swallows TEGNA and its 64 Local TV Stations – Here’s Why Your TV Bill Will Go Up

ByBen Bowman

You may not notice right away, but a huge change just happened on the TV landscape. TV giant Nexstar closed its acquisition of TEGNA, owner of 64 local TV stations. TEGNA reported 100 million people engaged with their properties every month.

Nexstar will now control 265 television stations across the United States.

Not everyone is happy about this move. Eight states and DIRECTV have sued to try to stop the merger. ““Nexstar’s purpose in acquiring TEGNA is to drive up the price it can extract from DIRECTV and other distributors, which will force them to raise prices to their subscribers,” the company’s news release said.

In three markets, Nexstar will now control three of the “big four” networks:

  • Indianapolis: WTHR(TV) [NBC], WXIN [FOX], WTTV [CBS]
  • Norfolk-Virginia Beach, VA: WVEC(TV) [ABC], WAVY-TV [NBC], WVBT [FOX]
  • Ft. Smith-Fayetteville, AR: KFSM-TV [CBS], KNWA-TV [NBC], KFTA-TV [FOX]

Nexstar’s founder and CEO took a victory lap in a statement tonight. “This transaction is essential to sustaining strong local journalism in the communities we serve,” said Perry Sook. “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. 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.”

What Will This Mean?

Earlier this month, Sook appeared at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference and previewed a leaner combined company.

“We will overlap operations in 35 markets, which means we start with two facilities. We will only need, in most cases, one facility,” Sook said. “So there will be a downstream potential of additional synergies from facilities consolidation as well as real estate sales.”

In markets where Nexstar and TEGNA had stations, you can expect layoffs as newsrooms are forced to share the same office space. You’ll also have less diversity of coverage as one company controls a larger chunk of the market.

What Are the TEGNA Stations Nexstar Now Owns?

State/District of ColumbiaCityStation/websiteChannel/NetworkMarket TV Households
AlabamaHuntsvilleWZDX(TV): rocketcitynow.comCh. 54/FOX314,569
ArizonaFlagstaffKNAZ-TV: 12news.comCh. 2/NBC1,542,915
ArizonaMesaKPNX(TV): 12news.comCh. 12/NBC1,542,915
ArizonaTucsonKMSB(TV): tucsonnewsnow.comCh. 11/FOX335,291
ArizonaTucsonKTTU(TV): tucsonnewsnow.comCh. 18/CW335,291
ArkansasFort SmithKFSM-TV: 5newsonline.comCh. 5/CBS220,765
ArkansasLittle RockKTHV(TV): thv11.comCh. 11/CBS381,338
CaliforniaSacramentoKXTV(TV): abc10.comCh. 10/ABC1,090,321
CaliforniaSan DiegoKFMB-TV: cbs8.comCh. 8/CBS763,399
ColoradoDenverKTVD(TV): my20denver.comCh. 20/MNTV1,305,610
ColoradoDenverKUSA(TV): 9news.comCh. 9/NBC1,305,610
ConnecticutHartfordWTIC-TV: fox61.comCh. 61/FOX793,076
ConnecticutWaterburyWCCT-TV: yourcwtv.com/partners/hartfordCh. 20/CW793,076
District of ColumbiaWashingtonWUSA(TV): wusa9.comCh. 9/CBS1,997,731
FloridaOrange ParkWJXX(TV): firstcoastnews.comCh. 25/ABC566,106
FloridaJacksonvilleWTLV(TV): firstcoastnews.comCh. 12/NBC566,106
FloridaSt. PetersburgWTSP(TV): wtsp.comCh. 10/CBS1,488,663
GeorgiaAtlantaWATL(TV): 11alive.comCh. 36/MNTV1,864,478
GeorgiaAtlantaWXIA-TV: 11alive.comCh. 11/NBC1,864,478
GeorgiaMaconWMAZ-TV: 13wmaz.comCh. 13/CBS173,003
IdahoBoiseKTVB(TV) (3): ktvb.comCh. 7/NBC209,606
IllinoisMolineWQAD-TV: wqad.comCh. 8/ABC230,224
IndianaIndianapolisWTHR(TV) (4): wthr.comCh. 13/NBC855,704
IowaAmesWOI-DT: weareiowa.comCh. 5/ABC351,180
IowaAmesKCWI-TV: weareiowa.comCh. 23/CW351,180
KentuckyLouisvilleWHAS-TV: whas11.comCh. 11/ABC548,724
LouisianaNew OrleansWWL-TV: wwltv.comCh. 4/CBS517,618
LouisianaSlidellWUPL(TV) (5): wwltv.com/mytvCh. 54/MNTV517,618
MaineBangorWLBZ(TV): newscentermaine.comCh. 2/NBC103,646
MainePortlandWCSH(TV): newscentermaine.comCh. 6/NBC335,060
MichiganGrand RapidsWZZM(TV): wzzm13.comCh. 13/ABC578,681
MinnesotaMinneapolisKARE(TV): kare11.comCh. 11/NBC1,443,128
MissouriSt. LouisKSDK(TV): ksdk.comCh. 5/NBC967,153
New YorkBuffaloWGRZ(TV): wgrz.comCh. 2/NBC534,178
North CarolinaCharlotteWCNC-TV: wcnc.comCh. 36/NBC1,005,790
North CarolinaGreensboroWFMY-TV: wfmynews2.comCh. 2/CBS565,722
OhioClevelandWKYC-TV: wkyc.comCh. 3/NBC1,259,297
OhioColumbusWBNS-TV (6): 10tv.comCh. 10/CBS771,290
OhioToledoWTOL(TV): wtol.comCh. 11/CBS339,238
OregonPortlandKGW(TV) (7): kgw.comCh. 8/NBC907,501
PennsylvaniaScrantonWNEP-TV: wnep.comCh. 16/ABC448,547
PennsylvaniaYorkWPMT(TV): fox43.comCh. 43/FOX624,724
South CarolinaColumbiaWLTX(TV): wltx.comCh. 19/CBS315,679
TennesseeKnoxvilleWBIR-TV: wbir.comCh. 10/NBC416,037
TennesseeMemphisWATN-TV: localmemphis.comCh. 24/ABC513,865
TennesseeMemphisWLMT(TV): localmemphis.comCh. 30/CW513,865
TexasAbileneKXVA(TV): myfoxzone.comCh. 15/FOX76,289
TexasAustinKVUE(TV): kvue.comCh. 24/ABC672,505
TexasBeaumontKBMT(TV) (8): 12newsnow.comCh. 12/ABC120,181
TexasCorpus ChristiKIII-TV: kiiitv.comCh. 3/ABC136,543
TexasDallasWFAA(TV): wfaa.comCh. 8/ABC2,105,541
TexasDecaturKFAA-TV: wfaa.comCh. 29/IND2,105,541
TexasHoustonKHOU(TV): khou.comCh. 11/CBS1,805,453
TexasConroeKTBU(TV): khou.comCh. 55/Quest1,805,453
TexasOdessaKWES-TV: newswest9.comCh. 9/NBC102,838
TexasSan AngeloKIDY(TV): myfoxzone.comCh. 6/FOX41,365
TexasSan AntonioKENS(TV): kens5.comCh. 5/CBS736,825
TexasNacogdochesKYTX(TV): cbs19.tvCh. 19/CBS187,458
TexasTempleKCEN-TV (9): kcentv.comCh. 9/NBC266,049
VirginiaHamptonWVEC(TV) (10): 13newsnow.comCh. 13/ABC582,240
WashingtonSeattleKING-TV: king5.comCh. 5/NBC1,401,819
WashingtonEverettKONG(TV): king5.comCh. 16/IND1,401,819
WashingtonSpokaneKREM(TV): krem.comCh. 2/CBS324,849
WashingtonSpokaneKSKN(TV): spokanescw22.comCh. 22/CW324,849

Watch the Press Conference of 3 Attorneys General Suing to Block the Merger

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Ben Bowman

Ben Bowman is the founder of Streaming Smarter. He's been covering streaming services professionally since 2020 after winning two Emmys as a TV news producer. His favorite streaming services are Plex, Kanopy, and any TV package with NFL RedZone.

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