State Attorneys General and Corporate Power

Attorneys general from California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, New York, North Carolina, Oregon and Virginia have filed a federal antitrust lawsuit to block Nexstar’s proposed $6.2 billion acquisition of Tegna, a deal that would create by far the largest local television broadcaster in the U.S. The complaint argues the merger would violate the Clayton Antitrust Act by further consolidating already concentrated markets, raising fees, and "eliminating independent news operations" in ways that reduce viewpoint diversity and weaken local oversight of government and business. The case also challenges the Federal Communications Commission’s deregulation push, because the transaction can only proceed if the FCC effectively lifts or works around the long‑standing cap that bars any broadcaster from reaching more than 39% of U.S. TV households. FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr has already signaled support for loosening that limit and for the merger, backed by the National Association of Broadcasters, while Nexstar and Tegna say size is needed to "preserve local news" but did not immediately comment on the suit. President Trump has publicly endorsed the deal as a way to bolster competition against what he calls "Fake News National TV Networks" even as he has criticized lifting the ownership cap, underscoring the political crosscurrents around concentrated media power and who ends up controlling Americans’ local newsrooms.