ARLINGTON, VA — On Friday, February 24, the Media Bureau at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) designated two questions related to the deal to an Administrative Law Judge, extending an already unprecedented regulatory review process that would effectively terminate the deal. Steve Pociask, president of The American Consumer Institute, issued the following statement to the FCC regarding the proposed transaction between Standard General and TEGNA:

The world of media is constantly changing, but consumers and communities across the county still need local broadcast news. The new Standard General-Tegna combination would reinvigorate broadcasting, add programming diversity and strengthen a much-needed resource for consumers in their local communities. The Standard General-TEGNA transaction has dragged on for more than 300 days. Similar transactions were approved recently in as short as 62 days (Scripps-ION), 168 days (Gray-Quincy), and 185 (Gray-Meredith).

Prolonged review can harm the public in delayed investment and innovation. As we have previously stated, the Standard General-TEGNA transaction is important because of its promise to reinvigorate local news across the U.S. and it deserves a vote at the Commissioner level. We urge the FCC to move ahead as soon as possible and formally vote on the proposed transaction between Standard General and TEGNA.

Email [email protected] to set up a conversation with Steve Pociask, president of ACI. Discover our comments filed with the FCC regarding this merger, as well Steve’s op-ed explaining its potential consumer benefits.

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