RSF - Reporters sans frontières

03/20/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 03/20/2026 13:54

USA: Nexstar-Tegna merger a disaster for press freedom

On March 19, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the US broadcast regulator, up-ended a rule meant to prevent media monopolies in order to approve a merger between media conglomerates Nexstar and Tegna, two of the largest owners of American television stations. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) warns that this merger, which has already drawn challenges from individual states, is a disaster for American press freedom.

In order to approve this deal, the FCC waived its own rulethat ensures no one station group can reach more than 39% of US households. The newly formed company would reach more than double that number. Deregulation of media ownership has been a priorityfor President Donald Trump's FCC chairman Brendan Carr, who implicitly linked approval of this deal to his own threats against the media when he encouragedstation owners like Nexstar to boycott late-night host Jimmy Kimmel, effectively coercing the media to self-censor in exchange for a favorable outcome.

"The Trump administration's deregulation of media ownership will have swift and dire consequences for American journalism and for every American's access to reliable news. We know from experience, from data, and from common sense that these massive media mergers lead to journalism job losses and fewer options for news consumers. The new Nexstar-Tegna mega corporation will also exacerbate the local news crisis by further consolidating control of local news stations into the hands of a few national corporations that have been eager in the past to dictate ideologically-tinged content to their local stations. The only winners in this deal are the boards of directors of these two companies and Trump himself. Ordinary Americans who just want reliable local news will lose out."

Clayton Weimers
Executive Director, RSF North America

The new Nexstar-Tegna merged company would own 256 television stations around the country, including local affiliates of ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC, reaching over 80% of US households.

Published on20.03.2026
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