States sue over proposed Nexstar media merger

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (CN) — Several states have filed suit against two media giants in an attempt to stop a proposed merger they claim would raise prices and hurt consumers.

The attorneys general of the eight states argue in their suit that Nexstar Media Group’s planned acquisition of Tegna Inc. would create the biggest broadcast station organization in the nation covering 80% of U.S. television households. That would place more programming in fewer hands, pulling control from the communities they report on while slashing local jobs and damaging media content.

The attorneys general in the suit, filed in the U.S. District for the Eastern District of California, ask a judge to stop the planned merger.

“This merger is illegal, plain and simple, running contrary to federal antitrust laws that protect consumers," California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a Wednesday statement. “When broadcast media is owned by a handful of companies, we get fewer voices, less competition, and communities lose the critical check on power that local journalism delivers.”

The states involved in the suit say that the planned merger violates the Clayton Act, which forbids consolidations that lessen competition or create monopolies.

They add that the Federal Communications Commission has the responsibility to stop the proposed deal. The $6.2 billion merger would violate an FCC rule, the plaintiffs say.

The attorneys general argue the deal would create massive increases in the concentration of several geographic markets — a move that exceeds a legal line for presumptive illegality.

“However, on Feb. 7, 2026, President Trump tweeted ‘Get that deal done!,’ saying that the two companies should be allowed to merge in order to ‘Knock out the Fake News’ from the ‘Fake News National TV Networks,’” the attorneys general said in a statement. “FCC Chairman Brendan Carr immediately responded on social media: ‘Let’s get it done.’”

According to Bonta, the Trump administration is focused on corporate interests instead of upholding consumer protections and antitrust laws. Bonta called antitrust enforcement a key aspect of a healthy economy, as competitive marketplaces hinge on fair prices for goods and services.

The Nexstar-Tegna merger would increase market concentration, likely hurting competition. It also would remove the two companies as competitors to each other, another impact that’s unlawful, the attorneys general say.

Nexstar is known for consolidating newsrooms in areas where it owns more than one station. Eliminating jobs is a large part of the cost savings it receives from consolidation, they add.

“Indeed, this anticipated consolidation is central to Nexstar’s plan: In its August 2025 presentation to investors regarding the planned acquisition of Tegna, Nexstar highlighted the cost savings associated with shrinking news operations as a source of efficiencies in the deal,” the attorneys general say.

Fewer newsrooms will mean less local news and more centralized programs. It also will lead to fewer diverse viewpoints, they add.

The attorneys general also say Nexstar’s emphasis on profits has led its station managers to forego local news programs in favor of regional or national programming, which hurts the quality of local news.

Bonta said in his state, Nexstar would own half of what he called the Big Four: Fox, NBC, ABC and CBS network-affiliated stations. He pointed to news reports about television anchors and meteorologists already losing their jobs in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York as the potential merger loomed.

The eight states suing over the merger are California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, New York, North Carolina, Oregon and Virginia.

Nexstar and Tegna representatives couldn’t be reached for comment.