Policyband Special Report: Exclusive Interview with Nexstar Chairman and CEO Perry Sook
Sook says local TV stations need regulatory freedom enjoyed by Big Tech and legacy media giants: ‘It’s going to be necessary to have consolidation to survive.'
Introduction: Nexstar Media Group Chairman and CEO Perry Sook is visiting Washington, D.C., this week to meet with policymakers in an effort to gain support for his plan to acquire TEGNA’s 64 TV stations. The $6.2 billion transaction, announced in August, would give the combination a TV household reach of 56.4%, well over the FCC’s 39% cap. Nexstar will need relief from the cap and approval from antitrust enforcers at the Justice Department before the deal can close. Sook said he remains “highly confident that we’re going to get to the finish line with this transaction.” Sook discussed the TEGNA deal and other issues in an interview Monday with Policyband editor Ted Hearn at the Capitol Hill headquarters of The Hill and NewsNation, both Nexstar properties. Following is a transcript that was lightly edited for clarity.
Q: You’re visiting here in Washington, D.C. How long are you here for, and what are you doing?
Sook: Sure. Well, as you well know, we have a transaction pending before both the DOJ and the FCC, so we’re in town to meet with folks connected to that transaction, both on the Hill and at the regulatory agencies, if and when appropriate.
So I’ve been spending a lot of time here just answering questions, advocating for our transaction, talking about why we believe it to be in the public interest and to make sure that we continue to push forward here as we go through the regulatory process.
Q: Can you say who you’re seeing and disclose some of the nitty gritty?
Sook: Well, we’re seeing folks on the Hill, and we’ll continue to see folks on the Hill.
Q: Energy and Commerce, Judiciary – Can you break it down in terms of committees?
Sook: I don’t think we would be name specific but it’s any committees with oversight that could potentially ... weigh in on the transaction. And I think we meet with folks that are on those committees, and certainly folks in leadership with those committees.
And so I think this is my 10th or 11th day in D.C., in the last six months, and so, these meetings are fairly routine, but as one committee member suggested to me, ‘Don’t file your paperwork and go away. Continue to advocate on behalf of your transaction,’ and that’s exactly what we’re doing.
Q: Have you been to the Justice Department on this trip?
Sook: Uh, no.
Q: Are you going over to the FCC?
Sook: Probably not, given the pendency of the hearing on Wednesday. (More after paywall.)
