The FCC has agreed to give key communications unions and advocacy groups a two-week extension on the deadline for comment on the proposed merger of Standard General and Tegna.
The NewsGuild-CWA (TNG-CWA), the National Association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians-CWA (NABET-CWA), Common Cause and United Church of Christ, OC, had sought the extension from the current deadline of Aug. 1.
They said the FCC's 10-day comment window was too short to develop a full record on the deal, which the unions have petitioned to block, and that the deal was sufficiently complicated to require more time to vet (the deal includes station spin-offs to Apollo Global Management). They also told the FCC that the legal counsel for TNG-CWA and NABET-CWA "has had to schedule unavoidable medical treatment."
Also: Unions Try to Block Tegna Deal
Attorneys for Standard General and Tegna have told the FCC that the petitions to deny their merger are both legally irrelevant and factually incorrrect and should be rejected so the deal can go through -- the FCC has to sign off on the transfer of any station licenses.
The FCC said it was in the public interest to give all parties the extra time to have as "complete a record as possible before final consideration of the applications." ▪️
