CWA Files Lawsuit Against FCC Over Media Control

On March 23, CWA joined with Free Press; the United Church of Christ Media Justice Ministry, Inc., and Public Knowledge in a lawsuit against the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) over its decision to allow the acquisition of media company Tegna, Inc. by Nexstar Media Group. The merger gives Nexstar control of local news stations reaching more than 80 percent of U.S. TV households, in direct violation of a congressional mandate that caps the national reach of any single company at 39 percent.

“Our members have seen time and time again what happens when corporations are allowed to consolidate media ownership,” said NABET-CWA President Charlie Braico. “In the service of Wall Street profits, newsrooms shrink, workers lose jobs, wages decline, and local news suffers. Communities rely on quality local news for information on emergencies, weather—and maybe most importantly, as a democratic check on political leaders. When we starve our newsrooms, we weaken our local communities and our democracy. This merger doesn’t comply with the law—and it will create an unprecedented shift in this country and dramatically change local television stations for the worse.”

CWA and our allies in the lawsuit are represented by Democracy Forward.

Click here to read the full press release.

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This post originally appeared on cwa-union.org.