Gray TV acquiring Schurz

[Eat News 4745]

Who (if anyone) is paying these anchors/producers to produce this newscast?

 

After all that is a pretty important question.

 

You can't tell me these people are volunteering to do this "out of the goodness of their hearts."...

...at something owned by MG?

 

Pass the crazy pills.

[elfuego35 90]

WAGT is owned by Gray. MG is simply seeking to keep the JSA/SSA in force.

 

Based on the FCC approval of Gray's purchase, WAGT must be given up in the incentive auction, and would likely have to happen if Media General (or Nexstar if their purchase of MG is approved) purchases the station as a settlement. It is too early to speculate what would happen if WAGT is sold to a third party who would honor the JSA/SSA

 

Of course, since Gray owns the station, in the event of a loss, they can sabotage the station to make it less appealing to advertisers and viewers by moving NBC programming to WRDW's subchannel, while moving MyTV to WAGT.

[Eat News 4745]

 

Of course, since Gray owns the station, in the event of a loss, they can sabotage the station to make it less appealing to advertisers and viewers.

 

I doubt the courts would find any sabotage tolerable...and advertisers would just plain drag the sales staff out nude, and upside down.

 

It looks like all the parties have clouded up things just enough to have the courts question the past few transactions...and the actual ownership.

No matter what the FCC says....they are not "The Courts".

 

So let these Bozo's fight it out, since they created this jsa/ssa/mma/cia/wtf mess.

[nathannah 2444]

Of course, since Gray owns the station, in the event of a loss, they can sabotage the station to make it less appealing to advertisers and viewers by moving NBC programming to WRDW's subchannel, while moving MyTV to WAGT.

 

And NBC would respond by pulling their affiliation for denigration of the network. WAZE in Evansville ended up the same way; they refused to pay WBTV and CBS for their syndicated product, those two walked away, and the CW bounced the first moment they could because even that network doesn't want to be led in by an eight year-old Judge Hatchett rerun airing via barter.

 

I doubt Gray would want to have two signals poisoned in advertiser appeal, and that CD waste of bandwidth currently carrying Youtoo America is likely already radioactive to advertisers outside the core Augusta area that can't get it over-the-air. Eventually like what happened in Wausau where Fox was moved to an LD by Gray but by the time the NFL season started had to be put on their full power's DT3, NBC will end up on WRDW somehow.

[mvcg66b3r 100]

Schurz is still around. Their sole station is KSPR in Springfield (they bought the station outright from Perkin Media).

Does KSPR intend to keep its ABC affiliation, or is it moving to a subchannel of Gray's KYTV or K15CZ?

[Samantha 2896]

Based on the FCC approval of Gray's purchase, WAGT must be given up in the incentive auction, and would likely have to happen if Media General (or Nexstar if their purchase of MG is approved) purchases the station as a settlement. It is too early to speculate what would happen if WAGT is sold to a third party who would honor the JSA/SSA

 

Of course, since Gray owns the station, in the event of a loss, they can sabotage the station to make it less appealing to advertisers and viewers by moving NBC programming to WRDW's subchannel, while moving MyTV to WAGT.

 

If WAGT does not sell in the incentive auction, it must be put in a divestiture trust, according to the FCC approval of the acquisition:

"Finally, following its acquisition of WAGT, we direct Gray to prepare and file an application to assign the station’s license to an independent divestiture trust, which we will process and grant, in the event that the license is not surrendered in the auction.”

[mvcg66b3r 100]

Eventually like what happened in Wausau where Fox was moved to an LD by Gray but by the time the NFL season started had to be put on their full power's DT3, NBC will end up on WRDW somehow.

 

And WSAW 7.3 is in 4:3 SD, whereas WZAW-LD is in HD.

[Guest NewsHound]

I can confirm that Media General's WAGT is back on the air today. They can't be pulled back off the air fast enough. They're going overboard on the "Here for You" advertisements trying to rub it in that they're back on the air.

 

Apparently they also took out a full page advertisement in the newspaper with the tagline "Guess who's back...."

 

The judge better rule in favor of WRDW, otherwise we're all screwed.

[Thundershock MN 169]

Who (if anyone) is paying these anchors/producers to produce this newscast?

 

After all that is a pretty important question.

 

You can't tell me these people are volunteering to do this "out of the goodness of their hearts."...

...at something owned by MG?

 

Pass the crazy pills.

MG pays the anchors, producers, etc. And, in return Schurz would pay a fee as outlined in the JSA/SSA to MG that would (in theory) offset some of those expenses.

 

Technically if the JSA/SSAs are still in force Gray should be paying the fee Schurz was previously paying to MG. But, somehow I doubt that is happening.

 

Based on the FCC approval of Gray's purchase, WAGT must be given up in the incentive auction, and would likely have to happen if Media General (or Nexstar if their purchase of MG is approved) purchases the station as a settlement. It is too early to speculate what would happen if WAGT is sold to a third party who would honor the JSA/SSA

Raymie already beat me to it. But, the FCC cannot force a station to participate (or, give up their license) in the Incentive Auction. They can force divestures to comply with ownership limits, that is what the FCC did in this case. Gray voluntarily stated they would participate in the auction with regards to the full power license for WAGT. If they don't surrender the full power WAGT license in the auction (or, they change their mind) they would still need to divest the full power license to comply with FCC rules.

 

Of course, since Gray owns the station, in the event of a loss, they can sabotage the station to make it less appealing to advertisers and viewers by moving NBC programming to WRDW's subchannel, while moving MyTV to WAGT.

They can try but, that would not be wise while there is litigation pending.

 

If WAGT does not sell in the incentive auction, it must be put in a divestiture trust, according to the FCC approval of the acquisition:

One important item to add and clarify is that it is the full power license for WAGT that will need to be divested (either via auction or sale.) The station itself does not need to be divested. The station/remaining assets will (eventually) "move" to low power WAGT-CD.

 

I do see that based on the information provided in the article CircleSeven linked to earlier that MG wasn't happy with the (eventual) "move" to WAGT-CD. They can try but, IMO Idon't think they can do much to stop that.

[Guest NewsHound]

Could it be that we could see a legal precedent here that if the FCC gets involved in this, could we see the unraveling of JSA/SSAs across the country who were grandfathered in, just to avoid this from happening again?

[Samantha 2896]

This could end up being the case that addresses the "decoupling" of station licenses and their assets.

[Guest NewsHound]

Could it be that we could see a legal precedent here that if the FCC gets involved in this, could we see the unraveling of JSA/SSAs across the country who were grandfathered in, just to avoid this from happening again?

 

This could end up being the case that addresses the "decoupling" of station licenses and their assets.

 

Great minds think alike!

[Thundershock MN 169]

Could it be that we could see a legal precedent here that if the FCC gets involved in this, could we see the unraveling of JSA/SSAs across the country who were grandfathered in, just to avoid this from happening again?

Hasn't the FCC already made their position known with regards to JSAs?

 

And, any JSAs that were entered into prior to March 31, 2014 are grandfathered until September 30, 2025. That is codified in legislation passed by Congress an signed into law. The only way the FCC can unravel those is by conditioning approval of an assignment or transfer of control application on the unwinding any JSAs

 

This could end up being the case that addresses the "decoupling" of station licenses and their assets.

I'll vote "No" it will not. The JSA/SSAs were made with the licensee (and it's successors) and not necessarily the license itself. And, this situation is a bit unique in that the third party, Media General, isn't some shell organization for either of the other parties.

 

I still stand behind my belief Gray could have avoided (or, significantly helped their case) by asking the FCC to continue the JSA. I honestly question their council.

[mardek1995 200]

It's exactly what the station groups are gunning for.

A " Virtual TV Station"....sans the expensive power hungry transmitter...and the highly regulated license.

 

They are all banking on YOU the viewer following them to the new "platforms".

 

Like little lambs to slaughter...the stations will sell off spectrum for operating cash in a desperate bid to transition legacy viewers to IP based viewing.

Your stupid little phones will rack up data charges...free tv will die.

TV transmitters will shut off...except where required for ebs/eas coverage.

 

TV is killing it's self.

 

I don't know about the slaughtering lambs stuff but I think this may actually be the SMARTEST thing you've ever said.

I beg to differ. TV is already dying thanks to platforms like Netflix and though TV isn't killing itself, it will get hit to the point where it only has an inch of its life left, then it'll die. And about retrans fees... They're a crutch tactic because their greatest weakness is when people stop subscribing to cable and satellite because they have TOO MANY CHANNELS AND THEY'RE ALL BUNDLED!!!

 

Schurz is still around. Their sole station is KSPR in Springfield (they bought the station outright from Perkin Media).

But even that's operated by Gray

 

Hasn't the FCC already made their position known with regards to JSAs?

 

And, any JSAs that were entered into prior to March 31, 2014 are grandfathered until September 30, 2025. That is codified in legislation passed by Congress an signed into law. The only way the FCC can unravel those is by conditioning approval of an assignment or transfer of control application on the unwinding any JSAs

 

 

I'll vote "No" it will not. The JSA/SSAs were made with the licensee (and it's successors) and not necessarily the license itself. And, this situation is a bit unique in that the third party, Media General, isn't some shell organization for either of the other parties.

 

I still stand behind my belief Gray could have avoided (or, significantly helped their case) by asking the FCC to continue the JSA. I honestly question their council.

Now that's the smartest thing you have EVER said. Because even Nexstar asked the FCC to continue the Media General JSAs (even though, as I said at least twice in another post, they already have a lot of JSAs to take advantage of).

[bhratbrat 437]

Well, in reference to the mess that this has become (and yes this has become a mess), in my opinion what this literally hinges on (the injunction and everything else) would be the 30 day notice that Schurz was technically supposed to give to Media General to A) Buy the station or for Gray to B) If there was a clause in the JSA contract with Media General to eventually unwind the JSA. Someone at Gray and/or Schurz did not take a close look at the contracts signed with Media General and here is how I can imagine this going down.

 

A) Judge rules with Media General. Gray will look to either sell the license to a third party and/or will be forced to work with Media General on a way to make this work and/or rework the agreement.

B) Judge rules with Gray. WAGT staff will be given opportunities with other Media General properties or laid off. Gray takes over WAGT as previously planned. There could be some clauses where the Judge will force Gray to produce separate newscasts for WAGT

C) Judge decides that both parties should hammer out an agreement. Media General continues to run WAGT until further notice with an agreement with Gray. This could mean a Sinclair WCIV situation where the non license assets be moved over to a digital subchannel of WJBF and/or WRDW (including network)

D) Judge decides that WAGT must be sold to a party that will involve the condition of running the JSA through 2020. This will highly be unlikely and would be placed in pure speculation.

[tyrannical bastard 3955]

Here's the Augusta Chronicle's take on the battle over WAGT...

 

http://m.chronicle.augusta.com/news/business/2016-03-04/legal-battle-over-wagt-tv-continues#gsc.tab=0

 

 

My thought is that as a settlement, Media General will get to continue to operate NBC 26 on WAGT-CA which they can own outright (being transferred to MG as a settlement), while Gray keeps WAGT-TV and realizes any spectrum auction proceeds. They may have to shut it down or find a third party to operate the station in the interim or should it not be sold at auction....

 

Media General's upcoming sale to Nexstar is another issue. They could step in now since they don't own MG yet and be the third party just as long as the deal is done before they take over Media General...

[mvcg66b3r 100]

FCC Launches Investigation of Media General

 

The agency's deputy general counsel tells a federal court that the probe is to determine whether to subject Media General to a license revocation hearing. The FCC is upset by Media General's attempts in court to block Gray Television from ending the JSA it has with Media General for WAGT Augusta, Ga., and from selling the station in the incentive auction.

 

http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/93012/fcc-launches-investigation-of-media-general

[GoldenShine9 1513]

http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/93012/fcc-launches-investigation-of-media-general

 

One possible solution might be to let Nexstar have control of WJBF, effective immediately, to get MG out of the market and let other parties deal with it.

[Eat News 4745]

The MG lawyers are complete idiots for filing in state court in the first place....except the state judge was so overwhelmed by the complexity of the case ...and the fact that it belongs only in federal court.

 

What is MG thinking??

How will MG defend those actions??

The MG pez brains must have smoked some really bunk stuff.

 

And meanwhile those 2 anchors are the "face" of this whole fiasco...and they don't deserve that....they seem like legit folks.

[tyrannical bastard 3955]

If anything....this investigation will EXPEDITE the transfer of Media General's licenses to Nexstar. It's like the RKO General case times 100 all over again. And just like the financial crisis, Nexstar is waiting in the wings to take over much like the FDIC had banks ready to take over ones that failed.

 

It's the ultimate in hypocrisy as Nexstar has abused these laws way more than Media General and Gray have.....

[Eat News 4745]

I dreamed all three groups got slapped by the FCC and the courts...

 

Then I woke up.

[CircleSeven 1955]

And now the DOJ is involved.....

 

STATEMENT OF INTEREST

 

Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 517, the United States Department of Justice respectfully submits this statement in order to attend to the interests of the United States in this matter.

 

As expressed in the letter from the Federal Communications Commission that is attached to this Statement as Exhibit 1, the United States respectfully informs the Court of the government’s views that the injunctive relief Media General has sought conflicts with the FCC’s action of February 12, 2016, authorizing the assignment of the license of television station WAGT(TV) Augusta, Georgia, and with section 310(d) of the Communications Act, 47 U.S.C. § 310(d).

[Samantha 2896]

And now the DOJ is involved.....

 

It looks like the federal government does not like the court's injunctive finding in favor of Media General...

 

"By seeking and obtaining the injunctive provision forbidding Gray to contribute the WAGT license in the upcoming FCC incentive auction, Media General has also violated Section 310(d) of the Communications Act. That section requires advance approval by the Commission for any assignment or transfer of control of a broadcast license. The Commission has long taken the view that it is a violation of Section 310(d) for a company (here, Media General) to seek injunctive relief that interferes with a licensee’s ultimate control of a station. ... Our submission is solely that federal law and policy preclude Media General’s seeking injunctive relief to require further implementation of the JSA or to deny Gray control of the decision whether to sell the station, in the incentive auction or otherwise. It does not preclude an appropriate damages remedy for any private injury that a court may find to have occurred."

[lugnuts6 91]

FCC is now in this. my question is what if any effect will it have on the Nexstar/MG merger

http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/93012/fcc-launches-investigation-of-media-general

[Samantha 2896]

FCC is now in this. my question is what if any effect will it have on the Nexstar/MG merger

http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/93012/fcc-launches-investigation-of-media-general

 

You can't spell Augusta without "saga"... I mean, license revocation hearings? You almost never hear of that!