Attorney General Phil Weiser files emergency motion to block Nexstar/Tegna broadcast merger

March 20, 2026 (DENVER) – Attorney General Phil Weiser and seven other attorneys general today filed a motion for a temporary restraining order to stop the merger of Tegna Inc. and Nexstar Media Group, Inc., after the broadcasting giants received merger approval from the Federal Communications Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice. Tegna owns 9News and Nexstar owns Fox 31 in Denver.

On Wednesday night, Attorney General Weiser filed a lawsuit to block the merger, a deal that is expected to create the largest broadcast station group in the United States, put more broadcast programming in the hands of fewer people, cut local jobs, increase cable and satellite bills, and significantly impact the delivery of news and other media content to Americans nationwide.

“The federal government’s approval of the Nexstar/Tegna merger indicates the fix was in. The Justice Department and the FCC have failed to give this merger the thorough review it requires—and disregarded established standards in the process. Thankfully, state AGs are ready and committed to enforcing the law and protecting consumers. That’s why we are asking the court to temporarily block the merger to allow the judge the time and ability to fairly evaluate this proposed merger on the merits,” said Attorney General Weiser. “In short, this merger between the parent companies of 9News and Fox 31 is bad for local news and the sharing of diverse viewpoints, bad for consumers, bad for jobs, and bad for democracy.”

If approved, this multibillion-dollar deal would combine the nation’s largest and third-largest television-station conglomerates, creating a titan covering 80% of U.S. television households. In Denver, the merger would create a dominant local broadcast station, with over 57% of the market in the hands of a single company, making the merger presumptively illegal under established antitrust standards.

Read the motion for temporary restraining order in the Nexstar/Tegna merger case (PDF).

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Media Contact:
Lawrence Pacheco
Chief Communications Officer
(720) 508-6553 office
lawrence.pacheco@coag.gov