Media Monopoly in Motion: How Two Firms Management a Quarter of America’s TV

Nexstar and Sinclair’s refusal to air Jimmy Kimmel exposes the hidden energy construction behind your native information—and why it issues greater than you suppose

When Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group announced they wouldn’t air Jimmy Kimmel’s return, most Individuals most likely shrugged. However this seemingly easy programming choice reveals one thing way more troubling: how simply two corporations can management what tens of millions see—or do not see—on tv.

Collectively, these media giants function over 66 ABC affiliate stations, reaching approximately 25% of American TV households. That is roughly 32 million houses instantly minimize off from a serious community’s programming based mostly on company selections made a whole lot of miles away.

Who Are These Media Titans?

Nexstar Media Group: The Largest Participant You’ve got By no means Heard Of

Nexstar operates 28 ABC affiliates among its 200+ stations across 116 U.S. markets, making it America’s largest native TV station proprietor. Primarily based in Irving, Texas, this $5.4 billion firm owns or operates extra stations than every other broadcaster within the nation.

The corporate’s attain extends past native information. Nexstar owns:

• The CW community
• NewsNation cable channel
• Practically one-third of the Meals Community
• The Hill political web site

However this is what ought to concern each American: Nexstar has a pending $6.2 billion deal to acquire Tegna, which might push the mixed firm over present federal possession limits. This merger would require the FCC to alter guidelines designed to stop media monopolization.

Sinclair Broadcast Group: The Conservative Powerhouse

Hunt Valley, Maryland-based Sinclair operates 38 local ABC affiliates among its 178 TV stations across 81 markets. The corporate reaches practically 40% of U.S. households and owns Tennis Channel.

Sinclair made headlines in 2018 when a viral video showed dozens of its news anchors reading identical conservative-leaning statements about “irresponsible, one-sided information tales plaguing the nation”—with out disclosing the corporate mandated these scripts.

The Hidden Energy of Native TV Possession

Monetary Muscle Behind the Monopoly

These aren’t struggling native companies—they’re media behemoths. Nexstar generated $5.4 billion in revenue for 2024, with 54% coming from retransmission fees. Sinclair pulled in $3.1 billion, with related retransmission income making up over half its revenue.

This cash comes from cable and satellite tv for pc corporations paying to hold these stations—charges finally handed to customers. When a handful of corporations management a whole lot of stations, they wield monumental leverage in these negotiations.

Regulatory Seize in Actual Time

The timing of Nexstar’s Kimmel choice raises critical issues about regulatory seize. Hours after FCC Chairman Brendan Carr criticized Kimmel on a podcast, suggesting the agency might take action against ABC, Nexstar announced it would preempt the show.

As one broadcast insider instructed Selection: “The FCC sort of pinpointing explicit packages to cancel is regarding to individuals who advocate for tv to be a discussion board totally free dialogue and debate.”

The Actual Price of Media Consolidation

Native Information Will get Corporatized

College of Delaware professor Danilo Yanich’s analysis reveals Nexstar is the “biggest duplicator” of news content today, with stations duplicating broadcasts greater than different affiliate house owners. This implies fewer distinctive native views and extra corporate-mandated messaging.

Think about what occurs when an organization like Sinclair, with documented conservative editorial positions, owns 38 ABC stations. Native information selections get made in company boardrooms, not neighborhood newsrooms.

Programming Management Goes Nationwide

The Kimmel scenario demonstrates how a number of executives can override community programming selections. ABC announced Kimmel’s return Monday, but Sinclair immediately said it would continue preempting the show with news programming.

This is not nearly one late-night host. It is about whether or not native communities or distant company workplaces determine what Individuals can watch.

The Broader Media Panorama

Streaming Adjustments the Recreation

Conventional broadcast tv faces unprecedented challenges. Jimmy Kimmel Live! averaged 1.77 million viewers in the second quarter of 2024, down considerably from its peak years.

However as viewership declines, the facility of station house owners truly will increase. With fewer eyeballs to go round, controlling distribution turns into extra beneficial, not much less.

The FCC’s Function in Media Democracy

Present FCC guidelines restrict any single firm from proudly owning stations reaching greater than 39% of U.S. households. These guidelines exist to stop precisely what we’re seeing—a handful of corporations controlling what Individuals can watch.

But both Nexstar and Sinclair are pushing hard for the FCC to abolish or significantly raise this ownership cap. Their favorable therapy by the present FCC chairman suggests these efforts could succeed.

What This Means for Democracy

Data Gatekeeping

When two corporations can successfully silence a community tv present reaching tens of millions, they are not simply making programming selections—they’re controlling data circulation. Media studies professor Susan Campbell notes: “The state beneath Donald Trump has amassed a chilling file of proscribing speech, extorting personal corporations and dropping the total weight of the federal government censorship hammer on First Modification rights.”

Financial Leverage Equals Political Energy

Disney’s stock fell 2.39% (worth $4.99 billion) between Kimmel’s suspension and reinstatement, displaying how affiliate strain can transfer markets. When station teams may cause billions in losses to media corporations, they wield energy far past their official position.

Combating Again Towards Media Monopolization

Client Energy Nonetheless Issues

The public backlash against Disney’s decision was swift and financial. Customers canceled streaming subscriptions utilizing hashtags like #CancelDisney and #CancelABC, finally pressuring the corporate to reverse course.

Regulatory Motion Wanted

Relatively than weakening possession guidelines, the FCC ought to strengthen them. Present occasions show that concentrated media possession threatens each native journalism and nationwide programming variety.

Congress also needs to examine whether or not station teams are coordinating programming selections to maximise political affect fairly than serve native communities.

The Path Ahead

The Kimmel controversy is not actually about late-night tv—it is about who controls American media and whether or not residents or firms make these selections. When Nexstar and Sinclair together control more than 20% of ABC’s local affiliates, they are not simply broadcasters anymore. They’re data gatekeepers with the facility to form nationwide conversations.

Individuals deserve media variety, not company consolidation masquerading as native selection. The query is not whether or not Nexstar and Sinclair have the authorized proper to preempt programming—it is whether or not a wholesome democracy can survive when a handful of corporations management a lot of what we see and listen to.

The subsequent time you watch your native information or flip via broadcast channels, keep in mind: you are not simply consuming leisure. You are taking part in a media ecosystem the place a number of company selections in distant boardrooms can silence voices reaching tens of millions of Individuals.

What are you able to do? Contact your representatives about media possession guidelines. Help native impartial journalism. And take note of who owns your native stations—as a result of within the age of media consolidation, your proper to data is determined by it.