KFOR bought by Tribune

[Pete]

Had not seen this mentioned and thought it was notable:

Tribune Co. buys 19 television stations in $2.7-billion deal - latimes.com


By Meg James
July 1, 2013, 4:00 a.m.
Tribune Co. has agreed to purchase 19 television stations owned by Local TV Holdings in a $2.73-billion deal that is expected to make Tribune the largest television station group in the country.

Tribune and Local TV Holdings said early Monday that they had entered into a definitive agreement for Tribune to acquire all of Local TV's television stations in a cash transaction. Local TV's stations are located in 16 markets, including Denver, Salt Lake City, Cleveland and Kansas City.

The deal would give Tribune 42 television stations, up from 23 stations. The company will become the largest affiliated station group for Fox Broadcasting, owned by 21st Century Fox, with 14 Fox stations. Tribune also would own 14 stations carrying programming of the CW network, a joint venture between CBS Corp. and Warner Bros.

"This is a transformational acquisition for Tribune -- it makes us the No. 1 local TV affiliate group in America, expands the distribution platform for our high-quality video content and extends the reach of our digital products to new audiences across the country," Tribune Chief Executive Peter Liguori said in a statement.

Tribune also would have five CBS affiliates, three ABC affiliates and two NBC stations. The company would own 14 stations in the nation's top 20 markets. The deal would benefit the company by increasing its footprint in such important political battleground states as Ohio, Virginia, Colorado and Pennsylvania. In past election years, stations in pivotal states have attracted a wealth of campaign spending.

Local TV, which is based in Newport, Ky., was formed five years ago with the purchase of nine stations previously owned by the New York Times Co. The firm, principally owned by private equity firm Oak Hill Capital Partners, continued adding stations to its portfolio.

The boards of both Tribune and Local TV approved the transaction, which is expected to close by the end of 2013 and will be subject to Federal Communications Commission approvals and an antitrust review.

The acquisition is the first major purchase for Chicago-based Tribune since it emerged from bankruptcy protection Dec. 31. It advances the company's mission to focus heavily on local news, which investors believe has opportunities for growth.

[venture]

Interesting deal. It'll be something to watch how they invest in KFOR.

[MikeLucky]

Maybe THIS is the event that FINALLY puts me and Emily Sutton together... I have no idea why this would do it, but I want to be with Emily Sutton.

[Stew]

Maybe THIS is the event that FINALLY puts me and Emily Sutton together... I have no idea why this would do it, but I want to be with Emily Sutton.

Back off man, she's mine.

[okcboomer]

Interesting...... Emily does nothing for me.

[MWCGuy]

KFOR has so much potential if they could just stay away from the bubba news stories.

It will be a good change I always got a kick at how much fun they have on the air at WGN.