On Thursday, August 7, Gray Media announced that they intend to buy 10 regional TV stations from Allen Media Broadcasting, pending federal approval, to create seven duopolies.

Read the press release for yourself here

It would create a Duopoly, because Gray Media owns WAFF (48) Huntsville’s NBC affiliate. They are looking to acquire WAAY (31) Huntsville’s ABC affiliate, which is currently owned by Allen Media. 

Although this sale must be approved and regulated by the Federal Communications Commission, creating duopolies is now easier than ever under President Trump’s second administration. 
Read more on deregulation here

Although they have not made clear that this is their plan, if Gray Media acquires WAAY, they could consolidate the news department at one or both stations or form a merger to produce local news. Meaning that although both stations would exist to air national programming, (NBC on 48 and ABC on 31) there would only be one news product airing on both stations. 

Similarly, Nexstar Media, who own WHNT (19) Huntsville’s CBS affiliate, is looking to acquire all of the stations owned by TEGNA, including Huntsville’s WZDX (54), a FOX network affiliate. 
Read more here

Nexstar has not made an announcement about purchasing TEGNA, but many believe it’s coming in the near future.

Federal approval of the Allen Media and Gray Media sale would also set a precedent for the Nexstar and TEGNA sale to take place. 

If both of these sales finalize, it opens the door for Huntsville to only truly have two news sources airing on four stations. Not only will jobs be lost, but citizens will only have the perspective of two rivaling organizations when it comes to investigating and informing the public of local issues and weather. 

As a Huntsville resident, I know some people will see this petition and say “oh, no one watches 31 or 54.” That isn’t the point.

This isn’t a partisan issue or a matter of preference, it’s a matter of free speech and democracy. The issue at hand is the people of North Alabama and Southern Tennessee deserve fair, thorough and accurate representation through media coverage, written and produced by journalists of various backgrounds. If only two sources are reporting, things will slip through the cracks. The people of North Alabama and Southern Tennessee deserve the choice of who to watch when it comes to matters affecting their safety, health, family and community. 

By signing this petition, you’re telling the FCC, Gray Media and Nexstar Television that you want more than two options for local news coverage as the area continues to grow. As the Trump administration considers moving Space Command to Huntsville, moving more FBI agents to Huntsville, it’s more crucial than ever that the people in this community have options on where to get their news.

Earlier this year, Allen Media announced they would be laying off their meteorologists and doing all weather out of The Weather Channel in Atlanta. The backlash from the Huntsville market alone was widespread enough that they reversed the decision and WAAY retained their meteorologists. Your voice can make a different in local media. 

The State of Local News and Why it Matters