Commentator and entrepreneur
Armstrong Williams said Monday that there is "no doubt" that he plans to buy WMMP-TV in Charleston, S.C., his home state, from Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. Allbritton Communications announced Monday it has agreed to sell its seven television stations to Sinclair for $985 million.
Williams' good relations with Sinclair are paying off. In February,
Williams and Sinclair announced that Sinclair would sell two other television stations to Williams' company, Howard Stirk Holdings. Those deals are making their way through the government approval process, Williams said.
David D. Smith, president and CEO of Sinclair, told Journal-isms in February that he and Williams had long worked together and that Sinclair was looking to expand its relationship with him. "I've always admired his ability to stick his neck out there and call people . . . for what they're doing. We're big believers in advocacy journalism, and he fits that mode. He was the first one I called" when the ownership possibility arose, Smith said.
Smith told Journal-isms by telephone on Tuesday, "Nothing's changed in that regard," but said he could not discuss specific transactions. Asked whether Williams remained "the first one I called" when the new deal arose, Smith said, "Yes."
Williams, who is African American, is securing a toehold where few other blacks are. African American television station ownership dropped from 12 stations in 2009 to 10 in 2011, or less than 1 percent of the nation's 1,348 full-power television stations, the Federal Communications Commission said in November.
The nearly billion-dollar deal announced Monday "
is the latest in a series of big media acquisitions to pounce on the increasing value of broadcast television properties,"
Thomas Heath and
Debbi Wilgoren reported for the Washington Post.
They added, "The Tribune Co. this month agreed to purchase 19 stations from Local TV Holdings for $2.7 billion. In June, Gannett agreed to purchase 20 stations from Belo as part of a $2.2 billion deal.
"Allbritton Communications is a family-owned business that initially focused on real estate and banking and later expanded to include ABC affiliates in the Washington metropolitan area; Roanoke/Lynchburg, Va.; Harrisburg, Pa; Little Rock; Birmingham/Tuscaloosa/Anniston, Ala.; Tulsa; and Charleston, S.C.
In a conference call with reporters Tuesday, Smith made clear that Allbritton's holdings in Washington were the prime attraction. He said he planned to take its local cable channel national. "Being in Washington, D.C., and having 24-hour access to all politicians at all levels is a huge opportunity for us to capitalize on," he said.
"
Everyone in the bidding for Allbritton -- and the group was attractive to a lot of broadcasters -- was willing to pay some sort of Washington premium, a bit extra for the influence and prestige (not to mention lots of nonstop political spending) of owning a station in the DC DMA,"
Mike Malone wrote Monday for Broadcasting & Cable. "(WJLA is more than just a DC station -- it's a strong No. 2 behind WRC in DMA No. 8.)
"Headquartered in Baltimore, Sinclair CEO David Smith alluded to the allure of a DC station in today's announcement. 'To buy a full-blown news operation in our nation's capital and an infrastructure that allows us to be connected to our branches of government and be at the pulse of national issues is a once-in-a lifetime event,' he said.
"Smith continued to note that Sinclair is 'especially excited' to acquire the NewsChannel 8 cable channel, also in Washington. Smith called it 'the perfect platform should we decide to expand it into other markets.'
"Not included in the deal: Allbritton's Politico website and newspaper.
"Sinclair's conservative leanings have been painstakingly divulged and dissected in the media, and the thought of the rapidly growing super-group having a soap box and bullhorn in our nation's capital is sure to give the media watchdog groups a serious case of agita."
In addition to WMMP-TV, Williams said he might want to buy WHP-TV in Harrisburg, Pa., another Sinclair station.
Sinclair is acquiring Allbritton stations in Charleston, Harrisburg and Birmingham, Ala., markets where Sinclair already owns stations. It plans to divest itself of one station in each of those markets to comply with FCC ownership rules.
The mergers are having an effect on newsrooms. The Radio Television Digital News Association reported this month, "
We're now losing TV newsrooms at the fairly steady rate of eight per year," as "quite a few TV newsrooms have been subsumed in some sort of consolidation or shared services agreement." Advocates of consolidation say they are necessary to keep the companies in business.
Craig Aaron, president and CEO of Free Press, an advocacy group opposed to media consolidation, said in a statement Monday, "The rapid expansion of Sinclair Broadcast Group -- which is poised to double the number of stations it controls nationwide --
is unwelcome news for local TV viewers. The company's cookie-cutter approach to local news and repeated use of the airwaves to push a partisan agenda are well known. And the idea that one company should be allowed to control so many stations in so many markets is simply outrageous. What will it take for the FCC to wake up? . . ."
[Updated July 30]
