May 26 (Reuters) – Broadcaster Tegna appointed Fox Stations veteran Patrick Paolini as CEO on Tuesday, as it attempts to resolve a court order blocking a $6.2 billion merger with rival Nexstar.
Paolini brings more than three decades of local broadcast leadership experience to Tegna, joining from Fox Television Stations, where he has led advertising sales as executive vice president since 2023.
Here are some details:
• Paolini will take over as CEO on June 1. He will be responsible for daily operations and local news production and report to Tegna’s board of directors.
• Previously, he managed Fox’s local TV stations in Washington, D.C. — WTTG FOX 5 and WDCA FOX 5 Plus.
• “He brings deep expertise in the broadcast television industry, major-market station management, and high-quality local news, along with a proven track record of driving revenue growth across linear and digital platforms,” Tegna’s board of directors said.
• Paolini will take over from Mike Steib, who has previously served as CEO of online art marketplace Artsy and digital media company XO Group.
• Last week, Nexstar asked a U.S. appeals court to fast-track a review of a lower-court order blocking its merger with Tegna, saying the delay has cost it tens of millions of dollars it cannot recover.
• Tegna operates 64 local television stations in 51 U.S. markets, and its merger with Nexstar would create the largest broadcast station group, reaching 80% of American households.
(Reporting by Anhata Rooprai in Bengaluru; Editing by Sahal Muhammed)
