> Your assessment that the Malara/Granite deals "squeeked"
> through the FCC is false. Despite the bluster from Hubbard
> in Duluth, the arrangement went through quite easily. Even
> the folks at Hubbard knew they had little chance at
> scuttling the deal.
>
> The failing station theory would only apply if Granite
> wanted to buy WICZ. Because Granite and Malara are
> completely separate entities, the two are considered
> separate voices. Take a look at Casper Wyoming. Every
> television station except the NBC affiliate is run out of
> the same building by the same people even though they are
> licensed to separate entities.
>
> Unless the FCC is going to reverse every decision it made
> with Nexstar and Mission, Malara would have no problem
> acquiring WICZ.
Sadly, you're probably right.
There are a few factors that could still make Binghamton a little harder to pull off than Duluth and Fort Wayne, though. The FCC would have to approve joint control of 2 of 3 commercial stations in Binghamton, versus 2 of 4 in the other markets (never mind that in both cases, the fourth station is an also-ran Fox with minimal local presence.)
There's also the politics behind it. It's one thing to tussle with Hubbard in Duluth or LIN in Fort Wayne, and I agree with you that the Hubbard opposition was more bluster than substance. In Binghamton, though, the ox that would be gored is Clear Channel's, and their lobbyists are a few cuts above whatever Hubbard or LIN can muster.
Having family in Fort Wayne, I saw firsthand the lack of local political outcry about the deal, which was no great surprise - with no track record to point to, there was no reason for the local politicos not to believe the spin that Granite put on the deal. By the time the locals figured out what was really happening, it was too late.
Binghamton could be different. There's now ample, and ugly, evidence of how bad the Granite/Malara deals were for news staffs - and, by extension, viewers - in Fort Wayne and Duluth, and no reason to think things would be any different in Binghamton. Maurice Hinchey's a loud enough voice in Congress to make some noise about the deal, if the locals press him to do so, and just imagine what a Governor Spitzer might say about it.
Of course, the saving grace here for Granite could be the lowly position of WICZ in the market. It's hardly a competitive operation as it is, and folding its lone half-hour nightly newscast into the WBNG fold wouldn't be as traumatic as the loss of WISE or KDLH were. There's even the valid argument to be made that a 10 PM standalone Fox newscast couldn't survive in much larger Syracuse, Buffalo or Rochester.
I suspect that the real argument to be made against a WBNG/WICZ deal would come not from the loss of a news voice but from the advertisers' perspective, since it would leave just two companies selling all the broadcast TV spot time in town.
It's also worth observing that there's presently a massive disconnect between the FCC's TV policy, as expressed in the Malara/Granite decisions, and its radio policy. In the radio arena, the Malara stations would be counted against Granite's ownership caps. If the FCC ever issues a coherent revision of its overall newspaper-radio-TV ownership rules, this inconsistency would have to be addressed somehow.
And depending on who ends up in the White House in 2008 (and controlling Congress this fall), this could all change again, anyway. <P ID="signature">______________
Tower Site Calendar
2006 JUST RELEASED! - <a target="_blank" href=http://www.fybush.com/nerw.html#calendar>www.fybush.com</a></P>
</P>