Sinclair Offers Seven Dollars Per Share, Moves to Acquire Scripps

Sinclair Broadcast Group on Monday submitted an unsolicited proposal to acquire all outstanding shares of E.W. Scripps for seven dollars per share, the companies said, offering a combination of cash and stock and giving Scripps shareholders roughly a 12.7 percent stake in the combined company if the transaction is accepted. Sinclair already holds nearly 10 percent of Scripps Class A stock, and it gave Scripps until Dec. 5 to respond.

The approach follows a wave of consolidation in U.S. local television and, if pursued, would require regulatory approval from federal agencies, adding uncertainty to the path forward. Sinclair framed the move as a way to strengthen local journalism and to better position the combined company amid competitive pressures from streaming, national content platforms and changing advertising markets.

Scripps said its board will evaluate the proposal. The offer is unsolicited, which leaves open multiple outcomes including a negotiated deal, a rejection, a higher competing bid or expanded talks that could include changes in the cash and stock split. The 11 day window between the Nov. 24 proposal and the Dec. 5 deadline compresses the timeline for Scripps directors to assemble fairness analyses, solicit external valuation advice and weigh antitrust and regulatory exposure.

Economically, the bid highlights the calculus driving consolidation in local media. Broadcasters face secular declines in traditional cable carriage and local advertising revenues alongside rising costs for content and distribution. Economies of scale can improve bargaining power with advertisers and pay television distributors and can spread fixed costs across a larger footprint, but they also invite scrutiny over market concentration. Any merger of major station groups would face review by the Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission, which assess competitive effects, localism and diversity of voices.

The proposal arrives in the same strategic environment that produced previous major deals, notably the acquisition of Tegna by Nexstar, and points to further industry restructuring as companies seek scale to invest in digital operations and to sustain local newsrooms. For Scripps shareholders, the tender price is a concrete valuation metric, and the offered post transaction equity stake signals Sinclair’s intention to fold Scripps into a larger operational platform rather than to pay solely in cash.

Market participants and regulators will watch three things closely in the coming weeks. First, whether Scripps’s board solicits higher bids or engages with Sinclair on revised terms. Second, the degree to which regulators view the tie up as likely to lessen competition in particular local markets. Third, how advertisers and distributors respond to increasing concentration among station owners, which could reshape pricing for retransmission fees and local ad inventories.

A rapid decision by Scripps is unlikely to end all uncertainty. Even a board acceptance would trigger a prolonged regulatory review, leaving the ultimate outcome dependent on both market dynamics and public policy determinations about the future structure of local broadcast media.