{"id":1713611,"date":"2022-10-27T12:19:16","date_gmt":"2022-10-27T16:19:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1713611"},"modified":"2022-10-27T13:37:57","modified_gmt":"2022-10-27T17:37:57","slug":"pelosi-voiced-concerns-over-media-merger-after-taking-donations-from-mogul-who-is-against-deal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pelosi-voiced-concerns-over-media-merger-after-taking-donations-from-mogul-who-is-against-deal\/","title":{"rendered":"Pelosi Voiced Concerns Over Media Merger After Taking Donations From Mogul Who Is Against Deal"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fpelosi-voiced-concerns-over-media-merger-after-taking-donations-from-mogul-who-is-against-deal%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1713611&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div class=\"RichTextArticleBody\">\n<div class=\"RichTextArticleBody-body\">\n<div class=\"Enhancement\">\n<div class=\"Enhancement-item\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/nancy-pelosi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">House Speaker Nancy Pelosi<\/a> (<span class=\"ArticlePage-articleBody-firstLetter\">D<\/span>-CA) raised concerns over a proposed <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/business\">business<\/a> merger on the heels of her campaign and two Pelosi-affiliated political action committees raking in hundreds of thousands in donations from a businessman who wants the deal quashed, records show. <\/p>\n<p>Pelosi&#8217;s campaign, as well as her leadership PAC and joint fundraising committee, took over $271,000 <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fec.gov\/data\/receipts\/individual-contributions\/?committee_id=C00213512&#038;committee_id=C00344234&#038;committee_id=C00492421&#038;contributor_name=Byron+Allen\">combined<\/a> between October and December 2021 from Byron Allen, the owner of several <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/cable-news\">cable<\/a> TV networks who is aiming to buy the broadcasting company <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tegna.com\/brands\/\">Tegna<\/a>, which is selling its 64 local <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/tv\">TV<\/a> stations. Allen raised $10 million for his Tegna bid to compete with the investment firms Apollo Global Management and Standard General, <i>Reuters<\/i> <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/business\/media-telecom\/media-mogul-byron-allen-raises-10-billion-tegna-bid-debt-refinancing-sources-2021-11-05\/\">reported<\/a> in November 2021. <\/p>\n<p>Standard General <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/patch.com\/ohio\/cleveland\/wkyc-parent-company-sold-investment-firm-5-6-billion\">cut<\/a> a $5.6 billion deal with Tegna in February to purchase the company. But earlier this month, on Oct. 6, Pelosi and Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ) raised &#8220;serious concerns&#8221; that the deal could restrict &#8220;local news coverage,&#8221; cut jobs, and raise consumer prices in a <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.speaker.gov\/sites\/speaker.house.gov\/files\/Pelosi%20Pallone%20Letter%20to%20FCC%20on%20TENGA%2010.6.22.pdf\">letter<\/a> to the Federal Communications Commission \u2014 the agency that must approve the merger. <\/p>\n<p><b><u><a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/politics\/pelosi-doubts-trump-man-enough-appear-before-jan-6-committee\">PELOSI KNOCKS TRUMP AGAIN: HE&#8217;S NOT &#8216;MAN ENOUGH&#8217; TO APPEAR BEFORE JAN. 6 COMMITTEE<\/a><\/u><\/b> <\/p>\n<div class=\"Enhancement\">\n<div class=\"Enhancement-item\">\n<figure class=\"Figure mb-1 mb-sm-3 mb-md-1 article-lead-photo data_invisible\" data-align=\"center\" data-image-size=\"fixed\" itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\">\n<div class=\"Figure-container\"><source media=\"(max-width: 768px)\" type=\"image\/webp\" data-image-size=\"1060x600_md\" \/><source media=\"(max-width: 768px)\" data-image-size=\"1060x600_md\" \/><source media=\"(max-width: 1440px)\" type=\"image\/webp\" data-image-size=\"1060x600_xl\" \/><source media=\"(max-width: 1440px)\" data-image-size=\"1060x600_xl\" \/><source type=\"image\/webp\" data-image-size=\"1060x600\" \/><source data-image-size=\"1060x600\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"image\" data-image-size=\"1060x600\" alt=\"Nancy Pelosi\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/27133559\/90-114 1x, https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/27133755\/90-115 2x\" width=\"1060\" height=\"612\" src=\"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/27133559\/90-114\" \/><figcaption class=\"Figure-caption\" itemprop=\"caption\">\n                Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., speaks to the media at a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, May 2, 2019.<br \/>\n               <\/figcaption><div class=\"Figure-credit\" itemprop=\"author\">\n                (J. Scott Applewhite\/AP)\n               <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>&#8220;As you have noted in the context of previous mergers, the FCC has &#8216;long-standing duties to ensure that the use of our airwaves is consistent with the values of localism, competition, and diversity,'&#8221; wrote Pelosi and Pallone in the letter. &#8220;Localism is a core tenet of broadcast journalism that serves the public interest \u2014 but we fear the proposed transaction could jeopardize that important goal.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The proposed new owners previously told investors they believe TEGNA\u2019s local stations have too many employees, a potential signal of their intent to lay off local journalists,&#8221; the lawmakers wrote. <\/p>\n<p>One ethics watchdog group told the <i>Washington Examiner<\/i> the situation seems suspicious. <\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Although there may not be anything illegal that occurred, the facts and the timeline certainly smell bad to an outside observer,&#8221; said Pete McGinnis, a spokesman for the Functional Government Initiative. <\/p>\n<p>A source close to Allen Media Group, which is Allen&#8217;s Los Angeles-based company, told <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/10\/26\/nancy-pelosi-attacks-media-merger-after-big-campaign-donation\/\">the<\/a> <i>New York Post<\/i> the mogul \u201cwas going to cut 30% of expenses if he bought Tegna and that meant job losses.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>However, Allen denied the allegation to the outlet, calling it &#8220;not true.&#8221; The businessman also told the outlet his &#8220;donations to numerous Democratic politicians and PACs have nothing to do with Tegna and everything to do with protecting our democracy.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>Between 2018 and 2021, Allen gave almost $276,000 to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fec.gov\/data\/receipts\/individual-contributions\/?committee_id=C00000935&#038;contributor_name=Byron+Allen\">filings<\/a> show. His largest donation to date has been $250,000 to the presidential campaign for Joe Biden in 2020, <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fec.gov\/data\/receipts\/individual-contributions\/?committee_id=C00744946&#038;contributor_name=Byron+Allen\">according<\/a> to a filing. <\/p>\n<p>Craig Holman, a government affairs lobbyist for the left-leaning think tank Public Citizen, told the <i>New York Post<\/i> that if Pelosi is &#8220;helping out&#8221; her donor, &#8220;it doesn&#8217;t look good, quite frankly.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>&#8220;When it comes to campaign finance, this is often how it works,&#8221; he said. &#8220;A donor gives money with the expectation of some return.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p><b><a class=\"Link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\">CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER<\/a><\/b> <\/p>\n<p>Pelosi&#8217;s office did not respond to the <i>Washington Examiner&#8217;s<\/i> request for comment. <\/p>\n<p>Allen Media Group did not respond, nor did Tegna or the FCC.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) raised concerns over a proposed business merger on the heels of her campaign and two Pelosi-affiliated political action committees<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1713624,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[547],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1713611","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-bongino-report"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1713611","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1713611"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1713611\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1713624"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1713611"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1713611"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1713611"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}