Tegna Shareholder Wants More Voices On Its Board

Tegna Inc.’s third-biggest shareholder nominated four directors to the broadcaster’s board after its push for the company to explore strategic alternatives, including a sale, was stonewalled, reports Bloomberg.

Standard General LP, which owns about 9.7% of Tegna, unveiled its slate of directors Wednesday. Standard General has discussed its views with management but the company has stymied its push for board representation and a call to explore strategic alternatives, according to people familiar with the matter.

Soo Kim

“Given Standard General’s substantial investment in Tegna, our expertise in the broadcasting industry, and our focus on driving value for all Tegna shareholders, we strongly believe that Tegna shareholders would benefit from having a representative of Standard General on the Tegna board,” Standard General Chief Executive Officer Soo Kim wrote in a letter to the company’s investors Wednesday.

Standard General’s nominees include Kim, Standard Media Group LLC CEO Deborah McDermott, Marca Global LLC founder Colleen Brown and Ellen McClain Haime, according to a statement.

The New York-based investment firm believes there are several candidates for a takeover or merger with Tegna, the people said. It also thinks the company’s current strategy has failed to explore all the potential opportunities to unlock value, they said.

Standard General had been seeking two Tegna board seats before expanding its slate, the people said. Tegna has 11 directors, according to its website.

Tegna, based in McLean, Virginia, owns 62 television stations and four radio stations across the U.S., according to its website. In August, Tegna said it had drawn takeover interest from private equity firm Apollo Global Management Inc.

Apollo closed its purchase of a portfolio of television and radio stations from Cox Enterprises Inc. in December.