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How to Find Out Which Local TV Stations Share an Owner

Compare local stations’ FCC Ownership Reports and check for later transaction filings to see whether they share an owner.

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Search each station in the FCC’s Public Inspection File, open its Ownership Reports, and compare the licensee, parent entity, and people or companies listed as holding attributable interests. Check the report dates and any later sale or assignment filings before describing the stations as currently owned by the same company.

What you need before you search

For each station, have its call sign, channel number, or FCC facility ID. If you do not know those details, the FCC Public Inspection File’s station search also accepts a network affiliation. The FCC Public Inspection File is the primary starting point for official broadcast ownership records and active applications.

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The FCC’s separate Licensing and Management System (LMS) ownership search can also search by call sign, facility ID, service, station location, or FCC Registration Number (FRN). Its results identify whether a report was filed for a licensee or permittee, or for a parent entity.

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How to compare two stations

  1. Search for the first station. Enter its call sign, channel number, or facility ID in the FCC Public Inspection File search.
  2. Open Ownership Reports. Record the report’s filing date, named applicant or licensee, and entities or individuals listed as holding attributable interests.
  3. Repeat for the second station. Use the same fields for both stations so the comparison is consistent.
  4. Compare the records. Look for the same parent company or other entity with an attributable interest. If using LMS, note whether each report covers the licensee or permittee, or a parent entity.
  5. Check for later transactions. Look for subsequent sale or assignment applications in the public file and compare their dates with the ownership reports.

The FCC describes attributable interests as interests it considers influential in a station. A shared parent or attributable-interest holder is evidence of an ownership connection in the FCC reporting context.

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What to record for each station

Comparison field What to note
Applicant or licensee The entity named in the ownership report
Parent entity Any parent company identified in the report, including whether the filing is for the parent
Attributable-interest holders The people and entities the report identifies as holding interests the FCC considers influential
Report date The filing date of the ownership report
Report purpose Whether the filing is a periodic report or connected with a sale
Later filings Any subsequent sale or assignment application that could affect the comparison

Why report dates matter

The FCC says ownership reports are filed every other year and in connection with a station sale. A station’s public file retains its latest complete ownership report until a new complete report is filed, so the report may predate a later transaction. Review later applications rather than treating an older report as proof of present ownership.

What a shared owner does—and does not—show

Matching names in ownership reports document a shared ownership connection as reported to the FCC. The filings do not, by themselves, establish every commercial agreement, operational arrangement, or editorial decision-making relationship between stations. Describe what the records show, and avoid inferring details they do not establish.

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Example: reading a station’s report

The FCC’s WNYW ownership-reports page shows a biennial filing dated November 22, 2023, listing Fox Television Stations, LLC as the applicant. That identifies the reporting entity in WNYW’s record; it does not show that WNYW shares an owner with another station unless you compare that station’s filing as well.

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