Media: DAVE LOUGEE

In February 2022, Tegna, the nation’s largest owner of NBC affiliate TV stations, reached an agreement to be bought by New York hedge fund Standard General for $5.4 billion, ending its seven-year stint as a publicly traded company formed after Gannett Co. Inc. spun off its broadcast and digital media divisions. Tegna owns 64 television stations in 51 U.S. markets.

When the deal was announced, the companies said Lougee would be succeeded by media executive Deb McDermott, CEO of Standard General’s Nashville, Tennessee-based affiliate Standard Media, but the sale was delayed and still pending by the September 2022 publication date of the 2022 edition of the Virginia 500.

It wasn’t the first time Tegna was the subject of a potential acquisition. Two potential buyers, Gray Television Inc. and Apollo Global Management Inc., circled Tegna in early 2020, valuing the company at $8.5 billion, but that potential deal evaporated amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Before Tegna, Lougee was executive vice president of media relations for Belo Corp., a television media company that Gannett Co. Inc. purchased in 2013. Belo’s TV stations became part of Tegna after Gannett spun off Tegna in 2015.

Beyond running the broadcasting company, Lougee has been heavily involved in the industry itself. He’s a board member of the music licensing business BMI and the Broadcasters Foundation of America and previously served as chairman for the National Association of Broadcasters and the NBC Affiliates Board.

Editor’s note: The print version of the 2022 Virginia 500 issue listed Deb McDermott as CEO of Tegna Inc. However, Tegna’s expected sale to Standard General was delayed. The deal expired and was terminated in May 2023.