Meredith Completes KTVK/KASW Acquisition

This afternoon, Meredith Corp. completed its acquisition of the broadcast assets of KTVK-TV Channel 3 and its sister station KASW-TV Channel 6 from Gannet Co. Inc. and Sander Media LLC for $230 million. At closing, SagamoreHill of Phoenix LLC simultaneously purchased certain assets of KASW. As part of Federal Communications Commission approval, Meredith and SagamoreHill have voluntarily agreed to divest KASW through a cash sale, swap transaction or combination of the two.

 

Meredith also owns KPHO-TV Channel 5 in the Phoenix market, fueling speculation among employees and some in the Phoenix community about the future direction of KTVK’s “Arizona’s Family” newscasts and programming.

 

Meredith Local Media Group President Peter Karpowicz addressed some of that speculation in a phone interview today with the Phoenix Business Journal.

 

Karpowicz emphasized the history of Meredith Corp., which as founded in 1902 by Edwin Thomas Meredith.

 

“We are just acquiring the station, so we haven't had the opportunity to evaluate staffing and the operation yet, but KTVK is a great station with a well known brand,” said Karpowicz regarding how the sale will effect the local Phoenix broadcast news landscape and programming.

 

”And at the end of the day, we also want to make sure we serve the Phoenix community as they have over the years,” he said. “I want to reinforce that they have a great history and a great legacy, and we don’t want to diminish our ability to continue to be great stations in the market.”

 

Regarding the specific concerns over the stations’ newscasts, Karpowicz said he couldn’t comment at this very early stage on how the news divisions would be structured, but stressed that Meredith doesn’t want to diminish the strong news brand the stations have in the Phoenix market.

 

“If you look at the history of the Meredith stations we are very news oriented,“ he said.

 

He also pointed out that KTVK now is part of the Meredith Corp.'s 15 television stations nationwide and several major magazines, which still has Meredith family involvement.

 

“The history and legacy of our company is based on values set forth by the Meredith family many years ago. The Meredith family is still a part of the company,” he said, highlighting D. Mell Meredith Frazier’s involvement. “She is very much involved in our business and sits on the board.”

 

Meredith Frazier, a fourth-generation member of the Meredith family, according to Forbes magazine, is vice chairman of the board, chairman of the nominating/governance committee and a member of the compensation committee. She also is chair of the Meredith Corp. Foundation.

 

The closing of the Phoenix transaction today completes Meredith’s December 23, 2013, announcement to purchase the television assets of KTVK and KASW in Phoenix and KMOV-TV in St. Louis for $407.5 million.

 

"These acquisitions are consistent with our successful Total Shareholder Return strategy and will be immediately accretive to earnings, excluding upfront transaction costs," said Meredith Chairman and CEO Stephen M. Lacy in a press release issued today. "These are high-performing stations and will add to our already strong cash flow. We will increase our presence in the large and growing Phoenix market, where we also own KPHO-TV, the CBS affiliate."

 

From the Phoenix Business Journal