Nexstar Media (NXST) and Tegna's merger approval by the US Federal Communications Commission has been criticized in a letter by the ranking members of the Senate Commerce Committee, Bloomberg reported Tuesday.

In the letter, Senator Ted Cruz and Senator Maria Cantwell jointly told FCC Chairman Brendan Carr that he improperly allowed his staff to allow the merger even though the deal involved waiving major anti-merger rules, the report said.

Carr himself has previously criticized staff-level approvals for such deals, the letter said, adding that the commission has approved the transaction on delegated authority and that "any subsequent vote risks being largely procedural rather than a genuine exercise of commission responsibility," according to Bloomberg.

Spokespersons for Nexstar Media and the FCC did not immediately respond to MT Newswires' request for comment.

(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)

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