A federal appeals court this week denied an attempt by investor Soo Kim to revive his lawsuit against the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) over a failed effort to acquire TEGNA several years ago.
In its order, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals said Kim and his company, Standard General, lacked standing to sue the FCC on allegations of racial discrimination after the agency submitted his takeover offer to an administrative law judge for review, a move that ultimately caused the clock to run out on his proposed purchase of TEGNA.
Standard General agreed in 2022 to acquire TEGNA and its more than 60 television stations. Kim’s lawsuit alleged the FCC derailed the transaction because he was not treated as the “right type of minority” under the agency’s diversity policies, while Byron Allen’s media company Allen Media Group and Byron Allen was purportedly viewed more favorably.
The original lawsuit named the FCC, former FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, former Media Bureau Chief Holly Saurer, Allen and a number of other defendants. The case alleged equal protection violations against the FCC and violations of the Civil Rights Act against private parties.
A federal judge dismissed the lawsuit last year, finding finding Standard General and Kim lacked standing because they had “not shown that any future injury is certainly impending.” On the racial discrimination claims, the judge said Kim’s complaint “lacks any factual allegation from which to infer that the FCC used Kim’s race negatively.” The court concluded the allegations of a past equal protection violation were “weak at best.”
The case was dismissed about one week after Nexstar Media Group confirmed its plan to acquire TEGNA for $6.2 billion, a move that closed on paper in March after securing federal regulatory approvals under a different political administration and which is currently being challenged in court on antitrust grounds.
Kim appealed the ruling last September, continuing to argue that Standard General’s inability to complete the TEGNA acquisition was rooted in racial discrimination. His attorneys argued the FCC and its allies treated Allen Media Group, which is Black-owned, as a more favored minority buyer while discounting the diversity implications of Standard General’s proposed ownership.
On Tuesday, the appeals court rejected those arguments, with a three-judge panel affirming the lower court’s decision to dismiss the case.
It wasn’t clear if Kim planned to appeal the matter to the Supreme Court.
