Nexstar CEO Perry Sook delivers a keynote address at the 2025 NAB Show in Las Vegas. (Photo by Kirk Varner)

Viewpoint: When Nexstar and Network cross paths

Nexstar’s demand that its local news stations run segments promoting media deregulation feels a bit like the 1970s-era film “Network” come to life, writes Kirk Varner.

Reporters from KTLA-TV and other news channels at a press conference in 2014. (Photo via Wikimedia Commons, remixed by The Desk)

Viewpoint: Can local TV news still matter?

In his inaugural column for the website TVND, semi-retired TV news veteran Kirk Varner makes the case that local TV news matters now more than ever.