Since founding Nexstar in 1996 with a single Pennsylvania television station, Sook has expanded it into the largest local television operator in the US, with more than 200 stations.
The acquisition of Tegna, which was created in 2015 when Gannett split its newspaper and television holdings, would bring its count to 265.
Announcing its approval, the FCC said the deal would help “counteract the growing imbalance of power” between local broadcast TV stations and the large media firms, including Fox, Disney and Paramount, that dominate programming.
It said the combined company would own just 15% of the country’s television stations after the takeover and that keeping the ownership limits in place would “would run counter to the very reason for those agency regulations”.