TEGNA Inc. Names Patrick Paolini as Chief Executive Officer
TEGNA Inc. Names Patrick Paolini as Chief Executive Officer
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hold separate orderregulatory
A hold separate order is a legal instruction from a regulator requiring a target company and the buyer in a proposed deal to stay operationally and financially separate until the transaction is approved. It matters to investors because it helps preserve the target’s business value and financial transparency, prevents transfers of key assets or staff that could alter performance, and reduces the chance of sudden surprises or losses if regulators later block or change the deal — like keeping two households running on separate keys and budgets until a sale is finalized.
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Connected TV (CTV) is a television set that uses an internet connection to stream video apps and services instead of or alongside traditional broadcast or cable signals. For investors it matters because CTV shifts where viewers spend time and how ads are bought and measured, creating new revenue opportunities and competitive pressures for media companies much like a smartphone changed where people spend their attention and advertisers place their money.
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Over-the-top (OTT) describes video, audio or messaging services delivered directly to consumers over the internet instead of through traditional cable, satellite or phone-company systems. For investors, OTT signals a different business model—revenue comes from subscriptions, ads or direct purchases and success depends on subscriber growth, retention and content costs—so it changes where and how media companies make money, similar to shops selling directly online rather than through a mall.
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A duopoly is a market dominated by two companies that together control most sales, pricing and customer choices for a particular product or service. For investors, a duopoly matters because those two firms can influence profits, competitive risk and regulatory scrutiny more than many small rivals; think of it like a town with only two grocery stores — their decisions on price, quality or expansion shape the whole neighborhood’s shopping and prices.
Veteran FOX Television Stations Executive to Assume New Role June 1
MCLEAN, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
TEGNA Inc. today announced the appointment of Patrick Paolini as the company’s Chief Executive Officer, effective June 1. Mr. Paolini will be responsible for TEGNA’s daily operations, revenue-generating business strategies, local journalism and production, and growth initiatives. He will report directly to TEGNA’s Board of Directors.
Mr. Paolini brings more than 30 years of local broadcast management experience and a distinguished track record in sales, marketing, and news operations to his new role with TEGNA, including management of large-market television stations. He joins the company from FOX Television Stations, where he has served as Executive Vice President of Advertising Sales since 2023. In this position Mr. Paolini was responsible for ad sales strategy, initiatives, and efforts across the FOX Television Station Group. He previously was Senior Vice President and General Manager of WTTG FOX 5 and WDCA FOX 5 Plus, the FOX owned-and-operated duopoly in Washington, D.C., beginning in 2013. Under Mr. Paolini’s leadership, the duopoly rose to #1 in the market through the expansion of local news and lifestyle programming throughout the broadcast day.
“Patrick is an ideal choice to lead TEGNA,” said the company’s Board of Directors in a collective statement. “He brings deep expertise in the broadcast television industry, major-market station management, and high-quality local news, along with a proven track record of driving revenue growth across linear and digital platforms. He is an innovative thinker and a proven leader with an established history of success. We look forward to Patrick’s leadership of this great company.”
Prior to his tenure with WTTG and WDCA, Mr. Paolini was Senior Vice President of FOX Stations Advertising Sales. Earlier in his career, he served as Vice President and General Manager for WTXF FOX 29 in Philadelphia, and before that held the role of Vice President and Director of Sales at WNYW FOX 5 and WWOR My9, the FOX owned-and-operated duopoly in New York.
“I am honored to be joining TEGNA,” said Mr. Paolini. “I have tremendous respect for the TEGNA brand, for the outstanding local news delivered across its 64 local television stations and hundreds of digital platforms, and for the company’s dedicated employees and local journalists. TEGNA will remain committed to providing the exceptional service our viewers, advertisers, and communities expect, while continuing to innovate and expand across the platforms that define the modern media landscape. I am excited by the opportunities ahead.”
TEGNA Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: NXST), operating independently of Nexstar consistent with the “Hold Separate Order” issued by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California on April 17, 2026. TEGNA is a multiplatform media company operating 64 local television stations in 51 U.S. markets, and hundreds of websites, mobile and Connected TV (CTV) apps, and Premion, a leading Connected TV and Over-the-Top (OTT) advertising platform.
