Note 1 - Basis of Presentation

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2014

Disclosure Text Block [Abstract]

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements Disclosure [Text Block]

Note 1: Basis of Presentation

The accompanying unaudited consolidated condensed financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States and with applicable quarterly reporting regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission. They do not include all of the information and footnotes required by generally accepted accounting principles for complete financial statements and, accordingly, should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and related footnotes included in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013. In the opinion of management, all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring adjustments) considered necessary for a fair presentation of interim financial information have been included.

On November 12, 2013, Media General, Inc. (“Legacy Media General”) and New Young Broadcasting Holding Co., Inc. (“Young”) were combined in a tax-free, all-stock merger transaction. The combined company (“Media General” or the “Company”) retained the Media General name and is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. The merger was accounted for as a reverse acquisition in accordance with FASB Accounting Standards Codification Topic 805, Business Combinations. For financial reporting purposes, Young was the acquirer and the continuing reporting entity. Consequently, the consolidated financial statements of Media General, the legal acquirer and a continuing public corporation in the transaction, have been prepared with Young as the surviving entity. Accordingly, the consolidated financial statements reflect the results of operations and cash flows for only Young for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2013.

The consolidated financial statements include the financial statements of the Company and its wholly owned subsidiaries and certain variable interest entities (“VIE”) for which the Company is considered to be the primary beneficiary. Significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. In determining whether the Company is the primary beneficiary of a VIE for financial reporting purposes, the Company considers whether it has the power to direct the activities of the VIE that most significantly impact the economic performance of the VIE and whether it has the obligation to absorb losses or the right to receive returns that would be significant to the VIE.  Assets of consolidated VIE’s can only be used to settle the obligations of that VIE.  As discussed in Note 3, the Company consolidates the results of WXXA LLC (“WXXA”) and WLAJ LLC (“WLAJ”) pursuant to the VIE accounting guidance. All the liabilities are non-recourse to the Company, except for the debt of WXXA and WLAJ which the Company guarantees. The Company is also the primary beneficiary of the VIE that holds the Supplemental 401(k) Plan’s investments and consolidates the plan accordingly.

Certain prior-year balances have been reclassified to conform to the presentation adopted in the current fiscal year.

On November 12, 2013, each outstanding share of Young common stock and each issued and outstanding warrant to purchase Young common stock was converted into the right to receive 730.6171 shares of no par value voting common stock. Shares of common stock (and the associated price-per-share) for periods prior to November 12, 2013, have been restated to reflect the applicable number of shares of no par value voting common stock. Warrants for prior periods have been restated to reflect the right to receive the applicable number of shares of no par value voting common stock. Earnings per share and share information presented in the consolidated financial statements for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2013, include Young’s common shares and share equivalents multiplied by the exchange ratio: 730.6171 shares of Media General for each share and share equivalent of Young. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2014, common shares and share equivalents are presented for the combined company.

The Company has elected early adoption, as permitted, of ASU 2014-08, “Presentation of Financial Statements (Topic 205) and Property, Plant, and Equipment (Topic 360): Reporting Discontinued Operations and Disclosures of Disposal of Components of an Entity”.  As a result of early adoption, the Company’s planned sales of WJAR and WVTM in conjunction with its merger with LIN do not meet the criteria of a discontinued operation since they do not represent a strategic shift in operations.