Other Matters	3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2019
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Other matters	Other matters Commitments, contingencies and other matters In the third quarter of 2018, certain national media outlets reported the existence of a confidential investigation by the United States Department of Justice Antitrust Division (DOJ) into the local television advertising sales practices of station owners. We have received a Civil Investigative Demand (CID) in connection with the DOJ’s investigation. The investigation is ongoing. Since the national media reports, numerous putative class action lawsuits were filed against owners of television stations (the Advertising Cases) in different jurisdictions. Plaintiffs are a class consisting of all persons and entities in the United States who paid for all or a portion of advertisement time on local TV provided by the defendants. The Advertising Cases assert antitrust and other claims and seek monetary damages, attorneys’ fees, costs and interest, as well as injunctions against the allegedly wrongful conduct. These cases have been consolidated into a single proceeding in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, captioned Clay, Massey & Associates, P.C. v. Gray Television, Inc. et. al., filed on July 30, 2018. At the court’s direction, plaintiffs filed an amended complaint on April 3, 2019, that superseded the original complaints. Although we were named as a defendant in sixteen of the original complaints, the amended complaint did not name TEGNA as a defendant. We could still be named as a defendant, however, in this or other related suits. We, along with a number of our subsidiaries, also are defendants in other judicial and administrative proceedings involving matters incidental to our business. We do not believe that any material liability will be imposed as a result of any of the foregoing matters. FCC Broadcast Spectrum Program In April 2017, the FCC announced the completion of a voluntary incentive auction to reallocate certain spectrum currently occupied by television broadcast stations to mobile wireless broadband services, along with a related “repacking” of the television spectrum for remaining television stations. None of our stations will relinquish any spectrum rights as a result of the auction, and accordingly we will not receive any incentive auction proceeds. The FCC has, however, notified us that 13 of our stations will be repacked to new channels. In general, television stations moving channels may have smaller service areas and/or experience additional interference; however, based on our transition planning to date, we do not expect the repacking to have any material effect on the geographic areas or populations served by our repacked full-power stations’ over-the-air signals. The legislation authorizing the incentive auction and repacking established a $1.75 billion fund for reimbursement of costs incurred by stations required to change channels in the repacking. Subsequent legislation enacted on March 23, 2018, appropriated an additional $1 billion for the repacking fund, of which up to $750 million may be made available to repacked full power and Class A television stations and multichannel video programming distributors. Other funds are earmarked to assist affected low power television stations, television translator stations, and FM radio stations, as well for consumer education efforts. Some of our television translator stations have been or will be displaced as a result of the repacking, and thus are eligible under the new repacking funds appropriation to seek reimbursement for costs incurred as a result of such displacement (subject to the translator locating an available alternative channel, which is not guaranteed). The repacking process is scheduled to occur over a 39-month period, divided into ten phases. Our full power stations have been assigned to phases two through nine, and a majority of our remaining capital expenditures in connection with the repack will occur in 2019. To date, we have incurred approximately $19.8 million in capital expenditures for the spectrum repack project (of which $2.1 million was paid during the first three months of 2019). We have received FCC reimbursements of approximately $11.5 million through March 31, 2019. The reimbursements were recorded as a contra operating expense within our Spectrum repacking reimbursements and other line item on our Consolidated Statement of Income and reported as an investing inflow on the Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows. Each repacked full power commercial television station, including each of our 13 repacked stations, has been allocated a reimbursement amount equal to approximately 92.5% of the station’s estimated repacking costs, as verified by the FCC’s fund administrator. Although we expect the FCC to make additional allocations from the fund, it is not guaranteed that the FCC will approve all reimbursement requests necessary to completely reimburse each repacked station for all amounts incurred in connection with the repack. Reduction in Force Programs During the third quarter of 2018, we initiated reduction in force programs at our corporate headquarters and our Digital Marketing Services (DMS) business unit, which resulted in a total severance charge of $7.3 million which was recorded within the Cost of Revenues, Business Units - Selling and Administrative, and Corporate - General and Administrative Costs within the Statement of Income. The corporate headquarters reductions were part of our ongoing consolidations of our corporate structure following our strategic transformation into a pure play broadcast company. The reduction in force at our DMS unit is a result of a rebranding of our service offerings and unification of our sales strategy to better serve our customers. A majority of the employees impacted by these reductions will receive lump sum severance payments. As of the end of Q1 2019, we have a remaining accrual of approximately $4.1 million related to these actions, substantially all of which will be paid throughout the remainder of the year. Acquisitions On March 20, 2019, we announced that we entered into a definitive agreement with Nexstar Media Group to acquire 11 local television stations in eight markets, including eight Big Four affiliates for $740 million in cash. These stations are expected to bring additional geographic diversity to our existing station portfolio and add four additional key markets to our strong political footprint as the 2020 presidential election gets underway. The acquisition of these stations is contingent on the closing of the Nexstar Media - Tribune merger, which is expected to take place in the late third or early fourth quarter of 2019, and other customary closing conditions. We expect to finance the transaction through use of available cash and borrowing under our existing credit facility. In addition, on May 6, 2019, we also announced that we entered into definitive agreements to acquire the remaining interests that we do not currently own of the multicast channels Justice Network and Quest, two fast growing networks that leverage the increasing numbers of over-the-air viewers, for approximately $77 million in cash. We currently own approximately 15% of the multicast channels, and we account for our ownership interest as an equity method investment. Following the closing of the acquisition, we will consolidate all of the multicast channels financial results.

Other matters

Commitments, contingencies and other matters

In the third quarter of 2018, certain national media outlets reported the existence of a confidential investigation by the United States Department of Justice Antitrust Division (DOJ) into the local television advertising sales practices of station owners. We have received a Civil Investigative Demand (CID) in connection with the DOJ’s investigation. The investigation is ongoing.

Since the national media reports, numerous putative class action lawsuits were filed against owners of television stations (the Advertising Cases) in different jurisdictions. Plaintiffs are a class consisting of all persons and entities in the United States who paid for all or a portion of advertisement time on local TV provided by the defendants. The Advertising Cases assert antitrust and other claims and seek monetary damages, attorneys’ fees, costs and interest, as well as injunctions against the allegedly wrongful conduct.

These cases have been consolidated into a single proceeding in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, captioned Clay, Massey & Associates, P.C. v. Gray Television, Inc. et. al., filed on July 30, 2018. At the court’s direction, plaintiffs filed an amended complaint on April 3, 2019, that superseded the original complaints. Although we were named as a defendant in sixteen of the original complaints, the amended complaint did not name TEGNA as a defendant. We could still be named as a defendant, however, in this or other related suits.

We, along with a number of our subsidiaries, also are defendants in other judicial and administrative proceedings involving matters incidental to our business. We do not believe that any material liability will be imposed as a result of any of the foregoing matters.

FCC Broadcast Spectrum Program

In April 2017, the FCC announced the completion of a voluntary incentive auction to reallocate certain spectrum currently occupied by television broadcast stations to mobile wireless broadband services, along with a related “repacking” of the television spectrum for remaining television stations. None of our stations will relinquish any spectrum rights as a result of the auction, and accordingly we will not receive any incentive auction proceeds. The FCC has, however, notified us that 13 of our stations will be repacked to new channels. In general, television stations moving channels may have smaller service areas and/or experience additional interference; however, based on our transition planning to date, we do not expect the repacking to have any material effect on the geographic areas or populations served by our repacked full-power stations’ over-the-air signals. The legislation authorizing the incentive auction and repacking established a $1.75 billion fund for reimbursement of costs incurred by stations required to change channels in the repacking. Subsequent legislation enacted on March 23, 2018, appropriated an additional $1 billion for the repacking fund, of which up to $750 million may be made available to repacked full power and Class A television stations and multichannel video programming distributors. Other funds are earmarked to assist affected low power television stations, television translator stations, and FM radio stations, as well for consumer education efforts. Some of our television translator stations have been or will be displaced as a result of the repacking, and thus are eligible under the new repacking funds appropriation to seek reimbursement for costs incurred as a result of such displacement (subject to the translator locating an available alternative channel, which is not guaranteed).

The repacking process is scheduled to occur over a 39-month period, divided into ten phases. Our full power stations have been assigned to phases two through nine, and a majority of our remaining capital expenditures in connection with the repack will occur in 2019. To date, we have incurred approximately $19.8 million in capital expenditures for the spectrum repack project (of which $2.1 million was paid during the first three months of 2019). We have received FCC reimbursements of approximately $11.5 million through March 31, 2019. The reimbursements were recorded as a contra operating expense within our Spectrum repacking reimbursements and other line item on our Consolidated Statement of Income and reported as an investing inflow on the Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows.

Each repacked full power commercial television station, including each of our 13 repacked stations, has been allocated a reimbursement amount equal to approximately 92.5% of the station’s estimated repacking costs, as verified by the FCC’s fund administrator. Although we expect the FCC to make additional allocations from the fund, it is not guaranteed that the FCC will approve all reimbursement requests necessary to completely reimburse each repacked station for all amounts incurred in connection with the repack.

Reduction in Force Programs

During the third quarter of 2018, we initiated reduction in force programs at our corporate headquarters and our Digital Marketing Services (DMS) business unit, which resulted in a total severance charge of $7.3 million which was recorded within the Cost of Revenues, Business Units - Selling and Administrative, and Corporate - General and Administrative Costs within the Statement of Income. The corporate headquarters reductions were part of our ongoing consolidations of our corporate structure following our strategic transformation into a pure play broadcast company. The reduction in force at our DMS unit is a result of a rebranding of our service offerings and unification of our sales strategy to better serve our customers. A majority of the employees impacted by these reductions will receive lump sum severance payments. As of the end of Q1 2019, we have a remaining accrual of approximately $4.1 million related to these actions, substantially all of which will be paid throughout the remainder of the year.

Acquisitions

On March 20, 2019, we announced that we entered into a definitive agreement with Nexstar Media Group to acquire 11 local television stations in eight markets, including eight Big Four affiliates for $740 million in cash. These stations are expected to bring additional geographic diversity to our existing station portfolio and add four additional key markets to our strong political footprint as the 2020 presidential election gets underway. The acquisition of these stations is contingent on the closing of the Nexstar Media - Tribune merger, which is expected to take place in the late third or early fourth quarter of 2019, and other customary closing conditions. We expect to finance the transaction through use of available cash and borrowing under our existing credit facility.

In addition, on May 6, 2019, we also announced that we entered into definitive agreements to acquire the remaining interests that we do not currently own of the multicast channels Justice Network and Quest, two fast growing networks that leverage the increasing numbers of over-the-air viewers, for approximately $77 million in cash. We currently own approximately 15% of the multicast channels, and we account for our ownership interest as an equity method investment. Following the closing of the acquisition, we will consolidate all of the multicast channels financial results.