Nexstar has increased its ownership stake in The CW to 81.1% as it continues to integrate the network into its local station business. The strategy leverages The CW as a national programming framework to provide affiliate insurance and distribution leverage across Nexstar's local station portfolio.
Nexstar is fundamentally altering the power dynamic between local station groups and the Big Four networks by using The CW as a viable fallback for distribution. This strategy reduces Nexstar's reliance on expensive CBS or Fox affiliations, providing a national programming framework that preserves local news and advertising inventory. Within the broader ecosystem, this shift suggests a move away from general entertainment toward a niche sports and local-heavy model that avoids the high costs of a standalone streaming service. Watch for the July 2027 TEGNA bench trial, which could significantly expand this affiliate insurance model across a much larger station portfolio.
Nexstar's increasing control of The CW reflects a broader strategic pivot in local broadcasting economics. The network has been repositioned as a distribution asset rather than a traditional general-entertainment competitor, with Nexstar using it as leverage in carriage negotiations with Big Four affiliates. In July, Nexstar renewed CBS affiliations in 36 markets while CBS moved elsewhere in six others, with four markets seeing Nexstar replace or prepare to replace CBS with The CW programming. This approach gained urgency as Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery faced their own corporate transitions, creating uncertainty around affiliation agreements that Nexstar could exploit by offering The CW as a fallback programming option for its station portfolio.
The business case for Nexstar's expanded ownership stake is tied to the economics of local station operations and affiliate agreements. By controlling The CW's programming schedule, Nexstar can offer affiliates a lower-cost alternative to expensive network programming while preserving local news and advertising inventory. The strategy also positions Nexstar favorably ahead of the TEGNA bench trial scheduled for July 2027, which could reshape the competitive landscape for local station groups and potentially expand the affiliate insurance model across a larger portfolio of stations.
Nexstar has increased its ownership stake in The CW to 81.1% as of June 2026. The company is utilizing the network as a strategic distribution asset, serving as affiliate insurance to replace expensive Big Four network programming. This shift allows Nexstar to maintain local advertising inventory and reduce reliance on external network agreements.
As of June 30, 2026, Nexstar's ownership stake in The CW reached 81.1%, up from 75% in 2022.
Nexstar uses The CW as a fallback programming option when carriage negotiations with Big Four networks stall, allowing them to replace those affiliations with internal CW programming.
Live sports programming, including NASCAR and WWE NXT, has helped drive viewership, with a recent college football broadcast reaching a record 1.96 million viewers.
The July 2027 TEGNA bench trial could significantly expand Nexstar's affiliate insurance model across a much larger portfolio of stations.
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