Perry A. Sook Named Chairman of TVB, the Trade Association of America’s Local Broadcast Television Industry

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–TVB,
the not-for-profit trade association of America’s local broadcast
television industry, announced today that Perry
A. Sook, Founder, Chairman, President and CEO of Nexstar
Broadcasting Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: NXST), was elected to serve as TVB
Chairman for a two-year term (2017-2018). A member of TVB’s Board of
Directors since 2000, Mr. Sook assumes the Chairman’s position
previously held by Michael J. Fiorile, Vice Chairman and CEO of Dispatch
Broadcast Group, who completed his two-year term at 2016 year-end.

Commenting on the appointment, Perry Sook stated, “I’m honored to follow
Michael Fiorile’s tremendous leadership by assuming the role of TVB
Chairman as we continue to extend our work on important initiatives that
will benefit the local broadcast television industry and our over 800
member stations. As the most trusted medium among viewers with the
greatest influence on consumer purchasing and voting decisions, local
broadcast television continues to be the leading marketing platform for
brand managers, advertisers and political campaigns to reach target
audiences. A critical part of our mission at TVB
is enhancing our members’ local sales efforts with tools, data and
services that best leverage the unrivaled reach, influence and
engagement our professionally-produced local news and content delivers
across all screens and devices.

“My career has been devoted to advocating for the local broadcast
television industry and the essential services we provide to local
communities across the United States and my chairmanship comes at a time
of great opportunity for our industry. As a TVB Board member for the
past 16 years, my colleagues across station groups have established a
unified voice for the value of our local programming and content, while
helping member stations grow their businesses and more effectively
compete in the ever-changing media landscape. As chairman I look forward
to further strengthening the influence and advocacy of TVB; to working
with the Board of Directors and CEO Steve Lanzano to expand TVB’s
initiatives to drive local sales in key verticals for member stations;
to collaborating with our industry partners to set accurate measurement
and currency standards; to reinforcing the power of our platform in
reaching voters and influencing election outcomes; and to expanding the
thought leadership at our annual Forward
Conference.”

Perry Sook has over 36 years of professional experience in the
broadcasting industry, covering all facets of the business. He founded
Nexstar in 1996 with one local television station in Scranton, PA and
began building the foundation of what is today one of the world’s
leading local diversified media companies. Upon closing of its
acquisition of Media General, Nexstar will be the second largest local
broadcast television operator in the United States with 171 stations
reaching 100 markets, or approximately 39% of all television households.
As one of the nation’s leading providers of local news, entertainment,
sports, lifestyle and network programming, Nexstar will produce and
distribute over 185,000 hours of local content per year on a pro-forma
basis. In addition, Nexstar’s digital properties will continue to
provide innovative digital marketing solutions and services to local and
national media companies, advertisers, agencies and brands.

In addition to serving on the Board of TVB, Mr. Sook is a Board Member
of the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), the NBC Affiliate
Board, and Chairman of The Ohio University Foundation Board. Mr. Sook
was named 2009 Broadcaster of the Year by Broadcasting and Cable (B&C)
and was among the honorees inducted into the 2014 B&C Hall of Fame. He
was inducted to The Library of American Broadcasting Foundation’s 2016
Giants of Broadcasting and Electronic Arts and received The Media
Institute’s 2016 American Horizon Award, recognizing his leadership,
promoting the vitality and independence of American media.

Steve Lanzano, TVB President and CEO, added, “Perry is a local broadcast
television industry pioneer and innovator. Throughout his time as a TVB
Board member and his years of executive leadership, Perry has been a
strong advocate on key industry issues including the establishment of
the retransmission revenue stream which benefits affiliates and
networks, the ongoing pursuit of fair compensation from pay TV
operators, the establishment of a successful framework to support
diversity in local broadcast station ownership and the advancement of
digital innovation and cross-platform marketing solutions.

“From the beginning, Perry and Nexstar have cultivated an
organization-wide commitment to localism and serving the needs of local
viewers, businesses, advertisers and community organizations. His
leadership and expertise have helped grow our medium into the powerful
platform for advertisers it is today. We look forward to the benefits of
Perry’s further involvement in TVB through his service as Chairman for
the next two years. I want to thank and acknowledge Michael Fiorile for
his outstanding leadership and guidance over the last two years and we
look forward to benefiting from his ongoing participation with TVB and
its executive committee.”

About TVB

TVB is the trade association of America’s commercial broadcast
television industry. To learn more visit www.tvb.org.

Contacts

TVB
Abby Auerbach, 212-891-2279
abby@tvb.org
or
JCIR
Joseph
Jaffoni, 212-835-8500
tvb@jcir.com