Some of Colorado’s elected leaders are speaking out against a proposed merger between the parent companies of Denver television news stations Fox31 and 9News.

Fox31’s parent company Nextstar Media Group announced this week it is buying 9News’ parent company Tegna in a deal worth $6.2 billion. The deal would require FCC approval but the Trump administration has signaled a desire to deregulate local media. In addition to regulatory hurdles, the deal would also need the approval of Tegna’s shareholders.

Nexstar CEO Perry Sook this week told CNBC he expects the deal to close in six to nine months. In markets such as Denver where the company would have two outlets, Sook said, those newsrooms would be combined.

“I get tough questions from local reporters every day, and I’m grateful for that,” Denver Mayor Mike Johnston posted on his Instagram account. “A strong, diverse press makes communities stronger. But when we lose reporters and newsrooms, we lose the stories that connect us to our neighbors and inform our city. This deal would be bad for journalism and bad for Denver.”

Colorado’s senior senator, Michael Bennet, also panned the proposed deal.

“Local journalism is essential to our democracy,” Bennet said in a statement to The Denver Gazette’s news partners, 9News. “Colorado is stronger when reporters have the independence to ask tough questions and keep us all informed. An FCC-approved merger of 9News and KDVR’s parent companies would greatly weaken Colorado’s civic infrastructure.”

Sook pointed directly to actions being pursued by the Trump administration, which he said “offer local broadcasters the opportunity to expand reach, level the playing field, and compete more effectively with the Big Tech and legacy Big Media companies that have unchecked reach and vast financial resources.” He added that “Tegna represents the best option for Nexstar to act on this opportunity.”

State Sen. Lisa Cutter wrote in a Facebook post that she was “deeply concerned” about the proposed merger.

“It benefits all of us to have a robust, diverse media landscape,” Cutter said. “Relaxed regulations have created a shift from public interest to corporate profit. Media consolidation means fewer voices and perspectives — fewer journalists reporting on issues that matter to the community.”

Nexstar oversees more than 200 owned and partner stations in 116 markets nationwide today and also runs networks like The CW and NewsNation. Meanwhile, Tegna owns 64 news stations across 51 markets.

The prospect of combining newsrooms has raised questions about what could happen to Denver’s well known news personalities such as Kyle Clark, who hosts a news commentary show, “Next with Kyle Clark,” on 9News.

Clark addressed the questions on Next this week, but apologized, saying he wasn’t in a position to provide answers on what the future could hold.

“No day, doing work that matters serving our community, is a day wasted,” Clark told his audience. “Every one of those days is a chance to hold politicians accountable rather than just repeating what they say, a chance to call out lies and disinformation, a chance to have a conversation about the news rather than talking at you, a chance to escape the litany of tragedy that presents the worst things that happened as the most important things that happened, a chance to work as a community to raise $50,000 a week for nonprofits in Colorado. Every day we can do that is a day well spent. We aim to do that today. And we’ll aim to do it again tomorrow.”