Sinclair Broadcast Group is buying Fisher Communications for $373.3 million, the two companies announced Thursday.

Fisher owns 20 television stations in eight markets, reaching 3.9% of U.S. TV households (full list is after the jump). The transaction also includes three radio stations in Seattle. As part of the terms of the agreement, Fisher will provide “certain operating services” for three TV stations in Eugene, Ore. –  KMTR, KMCB and KTCW — after the transaction is approved by the FCC.

TVNewsCheck reports Sinclair won a bidding war with LIN Media for the station group “in a deal finalized in the wee hours of Tuesday night.”

“Sinclair is the largest independent TV broadcaster in the country, and we believe its commitment to the industry — along with its greater scale and sizable resources — will provide our stations, team members and business partners with new opportunities to flourish,” Fisher president and CEO Colleen B. Brown said in a statement. Read more

Todd Kunz, anchor for Idaho Falls CBS affiliate KIDK had a special guest star for his 10 p.m. newscast.

Kunz was reading a story about a local landfill when a spider dropped from the ceiling on its silk (about 20 seconds into the video) and into his shot.  It lingered for a little screen time, then dropped out of view.

“I could see something falling from above in my peripheral vision and thought it was just lint or something, but when it kept pausing, I knew what it was,” Kunz told TVSpy.  “Knowing my next story was an OTS, I thought to myself, this is going to be bad if he stops right in the camera view… and sure enough, he did.”

Kunz said viewers, concerned the spider was a dangerous Hobo spider, offered to spray the studio for him.   No need to worry, though.  The spider did not land on Kunz.  He said the most difficult moment during the descent was trying to keep a straight face watching his weatherman, Steve Cannon, watch the spider.

News stations in Idaho have joined with several other media outlets in the state to challenge the proposed schedule of an execution set for Friday.

Paul Ezra Rhoades is scheduled to die by lethal injection on Friday morning and authorities have barred members of the media from viewing the first 25 minutes of the procedure.

The execution is the first to occur in Idaho in over 15 years and prison officials plan to begin the procedure in private before allowing witnesses into the execution chamber. Read more

Nick Griffith, who has been a sports anchor at Kansas City’s KMBC since 2008, is set to join KDVR as sports director later this month.

Griffith’s first day at the Denver Fox affiliate will be August 22. “I have no doubt that through my time here I have improved immensely, not only as a professional but also as a person,” he wrote in a memo to KMBC staffers obtained by Bottom Line Communications. “Regardless of the circumstances or challenges, this team always finds a way to remain resilient and succeed. I have no doubt it will continue to do so.”

Griffith, who is the sports anchor on the evening and nighttime broadcasts at the Kansas City ABC affiliate, said in the memo that the move is partially because he is engaged to a Denver native who still has family in the area. Griffith, who has also been sports director at KTKA in Topeka and KIDK in Idaho Falls, will say goodbye to KMBC on August 8.

Nexstar Broadcasting Group announced today that Chris Huston had been chosen to lead the newsroom at KTAL, the company’s NBC-affiliate in Shreveport, LA.

“Chris brings proven news management experience and a wealth of knowledge to KTAL,” said Mark Cummings, KTAL’s vice president and general manager. “I  am very excited he is joining our team.”

Huston is set to become KTAL’s news director next month. He comes to KTAL, which serves Shreveport in addition to the Texarkana region along the Texas-Arkansas border, from KIDK in Idaho Falls, where he also served as news director.

“I think everyone in the ArkLaTex recognizes that NBC 6 has made tremendous strides in the last few years,” said Huston. “I’m honored that the management team here felt that I could play a role in moving the station to even greater success.  I’m excited to hit the ground running.”