2018

2018

ANNUAL REPORT

Serving the Greater Good of Our Communities TEGNA 2018 Annual Report b

Company Profile

TEGNA Inc. is a media company innovating in the digital age. Our purpose is to serve the greater good of our communities through empowering stories, impactful investigations and innovative marketing services.

As one of the largest and most geographically diverse broadcasters in the U.S., TEGNA is a best-in-class operator with 49 television stations (including those serviced by TEGNA) and two radio stations in 41 markets from coast to coast. We are the largest owner of Big 4 affiliates in the top 25 markets and reach one-third of all television households nationwide. Each month, TEGNA reaches 50 million adults on-air and approximately 35 million across our digital platforms. Across Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, TEGNA's stations have over 25 million social followers.

TEGNA produces trusted, impactful and innovative content across platforms. We tell stories that

matter, are an advocate for those in need and help bring positive change to our communities. Our award-winning journalists have been recognized with numerous national honors including Edward R. Murrow, Alfred I. duPont, George Foster Peabody, George Polk, Walter Cronkite and Emmy awards.

TEGNA also provides local and national partners custom, targeted and innovative campaigns through TEGNA Marketing Solutions (TMS). TMS is a one-stop shop that helps businesses thrive through an unmatched suite of services and solutions that reach consumers across television, email, social and over-the-top (OTT) platforms, including Premion, TEGNA's OTT advertising service.

In everything we do, we are driven by our strongly held values and our stated purpose to serve the greater good of our communities.

c TEGNA 2018 Annual Report

2018 Year in Review

16%

Revenue Growth to

$2.2B

Record Political Revenue of

$234M

47%

Above Previous Midterm Election

17%

Subscription Revenue Growth

2.3%

Dividend Yield

TEGNA 2018 Annual Report 1

Letter to Shareholders

Dear Fellow Shareholders,

All of us at TEGNA are proud to be serving our communities with locally relevant content and proven marketing solutions while delivering a combination of strong financial results and award-winning journalism. We are guided by our Board of Directors, who bring unique, varied experiences and expertise through diversity of thought and background, providing a mix of skills that push us to continue to improve as a business and a leader in our communities.

From our innovative content, impactful investigations and accretive acquisitions, to our people, purpose and performance, we are making strong progress in diversifying our revenue and cash flow streams and creating value for our shareholders, all while continuing to serve the greater good of our communities.

As a pure play broadcaster, our primary sources of revenues include advertising and marketing services comprised of local, national and digital marketing services

including Premion; political advertising, which is driven by even-year election cycles at the local and national level; and subscriptions, reflecting fees paid by cable, satellite, over-the-top and telecommunications providers.

In 2018, TEGNA's total revenues increased 16 percent to $2.2 billion, driven by strong subscription revenue growth and record political advertising revenue. These historical high-water marks drove adjusted EBITDA* to $781 million for the year, producing an adjusted EBITDA margin of 35 percent and non-GAAP EPS* of $1.83 per diluted share. Likewise, our free cash flow for the year was $469 million, fully 21 percent of revenue, which enabled us to allocate capital to accretive acquisition opportunities. During 2018, we pursued acquisitions while also reducing debt to under $3 billion, increasing our firepower for future investments, with over 90 percent of our remaining debt at low cost fixed rates. In addition, we continued to reinvest in the business, including new products and initiatives such as Premion, while returning 13 percent of free cash flow to shareholders in the form of dividends, a 2.3 percent yield.

* Reconciliations of the following non-GAAP financial measures to the Company's results as reported under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States may be found in the Company's Form 10-K, filed March 1, 2019; adjusted EBITDA ? page 25 and non-GAAP earnings per share ? page 24.

2 TEGNA 2018 Annual Report

Our financial strength is enhanced by our increasing concentration in high-margin political and subscription revenue streams, which are stable cash flows that we expect to be relatively immune from secular or economic trends. 2018 was a record-breaking year for political advertising revenue for our company, including presidential election years. The energy and engagement in 2018's midterm elections were unparalleled; as a result, candidates and campaigns, reflecting a wide variety of issues, placed $234 million in political advertising with us last year, up 47 percent from the last midterm election in 2014. We expect that TEGNA's advertising solutions will continue to comprise an essential element of any political marketing strategy due to the impactful content we produce and our strong nationwide footprint, including large stations in competitive states.

In 2018, subscription revenue grew 17 percent, a $122 million increase. Paid subscribers include traditional MVPDs, such as cable and satellite providers, as well as new and growing over-the-top (OTT) or virtual MVPD

subscribers. Notably, TEGNA's paid subscribers increased year-over-year for the first time in several years due to an expanding OTT subscriber base in TEGNA markets. These subscribers are fueling growth, especially in large markets where we have a strong presence. The continued growth of subscription revenue and paid subscribers is a direct reflection of the consistently high demand for our must-have local and network content.

Live television accounts for the most time spent with media with more than four hours per day spent watching television.* Local news content drives audience and advertising growth. In 2018, across our markets, we introduced several new multiplatform initiatives that were a direct result of our recurring, structured innovation process that encourages fresh and bold ideas from our employees. We launched digital-first episodic investigations like "Mothers Matter"; strengthened our multiplatform news fact-checking segments like VERIFY; debuted new local news programs like "Get Up DC!"; and distributed original digital series like "An Imperfect Union," a new series for Facebook Watch.

*Nielsen, September 2018

TEGNA 2018 Annual Report 3

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