Granite and Barrington Announce Joint Sales and Shared Services Agreements in Syracuse, NY and Peoria, IL

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 2, 2009

(New York, NY) – March 2, 2009 – Granite Broadcasting Corporation and Barrington Broadcasting Group, LLC announced that, effective March 2, 2009, they will jointly operate television stations in the Syracuse, NY and Peoria, IL. television markets under joint sales (“JSA”) and shared services (“SSA”) agreements). In Syracuse, the Granite owned station, WTVH-TV, will be operated from the studios of WSTM-TV, which is owned by Barrington. In Peoria, the Barrington owned station, WHOI-TV, will be operated from the studios of WEEK-TV, which is owned by Granite.

Under the terms of the agreements, the operating station will provide advertising, sales, promotion, administrative services and selected programming to the other station. This arrangement between Granite and Barrington will create a better and more efficient operation, which will enhance these outstanding local television stations.

In making this announcement, Granite Broadcasting’s Chief Executive Officer Don Cornwell said, “This arrangement is an important step in the implementation of Granite’s strategic vision to capitalize on our core strength of operating leading local stations in the nation’s mid-size markets. It provides opportunities for substantial operating efficiencies by allowing us to use our existing infrastructure to expand the breadth of local news and services provided to the viewers of Central New York and Illinois, while enhancing the revenue and profitability of both stations.”

Barrington Chief Executive Officer Jim Yager stated, “We are delighted to be working with a forward-thinking company like Granite. Together, our companies and stations will focus our combined resources on making these great stations more efficient, becoming even better community citizens and, at the same time, providing measurable benefits for our viewers.”

One of the chief advantages of operating these stations under the agreements will be the ability to offer local and national news, as well as programming of community interest in new and varied time periods, giving viewers greater opportunity to watch at their convenience. The Granite and Barrington plan will fully develop this opportunity, offering local newscasts expanded in both breadth and amount. Specifically, the stations will provide newscasts in time periods not currently programmed with local news and extend local news to other time periods, allowing viewers more access to local reports and information. Granite and Barrington also plan to improve the emergency weather forecasting and daily forecasting by bringing the latest and best technology to both stations.

Under the terms of the JSA and SSA, Granite and Barrington expect to realize a number of expense efficiencies through the combining of resources and the reduction of some staff positions. Affected employees will receive a generous severance package and extensive job placement assistance will be offered at company expense.

About Granite Broadcasting Corporation
Granite operates in geographically diverse markets reaching over 6.0 percent of the nation's television households. The Company's station portfolio consists of four NBC affiliates, one ABC affiliate, one CBS affiliate, one major market MyNetwork TV affiliate and one major market independent station. The NBC affiliates are KSEE-TV, Fresno-Visalia, California, WEEK-TV, Peoria-Bloomington, Illinois, WISE-TV, Ft. Wayne, Indiana and KBJR-TV, Duluth, Minnesota and Superior, Wisconsin. The ABC affiliate is WKBW-TV, Buffalo, New York, The CBS affiliates are WTVH-TV, Syracuse, New York and WBNG-TV, Binghamton, New York. The MyNetwork affiliate is WMYD-TV, Detroit, Michigan and the independent station is KOFY-TV in San Francisco, California.

About Barrington Broadcasting Group, LLC
Barrington was formed in 2003 to acquire and operate television stations in smaller markets across the United States. Barrington currently owns, operates, or supports the operations of twenty three network affiliated television stations. Barrington is owned and controlled by Pilot Group, with management as its partner. Pilot Group is a non-traditional private investment firm founded in 2003 by a group of operating executives who actively help its management partners achieve their goals.

For more information, contact:
Sandy Novotny
(212) 490-2065