Macfadden sweetened its bid for John Blair & Co.

However, the new bid hinges on a ruling from the Federal Communications Commission. Blair, a broadcast concern, is fighting Macfadden Holdings’ bid and agreed instead to be purchased by Reliance Capital Group, which already holds about 90% of Blair’s common shares under a tender offer that expired a week ago. A trustee is required to operate Blair while the FCC reviews the transfer of Blair’s broadcast licenses to Reliance. But the FCC is studying whether Reliance violated FCC rules in accepting the tendered shares without first receiving agency approval for a special trustee. If that happens, Macfadden will pay $32 cash a share for 61% of Blair’s stock and a combination of $2 cash and preferred stock valued at $32 for the remaining shares.