Now let's get to the heart of the matter...
The protections aren't in the form of a law. If ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX owned your local affiliates, do you believe they'd throw infomercials up? I believe they'd show the network programming if your stations are O&O...
But CBS and FOX couldn't buy your stations. They don't have room under the FCC's ownership cap rule, which is to promote localism. As a matter of fact, decades ago, the FCC setup ways to try and stop networks from becoming so powerful. So, in any network-affiliate contract, the affiliate has the right to pre-empt quite a few shows.
So, now we are back to square one. The FCC wants to promote localism and keep local network affiliates from becoming a chain of network repeaters. However, most of the people that want distant networks are those that either want timeshifting abilities, access to different sports broadcasts or to have an alternate to crappy affiliates; these all being points against localism.
It is the agents of the NAB, which is mainly comprised of the non-O&O network affiliates, that are willing to settle for $100 million and a requalification of everyone. It is this party that keeps the station ownership caps in check, by reminding those in Congress that they exemplify the localism mandate.
They exemplify the localism mandate by having three of the four network stations show infomercials during the network schedule.