they actually represent two-year periods. HBO host John Oliver noted that Sinclair commentator Mark Hyman in must-run segments has pushed conservative commentary such as railing against snowflakes and claiming marriage solves domestic violence. A prolific Democratic donor, Allen last year gave $20,000 to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, as well as donations totaling thousands to the campaigns of a number of Democratic. [Media Matters, 10/2/15], Wash. Post: Sinclair And Its Executives Have Been Consistent Financial Contributors To Republican Candidates." 05/01/23 2:58 PM EDT, Article But specific instruction isnt needed. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. I found these figures wanting. Sinclair Broadcast Group In 2008, Sinclair aired an ad from a conservative group smearing then-Sen. Obama by linking him to the founder of the Weather Underground, Bill Ayers, according to The New York Times. But the commercial, a minute long, has run at least 100 times since Saturday, heavily in East Lansing and Pittsburgh. contributions to federal candidates, and contributions from individual donor data, which were released by the Federal Election Commission on March 22, . Sinclair Cares utilizes the strength of Sinclairs properties to uplift organizations and inspire audiences and employees to make a positive impact in their communities. Inside Sinclair: What employees are saying about the controversy What we know about the conservative media giant Sinclair For the 2016 election cycle, Sinclairs PAC made $82,375 in donations to federal candidates. On average, employees at Sinclair Broadcast Group stay with the company for 5.2 years. The Sinclair reporter, along with the other conservative reporter Trump called on, were criticized by fellow journalists for not asking about Flynn. The federal government has fined TV broadcaster Sinclair $48 million, largely because of actions it took in its failed attempt to acquire smaller rival Tribune Media. Kushner highlighted that Sinclair, in states like Ohio, reaches a much wider audience around 250,000 listeners than networks like CNN, which reach somewhere around 30,000. As reported by Politico, the memo claims the criticism came from biased news organizations that have an agenda to destroy our reputation. From the July 18 article: An executive at local broadcast TV giant Sinclair defended the company and lashed out against what he called biased news organizations that have an agenda to destroy our reputation in an internal memo obtained by POLITICO. [Politico, 12/16/16]. Discarding the original vision and replacing it with what critics claim is a stealthy emphasis on right-leaning, Trump-friendly content, Sinclair launched Circa News last July and, in recent months, has become a favorite of Sean Hannity among other Fox News personalities, along with embattled presidential son Donald Trump Jr. (a serial retweeter of Circa News stories), tendentious White House talking head Sebastian Gorka, and alt-right populist Trumpkin Mike Cernovich. Trumps presidential campaign received $1,000 from Bill Butler, Sinclairs vice president of programming, in 2016. It doesnt put them in any ethical bind whatsoever, Sinclairs vice president of strategy and policy Rebecca Hanson told the Post. The country's largest owner of local TV stations, the Sinclair Broadcast Group, which reaches over a third of homes across the nation, wants to get even bigger by merging with the Tribune. Participation is completely voluntary. Sinclair Media Networks (SMN) is the division of Sinclair that reaches the companys entire broadcast audience across its national footprint. Pierre Rousse Mine, Vizille, Grenoble, Isre, Auvergne-Rhne-Alpes, France Oliver also noted that Epshteyn attacked CNN for its coverage of Trump and that Sinclair affiliates aired a 25-minute attack on Obama in 2010. Individual donors gave Individual donors gave 41 large ($200+) contributions to Sinclair Broadcast Group PAC in the 2015-2016 election cycle. Sinclair and its affiliates have a history of airing conservative-leaning reporting and commentary, and its executives have donated to Republicans and Republican causes. On May 8, CNN reported that Sinclair Broadcast Group, Americas biggest owner of local TV stations, has agreed to buy Tribune Media for $43.50 per share, valuing the deal at $3.9 billion. CNN also noted that Tribune operates dozens of TV stations across the country, and has a cable channel, WGN America; a 32% stake in the CareerBuilder web site; and a 31% stake in the Food Network. [CNN.com, 5/8/17]. Afsaneh Beschloss, NPR Board of Directors, gave $614,300. Sinclair Broadcast Group is asking top executives, including news directors, to make donations to its political action committee, an unusual move that is raising concerns among media. On Wednesday, eligible Sinclair Broadcast Group employees thought to be mostly executive types received an invitation to contribute to the companys political action committee. A 501(c)(3) tax-exempt, charitable organization. David D. Smith, Sinclair executive chairman and son of Sinclairs founder, Julian Sinclair Smith, has given $30,000 to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and $20,700 to the National Republican Congressional Committee in 2017, federal records show. While Fox News broadcasts lean conservative, the PAC of its holding company, 21st Century Fox, donates liberally to Democrats. While its not uncommon for media executives to donate to political candidates and committees, its often taboo if not against company rules altogether for working journalists to make political contributions. Wash. Post: Sinclairs Stations Have Been Used To Attack Democrats Or To Boost Republicans. The Washington Post reported in 2014 that after Sinclair purchased Washingtons ABC affiliate WJLA-TV, the channel took a subtle but noticeable turn to the right. The Post added that Sinclairs stations have been used to attack Democratic candidates or to boost Republicans, and on the eve of 2012 presidential elections, Sinclair stations in several battlegrounds states aired a corporate-produced half-hour news special that criticized then-President Barack Obama and his policies. Anna Wintour, editor of Vogue, gave $6,000. That trend continued into the 2017-2018 cycle, where Democrats are pulling in 53 percent of Time Warners PAC money to candidates, or almost $64,000. Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg fund swaths of lobbyists in Washington. NewsON is the nations largest aggregator of local news content. Tennis.comis the largest digitaloutletdedicated tothe sport. And while it already reaches over a third of homes across the nation, the country's. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. Sinclair clearly has a good campaign finance compliance lawyer, he said. James Murdoch, who left the family Fox News business, donated over $2.25 million. Sinclair Broadcast Group | PBS NewsHour Sinclair Broadcasting and Nexstar executives give to the National Association of Broadcasters. Super PACs have the freedom to report only twice a year, so there may be more to come. That's how Putin wins. Look up your friends and patriotsat the FEC. A reporter from a Sinclair affiliate was one of two people called on by Trump during his February 13 press conference with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. of these columns may not equal the Total column. Sinclairs owned/operated stations offer newsletters to provide breaking news and additional content from the community. A Montana Sinclair Affiliate Did Not Air The Recording Of The Gianforte Assault, And ASinclair VP Donated To Him. CHARGE! Top Sinclair officials have also helped fuel both Republican and Democratic campaigns, of late. Frederick Smith, who runs the billion dollar Sinclair media empire that once offered to do anything for Trump, must not have meant with cash, donating $6,800 to the GOP and $5,800 to Democratic Sen. ChuckSchumer. Data for the current election cycle was released by the Federal Election Commission on PAC Profile: Sinclair Broadcast Group OpenSecrets example, the 2002 election cycle runs from January 1, 2001 to RobertIger, executive chairman of the Walt Disney Co. and who once ran ABC, gave over $1 million. Common Cause is part of a coalition of groups that oppose Sinclairs pending acquisition of Tribune Media, which has been made possible by regulatory easing. The company is currently awaiting federal approval of a proposed $3.9 billion buyout of Tribune Media, which would add 42 more local television . document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Use the unsubscribe link in the emails we send to opt out at any time. Comedian John Oliver aired a segment last year critical of what he considers the companys right-wing bent, such as cutting local news segments to instead run commentary from Sinclairs chief political analyst, Boris Epshteyn, a former Trump aide. Sinclair has used its 173 television stations to advance a mostly right-leaning agenda since the presidency of George W. Bush, according to The New York Times. For those of you who havent, please take the time to evaluate the importance that the Sinclair PAC can have toward benefiting your company and the needs of the industry as a whole.. by Ashley Balcerzak, Center for Public Integrity April 3, 2018, This article first appeared on Center for Public Integrity and is republished here under a Creative Commons license..