The ultra-conservative Sinclair Broadcast Group is on the verge of merging with Tribune Media. If this happens, they’ll be able to take over television stations in 72% of American homes with Trump propaganda.(1)
The FCC is currently taking public comments regarding the Sinclair-Tribune merger, but we only have until TOMORROW, July 12, to submit them. Can you take a few minutes today to protest the merger?
To submit your comment, simply enter the proceeding number (17-179) and fill out your information.* Not sure what to say? Here’s a comment that you can use:
“I urge the FCC to deny the merger petition between Sinclair Broadcast Group and Tribune Media. Sinclair is already the country's largest broadcast company and if merged with Tribune Media, they would own stations that reach 72% of American households -- consolidating the power to decide what information reaches us into the hands of a powerful few. Sinclair has a history of forcing local stations to air politically biased segments produced at their corporate headquarters rather than news that reflects the concerns and interests of the communities. I urge you to reject the Sinclair-Tribune merger.”
We cannot allow Trump’s propaganda to be pumped into our homes. Let the FCC know that we will not stand for the Sinclair-Tribune merger.
- The Courage team
*Note: When submitting a comment on the FCC website, all information -- including names and addresses -- will be publicly available via the web.
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Showing posts with label Trump TV. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Trump TV. Show all posts
Thursday, July 12, 2018
Submit your comment today to stop the Sinclair-Tribune Media merger or Trump TV
Monday, December 11, 2017
Tell the FCC inspector general: Investigate FCC Chairman Pai's Sweetheart Deal for Trump TV
The petition to the inspector general of the Federal Communications Commission reads:
"Investigate FCC Chairman Ajit Pai's actions to benefit the Sinclair Broadcast Group. Until the investigation is complete, direct staff to cease work on the merger and direct Chairman Pai to recuse himself until the investigation determines whether a permanent recusal is warranted."
Add your name:
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Almost from the day he took office, Pai has pushed through a series of radical rule changes to help out the Sinclair Broadcast Group, a network so cozy with Trump that it is sometimes called "Trump TV." Among other sweetheart deals, Pai is scrapping FCC rules on media ownership to allow Sinclair – already the biggest television operator in the country – to acquire another network and grow even bigger.It's no secret that Donald Trump hates the media, but he's not just complaining about it on Twitter. Just as Trump's Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai has been trying to kill net neutrality, Pai has also been quietly changing FCC policies to create a more pro-Trump media landscape.
If they succeed, Trump and Pai could permanently change the U.S. media landscape. But their actions appear to be so clearly designed to benefit one company – and Trump himself – that they could violate the FCC's own mission as an independent agency.
Last year, Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner announced that the Trump campaign made a deal with Sinclair to get favorable coverage for Trump on the far-right network.1 Paying back the favor, once Trump entered the White House, he met with Sinclair's CEO and talked about "potential FCC rule changes" to help the company.2
But Pai's actions are just as disturbing. The FCC is supposed to be an independent agency that serves the public interest – not media companies and certainly not Donald Trump. Days after Trump won the election, then-FCC Commissioner Pai had an off-the-record meeting with SInclair's CEO. In the two-week period before Trump took office, Pai met with Sinclair two more times, once before meeting with Trump himself and once after.3 Then, two days after taking office, Trump nominated Pai as FCC chairman. Pai got to work right away on a series of policy changes that directly benefit Sinclair.
Pai's most radical step has been to eliminate rules that would prevent Sinclair from acquiring the Tribune Media Company. This is a mega-merger that would leave Sinclair with an incredible 223 stations covering 72 percent of U.S. households.4 With the FCC's longstanding media ownership rules out of the way, the commission will decide on the merger in the next few months.
Now, however, 15 senators have called for the FCC inspector general to investigate Pai's actions, saying they “suggest a disturbing pattern of a three-way quid pro quo involving Sinclair, the Trump administration and Chairman Ajit Pai."5 The senators have asked the inspector general to tell Pai to recuse himself from all decisions related to Sinclair during the investigation, and they want FCC staff to stop work on the merger until the investigation is complete.
If Pai is changing the media landscape to benefit Donald Trump, we need to know – and we need to stop him.
Tell the FCC inspector general: Investigate FCC Chairman Pai's actions to benefit the Sinclair Broadcast Group. Click the link below to sign the petition:
- Brandy Doyle, CREDO Action from Working Assets
Add your name:
References:
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Sunday, November 12, 2017
Sinclair Broadcast Group wants to turn local news into Trump TV
The ultra-conservative media giant is trying to convince the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to allow it to merge with Tribune Media, giving it control over television stations that broadcast to 75% of American homes.(1)
Sinclair is already infamous for forcing its local stations to air pro-Trump propaganda segments and demanding that anchors read right-wing statements on the air. They're turning local news into Fox News, one television station at a time.
This is what the FCC and the media look like under Donald Trump -- dismantled regulations, huge mergers, and the decimation of free speech by media giants forcing its positions on the airwaves.
We can't let Sinclair take over America's airwaves and turn our television stations into Trump TV. We're calling on the FCC to reject this awful merger. Will you join us? We'll collect your signatures and comments and submit them directly to the FCC.
Sign the petition demanding the FCC reject the merging of Sinclair Broadcast Group with Tribune Media.
Sinclair has become more widely known recently for hiring Trump campaign spokesperson Boris Epshteyn and airing his taped segments on all of their stations up to nine times a week.(2)
But Sinclair has been turning local news stations into right-wing propaganda machines for more than a decade. Sinclair required all of its anchors to read messages supporting George W. Bush's Iraq War, ran infomercials lying about Barack Obama having connections to terrorism, and showed puff pieces about Trump throughout the 2016 campaign.(3)
America relies on its local news stations to keep them informed about their communities and to provide diverse viewpoints. But if Sinclair is allowed to merge with Tribune, it will become the most powerful media company in America and squeeze the life out of local news. As Representative Frank Pallone Jr. said, "I worry that our democracy is at stake because democracy depends on a diversity of voices and competition of news outlets."(4)
Fortunately, the FCC has not rubber-stamped the Sinclair-Tribune deal yet. Just recently, the FCC stopped its review to give the public more time to comment on the merger and also to ask Sinclair to provide more information on how the merger would not hurt the public good.(5)
This is our chance to let the FCC know that we don't want Trump TV in our living rooms. It’s up to us to make our voice heard and take back our media.
Help prevent local news from becoming Trump TV by demanding the FCC stop the Sinclair-Tribune merger! We'll collect your signatures and comments and submit them directly to the FCC.
- the Courage Campaign team
Footnotes:
1. https://www.theguardian.com/media/2017/aug/17/sinclair-news-media-fox-trump-white-house-circa-breitbart-news
2. http://www.politico.com/blogs/on-media/2017/07/10/boris-epshteyn-sinclair-broadcasting-240359
3. https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/this-sinclair-tribune-merger-is-a-rotten-deal-for-america_us_59b0587ce4b0c50640cd643d
4. Refer to note 1
5. http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bs-bz-sinclair-tribune-20171005-story.html
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