Posted on

Journalists at Sinclair local affiliate, “if we spoke out under our names, we could lose our jobs”

Vox posted an anonymous letter from some ‘journalists’ at a Sinclair News local affiliate who said they faced the loss of their jobs and potential fines if they spoke out against the station by name.

“We’re writing this anonymously because if we spoke out under our names, we could lose our jobs — and potentially owe money to Sinclair.”

The journalists were reacting to a promo campaign where anchors at Sinclair’s news stations across the country were required to read the same script decrying “fake” and “biased” reporting — echoing President Donald Trump’s anti-media messaging.

https://www.vox.com/first-person/2018/4/5/17202336/sinclair-broadcasting-promo-deadspin

Posted on

Somebody struck a nerve

A tweet from President Trump had him sounding extra rankled and still obviously upset by the “Sinclair Anchor’s” viral video from this weekend.

Deadspin released a video montage this weekend showing Sinclair anchors at stations across the country reading a scripted message about the dangers of fake news.

Posted on

Video of Sinclair anchors reading the same script about fake news goes viral

Deadspin released a video montage this weekend showing Sinclair anchors at stations across the country reading a scripted message about the dangers of fake news.

Sinclair Broadcast Group based outside Baltimore, began airing the promotional campaign last week during newscasts on its stations. It ordered anchors at its stations to appear in the one-minute spots and to read the same words written for them by Sinclair executives.

Sinclair, which owns 173 TV stations and is seeking to buy 42 more, has a long history of supporting conservative political candidates and courting criticism by using the newscasts of its many stations to boost them.

And the “official” response:

Chicago Tribune story:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/politics/ct-sinclair-video-trump-20180402-story.html