Trump blasts his own FCC for blocking Sinclair-Tribune merger

[Judi Lynn]

Source: CNET


The president gives the FCC a tongue-lashing on Twitter for questioning whether Sinclair had misled regulators.

BY
MARGUERITE REARDON
JULY 25, 2018 9:30 AM PDT

President Trump bashed the Federal Communications Commission on Twitter for potentially killing the $3.9 billion megadeal between Sinclair Broadcast Group and Tribune Media.

Last week, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, a Trump appointee, said he had "serious concerns" about the deal. The five-member commission then voted to refer the merger to an administrative hearing, the first step in a process to challenge the deal. Regulators expressed concern that they had been misled by Sinclair about some of the station divestitures the company had proposed.

Trump took to Twitter Tuesday evening saying it was saying it was "so sad and unfair" that the FCC did not approve the merger which would have given Sinclair, well-known for its conservative views, access to more than 70 percent of TV viewing households in the US.

In his tweet he lamented that the deal would have provided a "conservative voice for and of the People." He compared the deal to the Comcast/NBC merger approved in 2011, which was a much different deal, combining a cable company with a broadcaster.

Read more: https://www.cnet.com/news/trump-blasts-his-own-fcc-for-blocking-sinclair-tribune-merger/#ftag=CAD590a51e

[turbinetree]

1. I just wonder how much money has come from the oligarchy in Russia for this "merger"

after all they have this "guy" on their team :

Boris Alexandrovich Epshteyn is a Russian-born American Republican political strategist, investment banker, and ...


In September 2016, the media watchdog organization Media Matters for America criticized CNN, Fox News, and PBS for failing to disclose Epshteyn's "financial ties to the former Soviet Union, which include consulting through Strategy International LLC for 'entities doing business in Eastern Europe' and moderating a Russian-sponsored conference on 'investment opportunities in Moscow.'"[10]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_Epshteyn

[onenote]

7. Sinclair doesn't need Russian money for this deal

Sinclair is a profitable company. It has total revenues in the neighborhood of $2.5 billion a year. It's net revenues have been increasing, in significant part from its aggressive pursuit of "retransmission consent" fees from multichannel subscription video services such as cable operators, direct broadcast satellite companies, etc. Its plan was to buy the Tribune stations for $3.9 billion, primarily in cash, but partially in Sinclair stock. It also planned to sell some of its stations simultaneously for around $1.5 billion, lowering the net cost of the transaction. Compare that purchase price to what ATT paid for Time Warner ($85 billion) or what Disney paid for a portion of Fox ($71 billion).

[barbtries]

2. of course he wants just one network

and nothing but propaganda going out to the people. a well informed populace is his worst nightmare, after the rule of law and Robert Mueller anyway.

[olegramps]

6. This is Reagan's fascist propaganda program on steroids.

[usaf-vet]

3. STATE news! My god Trump wants to emulate everything Russian.

Sinclair is nothing but a national radio GOP mouth piece. Fox and Sinclair only spew the party line.

[louis-t]

4. Him wants his PRAVDA.

We need a smilie of a crying baby.

[bucolic_frolic]

5. Trump is leveraging power at every step, the GOP hasn't a clue, Democrats have no chokehold

I don't know where this ends. This is not what a democracy, or even a kingdom with a legislative body, does. This is what Hitler does.

[stuffmatters]

8. Not sure this isn't Trump kabuki; I think Murdock (Trump bestie) ordered it kiboshed

After all, the ratings it would most drain would be current Trump Pravda, The Fox News Network, which Murdock is keeping in the Fox sale. It's the only explanation for Trump puppet Pai's change of direction after Pai bull dozed such an intricate corruption of FCC rules to allow the Sinclair expansion in the first place.