Sinclair's agenda -a few things [View All]

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

My local ABC affiliate WCHS and FOX affiliate WVAH are Sinclair stations----------
Sinclair forces its affiliates to exclusively run the opions of Mark Hyman, an extremist rightwing republican shill. I know employees at one of their affiliates and stations are not allowed to opt out of broacasting Hyman's GOP talking points.

Sinclair promotes Hyman as some sort of andedote to a supposed PC takeover of the news:

"The Point is a one-minute daily commentary that is intended to stimulate public discourse. The Point encourages viewer feedback, and every Saturday we air select viewer comments, both positive and negative. In an age of homogenized, bland, politically correct news, we are proud to deliver news and commentary that stimulates critical thinking and encourages viewers to get involved. "

more on Hyman:

"Tune into the evening news on Madison, Wisconsin's Fox TV affiliate and behold the future of local news. In the program's concluding segment, "The Point," Mark Hyman rants against peace activists ("wack-jobs"), the French ("cheese-eating surrender monkeys"), progressives ("loony left") and the so-called liberal media, usually referred to as the "hate-America crowd" or the "Axis of Drivel." Colorful, if creatively anemic, this is TV's version of talk radio, with the precisely tanned Hyman playing a second-string Limbaugh.


Fox 47's right-wing rants may be the future of hometown news, but – believe it or not – it's not the program's blatant ideological bias that is most worrisome. Here's the real problem: Hyman isn't the station manager, a local crank, or even a journalist. He is the Vice President of Corporate Communications for the station's owner, the Sinclair Broadcast Group. And this segment of the local news isn't exactly local. Hyman's commentary is piped in from the home office in Baltimore, MD, and mixed in with locally-produced news. Sinclair aptly calls its innovative strategy "NewsCentral" - it is very likely to spell the demise of local news as we know it. "
http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=15718

Hyman's bio:
http://www.newscentral.tv/station/bios/mhyman.shtml
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In addition, Sincalir was the first group of stations to refuse to air Political Incorrect after rightwing activist took Bill Maher's comments out of context. The refusal of stations to air the show ultimately led to ABC's decision to cancel Maher

http://triad.bizjournals.com/triad/stories/2001/09/24/daily3.html
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And much like Clear Channel, Sinclair forced its staions to organize pro-war 'support the troops' rallies. These rallies, which were biulled as apololitical, featured primarily GOP speakers and freqeunt demonizing attacks on democrats and antiwar activists