Anyone familiar with the Sinclair Broadcasting Group?

[G_j]

http://www.sbgi.net/

They own our local TV station. They require the station to play a segment called 'Point' where this complete wingnut jerk named Mark Hymann attacks anything liberal. I called the local station today and told them I was waiting for a counterpoint and If I wanted to hear this type of thing I would listen to Rush. The woman I spoke to, who was very nice, said they get LOTS of complaints but they have no choice but to play this segment. She was not at all surprised to hear my complaint and didn't sound too thrilled with the deal herself. She gave me the number of Sinclair Broadcasting Group but I haven't called yet, thinking it would probably be futile. I'm thinking that maybe a local movement to demand response time might have some effect. Any ideas?

Does anyone else have a local TV station owned by this group?

on edit, Here is a link to the list of stations: http://www.sbgi.net/business/television.shtml


-Sinclair's television group includes 20 FOX, 19 WB, 6 UPN, 8 ABC, 3 CBS, 4 NBC affiliates and 2 independent stations and reaches approximately 24% of all U.S. television households. To view information about stations in each of our markets, use the menu below.

[wysimdnwyg]

1. We have them here

They outsource the local WB channel and own the UPN and (surprise!) Fox channels. I avoid their newscasts.

[G_j]

3. I'm wondering if they force their RW propaganda

via Mark Hymann onto all their stations, reminds me of Clear Channel.

:puke:

[Kolesar]

2. Google search says 63 TV stations in 50 towns

http://www.ketupa.net/sinclair.htm

television

WTTA - Tampa
KMWB - Minneapolis
WPGH and WCWB - Pittsburgh
KOVR - Sacramento
KDNL - St Louis
WBFF and WNUV - Baltimore
WTTV and WTTK - Indianapolis
WLFL and WRDC - Raleigh - Durham
WZTV and WUXP - Nashville
WCGV and WVTV - Milwaukee
WSTR - Cincinnati
KSMO - Kansas City
WTTE and WSYX - Columbus
WFBC and WLOS - Asheville
KABB and KRRT - San Antonio
WTTO, WABM and WDBB - Birmingham
WTVZ - Norfolk
WUTV - Buffalo
KOCB and KOKH - Oklahoma City
WXLV and WUPN - Greensboro
WKEF and WRGT - Dayton
KVWB and KFBT - Las Vegas
WCHS and WVAH - Charleston
WRLH - Richmond
WEAR and WFGX - Mobile
WSMH - Flint
WDKY - Lexington
KDSM - Des Moines
WSYT and WNYS - Syracuse
KBSI and WDKA - Paducah
WUHF - Rochester
WGME - Portland
WMSN - Madison
WEMT - Tri-Cities
WGGB - Springfield
WYZZ - Peoria
WTWC - Tallahassee
WMMP and WTAT - Charleston

[scarlet_owl]

14. WICD here in Champaign, too.

In fact, it's right across the street from me.

[mst3k]

4. NewsHour had a story on them...

I'd nearly forgotten about it, but the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer had a segment on Sinclair...

Here is the story.

Excerpt:

TERENCE SMITH: One of the nightly staples of the News Central diet is a commentary called "The Point" by corporate communications chief Hyman who labels his views as right of center. On this night, Hyman blasted CBS for its production of a Reagan miniseries, which it ultimately pulled from the network in the face of conservative criticism.

MARTY HAAG: You're fed a decidedly right-wing commentary over a variety of markets, and they seem to have even borrowed this notion of saying at the top of the broadcast that it's fair and balanced.

Well, what about the opportunity of having somebody who represents an opposing point of view every now and then?

[G_j]

9. Wow, thanks!

this story says it all and of all things I find the identity of Mark Hyman. Did you see his picture? I don't know how I missed that at the SBG site.

MARK HYMAN, Vice President of Corporate Relations, Sinclair Broadcasting: News Central is a concept in which we were trying to find an efficiency that would allow us to put news on television stations that otherwise would not be able to operate news.

They are doing the exact same thing as Clear Channel.

Well this story describes their agenda quite well. Now I know that I really hate them! LOL But what to do? I know they could care less what any of us think. :shrug:

[Maeve]

5. Gave up watching my SBG affiliate's local news

And told them that was the reason. Hymann doesn't care if people object to him, according to an interview I saw a while back. he has the microphone and he's going to use it, end of story.

[G_j]

6. I can't find him mentioned anywhere

not at SBG's website nor my local station's. Guess he doesn't want any 'feedback' He certainly works for those higher up, so I guess this is their agenda.

on edit: thanks to mst3k I now know who the shmuck is. He's pretty up there in the Hierarchy.

[Cooley Hurd]

7. They appear to own mostly Faux & WB affiliates...

I'm not sure how much authority NewsCorp holds over them though...

It sure does sound ALOT like ClearChannel, doesn't it?

[G_j]

8. Faux

(Googled) FOX Broadcasting has some 200 TV station affiliates, 37 of them company-owned.

If I understand this correctly SBG owns twenty Faux stations, but my station is ABC and they own affiliates of the other major networks.
It's all starting to make sense.

Geez, they really do have us in a death grip. Next I'll probably find out there really is a Clear Channel connection. Hey, & while we're at it, where's Murdoch?

[pstokely]

10. Murdock owns the Fox station in Kansas City

and its newscasts aren't real 'fair and balanced', station switched from NBC to Fox nearly 10 years ago

[pstokely]

11. their 'fair and balanced' news is coming to WB62 in Kansas City

and the ABC station in St. Louis which pulled newscasts 2 years ago because of low ratings

[G_j]

12. I can't believe I hadn't

really heard of SBG before. Guess I wasn't paying attention while they were taking over America's TV stations.
I really do like to check out the local news once in a while. This is maybe the third time I've seen Hyman's baloney. Today he was carrying on about the "hate America first" crowd. I got irate enough to call the station. Thus I found out about Sinclair.

[scarlet_owl]

13. Yes. My best friend's husband is a producer for a Sinclair

owned news station. Apparently, the segment isn't very popular. I have to run to switch off the television when I hear that music come on. Mark Hyman sucks.