Sinclair – Memphis Flyer

Race to the Bottom

The controversial, law-bending $3.9 billion merger of Tribune Media and Sinclair TV collapsed Wednesday, August 8th, when Tribune Media’s board voted to terminate the deal.

The merger, which seemed likely, given the FCC’s initial willingness to misapply the outdated “UHF discount” rule, became considerably less certain last month when the FCC criticized Sinclair, casting doubt on Sinclair’s proposed divestitures, which might amount to divestiture in name only. Or, per the actual concern, “sham transactions.”

[pdf-1]Historically, Sinclair’s content has been right-wing. Recently, it has become overtly Trumpian, with mandates for local stations to air editorial segments by Boris Epshteyn, the Russian-born Republican political strategist and investment banker who is now the “chief political analyst” for Sinclair. Epshteyn was also a senior advisor in Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign.

Sinclair/Tribune Mega-Merger Collapses. What Does it Mean for WREG? (2)

The president has been more than happy to return the favor.

The Fake News Networks, those that knowingly have a sick and biased AGENDA, are worried about the competition and quality of Sinclair Broadcast. The “Fakers” at CNN, NBC, ABC & CBS have done so much dishonest reporting that they should only be allowed to get awards for fiction!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 3, 2018

Sinclair/Tribune Mega-Merger Collapses. What Does it Mean for WREG?

What made Trump’s endorsement especially troublesome — even for him — is the fact that Sinclair’s stations operate unbranded. So, in terms of affiliation, the Sinclair stations the president endorses often are actually affiliates of the NBC, ABC, CBS networks he criticizes.

And some Sinclair stations are FOX affiliates. Welcome to the media ownership funhouse.

While much attention is focused on the big, national networks such as CNN, FOX, MSNBC, etc., Sinclair has been creating a vast web of local, network-affiliated stations. Local TV news has more reach than all four major cable news stations combined.

In addition to ending the merger, Tribune is suing Sinclair.

The stake in this deal for Memphians was news station WREG Channel 3. It now appears that for the foreseeable future, Memphis’ Channel 3 will remain a Tribune Media property.

Bye, Boris.

Boris Epshteyn — Not coming to WREG.

Race to the Bottom

A recent tweet by FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel argues against policy rulings custom built to enable the Sinclair Broadcast group’s $3.9 billion acquisition of Tribune media. The move she criticizes would transfer ownership of WREG Memphis and push the overtly Conservative company’s local market reach well past what’s previously been allowed. Rosenworcel’s comments were inspired, in part, by President Donald Trump’s apparent endorsement of Sinclair over “fake news” media like “CNN, NBC, ABC & CBS.”

As I have said before, there is a troubling pattern at the @FCC. The agency’s big media policy decisions all seem custom-built for the business plan of Sinclair Broadcasting.

This is not right. https://t.co/vEhh9zVXKL

— Jessica Rosenworcel (@JRosenworcel) April 3, 2018

Will WREG dodge the Sinclair bullet? FCC commissioner criticizes policy decisions.

What makes Trump’s endorsement especially troublesome — even for him — is the fact that Sinclair’s stations operate unbranded and so, by way of affiliation, these Sinclair stations the President endorses often are the same NBC, ABC, CBS stations he also criticizes. And sometimes Fox stations as well.

Welcome to the media ownership funhouse.

Sinclair has been collecting network affiliated stations in an environment where cable news gets all the attention even though local TV news has more reach than all four major cable news stations combined

Via Common Dreams:

“Critics, including Rosenworcel, are concerned that under Chairman Ajit Pai, who Trump appointed last year, the FCC is moving deliberately to allow the Sinclair-Tribune merger to go through. Known for pushing right-wing viewpoints within the stations it already owns, the broadcaster drew ire this week after a viral video showed how local anchors nationwide are forced to read the same pre-packaged scripts.”

Will WREG dodge the Sinclair bullet? FCC commissioner criticizes policy decisions. (2)

When the FCC cleared a path for Sinclair’s acquisition in May it was widely assumed that the deal would go through quickly, but that hasn’t been the case. Delays have resulted from ongoing wrangling with antitrust officials in the Justice Department and the FCC’s internal investigation into decisions made by FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, and “whether there had been [FCC] coordination with [Sinclair].”