# Sinclair Broadcasting Mandates airing of Anti-Kerry film
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670
**Category:** Great Debates
**Created:** [October 11, 2004, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670 "2004-10-11T17:21:52Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Evil\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_One)
#### Post date: [October 11, 2004, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/1 "2004-10-11T17:21:52Z")
Oh my.
[Here is the story from CNN,](http://money.cnn.com/2004/10/11/news/newsmakers/sinclair_kerry/index.htm?cnn=yes)
I’m a Bush supporter and I think this is a mistake. It crosses the line. How does Sinclair expect to be taken seriously on political reporting now? Even if the individual station or reporter is exactingly fair, there will still be the stink of partisanship and corporate influence whether it is there or not.
For the record, I find it difficult to find CBS and ABC credible either after the forged document and political director memo…but Sinclair has done them one better.
I used to work in TV news, as many of you may know from reading some of my other posts…and I’ve never seen anything even close to this behind the scenes.
I think this is the beginning of a slippery slope in which previously self-professed objective news sources become more obviously partisan in an attempt to gain viewer loyalty…and the dollars than come with it.
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### Author:  [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)
#### Post date: [October 11, 2004, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/2 "2004-10-11T17:54:18Z")
I expect whoever made this decision at Sinclair is going to be unpleasantly surprised. The Swiftvets have already made their case that there was something shameful and treacherous about the moral courage Kerry showed in testifying to Congress in 1971. Everybody who might be swayed by that argument has already heard it. The airing of this film will, I think, be perceived as overkill, and will alienate more potential Bush voters than it will attract. It will also heighten public awareness of the power of the corporate-controlled media and provoke a backlash against it . . . Yeah! Yeah, go ahead, Sinclair! Air the film! 🙂
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### Author:  [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)
#### Post date: [October 11, 2004, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/3 "2004-10-11T18:10:38Z")
I’m surprised that Sinclair can force the preemption of primetime scheduling on the big networks - doesn’t that violate their contract?
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### Author:  [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)
#### Post date: [October 11, 2004, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/4 "2004-10-11T18:18:37Z")
Damn that liberal media!
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### Author:  [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)
#### Post date: [October 11, 2004, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/5 "2004-10-11T18:23:09Z")
So when are they going to do it? You’re going to lose this whole week to Monday night football fans and/or baseball fans- you’ve also got the last debate this week. Next week you might get lucky if baseball LCS get done, if not then you lose a big market share. Then the World Series comes in, and Halloween. So about all that’s left is the night before election? And I dare say that the only people who would watch this are already not going to vote for Kerry. If I’m Kerry, I demand to buy time on Sinclair stations and preempt their own preemption. That’s if the FCC allows this blatant smear campaign.
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### Author:  [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)
#### Post date: [October 11, 2004, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/6 "2004-10-11T18:39:17Z")
I think the shareholds of Sinclair are going to be upset. They may want Bush to win, but they’d have to agree that sacrificing an hour of prime time programming and the ad revenues for a political agenda is stupid.
Those stations in Florida have already lost a lot of ad revenue because of huricane preemption.
I’m not an expert in prime time television, but looking at [ABC’s](http://abc.go.com/) schedule, I’m going to guess this will probably end up on a Friday or Saturday night. I picked ABC because that is where it would likely end up in the Columbus, OH marketplace. Sinclair also owns a Fox station here, but I doubt it would air on Fox due to Fox’s baseball playoff coverage.
Something tells me those at home watching network TV are not going to be interesting in yet more political mudslinging. Especially over someone’s conduct during the Vietnam war 30 years ago.
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### Author:  [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)
#### Post date: [October 11, 2004, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/7 "2004-10-11T19:09:52Z")
> [@bup](#):
>
> I’m surprised that Sinclair can force the preemption of primetime scheduling on the big networks - doesn’t that violate their contract?
No. A local station can pre-empt network programming. In fact, a lot of stations have a certain allowable amount of prime time pre-emptions built ito their contracts.
Of course if a network doesn’t like what an affiliate does, it can look for another affiliate when the contract expires.
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### Author:  [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)
#### Post date: [October 11, 2004, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/8 "2004-10-11T19:45:58Z")
> [@kunilou](#):
>
> Of course if a network doesn’t like what an affiliate does, it can look for another affiliate when the contract expires.
True. But there aren’t exactly a lot of unaffiliated TV stations in a given market at any time. There aren’t a lot of TV stations in a given market, period.
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### Author:  [@NurseCarmen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NurseCarmen)
#### Post date: [October 11, 2004, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/9 "2004-10-11T20:14:00Z")
There also is the possibility that a boycott of Sinclair’s advertisers is threatened, and the advertisers put pressure on Sinclair. It’s not wise to piss off 40-50% of the purchasing public.
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### Author:  [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)
#### Post date: [October 11, 2004, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/10 "2004-10-11T20:18:05Z")
Oh, it’s the same people who refused to air Nightline when Koppel just read names aloud.
> [@](#):
>
> The company made news in April when it ordered seven of its ABC-affiliated stations not to air a “Nightline” segment that featured a reading of the names of U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq; a Sinclair executive called that broadcast “contrary to the public interest.”
What’s the word for people like this?
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### Author:  [@Evil\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_One)
#### Post date: [October 11, 2004, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/11 "2004-10-11T20:21:29Z")
Idiots.
They are alienating nearly half of their viewing audience and giving away the credibility of their news departments. Bush is going to win without this effort from them. I don’t see any upside whatsoever for them doing it.
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### Author:  [@Evil\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_One)
#### Post date: [October 11, 2004, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/12 "2004-10-11T20:23:06Z")
> [@rjung](#):
>
> Damn that liberal media!
ABC and CBS have shown their hands, Rjung. This might be an attempt to “even the score”…but it’s not a smart move.
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### Author:  [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)
#### Post date: [October 11, 2004, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/13 "2004-10-11T21:43:14Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#):
>
> Oh, it’s the same people who refused to air Nightline when Koppel just read names aloud.What’s the word for people like this?
“Contrary to the public interest.”
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### Author:  [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)
#### Post date: [October 11, 2004, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/14 "2004-10-11T22:02:59Z")
> [@Evil One](#):
>
> ABC and CBS have shown their hands, Rjung. This might be an attempt to “even the score”…but it’s not a smart move.
ABC? The people who gave us Rush?
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### Author:  [@Ms2001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms2001)
#### Post date: [October 11, 2004, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/15 "2004-10-11T22:10:43Z")
> [@NurseCarmen](#):
>
> There also is the possibility that a boycott of Sinclair’s advertisers is threatened, and the advertisers put pressure on Sinclair. It’s not wise to piss off 40-50% of the purchasing public.
Looks like the boycott is already under way: [Boycott Sinclair Advertisers](http://boycottsinclair.blogspot.com/), [Stop Sinclair](http://www.stopsinclair.org/index.php).
> [@bup](#):
>
> ABC? The people who gave us Rush?
The people who dare to consider the possibility that one candidate’s campaigning might be more or less truthful than the other’s.
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### Author:  [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)
#### Post date: [October 12, 2004, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/16 "2004-10-12T03:07:20Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#):
>
> What’s the word for people like this?
“Republican”?
Okay, okay, “Bush-voting Republicans,” to avoid tarring the folks sensible enough not to back the Clown Prince of Crawford. 😉
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### Author:  [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)
#### Post date: [October 12, 2004, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/17 "2004-10-12T03:40:26Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#):
>
> The Swiftvets have already made their case…
They’re not done. Now the Swiftboaters have assimilated the organization which produced “Stolen Honor”:
> [@](#):
>
> ((9/29/2004)
> Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, a non-partisan, non-profit group representing more than 250 Swift Boat veterans who served with Senator John Kerry in Vietnam, announced today they are joining forces with a group of American prisoners of war who were held captive by the North Vietnamese during the Vietnam War. The merger coincides with a new $1.4 million television ad campaign released by the new group **Swift Vets and POWs For Truth.**
> …
> Swift Vets and POWs For Truth now has over 63,000 online financial contributors to their campaign to get the truth out about John Kerry.
>
> The POWs also released a new 40 minute documentary titled Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal, produced by Pulitzer Prize and Peabody Award winning journalist Carlton Sherwood.
[Stolen Honor News](http://www.stolenhonor.com/news/view.asp?id=14&page=)
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### Author:  [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)
#### Post date: [October 12, 2004, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/18 "2004-10-12T04:19:57Z")
Carlton Sherwood, eh? The same fellow who created the hard-hitting expose of the Rev. Moon? Titled _Inquisition: The Persecution and Prosecution of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon._. Is that the fellow? Is it the same fellow who started up a security outfit, and was awarded a security contract for the Baghdad Airport, based on an experience and expertise level of zilch?
And are there two Pulitzer Prizes? I"m familiar with the one named for Joseph Pulizer, but there is no mention of Mr. Sherwood there.
[http://www.pulitzer.org/](http://www.pulitzer.org/)
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### Author:  [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)
#### Post date: [October 12, 2004, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/19 "2004-10-12T04:23:12Z")
Peabody Award? Carlton Sherwood?
Nope.
[http://www.peabody.uga.edu/archives/search.html](http://www.peabody.uga.edu/archives/search.html)
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### Author:  [@PatriotX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatriotX)
#### Post date: [October 12, 2004, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sinclair-broadcasting-mandates-airing-of-anti-kerry-film/268670/20 "2004-10-12T04:54:18Z")
And oddly enough there’s no Carlton Sherwood listed here:
\*\*[Peabody Winners Book\*\*](http://www.peabody.uga.edu/archives/book.html)
The George Foster Peabody Awards were first awarded in 1941 for radio programs broadcast in 1940. The awards, long considered among the most prestigious prizes in electronic media, recognize distinguished achievement and meritorious service by radio and television networks, stations, producing organizations, cable television organizations and individuals. Though there is no set number of awards, no more than 36 have ever been presented in a single year. This free downloadable Winners Book lists all recipients of the George Foster Peabody Award by date.
These are sad a nd terrible oversights on the part of the Peabody and Pulitzer organizations. Mr. Sherwood must be very distraught.
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