# WTF? Sinclair Group! **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 2, 2018, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655 "2018-04-02T18:32:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2018, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/61 "2018-04-04T00:38:21Z")
> [@dogecoindaryl](#): > > This really was freaking me out, but they’re not in a TON of markets. it’s more spread out then I thought, but still they have presence in important swing states. > > CHeck out the map here to see if you’re affected by any of this strategic propoganda: [http://sbgi.net/tv-stations/](http://sbgi.net/tv-stations/) Their own map is inaccurate. They show one station in Wisconsin (in Milwaukee), but I know for a fact that they own [WLUK in Green Bay](http://fox11online.com/) (scroll down to the bottom of the station’s homepage, and you’ll see “(c) 2018 Sinclair Broadcasting Group, Inc.”) I don’t know how many other stations they own that aren’t shown on their own map. Edit: it looks like Sinclair bought WLUK several years ago, so it’s not a case of “map hasn’t been updated with recent acquisition.” They also own WMSN in Madison, which is _also_ not on their map. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2018, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/62 "2018-04-04T01:03:16Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Their own map is inaccurate. They show one station in Wisconsin (in Milwaukee), but I know for a fact that they own [WLUK in Green Bay](http://fox11online.com/) (scroll down to the bottom of the station’s homepage, and you’ll see “(c) 2018 Sinclair Broadcasting Group, Inc.”) I don’t know how many other stations they own that aren’t shown on their own map. > > Edit: it looks like Sinclair bought WLUK several years ago, so it’s not a case of “map hasn’t been updated with recent acquisition.” They also own WMSN in Madison, which is _also_ not on their map. If you click on “List View” it shows both of those stations. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2018, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/63 "2018-04-04T01:12:55Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > If you click on “List View” it shows both of those stations. I now see that. I also see that, if you zoom in tightly enough on the map, the Green Bay and Madison stations suddenly appear. If I wished to be charitable, I’d just say that it’s an incompetently-designed map (as you zoom in and out, and scroll around, stations appear and disappear). If I wished to be uncharitable, I’d suggest that perhaps they don’t care to make it easy for people to see how many stations they own. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2018, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/64 "2018-04-04T18:58:55Z")
I just sent an email to my local Sinclair station and asked them which other local stations are reporting “fake news” and what that “fake news” might be. ---
**Author:** ![Sigene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df788c/32.png) [@Sigene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigene)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2018, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/65 "2018-04-04T19:09:55Z")
I submit that any regulation to **prevent** this from happening is itself a first amendment violation ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2018, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/66 "2018-04-04T19:11:26Z")
> [@Sigene](#): > > I submit that any regulation to **prevent** this from happening is itself a first amendment violation Explain your submission, please. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2018, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/67 "2018-04-04T19:14:12Z")
> [@Sigene](#): > > I submit that any regulation to **prevent** this from happening is itself a first amendment violation That’s probably true. Or at least possibly true. But that doesn’t mean advertisers or consumers need to accept it. Or even the employees. Some may wish to quit out of principle. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2018, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/68 "2018-04-04T19:15:49Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > That’s probably true. Or at least possibly true. > > But that doesn’t mean advertisers or consumers need to accept it. > > Or even the employees. Some may wish to quit out of principle. Severe penalties for early withdrawal. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2018, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/69 "2018-04-04T21:16:03Z")
[An article in the Washington Post about Sinclair](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2018/04/04/the-loophole-that-enables-sinclair-to-own-so-many-tv-stations/?utm_term=.68c1a7bab61a&wpisrc=nl_fix&wpmm=1), their reach, and their use of an outdated FCC loophole to attempt to circumvent a regulatory limit on how many stations they can own. Short version: FCC regulations state that no one company can own broadcast TV stations which have a combined reach of more than 39% of US households. Sinclair is currently attempting to buy Tribune Media; were the purchase to go through, their reach would be 72%. However, an old FCC rule “discounts” UHF stations (i.e., channels 14-83) in that calculation, since, in the analog TV days, UHF signals were poorer than VHF (channels 2-13) signals, and didn’t have as strong a reach. The regulation was briefly repealed in 2016, under the reasoning that, with the conversion to digital TV, there’s no longer a difference in quality between VHF and UHF signals. However, the current FCC administration, under Trump appointee Ajit Pai, reinstated the discount regulation last year. With that regulation back in place, the purchase of Tribune would only put Sinclair at a “reach” of 45.5% (since they own, or would own, many “discounted” UHF stations), and they wouldn’t need to divest many stations to get down to the regulatory limit (while still actually having a reach of far more than 39%). ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2018, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/70 "2018-04-04T21:30:05Z")
Yea, them pogroms in Nazi Germany started small too. ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2018, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/71 "2018-04-04T21:49:27Z")
I like how the Sinclair group stuff is whats causing people to freak out but Disney doing the exact same thing with media consolidation was welcomed with happy applause. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2018, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/72 "2018-04-04T21:55:22Z")
> [@Asuka](#): > > I like how the Sinclair group stuff is whats causing people to freak out but Disney doing the exact same thing with media consolidation was welcomed with happy applause. What a great idea-Let’s talk about everything at the same time! edited to add: Are you claiming that it’s the same group of people that are unhappy about the former and unhappy about the latter? ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2018, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/73 "2018-04-04T23:07:55Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Yea, them pogroms in Nazi Germany started small too. That’s just offensive. What the hell is wrong with you? Also the progoms, as they are generally defined, were in Russia decades before the Nazis. And they certainly didn’t start small. Stick to what you know. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2018, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/74 "2018-04-04T23:13:00Z")
Holy crap why are you offended that I put down Nazis? They are equally reviled by everybody. I know pogroms were in Russia during WW1. I was talking about Hitler and his pogroms that he started were small up to the Crystal Night. I know more than you think. So quit putting me down as dumb. You don’t know me. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/75 "2018-04-05T01:28:54Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Holy crap why are you offended that I put down Nazis? They are equally reviled by everybody. I know pogroms were in Russia during WW1. I was talking about Hitler and his pogroms that he started were small up to the Crystal Night. I know more than you think. So quit putting me down as dumb. You don’t know me. It’s offensive that you compared the Holocaust to a group of conservative tv stations. You post a lot of ignorant stuff and I point it out when I see it. I am not going to stop. Like this: the Russian pogroms were mostly in the 19th century and very early 20th century well prior to WWI. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/76 "2018-04-05T01:50:36Z")
I never said Holocaust. Never. Ever. I was talking about the evil that Hitler rained down and how innocuous it seemed at first. That. Is. All. If you bring up other stuff that is on you. If you have extra time to follow me around the board, go for it, Dude. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/77 "2018-04-05T01:57:23Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > I never said Holocaust. Never. Ever. > I was talking about the evil that Hitler rained down and how innocuous it seemed at first. > That. Is. All. > If you bring up other stuff that is on you. > If you have extra time to follow me around the board, go for it, Dude. That is an absurd mischaracterization and even more not getting history correct too. You aren’t even comprehending what I am trying to say. As if I am following you around. Good god. Anyway, to bring this back on topic. We have our first producer of a Sinclair station resigning in protest. > **[Sinclair producer in Nebraska resigns to protest 'obvious bias'](https://money.cnn.com/2018/04/04/media/sinclair-producer-resigns-protest/index.html)** > > A morning TV producer at a Sinclair-owned station in Nebraska speaks to CNNMoney about his decision to resign in protest of what he calls the company's "obvious bias." ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/78 "2018-04-05T02:09:39Z")
[More on the penalties Sinclair employees can face](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-04-03/sinclair-employees-say-their-contracts-make-it-too-expensive-to-quit) if they try to leave. ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/79 "2018-04-05T02:16:48Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Yeah, we don’t watch KATU here in Portland because of it. Also, KOMO in Seattle is another Sinclair bot. Here is a local [article](https://crosscut.com/2018/04/how-life-changed-komo-when-sinclair-came-seattle) about Sinclair and KOMO in Seattle. > [@](#): > > **How life changed at KOMO when Sinclair came to Seattle** > > “Anybody but Sinclair”: Issues with the controlling owners are nothing new for KOMO journalists. > > Sinclair was not the household name back then as it has become in recent months. But for those in TV, it was already well known. “When you heard the word Sinclair, if you’d been in the business long enough, you knew it couldn’t be good,” said one longtime KOMO staff member. They were known for being conservative, a reputation they’d earned through pushing the “swift-boat” story, which questioned the war-record of 2004 Democratic Presidential nominee John Kerry. > > But it went beyond political beliefs. “Stuff started to circulate, stories about Sinclair and how they had handled things,” said another longtime senior staff member. “That they were a good ol’ boys network and they had very little diversity.” ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655/80 "2018-04-05T02:29:21Z")
The “good ole’boys network with little diversity”. Hmmm? What does that sound like? Seems familiar. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-sinclair-group/811655.md?page=5)