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Sinclair Broadcasting Group Poised to Break Election Laws

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Dookiestix
 
  1  
Reply Fri 15 Oct, 2004 06:18 pm
When Ted Koppel wanted to honor our troops in Iraq and read the names of all who had died, Sinclair complained that it was politically motivated and forced their affiliates to not show it.

Now, Sinclair will run a POLITICALLY MOTIVATED screed on Kerry, full of conjecture and lies, and it is now o.k. to do this.

I find this utterly repulsive, ESPECIALLY because Ted was mearly honoring our troops, and NEVER did he offer an op-ed opinion on the subject.

He mearly wanted to honor our dead.

And now, Sinclair wants to ridicule those who went and fought in Vietnam, like Kerry.

This is sick and will not work. It would be to Kerry's advantage to show this crap so that he can adequately respond in kind with the TRUTH, including the 60 minutes piece last night on the fact that Vietnamese who remember the Swift Boat attacks are COMPLETELY contradicting John O'Neil's accounts.
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OCCOM BILL
 
  1  
Reply Fri 15 Oct, 2004 07:24 pm
My best guess on the Cable issue is that as bandwidth, compression, throughput speed (or whatever the appropriate mumbo-jumbo is) increase, so will number of choices. I see a total integration between the Internet and the TV so we'll not only choose our programming but it will be on demand. Think TiVo with every program available online. My guess, roll out with in 10 years, old hat in 20. RJB- the more heavily populated areas will always get rolled out first. That's just economics.
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squinney
 
  1  
Reply Sat 16 Oct, 2004 02:12 pm
Sherwood formerly worked for Pennsylvania governor Tom Ridge, whom George W. Bush later appointed as the first Secretary of Homeland Security. The Bush administration has selected Sherwood to create and manage a new federal website aimed at first responders (police officers, firefighters, etc.). While working as a Ridge administration official, Sherwood directed then-Gov. Ridge's award-winning broadcast TV and radio operations in Harrisburg. He currently serves as executive vice president of the WVC3 Group, an anti-terrorism, security firm headquartered in Reston, VA.

Karl Rove, take a bow. This is classic. The former minister of propaganda for the Homeland Security Secretary just happens to produce a right-wing hit piece that will run on TV in just about every swing state, days before the election.





Update: Sherwood is a vice president of WVC3 (oddly, his name appears nowhere on the shadowy WVC3 Web site, but see the bio at the end of this book review or this one), a "consulting" company in Washington DC. The public face of WVC3 is Bill Cowan, a Fox News contributor who apparently has longstanding ties to the CIA and performed covert operations in Iraq in 1990. According to this interview with Frontline, he was a hands-on spook who also worked for the Pentagon in Beirut in the 1980s, investigating the 1983 Embassy bombing, among other jobs.
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OCCOM BILL
 
  1  
Reply Sat 16 Oct, 2004 02:58 pm
Hey squinney, do you by any chance know when the program was made?
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Walter Hinteler
 
  1  
Reply Sat 16 Oct, 2004 03:07 pm
OCCOM BILL wrote:
Hey squinney, do you by any chance know when the program was made?


Quote:
Sherwood took an unpaid leave of absence from the wvc3 Group in June 2004 in order to establish Red, White & Blue Productions, Inc., an independent film company which produced "Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal."
Source
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blueveinedthrobber
 
  1  
Reply Sat 16 Oct, 2004 05:00 pm
What do you think we should name this new country?
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OCCOM BILL
 
  1  
Reply Sat 16 Oct, 2004 07:46 pm
Thanks Walter. Because of the man's distinguished resume, I'll withhold judgment till I see it... but it sure looks like a sleazy BS production. It might have meant a little tiny something if it was 30 years old. Thanks again.

Btw, have you guys seen this one yet?

Fahrenhype 9/11
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squinney
 
  1  
Reply Sat 16 Oct, 2004 08:15 pm
No, but saw an ad for it on Fox News. Sounded like it was opening soo, but not yet in theaters.
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OCCOM BILL
 
  1  
Reply Sat 16 Oct, 2004 08:43 pm
No time for that... it went straight to DVD. Who knows, watching it back to back with Moore's film might just trick people into learning what the hell is going on... and then they decide for themselves who best to work on it for reasons other than who's 90 second sound bites. Idea
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bashtoreth
 
  1  
Reply Sat 16 Oct, 2004 09:02 pm
squinney wrote:
No, but saw an ad for it on Fox News. Sounded like it was opening soo, but not yet in theaters.


You watch Fox News? You must be a part of the vast right-wing conspiracy!
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squinney
 
  1  
Reply Sat 16 Oct, 2004 09:09 pm
It's part of my covert operations. Gives me a heads up for the talking points of the day. Very Happy
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squinney
 
  1  
Reply Tue 19 Oct, 2004 09:30 am
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sozobe
 
  1  
Reply Tue 19 Oct, 2004 09:40 am
Could this backfire after all?

That would be nice.
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revel
 
  1  
Reply Tue 19 Oct, 2004 11:21 am
If the show airs it is going to stir a lot of people and more than likely Bush will win. I don't think it is going to back fire at all.

The democrats are going to have to start playing the neo conservatives game of buying up all the media stations.
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timberlandko
 
  1  
Reply Tue 19 Oct, 2004 01:46 pm
Oh, its gonna air, but I doubt its gonna have much effect one way or the other on voter attitudes other than backlash directed toward the Democrats' ridiculously futile attempts to stifle it.
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revel
 
  1  
Reply Tue 19 Oct, 2004 02:07 pm
anybody remember the story of reagan that got stiffled?
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timberlandko
 
  1  
Reply Tue 19 Oct, 2004 02:34 pm
Sorta interestin' that CBS declined to air The Reagans, placing it instead on Showtime, a sister under the Viacom umbrella. Interestin' too that The Reagans didn't fare very well in the ratings ... its first Showtime airing was its strongest, but last-half viewership was significantly off from first-half, and subsequent airings failed to enter even the top 100 for any of their timeslots. It now no longer even is in the rotation ... no showings scheduled over the next 90 days, that I was able to find, but I mighta just not been lookin' in the right places.

I figure that with the Sinclair affiliates and the several dozen other non-Sinclair stations so far signed up to air it, Stolen Honor will pull strikingly higher ratings than would be expected but for the furor The Democrats themselves have generated. If the piece does wind up directly damaging Kerry in the Mind of The Swayable Electorate (an eventuality I strongly doubt - preaching to the choir and all that), The Democrats will have no one but themselves to blame. Also interestin' is that F-9/11 can't even get on the air, broadcast or cable, despite the best efforts of those who would like to see it do so.
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McGentrix
 
  1  
Reply Tue 19 Oct, 2004 02:38 pm
Moore's attempt to win an oscar is more important to him.

(That and the fact the people distributing the movie aren't done making money on it yet...)
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timberlandko
 
  1  
Reply Tue 19 Oct, 2004 03:02 pm
Here's the latest ...
Quote:
Sinclair to Air `A POW Story: Politics, Pressure and the Media'
Tuesday October 19, 3:54 pm ET


BALTIMORE, Oct. 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sinclair Broadcast Group (Nasdaq: SBGI - News) announced today that on Friday, October 22, 2004 at 8:00 p.m. (7:00 p.m. central time) certain television stations owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. will air a special one-hour news program, entitled "A POW Story: Politics, Pressure and the Media." In order to minimize the interruption of normally scheduled programming in those markets where Sinclair owns and/or programs more than one television station, the news special will be broadcast on only one of those stations. A complete list of stations which will be airing the program and the times of such broadcasts is attached.
The news special will focus in part on the use of documentaries and other media to influence voting, which emerged during the 2004 political campaigns, as well as on the content of certain of these documentaries. The program will also examine the role of the media in filtering the information contained in these documentaries, allegations of media bias by media organizations that ignore or filter legitimate news and the attempts by candidates and other organizations to influence media coverage.

Contrary to numerous inaccurate political and press accounts, the Sinclair stations will not be airing the documentary "Stolen Honor" in its entirety. At no time did Sinclair ever publicly announce that it intended to do so. In fact, since the controversy began, Sinclair's website has prominently displayed the following statement: "The program has not been videotaped and the exact format of this unscripted event has not been finalized. Characterizations regarding the content are premature and are based on ill- informed sources."

While the news special will discuss the allegations surrounding Senator John Kerry's anti-Vietnam War activities in the early 1970s raised by a number of former POWs in "Stolen Honor," it will do so in the context of the broader discussion outlined above. The program will be hosted by Jeff Barnd, the Emmy award-winning co-anchor of Fox 45's 10:00 News which airs on WBFF-TV, Sinclair's flagship station in Baltimore, Maryland.

Joe DeFeo, Sinclair's Vice President of News, commented that, "As with all news programming produced by Sinclair's News Central, `A POW Story' is being produced with the highest journalistic standards and integrity. We have not ceded, and will not in the future cede, control of our news reporting to any outside organization or political group. We are endeavoring, as we do with all of our news coverage, to present both sides of the issues covered in an equal and impartial manner."

In fact, Sinclair has been in private communication with Senator Kerry's campaign, including a recent face-to-face meeting with senior campaign officials, for approximately two weeks in order to negotiate participation in the special by either Senator Kerry or his designee. Although the Kerry campaign declined to participate, Sinclair has left the invitation open and will make every effort to accommodate the Senator up to the air date for the program should he become willing to present his viewpoint for Sinclair's audience.

David Smith, CEO of Sinclair, noted that, "The experience of preparing to air this news special has been trying for many of those involved. The company and many of its executives have endured personal attacks of the vilest nature, as well as calls on our advertisers and our viewers to boycott our stations and on our shareholders to sell their stock. In addition, and more shockingly, we have received threats of retribution from a member of Senator John Kerry's campaign and have seen attempts by leading members of Congress to influence the Federal Communications Commission to stop Sinclair from broadcasting this news special. Moreover, these coordinated attacks have occurred without regard to the facts since they predated the broadcast of our news special."

Mr. Smith further stated, "We cannot in a free America yield to the misguided attempts by a small but vocal minority to influence behavior and trample on the First Amendment rights of those with whom they might not agree. I have been encouraged, however, by the thousands of e-mails and other messages I, and others, received supporting Sinclair's efforts to hold firm to its ideals in the face of a firestorm of controversy which, ironically, was actually based on misinformation. We also took comfort in the positions of other media organizations which supported our right to present this story notwithstanding any disagreement they may have with the content, as well as in the words of Michael Powell, Chairman of the FCC, who refused to block the program, noting that to do so would be 'unconstitutional' and 'an absolute disservice to the First Amendment.'"

Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc., one of the largest and most diversified television broadcasting companies, owns and operates, programs, or provides sales services to 62 television stations in 39 markets. Sinclair's television group includes FOX, WB, ABC, CBS, NBC, and UPN affiliates and reaches approximately 24% of all U.S. television households.

Market & Stations To
Air "A POW Story"
Baltimore WBFF Friday 10/22 8PM
Birmingham WTTO Friday 10/22 7PM
Buffalo WUTV Friday 10/22 8PM
Cedar Rapids KGAN Friday 10/22 7PM
Champaign, IL WICD Friday 10/22 7PM
Charleston, SC WMMP Friday 10/22 8PM
Charleston, WV WCHS Friday 10/22 8PM
Cincinnati WSTR Friday 10/22 8PM
Columbus WSYX Friday 10/22 8PM
Dayton WKEF Friday 10/22 8PM
Des Moines KDSM Friday 10/22 7PM
Flint WSMH Friday 10/22 8PM
Greensboro WXLV Friday 10/22 8PM
Greenville/Asheville WLOS Friday 10/22 8PM
Kansas City KSMO Friday 10/22 7PM
Las Vegas KVWB Friday 10/22 8PM
Lexington WDKY Friday 10/22 8PM
Madison WMSN Friday 10/22 7PM
Milwaukee WVTV Friday 10/22 7PM
Minneapolis KMWB Friday 10/22 7PM
Nashville WZTV Friday 10/22 7PM
Norfolk WTVZ Friday 10/22 8PM
Oklahoma City KOKH Friday 10/22 7PM
Paducah KBSI Friday 10/22 7PM
Pensacola/Mobile WEAR Friday 10/22 7PM
Peoria WYZZ Friday 10/22 7PM
Pittsburgh WPGH Friday 10/22 8PM
Portland WGME Friday 10/22 8PM
Raleigh WLFL Friday 10/22 8PM
Richmond WRLH Friday 10/22 8PM
Rochester WUHF Friday 10/22 8PM
Sacramento KOVR Friday 10/22 7PM
St. Louis KDNL Friday 10/22 7PM
San Antonio KABB Friday 10/22 7PM
Springfield, MA WGGB Friday 10/22 8PM
Springfield, IL WICS Friday 10/22 7PM
Syracuse WSYT Friday 10/22 8PM
Tallahassee WTWC Friday 10/22 8PM
Tampa WTTA Friday 10/22 8PM
Tri Cities WEMT Friday 10/22 8PM
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McGentrix
 
  1  
Reply Tue 19 Oct, 2004 03:07 pm
Syracuse WSYT Friday 10/22 8PM

Yahoo!
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