Sinclair switchboard collapses; FOX Affiliate in SC will air Nightline

[arcos]

I know, Drudge... :puke:

but interesting nonetheless:

"FLASH: SWITCHBOARD CHAOS AT SINCLAIR HEADQUARTERS' AS THOUSANDS CALL TO PROTEST DECISION TO CENSOR NIGHTLINE. FOX AFFILIATE WHNS IN GREENVILLE SOUTH CAROLINA TO AIR NIGHTLINE BROADCAST THIS EVENING IN LOCAL MARKET AFFECTED BY SINCLAIR PRE-EMPTION. ABC RADIO MAKES FEED AVAILABLE TO LOCAL RADIO IN AFFECTED MARKETS. ST LOUIS RADIO KTRS WILL CLEAR TO AIR SIMULCAST... DEVELOPING... "

also...

"Outraged: McCain Letter to Sinclair Broadcast on Preemption of NIGHTLINE... "

[MSgt213]

1. Here's a copy of the McCain letter

U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) issued the following letter today to Mr. David Smith, President and CEO of Sinclair Broadcast Group, in response to the preemption of this evening’s Nightline program:

I write to strongly protest your decision to instruct Sinclair’s ABC affiliates to preempt this evening’s Nightline program. I find deeply offensive Sinclair’s objection to Nightline’s intention to broadcast the names and photographs of Americans who gave their lives in service to our country in Iraq.

I supported the President’s decision to go to war in Iraq, and remain a strong supporter of that decision. But every American has a responsibility to understand fully the terrible costs of war and the extraordinary sacrifices it requires of those brave men and women who volunteer to defend the rest of us; lest we ever forget or grow insensitive to how grave a decision it is for our government to order Americans into combat. It is a solemn responsibility of elected officials to accept responsibility for our decision and its consequences, and, with those who disseminate the news, to ensure that Americans are fully informed of those consequences.

There is no valid reason for Sinclair to shirk its responsibility in what I assume is a very misguided attempt to prevent your viewers from completely appreciating the extraordinary sacrifices made on their behalf by Americans serving in Iraq. War is an awful, but sometimes necessary business. Your decision to deny your viewers an opportunity to be reminded of war’s terrible costs, in all their heartbreaking detail, is a gross disservice to the public, and to the men and women of the United States Armed Forces. It is, in short, sir, unpatriotic. I hope it meets with the public opprobrium it most certainly deserves.



http://mccain.senate.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=NewsCenter.ViewPressRelease&Content_id=1276

[Hubert Flottz]

8. McCain has not forgotten what KKKarl did in SC!

He knows these people are swine!

[Pepperbelly]

15. I love you brother but McCain has forgotten ALL of it ...

I am constantly dismayed by him when he fellates Bonehead on television. I think at the end of the primaries in 00, when the "cancer" was removed from his face, I think it might actually have been to install a thought control chip or something because he has been a Bush ass-kisser ever since.

[mitchum]

19. McCain suffers from Battered Wife Syndrome...

it's the only explanation for his continued defense of bushco.

[robbedvoter]

25. "You can attack his kid, his wife, but don't ever touch his bush"

Priceless Randi.

[Wickerman]

11. Can you imagine Bush* using a word like opprobrium?

We should be able to expect our pResidents to speak the English language, form coherent sentences, possess a notable degree of intellectual curiosity - but, no, instead, we have Bush* - a man who even if he could pronounce the word, wouldn't use it as its subject is a foreign concept to the cocky little narcissist.

We would be living in much different reality should it have been a Gore McCain race. Even if Gore would've lost to McCain we would've at least had a pResident with his very own brain in the WH

[HamdenRice]

13. Almost makes me yearn for a Kerry/McCain Unity ticket

If McCain weren't so right wing on the substance of policy, I would actually support a Kerry/McCain ticket. Or to put it another way, I often wonder who in their right mind would be a republican, but then I remember there are republicans like John McCain.

[Renew Deal]

21. That's a great letter

And McCain is dead on.

[nostamj]

22. KOPPEL read parts of this letter on Air America

this afternoon during Al Franken's show.

it was an EXCELLENT segment. catch the repeat or archive if you can.

Sinclair doesn't 'get' the power of the internet, ya think?

[Pale Blue Dot]

2. We should thank Sinclair

They have given this program lots of free publicity, AND highlighted the problems with corporate consolidation of media.

Thank you, Sinclair, for shooting yourselves in the foot!

[cjbuchanan]

6. Hell NO!

I understand your thoughts, but I will never thank people who are unwilling to pay tribute to those who have died serving our country.

[revcarol]

3. Nashville too

according to one thread.

Maybe they don't like their HUMONGOUS CONTRIBUTIONS to the Republican Party BEING KNOWN. The more they protest, the more legs the story gets.

I had never known of Sinclair Broadcasting. NOW WE ARE INFORMED, PEOPLE.

We CAN take on the hydra-headed media.

[Pallas180]

4. HAR HAR HAR !!! we should thank D.U. ers !

.

[NMDemDist2]

5. great job to all who called and emailed. eom

[Robbien]

7. Anyone still interested in emailing

Media For Democracy has a email campaign where you can send
an email to each of seven people at Sinclair at the click of one button:

http://www.mediafordemocracy.us/campaign/nightline

[cjbuchanan]

9. Thanks for this

Sent away.

[Bjornsdotter]

12. Done! n/t

[doni_georgia]

34. Done n/t

[Gloria]

35. Thanks for the Media link...

just sent my letter off...

[k in IA]

10. Calling, Calling, Calling - constant busy signal - yeah!

[revcarol]

16. OK you guys, keep at it.

So far only reports that TWO of 8 censored stations are going to show it.
My phone card tapped out, so you will have to represent me!!

[NMDemDist2]

18. hello?? collapsed switchboards send busy signals lol eom

[k in IA]

24. I haven't called anymore since I saw that.

[drfemoe]

14. Where did they get this "idea"??

STATEMENT OF THE SINCLAIR BROADCAST GROUP

The ABC Television network announced on Tuesday that the Friday, April 30th edition of “Nightline” will consist entirely of Ted Koppel reading aloud the names of U.S. servicemen and women killed in action in Iraq. Despite the denials by a spokeswoman for the show the action appears to be motivated by a political agenda designed to undermine the efforts of the United States in Iraq.

While the Sinclair Broadcast Group honors the memory of the brave members of the military who have sacrificed their lives in the service of our country, we do not believe such political statements should be disguised as news content. As a result, we have decided to preempt the broadcast of “Nightline” this Friday on each of our stations which air ABC programming.

We understand that our decision in this matter may be questioned by some. Before you judge our decision, however, we would ask that you first question Mr. Koppel as to why he chose to read the names of the 523 troops killed in combat in Iraq, rather than the names of the thousands of private citizens killed in terrorists attacks since and including the events of September 11, 2001. In his answer, you will find the real motivation behind his action scheduled for this Friday.
http://poynter.org/forum/?id=misc

As far as I'm concerned, these peeps are free to believe anything they want. They cross the line when they start determining what I can see based on their misguided notions.

[arcos]

20. Karl Rove...

:eyes:

[Triana]

17. hahahaaa - way to go!!

B*tchslap Sinclair - everyone, everywhere!

Those Idiots. How *dare* they try to censor the news!

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

23. here's a working number you can use

From another thread:

410-568-1565
HYMAN, MARK E MR
COCKEYSVILLE,MD 21030
SINCLAIR BROADCAST GROUP INC./VP -
12/29/2000
$2,061
Republican State Central Cmte/Maryland

----------
The Death of Local News
By Paul Schmelzer, AlterNet
April 23, 2003
Tune into the evening news on Madison, Wisconsin's Fox TV affiliate and behold the future of local news. In the program's concluding segment, "The Point," MARK HYMAN rants against peace activists ("wack-jobs"), the French ("cheese-eating surrender monkeys"), progressives ("loony left") and the so-called liberal media, usually referred to as the "hate-America crowd" or the "Axis of Drivel." Colorful, if creatively anemic, this is TV's version of talk radio, with the precisely tanned Hyman
more at:
http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=15718


and


SINCLAIR PRODUCES CENTRALIZED RIGHT-WING CONTENT FOR 'LOCAL STATIONS': In a controversial business practice, Sinclair Broadcasting has fired much of the staff for the local affiliates it owns, instead producing content for its local stations from a central facility outside Baltimore which it then airs on "local" news broadcasts. The centralized content features nightly commentary by Sinclair corporate communications chief Mark Hyman. Hyman regularly refers to the French as "cheese-eating surrender monkeys," the so-called liberal media as the "hate-America crowd," and progressives as "the lonely left" On one recent commentary, Hyman called members of Congress who voted against a recent resolution affirming the righteousness of the Iraq war "unpatriotic politicians who hate our military."
http://www.americanprogress.org/site/pp.asp?c=biJRJ8OVF&b=63020#1
You can see all of Hyman's commentaries this month HERE.
http://www.newscentral.tv/thepoint/editorial.shtml

[Arugula Latte]

26. This is great!

These Sinclair asshole higher ups probably thought they could do whatever they wanted with no consequences. Ah, the arrogance and hubris of Bush supporters.

[Arugula Latte]

27. meant to mention...

I've called the general number of times and have been unable to get through.

[supernova]

28. Woo Hoo!

Rock on, America! This is the land that I know and love!

Don't let the bastards keep you from seeing what you should see. :thumbsup:

[roguevalley]

29. a mom of a dead soldier on Anderson Cooper 360 said that she was

livid with Sinclair, that people needed to know the price and that the images are honoring. A Viet Nam veteran group guy also crabbed about hiding the caskets, Anderson said no parents could be found that objected to their kids being honored this way.

On CNN in the morning, that crabby older guy who has a segment in the early show castigated Sinclair too. Bad move, red necks. Very bad move.

[drfemoe]

30. Republican Values

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pennsylvania)

August 17, 1996, Saturday, SOONER EDITION

David D. Smith, president and chief executive officer of Sinclair Broadcast Group, was arrested this week in his hometown of Baltimore and charged with a misdemeanor sex offense. Sinclair owns WPGH, the Fox affiliate in Pittsburgh, and programs most of WPTT.

The Baltimore Sun reported that Smith, 45, was arrested Tuesday night in an undercover sting at a downtown corner frequented by prostitutes.

On Thursday night, Sinclair issued a statement that Smith's arrest was unrelated to company business and ''The company will continue to operate under the direction of its current management.''

...more

Broadcasting official charged in sex stakeout
Sinclair president, woman arrested in company car

http://www.atrios.blogspot.com/2004_04_25_atrios_archive.html

[girl gone mad]

32. Any woner why this guy is a Republican?

He needs that "get out of jail free" card.

[drfemoe]

33. maybe the next

time he is arrested, it WILL be related to "company" business. They should lose their broadcast license ...

Analysis: The politics of 'The Fallen'

Free Press, a non-partisan group that promotes "informed public participation in crucial media policy debates," said it would investigate whether Sinclair has "fulfilled its obligations as a steward of the public airwaves," and would challenge Sinclair station license renewals. In a letter to Smith, Free Press President Robert McChesney said Sinclair's decision was a misuse of its power as a broadcaster.

"What we see in Sinclair broadcasting, with its cozy and corrupt relationship to the Bush administration, is TV journalism that is anything but independent of the government," said McChesney in a statement. "It is a commercial version of Pravda, and it is an outrageous and entirely unacceptable use of the public's airwaves."

McChesney cited data provided by the non-partisan Center for Responsive Politics showing that Sinclair executives had donated more than $16,000 in hard money and more than $120,000 in soft money to President Bush and other Republicans and conservatives since 2000. He also noted that the president supported changes in media-ownership rules in 2003 that "would have benefited Sinclair handsomely."

Wayne Smith, a spokesman for the Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation in Washington, said the "Nightline" program is "long overdue." Smith told United Press International the public needs to be informed about the number of U.S. war dead in Iraq, particularly in light of an incident Thursday, in which Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz in testimony to Congress put the number of combat deaths in Iraq at "approximately" 350.

"Here is the man, second in command at the Department of Defense, responsible for U.S. military forces, and he didn't know how many Americans had died," said Smith. "I submit this is a case of out of sight, out of mind. It is an insult for any veteran and family not to know the cost of this war."
http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID=20040430-035346-2742r

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

31. drudge pulled the story

and replaced it w/ a generic 'ted reads off the dead" headline

guess he got a call from rove