Sinclair Broadcast Group, one the largest telecommunications companies in the United States, plans on merging with Tribune Media Company.
Sinclair Broadcast Group currently owns and operates 193 local news stations, more than any telecommunications company in the nation. If the merger is approved by the Federal Communications Commission Sinclair would have influence in 72 percent of American households.
This would make Sinclair Broadcast Group a television monopoly. As if the thought of a monopoly isn’t concerning enough, Sinclair Broadcast Group is known to have a very biased conservative political agenda.
During the 2016 presidential election, Sinclair forced its stations to run segments advising people to not vote for Hillary Clinton because the Democratic Party was historically pro-slavery. Jared Kushner even struck a deal with Sinclair Broadcast Group to secure better local media coverage of his father-in-law Donald Trump.
Unlike Fox News, CNN or other nationally known biased news services, local stations are seen to as more trustworthy. Pew Research Center found that Americans believe that local news stations are the most credible form of news, and this is exactly where Sinclair does its work.
This is where the problem with Sinclair comes into play. Sinclair Broadcast Group operates local news stations without boasting their logo on the screen. People don’t realize that the station they are watching is operated by the same people that operate Fox news.
Most people in Abilene don’t think they have to worry about Sinclair getting into their household, but as of mid-2017, Sinclair Broadcast Group owns and operates KTXS – the fact that you undoubtedly did not know that proves my point exactly.
It no longer matters who you voted for last election or what your political ideology is. News on both sides of the spectrum will contain biased information in an attempt to sway your opinion.
We must be wary and cautious of all information that we consume, regardless of where the information comes from. Whether you watch Fox, CNN or KTXS, you are watching news that could very well be biased.
