Dear MoveOn member,
Sinclair Broadcast Group, often referred to as "Trump TV," requires its 173 local news stations across the country to parrot right-wing propaganda. And now, Sinclair is seeking approval for an unprecedented-in-size merger with Tribune Media.1
Sinclair is already the country's largest broadcaster.2 If the merger goes through, Sinclair's pro-Trump, right-wing propaganda will reach nearly three-quarters of U.S. households.3
That's why MoveOn is launching an emergency campaign to stop the merger.
Can you chip in $3 to help stop the merger? With your help, we'll run a hard-hitting ad on Sinclair stations, featuring their own news anchors parroting right-wing talking points, flood the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) with calls, and more.
Yes, I'll chip in and help stop the Sinclair-Tribune merger.
You may have seen the mega-viral video that circulated this past weekend, which showed on one screen multiple anchors from Sinclair stations across the country, repeating the same right-wing attack on independent media.
The video makes it clear that Trump propaganda is reaching millions of households under the cover of "local news." It has stirred up public outrage, creating a vocal backlash that needs to be heard in the halls of the FCC—so that the FCC is shamed into rejecting the dangerous Sinclair-Tribune merger.
Will you pitch in and support our campaign to stop the merger?
Yes, I'll chip in $3 and help the emergency effort to stop the Sinclair-Tribune merger.
If you want a story of sordid corruption, look no further than the history of the Sinclair Broadcast Group.
Sinclair has a long history of forcing its local stations to air "must-run" segments, which are right-wing opinion pieces and wild conspiracy theories.4 Sinclair has a cozy relationship with Trump; in 2016, the Trump campaign team worked out a deal for favorable coverage on Sinclair stations.5
Sinclair wants to take over Tribune Media, which would give Sinclair access to New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago, the nation's three largest media markets. Despite limits on media consolidation, the FCC appears to be poised to rubber stamp the merger.6
But now the FCC chair Ajit Pai—who single-highhandedly has sought to kill Net Neutrality—is under investigation by the FCC's inspector general for greasing the wheels for Sinclair.7
The American people are outraged about Sinclair Broadcast Group's "Trump TV," and we must stop Sinclair from making its way into more American homes. That's why MoveOn will launch an emergency campaign to turn this moment into a tipping point. Will you chip in $3?
Here's what we plan to do—if we can raise the money in the next 48 hours:
- Launch a five-figure ad buy to get this story in front of even more eyes and earn media attention that will keep this story in the headlines.
- Flood the FCC with thousands of calls.
- Collect more than 100,000 signatures on a petition against this merger to be delivered to the FCC and critical members of Congress.
Will you chip in to help us run this ad campaign, drive calls to the FCC, and push to block the Sinclair-Tribune merger?
Thanks for all you do.
–Justin, Matt, Ann, Anna, and the rest of the team
Sources:
1. "Sinclair Broadcast Group," Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, July 2, 2017
https://act.moveon.org/go/37793?t=6&akid=203274%2E10220574%2EuZdstO
2. "Trump defends Sinclair as media company takes fire for 'false news' scripts," ABC News, April 3, 2018
http://act.moveon.org/go/37794?t=8&akid=203274%2E10220574%2EuZdstO
3. "This is Sinclair, 'the most dangerous US company you've never heard of.'" The Guardian, August 17, 2017
https://act.moveon.org/go/37790?t=10&akid=203274%2E10220574%2EuZdstO
4. "Sinclair Broadcast Group," Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, July 2, 2017
https://act.moveon.org/go/37793?t=12&akid=203274%2E10220574%2EuZdstO
5. "Ready for Trump TV? Inside Sinclair Broadcasting's Plot to Take Over Your Local News," Mother Jones, November/December 2017
https://act.moveon.org/go/37791?t=14&akid=203274%2E10220574%2EuZdstO
6. Ibid.
7. "F.C.C. Watchdog Looks Into Changes That Benefited Sinclair," The New York Times, February 15, 2018
https://act.moveon.org/go/37792?t=16&akid=203274%2E10220574%2EuZdstO
Want to support our work? The MoveOn community will work every moment, day by day and year by year, to resist Trump's agenda, contain the damage, defeat hate with love, and begin the process of swinging the nation's pendulum back toward sanity, decency, and the kind of future that we must never give up on. And to do it we need your support, now more than ever. Will you stand with us?
Click here to chip in $3, or whatever you can afford.
Contributions to MoveOn.org Civic Action are not tax deductible as charitable contributions for federal income tax purposes. This email was sent to Eddie Alfaro on April 6th, 2018. To change your email address or update your contact info, click here. To remove yourself from this list, click here.
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