When
two weeks ago Sinclair Broadcasting Group ordered its stations to air an anti-John Kerry
documentary, political pressure began to build almost immediately against the station
group.
And as Friday's air date got closer, the heat only accelerated, with critics
of media consolidation and consumer interest groups decrying what a member of the Kerry
campaign called Sinclair’s “partisan agenda.” They were joined by
advertisers and shareholders.
Now the nation’s largest television group has retreated, saying
yesterday it will air only portions of “Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal” on
Friday night rather than show the documentary in its entirety as originally planned.
The announcement appears to come in direct response to a threat by a
group of Sinclair shareholders to sue two executives and a board member for alleged
insider trading in Sinclair stock as part of a larger action challenging the management of
the publicly held company.
In a statement yesterday Sinclair CEO David Smith said, “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.”
Sinclair said it will use excerpts from “Stolen Honor” and other
political documentaries to “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.”
The broadcaster did not indicate how much of the 42-minute documentary, which
criticizes Kerry’s anti-Vietnam War activities, would be included in the hour-long
news program, now entitled “A P.O.W. Story: Politics, Pressure and the Media.”
But Sinclair did insist that contrary to earlier reports, it had never made
public its intention to air the entire film.
Sinclair also said “A P.O.W. Story” will only appear on 40 of the
62 stations it owns or operates, many of them located in swing states including Ohio,
Florida and Pennsylvania. The broadcaster originally planned to air the documentary on
most or all of its stations. Sinclair is one of the largest media contributors to the
Bush reelection campaign and the Republican Party.
Yesterday a group of shareholders sent a fax to Smith, requesting that
he launch an independent investigation into possible insider trading on the part of three
members of the Smith family, which owns Sinclair. The shareholders accuse two executives
and a board member of selling Sinclair shares directly ahead of a downturn in the stock.
The shareholders, represented by San Diego attorney William Lerach, are
expected to file a lawsuit in the coming weeks. Shares in Sinclair have dropped more
than 15 percent since it announced it would run the documentary.
Also yesterday, New York State Comptroller Alan Hevesi sent a letter to the
company stating that Sinclair’s decision to air “Stolen Honor” would
diminish the value of the New York State pension fund’s investment in Sinclair.
And Burger King announced it would pull all commercials from Sinclair
stations on the day of the broadcast, saying it intends to remain neutral during the
election.
The Kerry campaign has already filed a complaint with the Federal
Communications Commission demanding equal air time. Meanwhile, the producers of
“Going Upriver,” a documentary examining Kerry’s wartime experiences in a
more positive light, have teamed up with a philanthropist in an attempt to buy an hour of
primetime on Sinclair stations.
Sinclair said it won’t allow excerpts of “Going Upriver” to
air in primetime but will consider other time slots.
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