Sinclair, Fox News and An Evening to Mourn Our Corrupt Media
Reported by Melanie - October 22, 2004 -
Mark Hyman, a Vice President at Sinclair Broadcasting and a conservative commentator, was a guest today (October 22, 2004) on Your World w/Neil Cavuto. Hyman was on to discuss the documentary, previously known as "Stolen Honor," but now renamed "A POW Story: Politics, Pressure and The Media," which will air tonight on Sinclair television stations across the country.
Cavuto asked Hyman whether or not Sinclair had been affected by advertisers who've pulled out of Sinclair in several locations. Hyman said no, they had been determined all along to air this "documentary" and that wouldn't influence what they did. Hyman said, "The one thing that has changed is that once we became part of the story we said it's important for us to now turn the camera on us because we are now part of the story and that's how we're going to frame this entire special. So we're looking at not only the allegations that were surfaced in this documentary and exploring the whole issue of documentaries in general and how they effect the election but then what about the role of the media."
Hyman said he is a conservative but the Sinclair parking lot probably has more Kerry/Edwards bumperstickers than Bush/Cheney. Hyman said that though Mitch Stern of News Corp. (Fox's parent company) is a "huge" Kerry supporter that doesn't mean he determines corporate policy at Fox (COMMENTS: Obviously!) and the same is true at Sinclair. When asked why Sinclair didn't air the Nightline in which Ted Koppel read the names of soldiers killed in Iraq, Hyman said they decided not to air it when they learned that Koppel's show was scheduled to air on the anniversary of the day Bush made his mission accomplished speech. This interview began at 4:41 p.m. ET and ended at 4:45 p.m. ET (four minutes).
Next came DNC spokesman Howard Wilson. Wilson wondered if, since Sinclair has now turned the camera on themselves the "documentary" would include an interview with the head of their DC office who was fired for speaking against airing the "documentary." When asked if he agreed that some points might be raised about which people can disagree, Wilson said there's always room for that, and "I'm on the fair and balanced network right now" and Americans expect their news to be fair and balanced. He said he had seen the "documentary" and it's not fair and balanced, but an effort to "smear John Kerry" in a "one sided and biased fashion" by a network whose executives have given over $l00,000 to the Bush/Cheney campaign. Cavuto asked Wilson if he thought it was "all rigged," and Hyman said "absolutely rigged" with "no pretense of objectivity."
Cavuto ended, with this: "Well, people can look at Fahrenheit 9-ll and say the same thing. But, your points are well taken Howard. I wish we had more time. Thank you." This interview began at 4:45 p.m. ET and ended at 4:46 p.m. ET (one minute).
COMMENT: The single most important thing to remember here is that the airwaves belong to WE THE PEOPLE of the United States of America. They are essentially rented by WE THE PEOPLE to broadcasters, but WE THE PEOPLE own them. Broadcasters must respect the airways as belonging to Democrats, Republicans, independents, libertarians, Green Party members - you name it. It's wrong for a TV or radio station to push one or another political view because, again, they're renting the airwaves from WE THE PEOPLE, not just people of one or another political party.
Oh, and Neil, people paid with their own money and voluntarily went to privately owned movie theaters to see Fahrenheit 9-ll. It wasn't broadcast on airwaves owned by WE THE PEOPLE. Big difference!
I suggest reading this Alternet.org article, Sinclair's Shame.
