More layoffs going down at Sinclair Stations including Flint

[rugratsonline]

Not sure how this would work… but hypothetically could WDIV petition to be carried in Flint and Toledo… or could NBC mandate News carriage? Hell, having WDIV in Flint and Toledo would probably get some decent ratings.

What about the Tri-Cities? If the market is left with no local NBC affiliate, who would Spectrum carry?

[sinklair]

The blood bath at Sinclair continues…

https://www.ftvlive.com/sqsp-test/2023/ ... -scrapheap

Sinclair is simply showing that it should not be permitted to own any TV stations or be allowed to have FCC licenses.

[MasterB]

Filing a petition/complaint with the FCC Sinklair to get Sinclair to lose there FCC licenses doubt that it goes anywhere at the FCC in my opinion.

[organman95]

I don't know, MasterB. The FCC isn't exactly fond of Sinclair, from a few things I've read over the past five or so years

[rugratsonline]

Filing a petition/complaint with the FCC Sinklair to get Sinclair to lose there FCC licenses doubt that it goes anywhere at the FCC in my opinion.

I don't know, MasterB. The FCC isn't exactly fond of Sinclair, from a few things I've read over the past five or so years

As long as Sinclair can demonstrate that they're acting in the public interest, there's nothing much the FCC can do. Many mini-network affiliates (such as The CW), as well as independents and specialty stations (such as Christian) don't carry news, but have always met the bare bones basics for the public interest requirement. With some station chains such as TCT all but reduced much of its stations to just a transmitter, and with the FCC giving approval on that, I doubt the FCC will be eating Sinclair's licenses for lunch.

[sinklair]

How exactly does dropping local news coverage, eliminating complete newscasts, laying off staff, dropping community involvement, etc. equate to acting in the public interest?

I agree that the FCC likely won’t do anything… which is more indicative of a broken system.

Sinclair can do all this, rack up record FCC fines, and still operate local stations like nothing happened. Broadcasters know the FCC is a joke and there’s little that will happen to them.

[sinklair]

Add Sioux City to the growing list of stations that Sinclair is throwing News to the curb:
https://kscj.com/2023/04/28/local-tv-ne ... s-14-kpth/

[Martin Stett]

How exactly does dropping local news coverage, eliminating complete newscasts, laying off staff, dropping community involvement, etc. equate to acting in the public interest?

By making their newscasts so terrible, and the arguing that the public is better served by no news at all?

[sinklair]

Martin: I am rarely left speechless… but I have no counter. You win!

[rugratsonline]

Sinclair's stations in Omaha (KPTM) and Gainesville (WGFL) are also losing their newscasts -- both their stations have outsourced their newscasts to other Sinclair stations, like WNWO did:

https://www.northpine.com/blog/2023/05/ ... ioux-city/

[sinklair]

Gainesville station hasn’t even been upfront to its viewers about the changes:

https://www.gainesville.com/story/news/ ... 174013007/

Sounds about right — lay everybody off and switch to the National Desk in the middle of the night.

[Taco]

[SBaxley]

Sinclair shouldve realized this when they spent all that cheese to "Darth Mouse" for the former Fox sports net

Ok, so ( and no offense meant or intended) what is the over/under for Flint/ Saginaw/ Bay City duop group 25/66 to be given their notice of News Department shutdown

[sinklair]

At the rate they are shutting down newsrooms, 25-66 won’t make it the rest of the year. The purgatory that they are in right now — less newscasts, less staff — won’t raise ratings. Sinclair has used that excuses in Toledo and other markets to say “it’s just not working” to put the final nail in the coffin. It’s the modern break up version of “It’s not me, it’s you…“

Steve, you’re right about the genesis of the problem. They overpaid Disney for the sports nets, then the pandemic hit. But Sinclair had no vision for how to grow the now-Bally Sports channels. Just look at the unwatchable broadcasts.

But it’s also not surprising. Look at the poor production quality of The National Desk or for their other sports brand, Stadium. The heads of Sinclair are — and always have been — a third-rate broadcaster more focused on money than the content they put on the air.

[MasterB]

I'm surprised that they haven't cut anything in Northern Michigan 7&4 and ABC station since that is a small market smaller than Flint.