Congressman Introduces Bill to Stop Sinclair
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A California Congressman is trying to say local television, by putting the breaks on Sinclair from buying up TV stations.
Rep. Jared Huffman introduced a bill Thursday that he said would close a federal “loophole” in order to prevent monopolies in local media.
Huffman and Democratic North Carolina Congressman David Price’s bill would end a federal policy that allows companies such as Sinclair Broadcast Group to acquire more stations before exceeding the federal cap on broadcast station ownership.
“In Eureka, California alone, the FCC’s recent decision to reinstate the discredited and antiquated UHF discount means that a single right-wing media owner, Sinclair Broadcast Group, will control a majority of the news that my constituents in Eureka see on television, no matter which news broadcast they choose to watch,” Huffman said in a statement Thursday. “This is not the Soviet Union: Americans deserve a meaningful choice in their local news, and our Local and Independent Television Protection Act would ensure that every American has access to a variety of local news sources that report on the local – and national – issues they care most about.”
Access Humboldt Executive Director Sean McLaughlin said he shares Huffman’s concerns.
“When an absentee owner controls so much of your media marketplace, what happens to the local community having its own voice?” McLaughlin said.
McLaughlin said people have told him in private conversations that they plan to boycott businesses who advertise with the Eureka stations as a result of the Sinclair acquisition.
“One would hope that you could work with the advertisers and those at the station to address the community concerns before it came to a boycott,” McLaughlin said.
Sinclair did not respond for comment.
H/T Times Standard
