TV stations owned by the Sinclair Broadcasting Group are ordered to air short daily video segments that tend to have a conservative tone, the New York Times reports.
The practice has been in place since November 2015 and is being reported on as Sinclair prepares to acquire 42 television stations as part of its proposed acquisition of Tribune Media, a move that makes Sinclair the largest local television station owner in the U.S. Sinclair already owns 173 stations.
During the election, Sinclair sent out a video package that suggested in part that voters should not support Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton because her party was historically pro-slavery. Since 2015, the group has also ordered stations to run daily segments titled "Terrorism Alert Desk," with news about terrorism issues around the world.
A union representative for KOMO News in Seattle said the practice was "very troubling to our members."
"I have not found one of our members who is supportive of our company’s position," said Dave Twedell, a representative for the union that represents KOMO's photojournalists.
Scott Livingston, the company’s vice president for news, said Sinclair did not push conservative views.
"We work very hard to be objective and fair and be in the middle," he told the Times. "I think maybe some other news organizations may be to the left of center, and we work very hard to be in the center."
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