A local Wisconsin television station revealed Monday night it did not air an anti-fake news message Sinclair Broadcast Group’s stations have been broadcasting, and instead, said the station “stayed true to our commitment” to viewers and provided news of interest to them.
“WMSN/FOX47 Madison did not air the Sinclair promotional announcement during our 9pm news this weekend,” Fox 47 Madison tweeted Monday evening. “Rather, we stayed true to our commitment to provide our Madison area viewers local news, weather and sports of interest to them.”
In response to the Sinclair message aired: “WMSN/FOX47 Madison did not air the Sinclair promotional announcement during our 9pm news this weekend. Rather, we stayed true to our commitment to provide our Madison area viewers local news, weather and sports of interest to them.” pic.twitter.com/MdQ568cWrH
— FOX 47 Madison (@fox47madison) April 2, 2018
Sinclair has faced pushback after the publication of a video that featured multiple local anchors repeating the same script about “biased and false news.”
“The sharing of biased and false news has become all too common on social media,” the anchors say. “More alarming, some media outlets publish these same fake stories, stories that just aren’t true, without checking facts first. Unfortunately, some members of the media use their platforms to push their own personal bias. This is extremely dangerous to our democracy.”
Those opposing the message have argued that Sinclair, which owns or operates 193 TV stations, caters to President Trump’s outlook on “fake news.” For example, MSNBC host Joe Scarborough said the message was “Trumpian.”
However, Sinclair has stood by the message and said it is part of the company’s “corporate news journalistic responsibility promotional campaign.”
“The critics are now upset about our well-researched journalistic initiative focused on fair and objective reporting,” Sinclair Senior Vice President of News Scott Livingston wrote in a memo, according to CNN. “For the record, the stories we are referencing in this campaign are the unsubstantiated ones (i.e. fake/false) like ‘Pope Endorses Trump’ which move quickly across social media and result in an ill-informed public.”
“Some other false stories, like the false ‘Pizzagate’ story, can result in dangerous consequences. We are focused on fact-based reporting,” he added. “That’s our commitment to our communities.”
Trump has also defended the message, claiming that Sinclair is “far superior” to news organizations such as CNN and “Fake NBC.”
“So funny to watch Fake News Networks, among the most dishonest groups of people I have ever dealt with, criticize Sinclair Broadcasting for being biased,” Trump tweeted earlier on Monday. “Sinclair is far superior to CNN and even more Fake NBC, which is a total joke.”
