Why the Democrats Have Themselves to Blame for the Sinclair Debacle

By Francisco Ugarte

John Kerry and Terry McCauliff are mad.

They just found out that Sinclair Broadcasting Group,
owners of the largest chain of television stations in
the country, will broadcast an hour-long film
portraying John Kerry’s anti-war activism in the
1960’s. Sinclair has ordered all its affiliates to
interrupt their normal prime time broadcasts. The film
will be aired two weeks prior to the election. The film
links Kerry to anti-war activist Jane Fonda, and
includes interviews of Vietnam Vets disparaging Kerry’s
anti-war stance.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering, Sinclair is a strong
supporter of the Republican Party, and has contributed
around $2 million to the Republicans since 1996.

Unfair, says John Kerry. Terry McCauliff, Democratic
National Committee Chairman said, ’Sinclair’s owners
aren’t interested in news. They’re interested in pro-
Bush propaganda.’

Kerry and McCauliff may be right, but they had it all
wrong in 1996, the year that a majority of Democratic
Senators, including John Kerry, helped pass the
Telecommunications Act of 1996. That bill, written
mostly by corporate lobbyists, revolutionized the
telecommunications industry, allowing media companies
to expand their empires. Prior to 1996, Sinclair was a
small player in a mid-sized media market. Today,
Sinclair’s stations cover as much as one quarter of
television markets throughout the United States.

John Kerry voted for the Telecommunications Act, as did
30 other Democratic Senators. They joined fifty
Republicans and then President Bill Clinton in handing
media companies one of their biggest gifts in the last
75 years. Only sixteen Democrats and two Republicans
(including John McCain) voted against the bill. Cable
TV corporations donated $2.2 million in 1996 alone to
help pass the bill, distributing 70% of the cash to
Republicans and 30% to Dems.

So now, as the proverbial chickens come home to roost,
companies like Sinclair, which exercise near exclusive
control over the media markets, have the potential to
air propaganda, labeled as ’news,’ and consequently
affect the outcome of the upcoming elections. Is this
what the framers of the Constitution had in mind when
they guaranteed the freedom of the press?

Perhaps I’m dull, but I am thinking that John Kerry and
Terry McCauliffe do not deserve my vote. Maybe people
like me will just lead to another Bush victory-but how
on earth are we going to fundamentally change the
system if we keep supporting corporate candidates.

I’ve always sympathized with the Democrats, but I guess
it’s hard to believe that they will really represent
the people like they say they do. Call me crazy, but I
don’t think either of the two major candidates
represent the public interest, and until politicians
get really serious about tackling the corporate
juggernaut, I, like many others, may choose to vote for
an alternative candidate.

100 million voting aged Americans did not vote in 2000.
Doesn’t that send a message?

Francisco Ugarte

CUNY School of Law

from: Portside