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Friday, December 13, 2019

Sinclair axes 'must run' political segments for affiliates

Sinclair Broadcast Group, which serves much of rural America, has been criticized for requiring affiliate stations to air conservative political content, sometimes not labeled as such, including segments by former presidential adviser Boris Epshteyn. The company initially responded by hiring a liberal commentator, Ameshia Cross, in January and requiring her content to be aired as well.

But now Sinclair says it's ending the "must-run" political segments for Epshteyn and Cross. "The move is part of a company-wide effort to move away from political commentary in favor of investigative journalism, the network said Wednesday," Claire Atkinson reports for NBC News.

A former Sinclair producer, speaking on condition of anonymity, told NBC that, if Sinclair wants to truly look impartial, it must "abolish the whole concept of must-run news stories . . . Getting rid of commentary is a good first step, but securing trust among viewers, you have to get rid of mandated stories."

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