Pressure of Truth
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Outlet profile

Sinclair local affiliates

U.S. right-center

Owned bySinclair Broadcast Group (now Sinclair, Inc.), a publicly traded company (NASDAQ: SBGI) controlled by the Smith family, descendants of founder Julian Sinclair Smith
FundingLocal television advertising revenue and retransmission fees paid by cable and satellite providers to carry Sinclair stations; total company revenue approximately $3.48 billion (2025)
On the administrationbroadly supportive

Background

Sinclair was founded in 1971 by Julian Sinclair Smith as Chesapeake Television Corporation, launching WBFF in Baltimore. His sons — David, Fred, Duncan, and Robert — consolidated the family's stations under the Sinclair Broadcast Group name in 1986. Rapid expansion followed the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which loosened broadcast ownership limits; Sinclair eventually grew to own or operate roughly 193 stations in more than 100 markets, reaching about 40% of U.S. households. The company attracted sustained scrutiny for its 'must-run' mandate: centrally produced segments with a conservative slant that all affiliates are required to air multiple times a week. In 2018, a coordinated script warning viewers about 'fake news' — read simultaneously by anchors at nearly 200 Sinclair stations — went viral and drew widespread criticism. Sinclair has maintained close ties with both Trump administrations: it hired Trump ally Boris Epshteyn as chief political analyst, and the FCC under Trump's first term moved to relax ownership caps in ways that directly benefited Sinclair. In 2025, Sinclair joined Nexstar in refusing to carry Jimmy Kimmel Live! after Kimmel made remarks about the death of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, with Sinclair urging viewers to donate to Kirk's affiliated organization. Media analysis outlets, including Media Bias/Fact Check, rate individual Sinclair affiliates like WSBT as right-center in bias.

Sources

  1. Sinclair Broadcast Group – Wikipedia
  2. Sinclair Broadcast Group | History, Holdings, & Political Controversies – Britannica Money
  3. How Sinclair Broadcasting puts a partisan tilt on trusted local news – PBS NewsHour
  4. Sinclair Broadcast Group forces nearly 200 station anchors to read same script – NPR
  5. A comprehensive guide to the relationship between Sinclair Broadcast Group and the Trump administration – Media Matters
  6. Sinclair's broadcasts focus on fears, aligning with Trump's view of cities – The Washington Post
  7. Nexstar, Sinclair spend millions lobbying to rewrite TV station ownership rules – OpenSecrets
  8. Sinclair CEO Expects FCC to Raise or Eliminate Broadcast Ownership Cap – The Wrap
  9. WSBT 22 News – Bias and Credibility – Media Bias/Fact Check

Profile compiled 2026-07-04; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.

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