Posted on 10/21/2004 7:45:35 AM PDT by crushelits
Sinclair Broadcast, whose stock price has been battered over its plans to broadcast a documentary critical of Senator John Kerry, gained back some ground on Wall Street yesterday after it appeared to reduce how much of the film it would show.
The company's critics, which have included institutional investors, consumer groups and representatives of Mr. Kerry's campaign, were not mollified.
At the same time, the producer of the film, "Stolen Honor: Wounds That Don't Heal," which presents former prisoners of war denouncing Mr. Kerry's statements against the Vietnam War, said he was disappointed that the film might not be seen as fully as he had hoped.
Sinclair announced on Tuesday that it would not broadcast the entire film and that it planned to use segments in a special news program on 40 of its 62 stations tomorrow night. According to a press release, that program, "A P.O.W. Story: Politics, Pressure and the Media," will examine how politically charged films like "Stolen Honor" are being used in the campaign and how the news media treat their content.
Sinclair stock rose 12.6 percent yesterday, to close at $7.05. Before The Los Angeles Times reported the Sinclair plans two weekends ago, the stock closed at $7.50 on Oct. 8.
The company, whose top executives have been among the biggest contributors to the Republican Party, had been criticized by shareholders for putting the company's partisan views ahead of business interests.
Some advertisers withdrew commercials from Sinclair stations. One group of shareholders, represented by William S. Lerach, said it was suing Sinclair, accusing it of insider trading and damaging share value by pursuing a political agenda.
A spokesman for Mr. Lerach and his partner, Patrick Daniels, said the suit was unaffected by the decision not to broadcast the film in full.
Sinclair's changes also did nothing to sway the opinion of the New York State comptroller, Alan G. Hevesi, who manages the state's retirement fund, which has more than 250,000 shares of Sinclair stock. Mr. Hevesi sent a letter on Tuesday to Sinclair management asking why the share value was eroding amid the plan to broadcast the film.
A spokesman for Mr. Hevesi, John Chartier, wrote in a statement, "The publicity surrounding the documentary has turned a spotlight on the company that has now led to questions about its corporate governance record and overall performance." He noted that the comptroller continued to expect satisfactory answers to his questions and that he had received none.
In addition, two Democratic fund-raisers, Deborah and Andrew Rappaport, repeated a previous offer to Sinclair to buy an hour of airtime, with a $1 million payment above that, to broadcast a more positive documentary about Mr. Kerry's Vietnam experiences, "Going Up River."
The Kerry campaign also continued to attack the television stations. A spokesman, Chad Clanton, said in a statement: "Sinclair Broadcasting has a history of putting their own partisan politics ahead of honest journalism. We do hope they will reconsider their decision to help their friend, George W. Bush, by imposing false, negative attacks upon their viewers."
Executives again declined requests for comment. The statement released on Tuesday quoted the Sinclair chief executive, David D. Smith, as saying, "We cannot in a free America yield to the misguided attempts by a small but vocal minority to influence behavior and trample on the First Amendment rights of those with whom they might not agree."
Meanwhile, the producer of "Stolen Honor," Carlton A. Sherwood, said in a telephone interview that Sinclair had not informed him of its intentions to broadcast part of the film.
"I got blindsided," Mr. Sherwood said. "I was just given the press release. Of course, I will be disappointed. But not so much because the film didn't appear, but because of the circumstances that caused it.
"I really feel sorry for Sinclair. There is blood on the floor there. They have really been under siege. They have really been set back on their heels."
The Kerry campaign also continued to attack the television stations. A spokesman, Chad Clanton, said in a statement: "Sinclair Broadcasting has a history of putting their own partisan politics ahead of honest journalism. We do hope they will reconsider their decision to help their friend, George W. Bush, by imposing false, negative attacks upon their viewers."
I didn't realize that Sinclair owned CBS! (SARCASM)
Remember these words, "Legg Mason", this was the POS company that started the slide on Sinclair stock prices. And I would sure like to get a list of the advertisers that pulled out.
Is there a new list of what channels are playing the film and when?
Since Sinclair maintains the same position they did from the outset (that they'd combine some portion of the film with other material, originally hoping to get Kerry himself to come out and address things) it's clearly a mere appearance that they're thrilled about here yet all the libs have done, it would seem, is generate intrigue & interest for the inevitable showings ROFLMAO
George Soros certainly has a lot of influence... Sorry George America is not for sale to the highest bidder... go back to Hungary.
The link is: http://www.ktkz.com/
If in fact Legg Mason jeopardized portfolios over this the SEC should fine the hell out of them and customers should sue for the lost values.
I don't have a list but I do remember that Burger King pulled their ads.
Dear Chad,
Remember what Serpent Head said about knee caps and Ken Starr?
It is such a tragic scene, liberal vultures picking over the carcass of a conservative film message of Truth about Kerry.
So the show will now air a significant portion of the documentary, plus a news story on the intimidation tactics of the Kerry campaign. Not bad.
The writer failed to quote the Sinclair executive that said this week that they NEVER planned to air the entire film.
The writer failed to reference the Sinclair website statemetn similar to the above.
The writer failed to reference the press release by Sinclair almost two weeks ago that said they would air segments accompanied by a discussion and Kerry was invited and they would have to wait for a K response before they could finalize the format.
The writer is just a democrat shill. But we already knew that, didn't we. Amazing (not on this thread) how many FR's have been taken in by the democrat spin.
So much for "freedom of speech" I am hoping this is still planning on running here. I even wrote the original date on my calendar so I wouldn't miss it.Any new lists on airing dates and channels?
Yes, and BK got an ear full yesterday from bloggers from this site. Flooded the lines so bad the couldn't keep up. Boy what fun.
I think the fact that the Kerry schmucks are referring to the former POW's, who served honorably and deserve to be heard more than anyone, as LIARS is news in and of itself. Who's going to report it? No one.
One was 'Burger King'
I wouldn't have heard about this if it wasn't for the local stations news broadcast stating something along the lines of, "Sinclair stock dropped over 8 percent today after Legg Mason stated the documentary could harm broadcast-deregulation efforts."
I just sound sad when I wish to express rage at the naive and foolish and lazy and dumb sheeple who refuse to obtain the facts about how and why we got to the point where Sinclair can offer a pro-conservative few minutes only to be attacked viciously by liberal scum.
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