David Smith, Sinclair Broadcast Group’s executive chairman and largest shareholder, is close to Steve Bannon and an admirer, according to people who know them both. He is keen to increase Sinclair’s heft in conservative commentary, a market currently dominated by Fox News Channel, and is eyeing a collaboration with Bannon, according to the Financial Times.
More Epshteyn Hurts Sinclair’s Credibility
The Baltimore Sun’s David Zurawik: “Since joining Sinclair in April, the group’s chief political analyst and former Trump campaign adviser Boris Epshteyn has consistently parroted Team Trump’s position in “Bottom Line With Boris” segments. Some of his commentary has come as close to classic propaganda as anything I have seen in broadcast television in the last 30 years. Epshteyn’s commentaries will now appear eight or nine times a week on all [the group’s] stations,” Scott Livingston, Sinclair’s VP of news says.
Three legacy media executives at the Borrell Associates’ Local Online Advertising Conference in New York Monday shared what they believe were sure-fire signs of impending digital failure. Among them: Selling just time or space, salespeople need to be omni-market; not reaching for viewers on all devices; over-reliance on display advertising and ignoring pay walls.
