Sinclair: Criticism of ‘fake stories’ script is dishonest and reprehensible

The Sinclair Broadcasting Group is blasting CNN and other media organizations for attacking their anti-“fake news” promotion, saying the criticism is “dishonest and reprehensible.”

Sinclair uploaded a YouTube video on Tuesday accusing the mainstream media of attacking their company for “doing exactly what CNN has done for years.”

“Fake News is a problem,” the video reads. “Everyone knows it. Calling out Sinclair for calling out ‘Fake News’ is dishonest and reprehensible.”

The four-minute video points out the supposed “hypocrisy” of CNN and its senior media correspondent, Brian Stelter.

Last month, Stelter condemned Sinclair for “taking a page out of Trump’s playbook” by accusing mainstream media of bias.

{mosads}The video compares Stelter’s past denouncements on fake stories and inaccurate reporting with the companywide script Sinclair anchors were forced to read on air. 

Past clips from CNN’s “Reliable Sources” shows Stelter saying that “fake news has become a plague on the web and especially on social networks like Facebook.”

“We’re concerned about the troubling trend of irresponsible, one-sided news stories plaguing our country,” the Sinclair script reads. “The sharing of biased and false news has become all too common on social media.”

The video argues that Sinclair’s message reads similarly to Stelter’s warnings on his show.

In 2016, the host warned how purposefully false, misleading and confusing information was “bad for our democracy.”

“This is extremely dangerous to our democracy,” the Sinclair promotion reads.

The video says that Sinclair agrees “but takes its commitment one step further” by offering ways for their audiences to report on content that is “unfair.”

Sinclair-owned news local stations across the country, including Washington, D.C.’s WJLA, had the video at the top of their websites Tuesday afternoon.

Sinclair is now using their local TV stations to attack CNN. A link on top of station homepages goes to a Sinclair YouTube video. “Never have they done something like this,” a staffer tells me. “I’m mortified.” https://t.co/Zx5k6MYcWp pic.twitter.com/TtCHWgKU12

— Matt Pearce (@mattdpearce) April 10, 2018

Sinclair received pushback from politicians and journalism professionals for the scripted message across their local news stations.

Former reporters and producers have slammed the company, with some even resigning in protest.

President Trump also took a swipe at CNN and other major networks when he defended the “superior” Sinclair in a tweet.