Bling Bling in the ATL

Fun stories of the moment:

- is Bush wired for sound? Did he cheat during the debates? I love it.
- Media emergency: the Sinclair group is pulling regular programming next week to air Stolen Honor, an anti-Kerry shockumentary. This contravenes FCC law, and is a bit of a violation of the public trust.
Why take such radical steps? Two speculations:

1. They're Bush supporters.
2. Their economic survival depends on this election and the continuation of media consolodation under a republican guided FCC.

Whats a concerned voter to do?

- boycott. Some advertisers have pulled their money from Sinclair in response to customer agitation. I called up Progressive, my auto insurance company, and Victoria Secret, my occasional lingerie provider and registered my distaste as a customer.
- Write the FCC
- You can also write your Congressman or Senator to demand they do something about this, especially those with oversight of the FCC on the House and Senate Commerce committees.

Anyways, I've got to get off the blogosphere. This election is killing me. I'm away every weekend in Florida, my house is a mess, my office is a mess, laundry is done just enough so I have clean clothes... its a major distraction. Felt the same way 4 years ago. Got to get some work done so I can get out of here at 7 to go to biblestudy/debate. (Yes, I'm going to bible study again. I think)

So. To close out, below is an article by the conservative boston paper the Boston Herald.

Sinclair Kerry plans drawing Dem fire
By Greg Gatlin
Wednesday, October 13, 2004

Democrats took aim at Sinclair Broadcast Group yesterday, objecting to thebroadcaster's plan to air an anti-John Kerry [related, bio] documentary on its 62 TV stations just days before the election.
U.S. Rep. Edward Markey (D-Malden), called on Sinclair to reconsider its decision to make its stations pre-empt regular programming in favor of ``Stolen Honor: Wounds that Never Heal,'' a documentary featuring former Vietnam POWs criticizing Kerry's anti-war efforts. Markey also called on the Federal Communications Commission to act quickly to ascertain whether airing the show conforms with the law.
``There's a broad guideline that says broadcasters must serve the public interest,'' Markey told the Herald. ``The public interest is not served by having a one-sided, 90-minute, anti-John Kerry propaganda film'' before the election.
A group of 18 U.S. senators asked FCC Chairman Michael Powell to investigate Sinclair's move. Sinclair's television group owns ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, UPN and WB affiliates, many in key battleground states. The Democratic National Committee was set to file a complaint with the Federal Election Commission.
But the Democratic party's outcry may carry little weight, given Sinclair's First Amendment rights, FCC insiders said yesterday. Until the show airs, there is no violation of equal-time rules for political candidates. The FCC wouldn't step in unless it got a complaint that a broadcaster gave time to one candidate, then refused a request by the opposing candidate for equal time.
Blocking the program before it airs could amount to censorship and violate Sinclair's First Amendment rights, sources said. An FCC spokesman didn't comment.
Sinclair made news earlier this year when it blocked its stations from running a ``Nightline'' program on which Ted Koppel read the names of American troops killed in Iraq. The company is a big contributor to the Bush campaign, the Center for Responsive Politics reported.
If Sinclair's chairman, David Smith, was hoping to impress Wall Street, it didn't work. Sinclair fell yesterday for the second day running, tumbling more than 1 percent in heavy volumes. Total wiped off the market value since the weekend: $25 million.
``It's very disappointing,'' one portfolio manager told the Herald yesterday. ``Now we'll probably see some liberal company respond. I wish these companies would just stay out of politics.''