CNN recently obtained internal documents sent to local Sinclair TV stations requiring them to run 60- to 75-second promos that attack mainstream media outlets. Sinclair journalists shared concerns with CNN, calling the promo requirements “inappropriate” and “manipulative.” An internal document calls for one or two anchors at each local station to criticize national media outlets for allegedly pushing “fake stories” and “personal bias.” One Sinclair anchor said, “I felt like a POW recording a message.”

These promos are Sinclair’s latest attempt to sneak pro-Trump messaging into local media outlets. In April, Sinclair hired Boris Epshteyn, a former aide to President Donald Trump, and began producing must-run segments for local stations called “Bottom Line with Boris” in which Epshteyn espouses conservative commentary bolstering the president. Epshteyn has used the segments to go after mainstream media before, and he frequently uses his airtime to defend Trump’s comments and actions.

Sinclair Broadcast Group’s owners have strong ties to the Republican Party, and many Sinclair executives have a history of donating to Republicans and conservative causes. During the 2016 presidential campaign, the Trump campaign coordinated with Sinclair for kinder media coverage. And in a 2017 segment, Sinclair’s vice president for news, Scott Livingston, accused mainstream media of “using their platforms to push their own personal bias and agenda to control exactly what people think” -- the exact phrase now included in Sinclair’s planned promos, which are supposed to start airing this month.

From CNN’s March 7 report: