Robert E Smith, who co-controls broadcaster, has given more than $10,000 to Greg Gianforte, who assaulted Guardian journalist

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

One of the brothers who control Sinclair Broadcasting has donated more than $10,000 to Greg Gianforte, the Republican congressman who assaulted a journalist and then lied to police about it.

Robert E Smith, whose company is the biggest owner of television stations in the US, last month gave a maximum $5,400 campaign contribution to Greg Gianforte, the congressman for Montana, according to a federal filing. He did the same last year.

Gianforte was fined and sentenced to community service and anger management classes in June last year, after pleading guilty to assaulting the Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs on the eve of his special election victory the previous month.

Smith stated when donating to Gianforte last month that he was self-employed and worked in real estate, an apparent reference to a commercial property firm he founded. His connection to Sinclair was not noted. He did not respond to an email seeking comment.

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When he donated $5,400 to Gianforte in 2017, Smith said he was retired. He did the same when giving $10,000 to the Montana Republican party before the assault. Smith has also donated $5,000 to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, variously stating that he was a self-employed musician and a director.

Under election laws, individual donors are allowed to give candidates $2,700 for each of their primary and general election campaigns and $10,000 to a state party annually.

Police reports released months after the assault showed that Gianforte falsely told officers that Jacobs had initiated physical contact and that the “liberal media … is trying to make a story”.

Smith has been a director of Sinclair Broadcast Group since 1986, according to the company. He owns 19% of the company, according to a regulatory filing last year, while his brothers David, Duncan and Frederick together own another 55%.

Frederick Smith, a vice-president at Sinclair, donated $1,000 to Gianforte the day after the assault.

The disclosure of Smith’s contribution to Gianforte follows a controversy over Sinclair joining Donald Trump’s attacks against journalism. The company instructed news anchors around the US to recite a script about “fake stories” and “false news” that echoed Trump’s own complaints.

Earlier this month, Smith’s brother David, the executive chairman of Sinclair, told the Guardian that the furore over the script was “the most absurd thing I’ve ever seen in my life” and denied that the company pushed a conservative agenda through its news bulletins.