You might recognize the name “Sinclair” from a video that went viral last year — displaying dozens of local TV stations running eerily similar versions of a segment attacking the mainstream media.

Then, they were caught farming out certain “must-run” segments to their local affiliates. Coincidentally, many of those segments were political in nature — even if there was no disclosure from the local station about why they were airing the piece.

Now, they were caught using their near-monopoly for political gain again:

This is about as brazen as it gets. Using bought-up local stations to pitch Trump campaign merchandise represents the insidious alliance between Sinclair and the Republican Party. When the Sinclair-Tribune merger was up last year, the FCC allowed the incredibly anti-free market deal to go through. Now, Sinclair wields some of that new power to boost conservative causes to 72% of American households.

Together, we fought the merger in the hope of defending a free marketplace of ideas that is integral to our democracy. Will you donate $3 today to help us stop something like this from ever happening again?

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When Sinclair can reach almost three quarters of American households, they’re clearly veering into monopolistic territory. Local news has a reputation for being unbiased and accountable — a reputation that Sinclair clearly wanted to co-opt for their own agenda.

But now, Sinclair is being forced out of the shadows. Major corporations should never have this much control over our local media, with so little accountability to boot.

In solidarity,

Team Ro