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Perhaps that investigation the FCC's inspector general has been conducting into Chairman Ajit Pai's close ties to Sinclair Broadcasting has Pai a bit concerned. Sinclair has been pursuing an acquisition of Tribune Media, a move that would give Sinclair more than 170 stations and put its propaganda into nearly three-quarters of American homes. To this point, Pai has been greasing the skids to approve the merger. Now, though, Pai is pulling back, saying he has "serious concerns" about the move.
"Based on a thorough review of the record, I have serious concerns about the Sinclair/Tribune transaction," the chairman said in the statement. "The evidence we've received suggests that certain station divestitures that have been proposed to the FCC would allow Sinclair to control those stations in practice, even if not in name, in violation of the law." […]
Democratic Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, who has criticized Pai's media policy changes as being "custom built" to help Sinclair, said she has voted to approve Pai's plan.
"With this hearing designation order, the agency will finally take a hard look at its proposed merger with Tribune," Rosenworcel said in a statement. "This is overdue and favoritism like this needs to end."
Pai has thrown the issue over to an administrative law judge to review the station spinoff issues, following the path the FCC took in the 2015 Comcast-Time Warner Cable deal. It's a lengthy hearing process that eventually led to Comcast and Time Warner to just give up.
Consider this a win for our activism. Let’s keep it up!