Sinclair Notes Staples Has No Policy and threatens everybody else

[MSgt213]

Sinclair Notes Staples Has No Policy Against Advertising in Sinclair News Programming
Friday January 7, 1:10 pm ET

BALTIMORE, Jan. 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: SBGI - News) is pleased to note that in a press release issued on January 6, 2005 and as posted on their website (http://www.staples.com), office supply retailer Staples, Inc. states that it intends to continue to advertise on Sinclair television stations and has no policy against advertising in Sinclair news programming. The Staples' statement also notes that political agendas do not drive its media buying decisions and that its media buying process with Sinclair "has recently been misrepresented by an organization with no affiliation to Staples."

The clarification of Staples' media buying process as it relates to Sinclair directly contradicts statements made by several organizations with what appear to be far-left leaning political agendas who have engaged in an ongoing Internet-based campaign of harassment against Sinclair. Notwithstanding the clear message from Staples, these organizations continue to claim that their actions have caused Staples to discontinue advertising on Sinclair stations. Obviously these claims are not accurate.

Although Sinclair respects the rights of these organizations to voice their opinions, we find inappropriate that their tactics include advocating their constituency to contact our advertisers in a blatant attempt to use economic pressure to censor the speech of Sinclair. Moreover, the continued misrepresentation of the facts surrounding any company's advertising practices regarding Sinclair stations constitutes "trade defamation" which would entitle Sinclair to seek damages in a court of law. Sinclair will aggressively pursue any organization or any individual which engages in such defamation, including individuals who lend their names to mass e-mail campaigns spreading such misinformation.

The right to free speech represents an integral part of the foundation upon which the United States of America was built. The chief complaint of the organizations which have targeted Sinclair is the nightly presentation of an editorial called "The Point." This section of the news is clearly labeled as opinion and represents nothing more than the legal exercise by Sinclair of its First Amendment right to broadcast commentary both within and outside its newscasts. Contrary to the impression being provided by those complaining about Sinclair's programming, in no way does Sinclair attempt to disguise opinion as news.

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/050107/phf019_1.html

[Osamasux]

1. We're going to have to kick Staples' butt for this

They will pay and regret this turnaround.

I found the link on Staples site.
http://www.corporate-ir.net/ireye/ir_site.zhtml?ticker=PR_96244&script=410&layout=-6&item_id=660052

[susanna]

2. Boycott, boycott, boycott.

No Staples for me.

[G_j]

3. free speech my ass!

the airways belong to the PUBLIC
Sinclair purveyor of Bush empire propaganda,
threatens to shut it's critics up over
free speech, right..

[susanna]

4. Exactly.

This is the thing that infuriates me. I PAY for those airwaves and these jerks abuse them in favor of something I don't believe in.

And, unlike Armstrong Williams, I am not getting paid to believe in this cause. I just DO.

[G_j]

5. our local station

is owned by Sinclair. A very large part of the population is not represented by their RW diatribes.
We have an ongoing community effort to fight them,
see www.sinclairwatch.net
I guess it is our type of group they are threatening