Sinclair distances itself from commentary after protest

By DAVID BAUDER
November 29, 2018

NEW YORK (AP) — The Sinclair Broadcast Group is distancing itself from commentary by its chief political analyst Boris Epshteyn, who this week supported the Trump administration’s efforts to stop migrants at the U.S. border with Mexico and called it an “attempted invasion.”

The commentary has triggered protests, and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists said it is reconsidering allowing Sinclair representatives to attend its job recruitment events.

Sinclair, which owns 191 local television stations across the country, tweeted late Wednesday that Epshteyn’s opinions “in this segment do not reflect the views of Sinclair Broadcast Group.” The tweet did not specifically say it was referring to the migrant commentary, and Sinclair representatives did not return multiple messages seeking to clarify.

In a statement on Thursday, Sinclair spokesperson Ronn Torossian said that the migrant commentary “has been drastically and intentionally mischaracterized.”

According to several published reports, commentaries by Epshteyn, a former aide to President Donald Trump, are sent to Sinclair stations with an order that they must be aired. The liberal watchdog Media Matters for America estimates that at least 100 stations aired the migrant commentary on Monday or Tuesday.

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