Sinclair’s Sports Channels Prepare Bankruptcy, Putting Team Payments at Risk

[sinklair]

Calvert: 100% right.

Sinclair may have done it without the Diamond bankruptcy— since it always looks for ways to cut costs. But the bankruptcy likely accelerated that decision to lay off the staff, cut newscasts, hub out operations and run national propaganda programming.

[Realist]

And it’s started as Mike Woolfolk announced at the end of the 5-7am newscast that this was the last one. Early Today running from 5-6 and the National Desk from 6-7. He said that he’ll still be there in the mornings, presumably to do the :25 and :55 News breaks,

[sinklair]

On Monday, the new programming schedule begins with no local morning news.

https://midmichigannow.com/news/local/p ... ay-april-1#

3:30-6am: Repeats of NBC Early Today
6am: Sinclair’s The National Desk
7am: NBC’s Today Show/Third Hour/Hoda and Jenna
11am: Paid Programming
12pm: Pictionary
1pm: NBC News Daily
2pm; Tamaron Hall
3pm: Kelly Clarkson
4pm: Jennifer Hudson
5pm: Dateline
6pm: Mid-Michigan Now at 6pm
6:30pm: NBC Nightly News
7pm: Entertainment Tonight
7:30pm Inside Edition
8pm: NBC prime time
11pm: Mid-Michigan Now at 11pm
11:35pm: Tonight Show
12:35pm: Late Night

Weekend news is already gone with crap like the National Desk and repeats of Sharyl Attkisson’s conspiracy fueled Full Measure taking the place of local news.

10pm weekday news will still air on 66, using the same team that did 6&11pm. But with so little local news it’ll look and feel like the National Desk airing all of Sinclair’s “Must Run” stories/conservative propaganda.

The CW right now is planning on running its Community Wide talk show. But no one believes that can continue with the lack of staff… so 46 will soon have zero local programming.

[sinklair]

And if you think Sinclair is so proud of the programming changes, take a look at its social media presence on this. It’s nowhere to be found. Not pinned to the top of its station page where people can find and comment on the changes. Stella, Erik, Sam — no mention of the changes. Nothing on the new Kalamazoo GM, or our local Programming Director or Promotion Director’s’ Facebook pages.

The only person with the balls to let people know about the changes is Dave Bondy… and people are going off on Sinclair for the reduced newscasts.

[radioandtventhusiast]

So, local news in early mornings, noon and at 5p has all been tossed to the curb, and all weekend news has been scrapped? Lovely.

Sounds like the same formula WNWO does with their South Bend based news, except they skip Saturdays and run local news on Sundays. Prior to the South Bend news move, WNWO had early morning newscasts, and a 5:PM news. They also had an 11:30 AM newscast for a short while. Now they're morning news is only a half hour at 6:30.

[sinklair]

RadioabdTVenthusiast: you’re exactly right. The big difference between WNWO and WEYI is the emergence of the National Desk. TND allows Sinclair to cancel complete dayparts (mornings and weekends) and run this poorly produced national “newscast” with zero local programming. They didn’t have those options when they started hubbing out WNWO out of South Bend. WNWO at least has a half hour local morning newscast and some evening coverage on Sundays. It’s not a lot… but better than the hatchet job Sinclair did to 25-66-46 and other markets.

[sinklair]

Sinclair is selling off one of its last sports properties… the little watched Gas Station TV content provider, Stadium:

https://www.nexttv.com/news/sinclair-se ... er-chalice

Stadium made The National Desk look like a professional broadcast operation. Quite an accomplishment. Just another example of how everything Sinclair touches goes to crap.

[sinklair]

Don’t believe Sinclair when they say the check is in the mail.

https://thedesk.net/2023/05/diamond-spo ... -baseball/

How soon before Sinclair drops Bally Sports Detroit and forces the teams to take over production of games?

The same issue over streaming rights is present with our local teams.. and it appears that Sinclair isn’t willing to compromise and would rather just give up the broadcast rights to get out of its debt commitments.

[Matt]

I'd love for Bally Sports Detroit to go away.

[Realist]

I'd love for Bally Sports Detroit to go away.

You and I agree on something!

Get rid of Matt Shepherd while they’re at it

[Martin Stett]

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/377 ... lWoctzYLRg

Diamond Sports Group has decided not to pay the San Diego Padres their latest rights fee, a monumental development that will revert the team's broadcasting rights to Major League Baseball and establish precedent for an uncertain, rapidly evolving landscape.
Diamond, the Sinclair subsidiary that operates under the name Bally Sports, skipped its payment to the Padres a couple of weeks ago and had until the end of its grace period on Tuesday to make the team whole and maintain their long-term agreement. Choosing not to meant Tuesday's game against the Miami Marlins was the last Padres game under the Bally Sports umbrella. Moving forward -- starting Wednesday, continuing through the end of the season and resuming in perpetuity -- MLB will air Padres games through its streaming service and on different cable channels.

[teetoppz28]

Get rid of Matt Shepherd while they’re at it

I'll take Matt Shepherd over Jim Price any day.

[Realist]

Get rid of Matt Shepherd while they’re at it

I'll take Matt Shepherd over Jim Price any day.

So will I but that still doesn’t say much…