More than 80 percent of the stations snared in the investigation are owned by large conglomerates. A list of the worst offenders reads like a who’s who of big media, including stations owned by:

• Sinclair Broadcast Group
• Clear Channel Communications
• News Corp/Fox Television
• Viacom/CBS Corp
• Tribune Company

The evidence suggests a strong tie between media consolidation and the use of deceptive, pre-packaged propaganda.

There’s a reason for this: VNRs are free. Reporting news that’s meaningful to local communities isn’t. By opting to air a VNR instead of sending a reporter into the field, station owners save a fortune.

Corporate PR firms offer local stations VNRs knowing there’s a built-in incentive to use them. By dressing up fake news as local reporting, stations cut costs and increase profits.

GET ACTIVE!

http://www.freepress.net/fakenews/

http://action.freepress.net/campaign/fakenews