The union representing workers at ABC6 is calling for a boycott of the station and NBC 10 in response to its recent non-license acquisition by Sinclair Broadcast Group. (Logos)
The union representing workers at Rhode Island’s ABC affiliate is urging a boycott of the station and its NBC counterpart to pressure new operator Sinclair Inc. to keep the two channels separate after it recently acquired ABC6’s non-license operations.
Sinclair Broadcasting Group, which already owns NBC 10 (WJAR), took over the infrastructure and operations for ABC6 (WLNE) on Sept. 12, putting the Maryland-based media company known for its conservative political content in control of two of the three TV stations covering Rhode Island and parts of Southeastern Massachusetts. CBS affiliate WPRI-12 is owned by Nexstar Media Group.
WLNE’s acquisition by Sinclair came as 20 unionized station employees organized under the National Association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians of the Communications Workers of America in March 2024 were negotiating their first contract with Standard Media Group.
The union is calling on Sinclair to invest more in the station, rather than make cuts as it has done in other markets.
“Viewers deserve journalism that is supported and invested in, not stripped for parts,” the union said in a press release.
The union also demands Sinclair offer those it has laid off the ability to return, such as fan-favorite meteorologist Kelly Bates. Bates, who previously worked for NBC10, said ABC6 staff were alerted about the local market share agreement between Sinclair and Standard Meida during a staff meeting Sept. 11.
“I asked if everyone was going to walk out of here with a job and they said no,” she said in an interview Friday with Rhode Island Current. “Then they ended the meeting and told me I needed to come upstairs.”
Bates said she was told her position was redundant, which she said was puzzling as the initial statement from Sinclair “committed to producing distinctive content.”
“If you’re maintaining two distinct voices as they claim, then how am I redundant?” she said.
Jessica Bellucci, a spokesperson for Sinclair, did not respond to request for comment Friday.
Bates also worries what market consolidation will mean for the quality of news Rhode Island TV viewers receive.
“When you drop a source of information, it makes you less informed,” she said. “When these large corporations are buying these small stations, they lose their sense of community.”
Also off the job at ABC6 following the acquisition is sports reporter Nick Coit, who announced his departure from the station on Facebook Sept. 12. Daytime meteorologist Tyler Hughes, who joined the station in June, confirmed to Rhode Island Current Friday he is no longer at the station.
The Boston Globe has reported that WJAR eliminated nine jobs from its master control department, the final point before a station’s signal is transmitted over the air.
To show support for workers across both stations, the union is asking viewers to call NBC 10 General Manager Vic Vetters and support workers and local programming. Public figures are being asked to decline interview requests from Channel 10 or Channel 6, and for advertisers to shun the stations.
Vetters did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Sinclair owns and operates 182 television stations nationwide, including 25 NBC and 39 ABC affiliates. It entered the Providence-New Bedford market in 2014 when it bought WJAR after the station’s former owners, Media General, merged with another company.
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