Sinclair Broadcast Group has agreed to pay $9,495,000 and implement a compliance plan in order to resolve a number of the FCC’s Media Bureau investigations, including the Bureau’s investigation of allegations that Sinclair violated its obligation to negotiate for retransmission consent in good faith. Sinclair apparently sought to increase its leverage in retransmission consent negotiations by negotiating retransmission consent on behalf of dozens of stations that it did not control at the same time that it was negotiating for its own stations in the same markets. The Bureau has agreed to grant all pending Sinclair renewal applications as part of the settlement terms.
