Austin TV Stations Face FCC Fines Over Spots Airing As News

AUSTIN, TX — The company that operates some 200 television stations nationwide — including local CBS Austin and the Telemundo affiliate — faces a $13.4 million federal fine for allegedly airing sponsored stories promoting a Utah cancer center during some of its news broadcasts, according to a published report.

The fines are being considered against the stations because the stories paid to Sinclair Broadcast Group by the Huntsman Cancer Foundation lacked proper attribution alerting viewers they were actually sponsored content, the Austin American-Statesman reported.

The Federal Communications Commission accuses Sinclair stations of engaging in repeated violations of the Communications Act of 1934 in airing spots not properly labeled as sponsored content, according to the report.

“Our action today advances the commission’s longstanding goals of protecting consumers by ensuring they know who is attempting to persuade them and protecting broadcasters and sponsors from unfair competitors that fail to abide by our disclosure rules,” the FCC said in its ruling, as reported by the Statesman.

According to FCC documents cited in the report, CBS Austin had more than two dozen apparent violations in broadcasting Huntsman stories 28 times between Jan. 1, 2016, and July 22, 2016. Moreover, CBS Austin stands accused of having aired a Huntsman infomercial on June 5, 2016, with “incomplete” identification of the program’s sponsor.

Other Sinclair stations in Amarillo, Beaumont, El Paso, Harlingen and San Antonio are said to have aired the Huntsman spots, which the broadcaster says focused on “cancer prevention, treatments and cures,” on multiple occasions, according to FCC record referenced by the newspaper.

>>> Read the full article at Austin American-Statesman

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