Reminder, Sinclair Broadcast Group is bad

If you've been on the old internets over the last 48 hours you've probably seen this video of a bunch of Sinclair Broadcast Group newscasts reading the same memo about "fair and balanced" reporting. It's super duper creepy, like if you saw it in some sort of David Fincher horror movie you'd be like "come on David, tone it down just a bit why don't you?"

Anyway, John Oliver and his wacky news crew saw the same video and addressed it on last night's Last Week Tonight. As viral as the video has been it sucks that this story isn't being reported on more. It might just be the most important new story going on right now because the ramifications are nearly infinite. Politicizing the news isn't anything new, the difference here is that thanks to decades of deregulation, a single group can now control hundreds, if not thousands, of different outlets.

We're like 7 years away from having just two news choices, the Democratic news channel and the Republican news channel. And of course it won't stop there, those same two channels will own all the radio stations and newspapers in town. With net neutrality roll backs, just wait until Comcast starts offering the "Real America" channel and internet package, with unlimited access to The Blaze and Breitbart.com! Sorry, Huffington Post is going to cost an extra $19.99 a month.

Basically we're all screwed.

Get Bent Komo 4

A couple weeks ago John Oliver did a segment on Sinclair Broadcast Group, highlighting how they're requiring stations they own to run conservative editorials and how they're trying to expand their footprint across the nation. Around the same time The Seattle Times also did a story about Sinclair focusing on how a lot of the staff at Komo 4 weren't very happy with the mandates from their new corporate overlords. This whole thing is gross and a pretty good example of how unfettered capitalism and the free market screws all of us.

Crosscut has more about that here.

It used to be that media companies like Sinclair were heavily regulated, it was something like they couldn't own more than 6 stations and never two stations in the same market. If they're allowed to acquire Tribune Media they'll own something like 220 stations including two in Seattle. The only people that's good for are the people that own Sinclair. It's certainly not good for the public, who are supposed to own and control the airwaves.

Anyway watch the John Oliver segment then watch the rebuttal from jackhole Boris Epshteyn. It's amazing that his takeaway is "um actually... terrorism is important". You can't even argue with people like this. They just immediately surround themselves with strawmen. No one is saying Terrorism isn't important Boris, we're saying your terrorism reporting is garbage and is politically motivated. It's a difference any rational person can see.



Gah, I need to stop writing about this and just get back to the salt mine. Thinking too much about this will just ruin my day.

Last Week Tonight: Scandals

Everyone in my office has Debate fever so I figured I'd post this as a nice reminder to everyone that Comedy Central totally f-ed up when they let John Oliver go to HBO. Those two months where he filled in for John Stewart while he was filming a movie should have proved to them that he was the heir apparent. I know Stewart was still under contract then but they should have thrown a dump truck after dump truck full of cash at him until he stayed. I'll be if Oliver was on the Daily Show the Nightly Show wouldn't have been canceled. Comedy Central could stand to let one of those two shows stick around while they found their footing but not both.

Anyway, we're getting precariously close to electing Donald Trump our supreme leader. All he has to do tonight is not shit himself and everyone will be claiming its a victory. I'm pretty sure he'll be the first WWE Hall of Famer elected president. That's not a good thing.

John Oliver is a Man of His Word

Last week John Oliver challenged FIFA's main sponsors to oust Sepp Blatter as the president of FIFA, if they did he would do crazy unspeakable acts like "wear shoes" and "drink beverage". While there's no proof that Sepp Blatter stepping down had anything to do with those main sponsors, John Oliver still promised to do stuff so doing stuff is exactly what he did.

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: The NCAA

Before you fill out your bracket Here's this week with John Oliver to remind you that the NCAA can get bent.

Goodbye Radio Shack

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver put together a nice little going away video for Radio Shack. Radio Shack, or the Shack as I like to call it, has been struggling in the marketplace for over a decade. It's a shame really, back when I was a kid Radio Shack was like my favorite store to visit. They had computers, TVs, remote controlled cars, all kinds of wires and switches, oh baby. I could window shop in a Radio Shack for hours.

Of course marketplaces change. If you want a computer or a TV now you go to Best Buy or Costco. Cellphones are at the Apple store, RC cars at Toys R Us, Video Games at Gamestop. Even if you're a hardcore nerd who's into DIY electronics you've probably been buying your swag online for years. With the rise of big box stores like Best Buy and do it all retailers like Walmart and Fred Meyer, Radio Shack became a small specialty store without a specialty. Off the top of my head there's like maybe 4 things I can get at Radio Shack that I can't get at Walmart for much cheaper.

Oh well, here's to you Radio Shack. You were totes cool once.

Salmon Cannon

I'm going to go ahead and post this video from Last Week Tonight With John Oliver sight unseen. I have it on good authority from a friend that it's hilarious and with a name like Salmon Cannon I feel like I can take his word for it.

Why it's hard to love the World Cup

So this John Oliver rant is 2 days old, which in internet terms is like 3 months but with the World Cup starting tomorrow I thought it was a good time to upload it. There's like a thousand things about it to love. Scrooge McDuck references, penis jokes, pratfalls, John Oliver swearing, good times.

So enjoy the World Cup, FIFA is massively crooked and screwing over poor citizens left and right. DON'T TREAD ON ME, USA USA USA!