Episode 8

Episode Notes

November 5, 2024 and the selection of our 47th President is

away from today

@mattactorgordon

Our guest this week is an entertainment jack of all trades. Check out his profiles across the social media platforms below and give him a like and a follow!

Impact of Sinclair Broadcasting Group ownership on political landscape

Thanks to The Academic Times, we learned of the a paper published in the journal Political Communication that adds to our understanding of how Sinclair Broadcasting Group owned local news channels actually influence viewers making them less likely to vote for Democratic presidential candidates and lowers viewers approval ratings of Democratic presidents.


The paper’s author, Matthew Levendusky, a professor of political science and economics at the University of Pennsylvania states, “When Sinclair buys a station, they substitute local news for national news and unbiased coverage for more pro-Republican coverage.” He goes on in his paper to provide analysis based on TV station ownership and viewership data from 2008 to 2018 as well a opinion data from Gallup and Cooperative Congressional Election Study that shows when Sinclair purchased a station in a given market, it was associated with a 1% reduction of then-President Obama’s approval rating in that market. Levendusky concludes that news coverage on these stations convinced about 6% of viewers to disapprove of President Obama. This may not seem like a lot but when you consider that Sinclair owns 193 stations that reach roughly 40% of Americans, the impact on our political landscape can be quite large.


If you aren’t familiar with Sinclair Broadcasting Group, check out this segment from Last Week Tonight with John Oliver from July 2017 that dives into the breadth of the Sinclair local news empire and how Sinclair has wielded its corporate influence to manipulate the way that national political news is reported across their many stations.

Rudy Giuliani

The gripping drama surrounding Rudy Guiliani continues. We all probably know about the raid on his home and office, but did you know that the management consulting firm that he Chairs and is CEO of (Giuliani Partners LLC) has now gotten into the security and safety business? Yes, according to their website that was launched in the last two weeks, “Giuliani Security & Safety offers corporations, individuals, and governments a full platform of security, investigative and crisis management services.Giuliani Security and Safety.” However, the company’s webpage was quickly hacked after launch by Travis Allen, a self-proclaimed cyber nerd, and he was able to change content on the website before the company caught on a few hours later.

Capitol Rioter Update

A Michigan man accused of wielding a hockey stick wrapped in a Trump 2020 flag during the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol has asked a federal judge to reconsider his request to be released from jail pending trial arguing that he does not pose a threat to the community and that the conditions at the jail where he’s being held are essentially a form of torture. He has been charged with obstruction, trespassing, and forcibly assaulting, resisting, or interfering with an officer of the United States — among other things. In the motion to have him released, his lawyer stated “Indeed, when [my client] set out to attend the protest, he deliberately left his lawfully owed firearm at home, precisely because he did not intend to stir up trouble or cause violence. My client’s use of the hockey stick cannot be the basis for detaining when there is no fact that the government can point to that suggests his intent to use it in an assault.”

As I’ve said in past episodes and you’ll hear me talk with our guest in this episode, these people who participated in the attack at the Capital deserve to have the book thrown at them and this jag off stating that jail is like torture clearly doesn’t understand the point of jail/prison. It’s not meant to be a fucking holiday and i don’t know what’s worse - the fact that the very conservative party of which he is likely a member participated in the growth of the prison industrial complex in which he now resides OR that this experience is still unlikely to lead him to question who he supports politically and what ideals he supports at the ballot box.

Capitol Riot Related Arrests

CBS News reported on May 7th that approximately 440 defendants have been arrested in relation to the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol. CBS News further reported that federal prosecutors expect to charge at least 100 more.

Interested in who has been arrested and what type of charges they're facing? Insider has you covered.

Would You Rather...?

How about some thinkers to cleanse the palate? Enjoy!

  • The Capital rioters face consequences for their actions on January 6th OR see Biden seat a majority left-leaning SCOTUS during his time as President?

  • Nicki Minaj OR Cardi B receive a cabinet nomination in the next president’s administration?

  • Be cast in the “next big show” (such as Big Bang Theory & Friends) in your lifetime OR be guaranteed that Donald Trump nor his children nor descendents be elected to the office of President in your lifetime?

  • The US enact major climate/environmental legislation such as The Green New Deal OR see all Americans gain healthcare coverage?

  • See America enact an equitable education system OR a fair criminal justice system?

Who do you think should be our 47th President?

Kamala Harris