BALTIMORE—Sinclair Broadcast Group is launching a national news show that it will air across its Big Four affiliates on Sunday morning. Sinclair had 162 TV stations in 79 markets covering 37.5 percent of U.S. TV households. It said the new program would air on Sinclair’s Fox, ABC, NBC and CBS affiliates nationwide, and that it has hired Emmy award-winning investigative journalist Sharyl Attkisson to host. The 30-minute program, which will be based in Washington, D.C., will be a blend of investigative and political journalism, with a focus on accountability, according to Sinclair. Attkisson will join Sinclair in June, and the show is expected to launch in the fall of 2015. The announcement was made by Scott Livingston, vice president of News for Sinclair Television Group.
“We are excited to have Sharyl on board as we launch this group-wide news program,” Livingston said. “Our goal is to provide the context and perspective on major issues impacting our viewers. Sharyl has a proven track record of exposing the truth behind stories that other news organizations shy away from. I admire Sharyl’s determination and passion to seek the truth. Her unwavering commitment to exposing government waste, abuse and impropriety will be the foundation of our news program.”
Attkisson is a recipient of five Emmy Awards, seven Emmy nominations and an Edward R. Murrow Award for investigative journalism. Her most recent Emmy Award in 2013 was for a series including an undercover investigation into Republican fundraising. Her series on the Bush Administration’s TARP bank bailout received an Emmy Award, as well as finalist awards from Loeb and the IRE Investigative Reporters and Editors. Attkisson also received Emmy recognition for her reports on Fast and Furious, Benghazi, green energy waste, Red Cross waste and abuse, Congressional oversight, Ford and Firestone tire rollovers, aid to Haiti, and dangerous prescription medicine. Attkisson recently authored The New York Times bestseller, “Stonewalled,” which addresses the unseen influences of corporations and special interests on the information and images the public receives every day. Prior to joining Sinclair, Attkisson spent 30 years as a correspondent and anchor for CBS News, CNN and various local news stations. Attkisson graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in Broadcast Journalism.
