Joe.My.God. LGBT News
Reuters reports:
One America News, the far-right network whose fortunes and viewership rose amid the triumph and tumult of the Trump administration, has flourished with support from a surprising source: AT&T Inc, the world’s largest communications company. A Reuters review of court records shows the role AT&T played in creating and funding OAN, a network that continues to spread conspiracy theories about the 2020 election and the COVID-19 pandemic.
OAN founder and chief executive Robert Herring Sr has testified that the inspiration to launch OAN in 2013 came from AT&T executives. Since then, AT&T has been a crucial source of funds flowing into OAN, providing tens of millions of dollars in revenue, court records show. Ninety percent of OAN’s revenue came from a contract with AT&T-owned television platforms, including satellite broadcaster DirecTV, according to 2020 sworn testimony by an OAN accountant.
Read the full article. AT&T is the parent company of WarnerMedia, which is the parent company of CNN.
.@ATT offered to carry @OANN if the network lobbied for an AT&T merger, @OANN owner CHARLES HERRING testified.
Herring met with @FCC officials, sent them a filing of support “ghostwritten by AT&T” & even offered to air positive news about AT&T on OANN. https://t.co/oDv8MIyRLd
— Kenneth P. Vogel (@kenvogel) October 6, 2021
On January 6, after Trump supporters broke into the U.S. Capitol, an OAN news director cautioned staff via email, “Please DO NOT say ‘Trump Supporters Storm Capitol …’ Simply call them demonstrators or protestors … DO NOT CALL IT A RIOT!!!” pic.twitter.com/2VJNN0yGpk
— Brad Heath (@bradheath) October 6, 2021