Murdoch's Ongoing Feud With Sinclair Escalates
- Relationship dates back to 1986, with other tense moments
- Deal would switch Fox’s Sinclair affiliates to Ion Media
Rupert Murdoch, chairman of News Corp. Photographer: Drew Angerer/Bloomberg
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The three-decade relationship between Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox Inc. and David Smith’s Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc. was once so fraught that the companies would only communicate by fax through lawyers, according to a Variety report from 1996.
Now, tensions between the two TV companies are escalating again. Concerned about Sinclair’s control over stations affiliated with Fox, Murdoch, 86, is seeking to outflank the broadcasting partner it relies on so much to reach viewers in much of the U.S.