Sinclair's Smith: Trump Could Mean Cash for Local TV

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While Sinclair Broadcast Group’s anticipated first quarter political take “more than exceeded our expectations,” president and CEO David Smith said 2016’s unpredictable election season could have surprise benefits for local TV, too. “This could go well for us,” Smith said during Sinclair’s earnings report for the three months ending March 31, during which Sinclair earned $24.4 million in political ad money. Smith said that although Sinclair traditionally gets a financial boost from political spending in “the swing states we enjoy,” a Donald Trump candidacy may ramp up the battle for the presidency in other states as well, most notably New York. That could translate into some unpredicted cash for Sinclair, whose footprint in the traditionally Democratic state includes stations in Buffalo, Albany, Rochester and Syracuse, Smith said.

“Now we enter into the New York equation where it wasn’t really up for grabs before,” he said. Regardless, Smith said he’s “very comfortable” with the way political sales have been going in 2016, which he expects to remain on track even as the number of hotly contested primaries dwindles. Political, he said, played a role in Sinclair’s revenue rising to $578.9 million during the first quarter of this year, a 14.7% increase from Q1 2015.


Sinclair's Smith: Trump Could Mean Cash for Local TV