Sinclair Looking To Expand National News Footprint

Conservative-leaning Sinclair Broadcast Group has been hiring a slew of ex-mainstream news anchors as it pushes into national news coverage.

Why it matters: Sinclair's hiring spree suggests that it's looking to position itself as a national news competitor to Fox News ahead of the 2020 election, according to Axios.

Sinclair's latest push into national news includes hiring several big-name newscasters, presumably to populate its local news channels with syndicated program, as well as to provide content for its new ad-free streaming network, STIRR:

• Lara Logan: Sinclair has hired former CBS News anchor Lara Logan for a three-month job as a special correspondent focusing on the U.S.-Mexico border, per The Hollywood Reporter.
• Eric Bolling: The network earlier this month hired former Fox News anchor Eric Bolling from CRTV for a one-hour show called “America This Week," per The Washington Post. Bolling left Fox in 2018 over a sexual misconduct controversy.
• James Rosen: The company hired veteran Fox News anchor in January as an investigative reporter, after he was ousted from Fox News abruptly last year.
• Sebastian Gorka: Sinclair hired former Fox News contributor last year. Gorka said he officially exited Fox as a contributor last month, in part because of his role with Sinclair.