shame on you!
The Rev. Al Sharpton and his National Action Network had their silence bought ? with a hefty $3.8 million in ?donations?? ? to not complain about the lack of black TV programming, according to an explosive new lawsuit filed by a national black-media group.
The Association of African-American Owned Media charges that Comcast and Time Warner carry barely a handful of channels that are completely black-owned ? and Sharpton and other key African-American advocacy groups aren?t screaming about it because they were essentially paid not to.
Comcast even sweetened the deal for Sharpton by allowing him ?to maintain his hosting position [on the Comcast-co-owned MSNBC] for more than three years in exchange for Sharpton?s continued public support for Comcast on issues of diversity ? despite the notoriously low ratings that Sharpton?s show generates,?? the suit says.
Sharpton blasted the suit Monday as ?frivolous at best.??
He denied to The Post that he and NAN received nearly $4 million from Comcast, insisting,?Never, did not get it.??
The activist said that while his group has gotten some donations from the media giant, ?It?s nowhere near $1 million, much less $3 million.??
Sharpton also insisted that his show is at the top of the ratings heap for its time slot ? and even suggested that the head of AAAOM is the one guilty of being sleazy.
?I would welcome it,?? Sharpton said of the suit. ?We could then be deposed on what this gentleman asked us to do to help him get programming, which we frankly considered below our standard and unethical.??
A Comcast rep also denied the claims in a statement.
?We do not generally comment on pending litigation, but this complaint represents nothing more than a string of inflammatory, inaccurate and unsupported allegations,? the company said in an email to The Post.
?We currently carry more than 100 networks geared toward diverse audiences, including multiple networks owned or controlled by minorities.
?Comcast has engaged in good faith negotiations with this programmer for many years. It is disappointing that they have decided to file a frivolous lawsuit.?
Sharpton paid to keep quiet about lack of black TV programming: suit | New York Post