The move may set off a backlash against the satellite-TV company in which AT&T holds a 70% stake.
DirecTV has exposed itself to a social media backlash as it has made the decision to drop far-right news channel One America Network (OAN) and its sister channel, Wealth of Entertainment.
The satellite provider, which operates as a standalone after being spun-off from former corporate parent AT&T (T) – Get AT&T Inc. Report, which still holds a 70% stake in the company, did not claim a political motive for the move.
“We informed Herring Networks that, following a routine internal review, we do not plan to enter into a new contract when our current agreement expires,” a DirecTV spokesperson said in a statement.
Both OAN and a Wealth of Entertainment are owned by Herring Networks, which was founded by Robert Herring Sr.
Far right-wing voices see the move as being political and took to Twitter to express their disdain.
That general tone — the idea that OAN was being censored for political reasons — trended on the social media site. OAN captured 7% of people who identify as Republican, according to Pew Research. That relatively small audience, however, has been extremely devoted to the channel.
OAN Has Been Controversial
Although it was originally founded in 2013, OAN rose to prominence during the Donald Trump presidency. The network bills itself as a news channel, but it has generally operated as a supplier of unchecked information designed to bring in right-wing viewers.
“OAN, which rose to prominence amid the triumph and tumult of the administration of then-President Donald Trump, has been criticized for spreading conspiracy theories about the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 election,” wrote the Jerusalem Post
AT&T Made OAN Possible
AT&T played a major role in OAN being created by Herring, according to a Reuters investigation.
“They told us they wanted a conservative network,” Herring said during a 2019 deposition seen by Reuters. “They only had one, which was Fox News, and they had seven others on the other [left-wing] side. When they said that, I jumped to it and built one.”
AT&T, which used to fully own DirecTV, provided OAN with tens of millions of dollars, according to court records. “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,” the news service reported.
The telephone and internet giant has denied ever being a source of funding for OAN. AT&T does not own a stake in OAN.
