Bloomberg: AT&T Blasted by Congressional Black Caucus for OAN Support
The Congressional Black Caucus urged AT&T Inc. to respond to allegations it is a sponsor of One America News Network, saying the broadcaster is a "far-right, anti-democratic, hatred-peddling organization."
"AT&T's support of OAN is in direct opposition to its claims of embracing and valuing diversity, equity, and inclusion," CBC Chairwoman Joyce Beatty, a Democratic representative from Ohio, said in a statement. "We find these allegations appalling and call on AT&T to respond immediately."
OAN is one of the networks sued by Dominion Voting Systems Inc. over conspiracy claims after the 2020 presidential election. Beatty's comments come after Reuters reported AT&T provided tens of millions of dollars in revenue for OAN.
AT&T said it never had a financial interest in OAN's success and does not fund the network.
"When AT&T acquired DirecTV, we refused to carry OAN on that platform, and OAN sued DirecTV as a result," AT&T told Bloomberg News in a statement Wednesday. "Four years ago, DirecTV reached a commercial carriage agreement with OAN, as it has with hundreds of other channels and as OAN has done with the other TV providers that carry its programming."