Small but Mighty

A group of RI women from Kent County went to Washington for the Women’s March after inauguration day in 2017 and came back with a taste for more. They called themselves the Rhode Island ReSisters and focused their efforts on Sinclair Broadcast Group-owned WJAR, which has been required by their parent company to run news packages with a conservative slant. I spoke with group member Patricia Ricci about their efforts.

“What Sinclair is doing is an assault on democracy,” she said. “Their influence is very effective and insidious because they go after the local media that people trust.”

Ricci said that the ReSisters’ primary goals are to educate people about what’s happening to their local news station and boycott the companies that advertise with them. “We have protests in front of WJAR with posters. We have gone to farmers markets and set up a table. And we go to advertisers and pressure them not to advertise and not to support propaganda news broadcasting.”

When I asked Ricci about her hopes for her movement, she said, “If people stop watching and people stop advertising, then Sinclair won’t have a media to work with and they’ll get squeezed out.”

To join the squeeze, check out the group’s Facebook page (facebook.com/RIReSisters) and attend one of their listed events. On April 2 at 6:30pm at the East Greenwich Library, they’re holding a panel discussion to educate the public on Sinclair’s influence on our local news media. And Ricci promises something big coming up in May as part of a planned protest, but she was coy when I pressed for details. Keep an eye on their event page so you don’t miss out!