Tribune Media called Dish Network’s plea for baseball-style arbitration to resolve their ongoing retransmission consent dispute as “hollow,” proposing instead that the Federal Communications Commission chairman’s office monitor negotiations.
Dish proposed binding arbitration to reach a deal earlier Thursday.
Related: Tribune—Dish Hasn’t Responded to Offer
“Dish routinely makes these offers of arbitration instead of negotiating, and they are always rejected,” said Tribune Media senior VP of corporate relations Gary Weitman in a statement. “Arbitration is an expensive substitute for the negotiating process set up by Congress and Dish has a history of walking away from arbitration when the outcome goes against it.”
Weitman continued: “We propose instead that we let the FCC Chairman's office monitor our negotiations with Dish through daily joint calls. Doing so will make abundantly clear to the FCC and the public that it is Tribune Media, not Dish, that is negotiating in good faith to obtain an agreement at current market rates.”
