Sinclair's stations have been known for featuring news content and programming that promote conservative political positions, and have been involved in various controversies surrounding politically motivated programming decisions, such as news coverage and specials during the lead-ups to elections that were in support of the Republican Party. A 2019 study by Emory University political scientists Gregory J. Martin and Josh McCrain in the "American Political Science Review" found that "stations bought by Sinclair reduce coverage of local politics, increase national coverage and move the ideological tone of coverage in a conservative direction relative to other stations operating in the same market."