Following a recent report that the far-right One America News Network is mostly supported by AT&T, late-night presenter John Oliver stepped up his accusations of the telecom corporation this week, his HBO show’s own parent corporation.
According to testimony reviewed by Reuters, AT&T executives asked now-CEO Robert Herring Sr. to create a conservative network to compete with Fox News in 2013, and OANN which routinely broadcasts conspiracy theories about COVID-19 and the 2020 election to its conservative audience was actually an idea from AT&T executives.
According to Reuters, AT&T has given the network “tens of millions of dollars in revenue” in exchange for its coverage of the 2020 election, which has been the subject of lawsuits. Indeed, according to the report, 90 percent of OANN’s revenue originates from a partnership with AT&T-owned television platforms, including DirecTV.
Oliver retorted angrily before adding that his show has contacted AT&T for comment on the incident.
Oliver used his editorial liberty to offer new slogans for his parent firm, like “Assume something was lost in communication” and “All the commercial expertise of Quibi without the civility of corporate suicide.”
Oliver made one final plea to the business that may not control the show for much longer at the end of the segment.
“You’re an awful corporation. When you do awful things, you make the world a worse place,” Oliver explained. “Once the merger is complete, please do not contact me again. You’re AT&T, so your messages aren’t going to go through anyway.”
