Sinclair Broadcast (SBGI) 10-Q 10 Aug 20 2020 Q2 Quarterly report Financial data

Cover Page

Cover Page - shares	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Aug. 04, 2020
Entity Information [Line Items]
Document Type	10-Q
Document Quarterly Report	true
Document Period End Date	Jun. 30, 2020
Document Transition Report	false
Entity File Number	000-26076
Entity Registrant Name	SINCLAIR BROADCAST GROUP, INC.
Entity Incorporation, State or Country Code	MD
Entity Tax Identification Number	52-1494660
Entity Address, Address Line One	10706 Beaver Dam Road
Entity Address, City or Town	Hunt Valley
Entity Address, State or Province	MD
Entity Address, Postal Zip Code	21030
City Area Code	410
Local Phone Number	568-1500
Title of 12(b) Security	Class A Common Stock, par value $ 0.01 per share
Trading Symbol	SBGI
Security Exchange Name	NASDAQ
Entity Interactive Data Current	Yes
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Small Business	false
Entity Emerging Growth Company	false
Entity Shell Company	false
Amendment Flag	false
Entity Central Index Key	0000912752
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2020
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q2
Class A Common Stock
Entity Information [Line Items]
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		49,640,890
Class B Common Stock
Entity Information [Line Items]
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		24,727,682

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS - USD ($) $ in Millions		Jun. 30, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents		$ 622	$ 1,333
Accounts receivable, net of allowance for doubtful accounts of $4 and $8, respectively		985	1,132
Income taxes receivable		110	103
Prepaid sports rights		725	113
Prepaid expenses and other current assets		150	232
Total current assets		2,592	2,913
Property and equipment, net		809	765
Operating lease assets		220	223
Goodwill		4,716	4,716
Indefinite-lived intangible assets		163	158
Definite-lived intangible assets, net		7,664	7,977
Other assets		605	618
Total assets	[1]	16,769	17,370
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities		573	782
Current portion of notes payable, finance leases, and commercial bank financing		71	71
Current portion of operating lease liabilities		41	38
Current portion of program contracts payable		49	88
Other current liabilities		169	155
Total current liabilities		903	1,134
Notes payable, finance leases, and commercial bank financing, less current portion		12,328	12,367
Operating lease liabilities, less current portion		211	217
Program contracts payable, less current portion		31	39
Deferred tax liabilities		455	407
Other long-term liabilities		520	434
Total liabilities	[1]	14,448	14,598
Commitments and contingencies (See Note 5)
Redeemable noncontrolling interests		510	1,078
Shareholders' equity:
Additional paid-in capital		787	1,011
Retained earnings		832	492
Accumulated other comprehensive loss		(11)	(2)
Total Sinclair Broadcast Group shareholders’ equity		1,609	1,502
Noncontrolling interests		202	192
Total equity		1,811	1,694
Total liabilities, redeemable noncontrolling interests, and equity		16,769	17,370
Class A Common Stock
Shareholders' equity:
Common Stock		1	1
Class B Common Stock
Shareholders' equity:
Common Stock		0	0
Customer relationships, net
Current assets:
Definite-lived intangible assets, net		5,728	5,979
Other definite-lived intangible assets, net
Current assets:
Definite-lived intangible assets, net		1,936	1,998
Consolidated VIEs
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents		29	39
Accounts receivable, net of allowance for doubtful accounts of $4 and $8, respectively		37	39
Prepaid sports rights		72	10
Prepaid expenses and other current assets		3	6
Total current assets		141	94
Property and equipment, net		16	15
Operating lease assets		7	8
Definite-lived intangible assets, net		85	93
Total assets		268	228
Current liabilities:
Other current liabilities		21	19
Notes payable, finance leases, and commercial bank financing, less current portion		13	15
Operating lease liabilities, less current portion		6	6
Program contracts payable, less current portion		5	7
Other long-term liabilities		5	1
Total liabilities		$ 50	$ 48
[1]	Our consolidated total assets as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 include total assets of variable interest entities (VIEs) of $268 million and $228 million , respectively, which can only be used to settle the obligations of the VIEs. Our consolidated total liabilities as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 include total liabilities of VIEs of $32 million and $27 million , respectively, for which the creditors of the VIEs have no recourse to us. See Note 8. Variable Interest Entities .

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Pa

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Parenthetical) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Jun. 30, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Accounts receivable, allowance for doubtful accounts	$ 4	$ 8
Class A Common Stock
Common Stock, par value (USD per share)	$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Common Stock, shares authorized (shares)	500,000,000	500,000,000
Common Stock, shares issued (shares)	53,342,336	68,897,723
Common Stock, shares outstanding (shares)	53,342,336	68,897,723
Class B Common Stock
Common Stock, par value (USD per share)	$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Common Stock, shares authorized (shares)	140,000,000	140,000,000
Common Stock, shares issued (shares)	24,727,682	25,670,684
Common Stock, shares outstanding (shares)	24,727,682	25,670,684
Consolidated VIEs
Non-recourse liabilities	$ 32	$ 27

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPER

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
REVENUES:
Revenues	$ 1,283	$ 771	$ 2,892	$ 1,493
OPERATING EXPENSES:
Media programming and production expenses	383	335	1,211	654
Media selling, general and administrative expenses	186	165	396	325
Amortization of program contract costs	21	22	44	46
Non-media expenses	21	39	51	78
Depreciation of property and equipment	26	22	50	45
Corporate general and administrative expenses	32	52	81	80
Amortization of definite-lived intangible and other assets	150	44	300	87
Gain on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment	(28)	(14)	(60)	(22)
Total operating expenses	791	665	2,073	1,293
Operating income	492	106	819	200
OTHER INCOME (EXPENSE):
Interest expense including amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs	(165)	(54)	(345)	(108)
Gain on extinguishment of debt	3	0	5	0
Loss from equity method investments	(7)	(12)	(13)	(26)
Other income, net	4	6	0	8
Total other expense, net	(165)	(60)	(353)	(126)
Income before income tax	327	46	466	74
INCOME TAX PROVISION	(54)	(3)	(42)	(8)
NET INCOME	273	43	424	66
Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests	(12)	0	(32)	0
Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests	(9)	(1)	(17)	(2)
NET INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO SINCLAIR BROADCAST GROUP	$ 252	$ 42	$ 375	$ 64
EARNINGS PER COMMON SHARE ATTRIBUTABLE TO SINCLAIR BROADCAST GROUP:
Basic earnings per share (USD per share)	$ 3.13	$ 0.46	$ 4.39	$ 0.70
Diluted earnings per share (USD per share)	$ 3.12	$ 0.45	$ 4.36	$ 0.69
Weighted average common shares outstanding (shares)	80,425	91,764	85,517	92,032
Weighted average common and common equivalent shares outstanding (shares)	80,737	93,163	85,981	93,189
Media revenues
REVENUES:
Revenues	$ 1,260	$ 721	$ 2,834	$ 1,394
Non-media revenues
REVENUES:
Revenues	$ 23	$ 50	$ 58	$ 99

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMP

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
Statement of Comprehensive Income [Abstract]
Net income	$ 273	$ 43	$ 424	$ 66
Share of other comprehensive loss of equity method investments	(9)	0	(9)	0
Comprehensive income	264	43	415	66
Comprehensive income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests	(12)	0	(32)	0
Comprehensive income attributable to the noncontrolling interests	(9)	(1)	(17)	(2)
Comprehensive income attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group	$ 243	$ 42	$ 366	$ 64

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF EQUI

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF EQUITY AND REDEEMABLE NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS - USD ($)	Total	Additional Paid-In Capital	Retained Earnings	Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss	Noncontrolling Interests	Class A Common Stock	Class A Common StockCommon Stock	Class B Common Stock	Class B Common StockCommon Stock
Increase (Decrease) in Temporary Equity
Net income	$ 0
BALANCE (shares) at Dec. 31, 2018							68,897,723		25,670,684
BALANCE at Dec. 31, 2018	1,600,000,000	$ 1,121,000,000	$ 517,000,000	$ (1,000,000)	$ (38,000,000)		$ 1,000,000		$ 0
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Dividends declared and paid on Class A and Class B Common Stock	(36,000,000)		(36,000,000)
Class B Common Stock converted into Class A Common Stock (in shares)							643,002		(643,002)
Class B Common Stock converted into Class A Common Stock	0
Repurchases of Class A Common Stock (in shares)							(3,993,194)
Repurchases of Class A Common Stock	(125,000,000)	(125,000,000)
Class A Common Stock issued pursuant to employee benefit plans (shares)							1,484,557
Class A Common Stock issued pursuant to employee benefit plans	28,000,000	28,000,000
Distributions to noncontrolling interests, net	(4,000,000)				(4,000,000)
Net (loss) income	66,000,000		64,000,000		2,000,000
BALANCE (shares) at Jun. 30, 2019							67,032,088		25,027,682
BALANCE at Jun. 30, 2019	1,529,000,000	1,024,000,000	545,000,000	(1,000,000)	(40,000,000)		$ 1,000,000		$ 0
Increase (Decrease) in Temporary Equity
Net income	0
BALANCE (shares) at Mar. 31, 2019							66,241,852		25,527,682
BALANCE at Mar. 31, 2019	1,519,000,000	1,038,000,000	521,000,000	(1,000,000)	(40,000,000)		$ 1,000,000		$ 0
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Dividends declared and paid on Class A and Class B Common Stock	(18,000,000)		(18,000,000)
Class B Common Stock converted into Class A Common Stock	0						$ 500,000		$ (500,000)
Repurchases of Class A Common Stock (in shares)							(500,000)
Repurchases of Class A Common Stock	(20,000,000)	(20,000,000)
Class A Common Stock issued pursuant to employee benefit plans (shares)							790,236
Class A Common Stock issued pursuant to employee benefit plans	6,000,000	6,000,000
Distributions to noncontrolling interests, net	(1,000,000)				(1,000,000)
Net (loss) income	43,000,000		42,000,000		1,000,000
BALANCE (shares) at Jun. 30, 2019							67,032,088		25,027,682
BALANCE at Jun. 30, 2019	1,529,000,000	1,024,000,000	545,000,000	(1,000,000)	(40,000,000)		$ 1,000,000		$ 0
BALANCE at Dec. 31, 2019	1,078,000,000
Increase (Decrease) in Temporary Equity
Distributions to noncontrolling interests, net	(24,000,000)
Distributions to redeemable noncontrolling interests	(378,000,000)
Redemption of redeemable noncontrolling interests	(198,000,000)
Net income	32,000,000
BALANCE at Jun. 30, 2020	510,000,000
BALANCE (shares) at Dec. 31, 2019						68,897,723	66,830,110	25,670,684	24,727,682
BALANCE at Dec. 31, 2019	1,694,000,000	1,011,000,000	492,000,000	(2,000,000)	192,000,000		$ 1,000,000		$ 0
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Dividends declared and paid on Class A and Class B Common Stock	(35,000,000)		(35,000,000)
Repurchases of Class A Common Stock (in shares)							(15,144,930)
Repurchases of Class A Common Stock	(261,000,000)	(261,000,000)
Class A Common Stock issued pursuant to employee benefit plans (shares)							1,657,156
Class A Common Stock issued pursuant to employee benefit plans	37,000,000	37,000,000
Distributions to noncontrolling interests, net	(7,000,000)				(7,000,000)
Distributions to redeemable noncontrolling interests	0
Redemption of redeemable noncontrolling interests	0
Other comprehensive loss	(9,000,000)			(9,000,000)
Net (loss) income	392,000,000		375,000,000		17,000,000
BALANCE (shares) at Jun. 30, 2020						53,342,336	53,342,336	24,727,682	24,727,682
BALANCE at Jun. 30, 2020	1,811,000,000	787,000,000	832,000,000	(11,000,000)	202,000,000		$ 1,000,000		$ 0
BALANCE at Mar. 31, 2020	522,000,000
Increase (Decrease) in Temporary Equity
Distributions to noncontrolling interests, net	(24,000,000)
Net income	12,000,000
BALANCE at Jun. 30, 2020	510,000,000
BALANCE (shares) at Mar. 31, 2020							58,352,497		24,727,682
BALANCE at Mar. 31, 2020	1,656,000,000	864,000,000	596,000,000	(2,000,000)	197,000,000		$ 1,000,000		$ 0
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Dividends declared and paid on Class A and Class B Common Stock	(16,000,000)		(16,000,000)
Repurchases of Class A Common Stock (in shares)							(5,187,633)
Repurchases of Class A Common Stock	(85,000,000)	(85,000,000)
Class A Common Stock issued pursuant to employee benefit plans (shares)							177,472
Class A Common Stock issued pursuant to employee benefit plans	8,000,000	8,000,000
Distributions to noncontrolling interests, net	(4,000,000)				(4,000,000)
Other comprehensive loss	(9,000,000)			(9,000,000)
Net (loss) income	261,000,000		252,000,000		9,000,000
BALANCE (shares) at Jun. 30, 2020						53,342,336	53,342,336	24,727,682	24,727,682
BALANCE at Jun. 30, 2020	$ 1,811,000,000	$ 787,000,000	$ 832,000,000	$ (11,000,000)	$ 202,000,000		$ 1,000,000		$ 0

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF EQ_2

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF EQUITY AND REDEEMABLE NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS (Parenthetical) - $ / shares	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
Class A Common Stock
Dividends declared per share (USD per share)	$ 0.2	$ 0.2	$ 0.40	$ 0.40
Dividends paid per share (USD per share)	0.2	0.2	0.4	0.4
Class B Common Stock
Dividends declared per share (USD per share)	0.2	0.2	0.4	0.4
Dividends paid per share (USD per share)	$ 0.2	$ 0.2	$ 0.4	$ 0.4

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS - USD ($) $ in Millions	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES:
Net income	$ 424	$ 66
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash flows from operating activities:
Depreciation of property and equipment	50	45
Amortization of definite-lived intangible and other assets	300	87
Amortization of program contract costs	44	46
Amortization of sports programming rights	396	0
Stock-based compensation	29	20
Deferred tax benefit	49	3
Gain on asset disposition and other, net of impairment	(60)	(22)
Loss from equity method investments	13	26
Distributions from investments	26	1
Sports programming rights payments	(1,025)	0
Gain on extinguishment of debt	(5)	0
Change in assets and liabilities, net of acquisitions:
Decrease in accounts receivable	148	5
Decrease (increase) in prepaid expenses and other current assets	33	(25)
(Decrease) increase in accounts payable and accrued and other current liabilities	(153)	24
Net change in net income taxes payable/receivable	(6)	(31)
Decrease in program contracts payable	(47)	(49)
Increase in other long-term liabilities	85	1
Other, net	33	26
Net cash flows from operating activities	334	223
CASH FLOWS USED IN INVESTING ACTIVITIES:
Acquisition of property and equipment	(97)	(62)
Spectrum repack reimbursements	52	22
Proceeds from the sale of assets	18	0
Purchases of investments	(48)	(47)
Other, net	4	5
Net cash flows used in investing activities	(71)	(82)
CASH FLOWS USED IN FINANCING ACTIVITIES:
Proceeds from notes payable and commercial bank financing	873	1
Repayments of notes payable, commercial bank financing, and finance leases	(928)	(109)
Repurchase of outstanding Class A Common Stock	(261)	(125)
Dividends paid on Class A and Class B Common Stock	(35)	(36)
Dividends paid on redeemable subsidiary preferred equity	(24)	0
Redemption of redeemable subsidiary preferred equity	(198)	0
Distributions to noncontrolling interests, net	(7)	(3)
Distributions to redeemable noncontrolling interests	378	0
Other, net	(16)	0
Net cash flows used in financing activities	(974)	(272)
NET DECREASE IN CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH	(711)	(131)
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, beginning of period	1,333	1,060
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, end of period	$ 622	$ 929

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMMAR

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES	NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES: Nature of Operations Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (the Company) is a diversified television media company with national reach and a strong focus on providing high-quality content on our local television stations, regional sports networks, and digital platforms. The content, distributed through our broadcast platform and third-party platforms, consists of programming provided by third-party networks and syndicators, local news, college and professional sports, and other original programming produced by us. Additionally, we own digital media products that are complementary to our extensive portfolio of television station related digital properties. Outside of our media related businesses, we operate technical services companies focused on supply and maintenance of broadcast transmission systems as well as research and development for the advancement of broadcast technology, and we manage other non-media related investments. As of June 30, 2020 , we had two reportable segments for accounting purposes, broadcast and local sports . The broadcast segment consists primarily of our 191 broadcast television stations in 89 markets, which we own, provide programming and operating services pursuant to agreements commonly referred to as local marketing agreements (LMAs), or provide sales services and other non-programming operating services pursuant to other outsourcing agreements (such as joint sales agreements (JSAs) and shared services agreements (SSAs)). These stations broadcast 631 channels as of June 30, 2020 . For the purpose of this report, these 191 stations and 631 channels are referred to as "our" stations and channels. The local sports segment consists primarily of 21 regional sports network brands (the Acquired RSNs), the Marquee Sports Network (Marquee) joint venture, and a 20% equity interest in the Yankee Entertainment and Sports Network, LLC ( YES Network ). We refer to the Acquired RSNs and Marquee as "the RSNs." The RSNs and YES Network , on a combined basis, own the exclusive rights to air, among other sporting events, the games of 44 professional sports teams and the RSNs have reached an agreement in principle for rights with one team. Principles of Consolidation The consolidated financial statements include our accounts and those of our wholly-owned and majority-owned subsidiaries, including the operating results of the regional sports networks acquired on August 23, 2019, as discussed in Note 2. Acquisitions and Dispositions of Assets , and variable interest entities (VIEs) for which we are the primary beneficiary. Noncontrolling interests represent a minority owner’s proportionate share of the equity in certain of our consolidated entities. Noncontrolling interests which may be redeemed by the holder, and the redemption is outside of our control, are presented as redeemable noncontrolling interests. All intercompany transactions and account balances have been eliminated in consolidation. We consolidate VIEs when we are the primary beneficiary. We are the primary beneficiary of a VIE when we have the power to direct the activities of the VIE that most significantly impact the economic performance of the VIE and have the obligation to absorb losses or the right to receive returns that would be significant to the VIE. See Note 8. Variable Interest Entities for more information on our VIEs. Investments in entities over which we have significant influence but not control are accounted for using the equity method of accounting. Income from equity method investments represents our proportionate share of net income generated by equity method investees. Interim Financial Statements The consolidated financial statements for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019 are unaudited. In the opinion of management, such financial statements have been presented on the same basis as the audited consolidated financial statements and include all adjustments, consisting only of normal recurring adjustments necessary for a fair statement of the consolidated balance sheets, consolidated statements of operations, consolidated statements of comprehensive income, consolidated statements of equity and redeemable noncontrolling interests, and consolidated statements of cash flows for these periods as adjusted for the adoption of recent accounting pronouncements discussed below. As permitted under the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the consolidated financial statements do not include all disclosures normally included with audited consolidated financial statements and, accordingly, should be read together with the audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019 filed with the SEC. The consolidated statements of operations presented in the accompanying consolidated financial statements are not necessarily representative of operations for an entire year. Equity Investments We measure our investments, excluding equity method investments, at fair value or, in situations where fair value is not readily determinable, we have the option to value investments at cost plus observable changes in value less impairment. Investments accounted for utilizing the measurement alternative were $25 million , net of $7 million of cumulative impairments, as of June 30, 2020 and $28 million , net of $7 million of cumulative impairments, as of December 31, 2019 . There were no adjustments to the carrying amount of investments accounted for utilizing the measurement alternative for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 and the three months ended June 30, 2019 . We recorded a $2 million impairment related to one investment for the six months ended June 30, 2019 , which is reflected in other income (expense), net in our consolidated statements of operations . YES Network Investment . On August 29, 2019, an indirect subsidiary of Diamond Sports Group, LLC ( DSG ), an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, acquired a 20% equity interest in YES Network for cash consideration of $346 million as part of a consortium led by Yankee Global Enterprises. We account for our investment in the YES Network as an equity method investment, which is recorded within other assets in our consolidated balance sheets , and in which our proportionate share of the net income generated by the investment is represented within loss from equity method investments in our consolidated statements of operations . During the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , we recorded income of $2 million and $7 million , respectively, related to our investment. Use of Estimates The preparation of financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues, and expenses in the consolidated financial statements and in the disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities. Actual results could differ from those estimates. The impact of the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to create significant uncertainty and disruption in the global economy and financial markets. It is reasonably possible that these uncertainties could materially impact our estimates related to, but not limited to, revenue recognition, goodwill and intangible assets, program contract costs, sports programming rights, and income taxes. As a result, many of our estimates and assumptions require increased judgment and carry a higher degree of variability and volatility. Our estimates may change as new events occur and additional information emerges, and such changes are recognized or disclosed in our consolidated financial statements. Recent Accounting Pronouncements In June 2016, the FASB issued amended guidance on the accounting for credit losses on financial instruments. Among other provisions, this guidance introduces a new impairment model for most financial assets and certain other instruments. For trade and other receivables, held-to-maturity debt securities, loans and other instruments, entities will be required to use a forward-looking “expected loss” model that will replace the current “incurred loss” model that will generally result in the earlier recognition of allowances for losses. We adopted this guidance during the first quarter of 2020. The impact of the adoption did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. In August 2018, the FASB issued guidance which aligns the requirements for capitalizing implementation costs incurred in a hosting arrangement that is a service contract with the requirements for capitalizing implementation costs incurred to develop or obtain internal-use software, with the capitalized implementation costs of a hosting arrangement that is a service contract expensed over the term of the hosting arrangement. We adopted this guidance during the first quarter of 2020. The impact of the adoption did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. In October 2018, the FASB issued guidance for determining whether a decision-making fee is a variable interest. The amendments require organizations to consider indirect interests held through related parties under common control on a proportional basis rather than as the equivalent of a direct interest in its entirety (as currently required in GAAP). We adopted this guidance during the first quarter of 2020. The impact of the adoption did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. In March 2019, the FASB issued guidance which requires that an entity test a film or license agreement within the scope of Subtopic 920-350 for impairment at the film group level, when the film or license agreement is predominantly monetized with other films and/or license agreements. We adopted this guidance during the first quarter of 2020. The impact of the adoption did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. See Broadcast Television Programming below for further information on our accounting for television program contracts. In December 2019, the FASB issued guidance which is intended to simplify various aspects related to accounting for income taxes. ASU 2019-12 removes certain exceptions to the general principles in Topic 740 and also clarifies and amends existing guidance to improve consistent application. ASU 2019-12 will be effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2020. Early adoption is permitted. We are currently evaluating the impact of this guidance, but do not expect a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. In March 2020, the FASB issued guidance providing optional expedients and exceptions for applying GAAP to contracts, hedging relationships, and other transactions affected by the discontinuation of the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) or by another reference rate expected to be discontinued. The guidance was effective for all entities immediately upon issuance of the update and may be applied prospectively to applicable transactions existing as of or entered into from the date of adoption through December 31, 2022. We are currently evaluating the impact of this guidance, if elected, but do not expect a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. Broadcast Television Programming We have agreements with rights holders for the rights to television programming over contract periods, which generally run from one to seven years . Contract payments are made in installments over periods that are generally equal to or shorter than the contract period. Pursuant to accounting guidance for the broadcasting industry, an asset and a liability for the rights acquired and obligations incurred under a license agreement are reported on the balance sheet when the cost of each program is known or reasonably determinable, the program material has been accepted by the licensee in accordance with the conditions of the license agreement, and the program is available for its first showing or telecast. The portion of program contracts which becomes payable within one year is reflected as a current liability in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets. The rights to this programming are reflected in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets at the lower of unamortized cost or fair value. Program contract costs are amortized on a straight-line basis except for contracts greater than three years which are amortized utilizing an accelerated method. Program contract costs estimated by management to be amortized in the succeeding year are classified as current assets. Payments of program contract liabilities are typically made on a scheduled basis and are not affected by amortization or fair value adjustments. Fair value is determined utilizing a discounted cash flow model based on management’s expectation of future advertising revenues, net of sales commissions, to be generated by the program material. We assess our program contract costs on a quarterly basis to ensure the costs are recorded at the lower of unamortized cost or fair value. Sports Programming Rights We have multi-year program rights agreements that provide the Company with the right to produce and telecast professional live sports games within a specified territory in exchange for a rights fee. A prepaid asset is recorded for rights acquired related to future games upon payment of the contracted fee. The assets recorded for the acquired rights are classified as current or non-current based on the period when the games are expected to be aired. Liabilities are recorded for any program rights obligations that have been incurred but not yet paid at period end. We amortize these programing rights as an expense over each season based upon contractually stated rates. Amortization is accelerated in the event that the stated contractual rates over the term of the rights agreement results in an expense recognition pattern that is inconsistent with the projected growth of revenue over the contractual term. On March 12, 2020, the National Basketball Association (NBA), the National Hockey League (NHL) and Major League Baseball (MLB) suspended or delayed the start of their seasons as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. On that date, the Company suspended the recognition of amortization expense associated with prepaid program rights agreements with teams within these leagues. Amortization expense will resume for the NBA, NHL, and MLB over the modified seasons when the games commence during the third quarter of 2020. Certain rights agreements with professional teams contain provisions which require the rebate of rights fees paid by the Company if a contractually minimum number of live games are not delivered. Rights fees paid in advance of expense recognition, inclusive of any rebates due to the Company, are included within prepaid sports rights on our consolidated balance sheets. Non-cash Investing and Financing Activities Non-cash transactions related to finance lease obligations were $6 million during the six months ended June 30, 2020 . Leased assets obtained in exchange for new operating lease liabilities were $9 million and $10 million during the six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019, respectively. Revenue Recognition The following table presents our revenue disaggregated by type and segment (in millions): For the three months ended June 30, 2020 Broadcast Local sports Other Eliminations Total Distribution revenue $ 349 $ 610 $ 51 $ — $ 1,010 Advertising revenue 208 3 25 (1 ) 235 Other media, non-media, and intercompany revenues 35 3 28 (28 ) 38 Total revenues $ 592 $ 616 $ 104 $ (29 ) $ 1,283 For the three months ended June 30, 2019 Broadcast Local sports Other Eliminations Total Distribution revenue $ 335 $ — $ 32 $ — $ 367 Advertising revenue 315 — 24 — 339 Other media, non-media, and intercompany revenue 10 — 61 (6 ) 65 Total revenues $ 660 $ — $ 117 $ (6 ) $ 771 For the six months ended June 30, 2020 Broadcast Local sports Other Eliminations Total Distribution revenue $ 703 $ 1,362 $ 100 $ — $ 2,165 Advertising revenue 517 58 61 (1 ) 635 Other media, non-media, and intercompany revenues 72 8 72 (60 ) 92 Total revenues $ 1,292 $ 1,428 $ 233 $ (61 ) $ 2,892 For the six months ended June 30, 2019 Broadcast Local sports Other Eliminations Total Distribution revenue $ 655 $ — $ 65 $ (1 ) $ 719 Advertising revenue 602 — 45 — 647 Other media, non-media, and intercompany revenues 21 — 115 (9 ) 127 Total revenues $ 1,278 $ — $ 225 $ (10 ) $ 1,493 Distribution Revenue. We generate distribution revenue through fees received from multi-channel video programming distributors (MVPDs) and virtual MVPDs (vMVPDs, and together with MVPDs, "Distributors") for the right to distribute our stations, RSNs, and other properties. Distribution arrangements are generally governed by multi-year contracts and the underlying fees are based upon a contractual monthly rate per subscriber. These arrangements represent licenses of intellectual property; revenue is recognized as the signal or network programming is provided to our customers (as usage occurs) which corresponds with the satisfaction of our performance obligation. Revenue is calculated based upon the contractual rate multiplied by an estimated number of subscribers. Our customers will remit payments based upon actual subscribers a short time after the conclusion of a month, which generally does not exceed 120 days. Historical adjustments to subscriber estimates have not been material. Certain of our distribution arrangements contain provisions that require the Company to deliver a minimum number of live professional sports games or tournaments during a defined period which usually corresponds with a calendar year. If the minimum threshold is not met, we may be obligated to refund a portion of the distribution fees received if shortfalls are not cured within a specified period of time. Our ability to meet these requirements is primarily driven by the delivery of games by the professional sports leagues. The Company has not historically paid any material rebates under these contractual provisions as it is unusual for there to be an event which is significant enough to preclude the Company from meeting or exceeding these thresholds. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in significant disruptions to the normal operations of the professional sports leagues resulting in delays and uncertainty with respect to regularly scheduled games. Decisions made by the leagues during the second quarter of 2020 regarding the timing and format of the revised 2020 seasons have resulted, in some cases, in our inability to meet these minimum requirements and the need to reduce revenue based upon estimated rebates due to our distribution customers. These estimated rebates will be recognized over the measurement period of the rebate which in this case will be during the year ended December 31, 2020. For both the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , we reduced revenue and accrued corresponding rebates to Distributors of $124 million . The foregoing rebates assume that the leagues will complete their respective revised 2020 seasons as currently scheduled. However, there can be no assurance that will occur and any changes to the revised 2020 seasons may result in changes in the amount of actual rebates paid to the Distributors. See Subsequent Events within Note 1. Nature of Operations and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies . Advertising Revenue. We generate advertising revenue primarily from the sale of advertising spots/impressions within our broadcast television, RSN, and digital platforms. In accordance with ASC 606, we do not disclose the value of unsatisfied performance obligations for (i) contracts with an original expected length of one year or less and (ii) distribution arrangements which are accounted for as a sales/usage based royalty. Deferred Revenue. We record deferred revenue when cash payments are received or due in advance of our performance, including amounts which are refundable. Deferred revenue was $38 million and $54 million as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 , respectively. Deferred revenue recognized during the six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019 , included in the deferred revenue balance as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 , was $41 million and $56 million , respectively. For the three months ended June 30, 2020 , three customers accounted for 21% , 20% , and 12% , respectively, of our total revenues. For the six months ended June 30, 2020 , three customers accounted for 21% , 19% , and 12% , respectively, of our total revenues. As of June 30, 2020 , three customers accounted for 21% , 18% , and 13% , respectively, of our accounts receivable, net. For purposes of this disclosure, a single customer may include multiple entities under common control. Income Taxes Our income tax provision for all periods consists of federal and state income taxes. The tax provision for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019 is based on the estimated effective tax rate applicable for the full year after taking into account discrete tax items and the effects of the noncontrolling interests. We provide a valuation allowance for deferred tax assets if we determine that it is more likely than not that some or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. In evaluating our ability to realize net deferred tax assets, we consider all available evidence, both positive and negative, including our past operating results, tax planning strategies and forecasts of future taxable income. In considering these sources of taxable income, we must make certain judgments that are based on the plans and estimates used to manage our underlying businesses on a long-term basis. A valuation allowance has been provided for deferred tax assets related to a substantial portion of our available state net operating loss (NOL) carryforwards, based on past operating results, expected timing of the reversals of existing temporary book/tax basis differences, alternative tax strategies and projected future taxable income. Our effective income tax rate for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 was less than the statutory rate primarily due to $21 million and $48 million , respectively, of federal tax credits related to investments in sustainability initiatives. Our effective income tax rate for the three and six months ended June 30, 2019 was less than the statutory rate primarily due to $8 million and $13 million , respectively, of federal tax credits related to investments in sustainability initiatives. We believe it is reasonably possible that our liability for unrecognized tax benefits related to continuing operations could be reduced by up to $4 million in the next twelve months, as a result of expected statute of limitations expirations, the application of limits under available state administrative practice exceptions, and the resolution of examination issues and settlements with federal and certain state tax authorities. Share Repurchase Program On August 9, 2018 , the Board of Directors authorized a $1 billion share repurchase authorization, in addition to the previous repurchase authorization of $150 million . There is no expiration date and currently, management has no plans to terminate this program. During the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , we repurchased approximately 5 million shares for $85 million and 15 million shares for $261 million , respectively. As of June 30, 2020 , the total remaining purchase authorization was $462 million . As of August 4, 2020, we repurchased an additional 4 million shares of Class A Common Stock for $72 million during the third quarter. On August 4, 2020, the Board of Directors authorized an additional $500 million share repurchase authorization. Subsequent Events In August 2020, our Board of Directors declared a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, payable on September 15, 2020 to holders of record at the close of business on September 1, 2020. The Company is closely monitoring the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on all aspects of its business, including how it has already impacted, and will impact, its advertisers, distributors, and agreements with professional sports leagues. On July 23, 2020, the MLB commenced its revised 60 game 2020 season. Since the beginning of the season, the MLB has postponed multiple regularly scheduled games due to COVID-19 outbreaks affecting multiple teams. The MLB has since rescheduled these games. The NBA, which resumed its 2020 season on July 31, 2020, and the NHL, which resumed its 2020 playoffs on August 1, 2020, have not postponed any additional games since their respective seasons resumed. However, there can be no assurance that the MLB, NBA, or NHL will complete the remainder of their respective seasons as scheduled. Any reduction in the actual number of games played by the leagues may have an adverse impact on our operations and cash flows. The Company is currently unable to predict the full extent that the COVID-19 pandemic will have on its financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows in future periods due to numerous uncertainties Reclassifications Certain reclassifications have been made to prior years' consolidated financial statements to conform to the current year's presentation.

ACQUISITIONS AND DISPOSITIONS O

ACQUISITIONS AND DISPOSITIONS OF ASSETS	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Business Combinations [Abstract]
ACQUISITIONS AND DISPOSITIONS OF ASSETS	ACQUISITIONS AND DISPOSITIONS OF ASSETS: Acquisitions RSN Acquisition . In May 2019, DSG entered into a definitive agreement to acquire controlling interests in 21 Regional Sports Network brands and Fox College Sports (collectively, the Acquired RSNs ), from The Walt Disney Company (Disney) for $9.6 billion plus certain adjustments. On August 23, 2019 we completed the acquisition for an aggregate preliminary purchase price, including cash acquired, and subject to an adjustment based upon finalization of working capital, net debt, and other adjustments, of $9,817 million , accounted for as a business combination under the acquisition method of accounting. The acquisition provides an expansion to our premium sports programming including the exclusive regional distribution rights to 42 professional teams consisting of 14 MLB teams, 16 NBA teams, and 12 NHL teams. The Acquired RSNs are reported within our sports segment. See Note 7. Segment Data . The transaction was funded through a combination of debt financing raised by DSG and Sinclair Television Group, Inc. (STG), and redeemable subsidiary preferred equity . The following table summarizes our current allocation of the fair value of acquired assets, assumed liabilities, and noncontrolling interests of the Acquired RSNs (in millions): Cash and cash equivalents $ 824 Accounts receivable, net 606 Prepaid expenses and other current assets 175 Property and equipment, net 25 Customer relationships, net 5,439 Other definite-lived intangible assets, net 1,286 Other assets 52 Accounts payable and accrued liabilities (181 ) Other long-term liabilities (396 ) Goodwill 2,615 Fair value of identifiable net assets acquired $ 10,445 Redeemable noncontrolling interests (380 ) Noncontrolling interests (248 ) Gross purchase price $ 9,817 Purchase price, net of cash acquired $ 8,993 The preliminary purchase price allocation presented above is based upon management's estimates of the fair value of the acquired assets, assumed liabilities, and noncontrolling interest using valuation techniques including income and cost approaches. The fair value estimates are based on, but not limited to, projected revenue, projected margins, and discount rates used to present value future cash flows. The adjustments to the initial purchase price are based on more detailed information obtained about the specific assets acquired and liabilities assumed. The adjustments made to the initial allocation did not result in material changes to the amortization expense recorded in previous quarters. The allocation is preliminary pending a final determination of the fair value of the assets and liabilities. The definite-lived intangible assets of $6,725 million are primarily comprised of customer relationships, which represent existing advertiser relationships and contractual relationships with Distributors of $5,439 million , the fair value of contracts with sports teams of $1,271 million , and tradenames/trademarks of $15 million . The intangible assets will be amortized over a weighted average useful life of 2 years for tradenames/trademarks, 13 years for customer relationships, and 12 years for contracts with sports teams on a straight-line basis. The fair value of the sports team contracts will be amortized over the respective contract term. Acquired property and equipment will be depreciated on a straight-line basis over the respective estimated remaining useful lives. Goodwill is calculated as the excess of the consideration transferred over the fair value of the identifiable net assets acquired and represents the future economic benefits expected to arise from other intangible assets acquired that do not qualify for separate recognition, as well as expected future synergies. We estimate that $2.4 billion of goodwill, which represents our interest in the Acquired RSNs , will be deductible for tax purposes. In connection with the acquisition, for both the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , we recognized $4 million of transaction costs that we expensed as incurred and classified as corporate general and administrative expenses in our consolidated statements of operations . For the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , revenue of the Acquired RSNs included in our consolidated statements of operations was $598 million and $1,403 million , respectively, and operating income (excluding the effects of intercompany expenses) of the Acquired RSNs included in our consolidated statements of operations was $413 million and $604 million , respectively. Pro Forma Information. The table below sets forth unaudited pro forma results of operations, assuming that the RSN Acquisition, along with transactions necessary to finance the acquisition, occurred at the beginning of the period presented (in millions, expect per share data): Three Months Ended Six Months Ended Total revenue $ 1,764 $ 3,435 Net income $ 172 $ 347 Net income attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group $ 119 $ 235 Basic earnings per share attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group $ 1.29 $ 2.55 Diluted earnings per share attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group $ 1.27 $ 2.52 This pro forma financial information is based on historical results of operations, adjusted for the allocation of the purchase price and other acquisition accounting adjustments, and is not indicative of what our results would have been had we operated the Acquired RSNs for the period presented because the pro forma results do not reflect expected synergies. The pro forma adjustments reflect depreciation expense and amortization of intangible assets related to the fair value of the assets acquired and any adjustments to interest expense to reflect the debt financing of the transactions, if applicable. Depreciation and amortization expense are higher than amounts recorded in the historical financial statements of the acquirees due to the fair value adjustments recorded in purchase accounting. Other Acquisitions. During the six months ended June 30, 2020 , we completed the acquisition of the license asset and certain non-license assets of a radio station for $7 million . The acquisition was completed using cash on hand. In June 2020, we entered into an agreement to acquire the license assets and certain non-license assets of two television stations for $9 million . The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2020, pending customary closing conditions and approval by the FCC. Dispositions Broadcast Sales . In January 2020, we agreed to sell the license and non-license assets of WDKY-TV in Lexington, KY and certain non-license assets associated with KGBT-TV in Harlingen, TX for an aggregate purchase price of $36 million . The KGBT-TV transaction closed during the first quarter of 2020 and we recorded a gain of $8 million which is included within gain on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment in our consolidated statements of operations . We expect the WDKY-TV transaction to close during the second half of 2020, pending customary closing conditions and approval by the FCC. The carrying value of these assets was not material as of June 30, 2020 . Broadcast Incentive Auction. Congress authorized the FCC to conduct so-called "incentive auctions" to auction and re-purpose broadcast television spectrum for mobile broadband use. Pursuant to the auction, television broadcasters submitted bids to receive compensation for relinquishing all or a portion of its rights in the television spectrum of their full-service and Class A stations. Low power stations were not eligible to participate in the auction and are not protected and therefore may be displaced or forced to go off the air as a result of the post-auction repacking process. In the repacking process associated with the auction, the FCC has reassigned some stations to new post-auction channels. We do not expect reassignment to new channels to have a material impact on our coverage. We have received notification from the FCC that 100 of our stations have been assigned to new channels. Legislation has provided the FCC with a $3 billion fund to reimburse reasonable costs incurred by stations that are reassigned to new channels in the repack. We expect that the reimbursements from the fund will cover the majority of our expenses related to the repack. We recorded gains related to reimbursements for spectrum repack costs incurred of $29 million and $52 million for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , respectively, and $14 million and $22 million for the three and six months ended June 30, 2019 , respectively, which are recorded within gain on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment in our consolidated financial statements. Capital expenditures related to the spectrum repack were $19 million and $41 million for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , respectively, and $12 million and $25 million for the three and six months ended June 30, 2019

NOTES PAYABLE, FINANCE LEASES,

NOTES PAYABLE, FINANCE LEASES, AND COMMERCIAL BANK FINANCING	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
NOTES PAYABLE, FINANCE LEASES, AND COMMERCIAL BANK FINANCING	NOTES PAYABLE, FINANCE LEASES, AND COMMERCIAL BANK FINANCING: Bank Credit Agreements Each of STG’s and DSG’s bank credit agreements (the Bank Credit Agreements) provide a $650 million five-year revolving credit facility, whereby STG’s revolving credit facility (the STG Revolving Credit Facility) is priced at LIBOR plus 2.00% and DSG’s revolving credit facility (the DSG Revolving Credit Facility and, together with the STG Revolving Credit Facility, the Revolving Credit Facilities) is priced at LIBOR plus 3.00% . On March 17, 2020, we drew $648 million and $225 million under the STG Revolving Credit Facility and the DSG Revolving Credit Facility, respectively, as a precautionary measure given the COVID-19 pandemic. During the quarter ended June 30, 2020, the Company fully repaid the amounts outstanding under the Revolving Credit Facilities. The Bank Credit Agreements include a financial maintenance covenant, the first lien leverage ratio (as defined in the respective credit agreements), which requires a ratio of less than 4.5 x and 6.25 x, measured as of the end of each quarter, for STG and DSG, respectively. This financial maintenance covenant is only applicable if borrowings under the respective revolving credit facilities, at the end of each quarter, exceed 35% of the total commitments of each facility. Since there were no outstanding borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facilities as of June 30, 2020, compliance with this financial maintenance covenant was not required. As of June 30, 2020, the STG first lien leverage ratio was below 4.5 x and the DSG first lien leverage ratio exceeded 6.25 x. We do not expect that the DSG first lien leverage ratio will be below 6.25 x for the duration of 2020, which will restrict our ability to utilize the full DSG Revolving Credit Facility. We do not currently expect to have more than the 35% of the capacity of the DSG Revolving Credit Facility outstanding as of any quarterly measurement date, therefore we do not expect DSG will be subject to the financial maintenance covenant. The Bank Credit Agreements contain other restrictions and covenants which the Company was in compliance with as of June 30, 2020. STG Notes On May 21, 2020, we purchased $2.5 million aggregate principal amount of STG's 5.875% Notes due 2026 (the STG 5.875% Notes) in open market transactions for consideration of $2.3 million . The STG 5.875% Notes acquired in May 2020 were canceled immediately following their acquisition. We recognized a gain on extinguishment of the STG 5.875% Notes of $0.2 million for the three months ended June 30, 2020. As of June 30, 2020 , the balance of the STG 5.875% Notes, net of deferred financing costs, was $344 million . DSG Notes On March 23, 2020, we purchased $5 million aggregate principal amount of DSG's 6.625% Notes due 2027 (the DSG 6.625% Notes) in open market transactions for consideration of $3 million . In June 2020, we purchased $10 million aggregate principal amount of the DSG 6.625% Notes in open market transactions for consideration of $7 million . The DSG 6.625% Notes acquired in March 2020 and June 2020 were canceled immediately following their acquisition. We recognized a gain on extinguishment of the DSG 6.625% Notes of $3 million and $5 million for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , respectively. On June 10, 2020, we exchanged $66.5 million aggregate principal amount of the DSG 6.625% Notes for cash payments of $10 million , including accrued but unpaid interest, and $31 million aggregate principal amount of newly issued senior secured notes, which bear interest at a rate of 12.750% per annum and mature on December 1, 2026 (the DSG 12.750% Secured Notes and, together with the DSG 6.625% Notes and DSG's 5.375% Senior Secured Notes due 2026, the DSG Notes ). As of June 30, 2020 , the balance of the DSG 6.625% Notes, net of deferred financing costs, was $1,708 million and the balance of the DSG 12.750% Secured Notes was $56 million , inclusive of a $25 million premium. Prior to August 15, 2022, we may redeem the DSG 12.750% Secured Notes, in whole or in part, at any time or from time to time, at a price equal to 100% of the principal amount of the applicable DSG 12.750% Secured Notes plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the date of redemption, plus a ‘‘make-whole’’ premium. Beginning on August 15, 2022, we may redeem the DSG 12.750% Secured Notes, in whole or in part, at any time or from time to time at certain redemption prices, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the date of redemption. In addition, on or prior to August 15, 2022, we may redeem up to 40% of the DSG 12.750% Secured Notes using the proceeds of certain equity offerings. If the notes are redeemed during the twelve-month period beginning August 15, 2022, 2023, and 2024 and thereafter, then the redemption prices for the DSG 12.750% Secured Notes are 102.688% , 101.344% , and 100% , respectively. DSG’s obligations under the DSG 12.750% Secured Notes are jointly and severally guaranteed by Diamond Sports Intermediate Holdings LLC (DSIH), DSG’s direct parent, and certain wholly-owned subsidiaries of DSIH. The DSG 12.750% Secured Notes are not guaranteed by the Company, STG, or any of STG’s subsidiaries. Notes payable and finance leases to affiliates The current portion of notes payable, finance leases, and commercial bank financing in our consolidated balance sheets includes finance leases to affiliates of $2 million as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 . Notes payable, finance leases, and commercial bank financing, less current portion, in our consolidated balance sheets includes finances leases to affiliates of $7 million and $9 million as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 , respectively. Debt of variable interest entities and guarantees of third-party debt STG jointly, severally, unconditionally, and irrevocably guaranteed $53 million and $57 million of debt of certain third parties as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 , respectively, of which $18 million and $20 million , net of deferred financing costs, related to consolidated VIEs that are included in our consolidated balance sheets as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 , respectively. These guarantees primarily relate to the debt of Cunningham Broadcasting Corporation (Cunningham) as discussed under Cunningham Broadcasting Corporation within Note 9. Related Person Transactions . We have determined that, as of June 30, 2020 , it is not probable that we would have to perform under any of these guarantees.

REDEEMABLE NONCONTROLLING INTER

REDEEMABLE NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Temporary Equity Disclosure [Abstract]
REDEEMABLE NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS	REDEEMABLE NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS: We account for redeemable noncontrolling interests in accordance with ASC 480, Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity , and classify them as mezzanine equity in our consolidated balance sheets because their possible redemption is outside of the control of the Company. Our redeemable non-controlling interests consist of the following: Redeemable Subsidiary Preferred Equity . On August 23, 2019, Diamond Sports Holdings LLC ( DSH ), an indirect parent of DSG and indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, issued preferred equity (the Redeemable Subsidiary Preferred Equity ). On January 21, 2020, we redeemed 200,000 units of the Redeemable Subsidiary Preferred Equity for an aggregate redemption price equal to $200 million plus accrued and unpaid dividends, representing 100% of the unreturned capital contribution with respect to the units redeemed, plus accrued and unpaid dividends with respect to the units redeemed up to, but not including, the redemption date, and after giving effect to any applicable rebates. Dividends accrued during the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 were $11 million and $24 million , respectively, and are reflected in net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests in our consolidated statements of operations . The dividends paid in cash accrue at a rate equal to 1-month LIBOR (with a 0.75% floor) plus 7.5% , which is 0.5% lower than the rate payable if the dividends were paid-in-kind during the quarter. The dividends accrued for the second quarter were paid in cash in June 2020. Dividends accrued during the three months ended March 31, 2020 of $13 million were paid-in-kind and added to the liquidation preference. In June 2020, we redeemed units of the Redeemable Subsidiary Preferred Equity for an aggregate redemption price equal to $13 million plus accrued and unpaid dividends. The balance of the Redeemable Subsidiary Preferred Equity as of June 30, 2020 was $510 million , net of issuance costs. Subsidiary Equity Put Right . A noncontrolling equity holder of one of our subsidiaries had the right to sell their interest to the Company at a fair market sale value of $376 million , plus any undistributed income, which was exercised and settled in January 2020.

EARNINGS PER SHARE

EARNINGS PER SHARE	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
EARNINGS PER SHARE	EARNINGS PER SHARE: The following table reconciles income (numerator) and shares (denominator) used in our computations of basic and diluted earnings per share for the periods presented (in millions, except share amounts which are reflected in thousands): Three Months Ended Six Months Ended 2020 2019 2020 2019 Income (Numerator) Net income $ 273 $ 43 $ 424 $ 66 Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests (12 ) — (32 ) — Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests (9 ) (1 ) (17 ) (2 ) Numerator for basic and diluted earnings per common share available to common shareholders $ 252 $ 42 $ 375 $ 64 Shares (Denominator) Weighted-average common shares outstanding 80,425 91,764 85,517 92,032 Dilutive effect of stock-settled appreciation rights and outstanding stock options 312 1,399 464 1,157 Weighted-average common and common equivalent shares outstanding 80,737 93,163 85,981 93,189 The following table shows the weighted-average stock-settled appreciation rights and outstanding stock options (in thousands) that are excluded from the calculation of diluted earnings per common share as the inclusion of such shares would be anti-dilutive: Three Months Ended Six Months Ended 2020 2019 2020 2019 Weighted-average stock-settled appreciation rights and outstanding stock options excluded 3,019 — 2,916 475

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES	COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES: Sports Programming Rights We are contractually obligated to make payments to purchase sports programming rights. The following table presents our annual non-cancellable commitments relating to our local sports segment's sports programming rights agreements as of June 30, 2020 . These commitments assume that sports teams fully deliver the contractually committed games, and do not reflect the impact of rebates expected to be paid by the teams. (in millions) 2020 (remainder) $ 793 2021 1,775 2022 1,529 2023 1,479 2024 1,409 2025 and thereafter 8,215 Total $ 15,200 Other Liabilities In connection with the RSN Acquisition, we assumed certain fixed payment obligations which are payable through 2027. We recorded these obligations in purchase accounting at estimated fair value. As of June 30, 2020 , $57 million was recorded within other current liabilities and $144 million was recorded within other long-term liabilities in our consolidated balance sheets . Interest expense of $2 million and $4 million was recorded for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , respectively. In connection with the RSN Acquisition, we assumed certain variable payment obligations which are payable through 2030. These contractual obligations are based upon the excess cash flow of certain RSNs. We recorded these obligations in purchase accounting at estimated fair value. As of June 30, 2020 , $33 million was recorded within other current liabilities and $202 million was recorded within other long-term liabilities in our consolidated balance sheets . These obligations are recorded at fair value on a recurring basis. Total measurement adjustments of $3 million and $6 million were recorded within interest expense including amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs within our consolidated statement of operations for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , respectively. For further information, see Note 10. Fair Value Measurements . Litigation We are a party to lawsuits, claims, and regulatory matters from time to time in the ordinary course of business. Actions currently pending are in various stages and no material judgments or decisions have been rendered by hearing boards or courts in connection with such actions. Except as noted below, we do not believe the outcome of these matters, individually or in the aggregate, will have a material effect on the Company's financial statements. FCC Litigation Matters On December 21, 2017, the FCC issued a Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture (NAL) proposing a $13 million fine for alleged violations of the FCC's sponsorship identification rules by the Company and certain of its subsidiaries. We filed a response disputing the Commission's findings and the proposed fine. On July 19, 2018, the FCC released a Hearing Designation Order (HDO) to commence a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) with respect to the Company’s proposed acquisition of Tribune. The HDO asked the ALJ to determine (i) whether Sinclair was the real party in interest to the sale of WGN-TV, KDAF(TV), and KIAH(TV), (ii) if so, whether the Company engaged in misrepresentation and/or lack of candor in its applications with the FCC and (iii) whether consummation of the overall transaction would be in the public interest and compliance with the FCC’s ownership rules. The Company maintains that the overall transaction and the proposed divestitures complied with the FCC’s rules, and strongly rejects any allegation of misrepresentation or lack of candor. The Merger Agreement was terminated by Tribune on August 9, 2018, on which date the Company subsequently filed a letter with the FCC to withdraw the merger applications and have them dismissed with prejudice and filed with the ALJ a Notice of Withdrawal of Applications and Motion to Terminate Hearing (Motion). On August 10, 2018, the FCC's Enforcement Bureau filed a responsive pleading with the ALJ stating that it did not oppose dismissal of the merger applications and concurrent termination of the hearing proceeding. The ALJ granted the Motion and terminated the hearing on March 5, 2019. As part of a discussion initiated by the Company to respond to allegations raised in the HDO, the FCC’s Media Bureau sent the Company a letter of inquiry. On May 22, 2020, the FCC released an Order and Consent Decree pursuant to which the Company agreed to pay $48 million to resolve the FCC’s investigation of the allegations raised in the HDO, the matters covered by the NAL, and a retransmission related matter. As part of the consent decree, the Company also agreed to implement a 4 -year compliance plan. Two petitions were filed seeking reconsideration of the Order and Consent Decree, which petitions remain pending. For the six months ended June 30, 2020 , we recorded an expense of $2.5 million for the above legal matters, which is reflected within selling, general, and administrative expenses in our consolidated statements of operations . Other Litigation Matters On November 6, 2018, the Company agreed to enter into a proposed consent decree with the Department of Justice (DOJ). This consent decree resolves the Department of Justice’s investigation into the sharing of pacing information among certain stations in some local markets. The DOJ filed the consent decree and related documents in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on November 13, 2018. The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia entered the consent decree on May 22, 2019. The consent decree is not an admission of any wrongdoing by the Company and does not subject Sinclair to any monetary damages or penalties. The Company believes that even if the pacing information was shared as alleged, it would not have impacted any pricing of advertisements or the competitive nature of the market. The consent decree requires the Company to adopt certain antitrust compliance measures, including the appointment of an Antitrust Compliance Officer, consistent with what the Department of Justice has required in previous consent decrees in other industries. The consent decree also requires the Company's stations not to exchange pacing and certain other information with other stations in their local markets, which the Company’s management has already instructed them not to do. The Company is aware of twenty-two putative class action lawsuits that were filed against the Company following published reports of the DOJ investigation into the exchange of pacing data within the industry. On October 3, 2018, these lawsuits were consolidated in the Northern District of Illinois. The consolidated action alleges that the Company and thirteen other broadcasters conspired to fix prices for commercials to be aired on broadcast television stations throughout the United States and engaged in unlawful information sharing, in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act. The consolidated action seeks damages, attorneys’ fees, costs and interest, as well as injunctions against adopting practices or plans that would restrain competition in the ways the plaintiffs have alleged. Defendants in this action filed a motion to dismiss the consolidated action, and that motion is now fully briefed. The Company believes the lawsuits are without merit and intends to vigorously defend itself against all such claims. On August 9, 2018, Edward Komito, a putative Company shareholder, filed a class action complaint in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland (the "District of Maryland") against the Company, Christopher Ripley and Lucy Rutishauser, which action is now captioned In re Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. Securities Litigation, case No. 1:18-CV-02445-CCB (the "Securities Action"). On March 1, 2019, lead counsel in the Securities Action filed an amended complaint, adding David Smith and Steven Marks as defendants, and alleging that defendants violated the federal securities laws by issuing false or misleading disclosures concerning (a) the Merger prior to the termination thereof; and (b) the DOJ investigation concerning the alleged exchange of pacing information. The Securities Action seeks declaratory relief, money damages in an amount to be determined at trial, and attorney’s fees and costs. On May 3, 2019, Defendants filed a motion to dismiss the amended complaint, which motion was opposed by lead plaintiff. On February 4, 2020, the Court issued a decision granting the motion to dismiss in part and denying the motion to dismiss in part. On February 18, 2020, plaintiffs filed a motion for reconsideration or, in the alternative, to certify dismissal as final and appealable. Defendants filed an opposition to this motion. On July 20, 2020, the Court issued a decision denying plaintiffs’ motion and dismissing the remaining claims (which the Court previously had not dismissed in its February 4, 2020 decision) based on lack of standing. The Company believes that the allegations in the Securities Action are without merit and, to the extent plaintiffs appeal the recent decisions or otherwise attempt to proceed with the litigation, the Company intends to vigorously defend against the allegations. In addition, beginning in late July 2018, Sinclair received letters from two putative Company shareholders requesting that the Board of Directors of the Company investigate whether any of the Company’s officers and directors committed nonexculpated breaches of fiduciary duties in connection with, or gross mismanagement with respect to: (i) seeking regulatory approval of the Tribune Merger and (ii) the HDO, and the allegations contained therein. A committee consisting of independent members of the board of directors has been formed to respond to these demands (the "Special Litigation Committee"). The members of the Special Litigation Committee are Martin R. Leader, Larry E. McCanna, and the Honorable Benson Everett Legg, with Martin Leader as its designated Chair. On November 29, 2018, putative Company shareholder Fire and Police Retiree Health Care Fund, San Antonio filed a shareholder derivative complaint in the District of Maryland against the members of the Company’s Board of Directors, Mr. Ripley, and the Company (as a nominal defendant), which action is captioned Fire and Police Retiree Health Care Fund, San Antonio v. Smith, et al., Case No. 1:18-cv-03670-RDB (the "San Antonio Action"). On December 26, 2018, putative Company shareholder Teamsters Local 677 Health Services & Insurance Plan filed a shareholder derivative complaint in the Circuit Court of Maryland for Baltimore County (the "Circuit Court") against the members of the Company’s Board of Directors, Mr. Ripley, and the Company (as a nominal defendant), which action is captioned Teamsters Local 677 Health Services & Insurance Plan v. Friedman, et al., Case No. 03-C-18-12119 (the "Teamsters Action"). A defendant in the Teamsters Action removed the Teamsters action to the District of Maryland, and the plaintiff in that case has moved to remand the case back to the Circuit Court. That motion is fully briefed and awaiting decision. On December 21, 2018, putative Company shareholder Norfolk County Retirement System filed a shareholder derivative complaint in the District of Maryland against the members of the Company’s Board of Directors, Mr. Ripley, and the Company (as a nominal defendant), which action is captioned Norfolk County Retirement System v. Smith, et al., Case No. 1:18-cv-03952-RDB (the "Norfolk Action," and together with the San Antonio Action and the Teamsters Action, the "Derivative Actions"). The plaintiffs in each of the Derivative Actions allege breaches of fiduciary duties by the defendants in connection with (i) seeking regulatory approval of the Tribune Merger and (ii) the HDO, and the allegations contained therein. The plaintiffs in the Derivative Actions seek declaratory relief, money damages to be awarded to the Company in an amount to be determined at trial, corporate governance reforms, equitable or injunctive relief, and attorney’s fees and costs. Additionally, the plaintiffs in the Teamsters and Norfolk Actions allege that the defendants were unjustly enriched, in the form of their compensation as directors and/or officers of the Company, in light of the alleged breaches of fiduciary duty, and seek restitution to be awarded to the Company. These allegations are the subject matter of the review being conducted by the Special Litigation Committee, as noted above. On April 30, 2019, the Special Litigation Committee moved to dismiss and, in the alternative, to stay the San Antonio and Norfolk Actions, which motion was opposed by the plaintiffs. The Company and the remaining individual defendants joined in this motion. On October 23, 2019, the court granted the plaintiff’s motion in the Teamsters Action to remand that action back to the Circuit Court. On December 9, 2019, the court denied defendants’ motions to dismiss and, in the alternative, to stay the San Antonio and Norfolk Actions without prejudice, subject to potential renewal following limited discovery. On July 20, 2020, the parties to the Derivative Actions executed a Stipulation and Agreement of Settlement, Compromise and Release (the “Settlement Stipulation”) reflecting the terms of the settlement of the Derivative Actions (the “Settlement”), which Settlement is subject to final approval by the District Court of Maryland. In connection with the Settlement, (a) the Company’s Board of Directors has agreed to implement a series of corporate governance measures (as described in Exhibit A to the Settlement Stipulation); (b) defendants’ insurers will pay $20.5 million into a settlement fund, which, after a deduction for an award of fees and expenses to plaintiffs’ counsel in an amount to be determined by the Court, will be paid to the Company; (c) the Board of Directors will designate an aggregate amount of $5 million of the settlement fund to be used, over a period of five years , for the implementation and operation of the corporate governance measures and certain compliance programs in connection with an FCC consent decree that was previously announced on May 6, 2020; and (d) the Company’s Executive Chairman David D. Smith will forgo, cancel, or return a grant of SARs of 638,298 shares of Sinclair Class A common stock that was awarded to him in February 2020. In exchange for the consideration described above, and subject to final court approval, the Derivative Actions will be dismissed and defendants will be released of any claims relating to the Tribune Merger or the HDO (provided that the release will not include the Securities Action). On July 23, 2020, and pursuant to the Settlement, the Teamsters Action was voluntarily dismissed. Also on July 23, 2020, the plaintiffs in the Norfolk Action and the San Antonio Action filed the settlement papers with the District of Maryland and moved for preliminary approval of the Settlement as fair, reasonable, and adequate, and providing for notice to shareholders of the Settlement. On August 6, 2020, the court entered an order preliminarily approving the settlement and providing for notice of a final settlement hearing to be held on October 27, 2020 (unless adjourned or rescheduled by the court). Defendants have not admitted any liability or wrongdoing in connection with the Settlement and have entered into the Settlement to avoid the costs, risks, distraction, and uncertainties of continued litigation.

SEGMENT DATA

SEGMENT DATA	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Segment Reporting [Abstract]
SEGMENT DATA	SEGMENT DATA: We measure segment performance based on operating income (loss). We have two reportable segments: broadcast and local sports . Our broadcast segment, previously referred to as our local news and marketing services segment, provides free over-the-air programming to television viewing audiences and includes stations in 89 markets located throughout the continental United States. Our local sports segment, previously referred to as our sports segment, provides viewers with live professional sports content and includes 23 Segment financial information is included in the following tables for the periods presented (in millions): As of June 30, 2020 Broadcast Local sports Other & Corporate Eliminations Consolidated Assets $ 4,657 $ 11,040 $ 1,152 $ (80 ) $ 16,769 For the three months ended June 30, 2020 Broadcast Local sports Other & Corporate Eliminations Consolidated Revenue $ 592 $ 616 $ 104 $ (29 ) (b) $ 1,283 Depreciation of property and equipment and amortization of definite-lived intangibles and other assets 60 109 7 — 176 Amortization of sports programming rights (a) — 5 — — 5 Amortization of program contract costs 21 — — — 21 Corporate general and administrative expenses 27 2 3 — 32 (Gain) loss on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment (29 ) — 1 — (28 ) Operating income (loss) 83 399 12 (2 ) 492 Interest expense including amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs 1 117 50 (3 ) 165 Income (loss) from equity method investments — 2 (9 ) — (7 ) For the three months ended June 30, 2019 Broadcast Local sports Other & Corporate Eliminations Consolidated Revenue $ 660 $ — $ 117 $ (6 ) $ 771 Depreciation of property and equipment and amortization of definite-lived intangibles and other assets 60 — 6 — 66 Amortization of program contract costs 22 — — — 22 Corporate general and administrative expenses 33 — 19 — 52 Gain on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment (14 ) — — — (14 ) Operating income (loss) 135 — (26 ) (3 ) 106 Interest expense including amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs 1 — 56 (3 ) 54 Loss from equity method investments — — (12 ) — (12 ) For the six months ended June 30, 2020 Broadcast Local sports Other & Corporate Eliminations Consolidated Revenue $ 1,292 $ 1,428 $ 233 $ (61 ) (b) $ 2,892 Depreciation of property and equipment and amortization of definite-lived intangibles and other assets 118 219 13 — 350 Amortization of sports programming rights (a) — 396 — — 396 Amortization of program contract costs 44 — — — 44 Corporate general and administrative expenses 70 4 7 — 81 Gain on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment (60 ) — — — (60 ) Operating income (loss) 234 565 26 (6 ) 819 Interest expense including amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs 2 240 108 (5 ) 345 Income (loss) from equity method investments — 8 (21 ) — (13 ) For the six months ended June 30, 2019 Broadcast Local sports Other & Corporate Eliminations Consolidated Revenue $ 1,278 $ — $ 225 $ (10 ) $ 1,493 Depreciation of property and equipment and amortization of definite-lived intangibles and other assets 122 — 10 — 132 Amortization of program contract costs 46 — — — 46 Corporate general and administrative expenses 59 — 21 — 80 Gain on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment (22 ) — — — (22 ) Operating income (loss) 230 — (24 ) (6 ) 200 Interest expense including amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs 3 — 112 (7 ) 108 Loss from equity method investments — — (26 ) — (26 ) (a) The amortization of sports programming rights is included within media programming and production expenses on our consolidated statements of operations. Due to the outbreak of COVID-19 and postponement of professional sports leagues, we stopped recording amortization of our sports contracts during the month of March 2020 and three months ended June 30, 2020. (b) Includes $25 million and $49 million for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , respectively, of revenue and selling, general, and administrative expenses, respectively, for services provided by broadcast to local sports and other, which are eliminated in consolidation.

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES	VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES: Certain of our stations provide services to other station owners within the same respective market through agreements, such as LMAs, where we provide programming, sales, operational, and administrative services, and JSAs and SSAs, where we provide non-programming, sales, operational, and administrative services. In certain cases, we have also entered into purchase agreements or options to purchase the license related assets of the licensee. We typically own the majority of the non-license assets of the stations, and in some cases where the licensee acquired the license assets concurrent with our acquisition of the non-license assets of the station, we have provided guarantees to the bank for the licensee’s acquisition financing. The terms of the agreements vary, but generally have initial terms of over five years with several optional renewal terms. Based on the terms of the agreements and the significance of our investment in the stations, we are the primary beneficiary when, subject to the ultimate control of the licensees, we have the power to direct the activities which significantly impact the economic performance of the VIE through the services we provide and we absorb losses and returns that would be considered significant to the VIEs. The fees paid between us and the licensees pursuant to these arrangements are eliminated in consolidation. We are party to a joint venture associated with Marquee. Marquee is party to a long term telecast rights agreement which provides the rights to air certain live game telecasts and other content, which we guarantee. In connection with the RSN Acquisition, we became party to a joint venture associated with one other regional sports network. We participate significantly in the economics and have the power to direct the activities which significantly impact the economic performance of these regional sports networks, including sales and certain operational services. We consolidate these regional sports networks because they are variable interest entities and we are the primary beneficiary. The carrying amounts and classification of the assets and liabilities of the VIEs mentioned above, which have been included in our consolidated balance sheets as of the dates presented, were as follows (in millions): As of June 30, As of December 31, ASSETS Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 29 $ 39 Accounts receivable, net 37 39 Prepaid sports rights 72 10 Other current assets 3 6 Total current assets 141 94 Property and equipment, net 16 15 Operating lease assets 7 8 Goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets 18 15 Definite-lived intangible assets, net 85 93 Other assets 1 3 Total assets $ 268 $ 228 LIABILITIES Current liabilities: Other current liabilities $ 21 $ 19 Notes payable, finance leases and commercial bank financing, less current portion 13 15 Operating lease liabilities, less current portion 6 6 Program contracts payable, less current portion 5 7 Other long-term liabilities 5 1 Total liabilities $ 50 $ 48 The amounts above represent the consolidated assets and liabilities of the VIEs described above, for which we are the primary beneficiary. Total liabilities associated with certain outsourcing agreements and purchase options with certain VIEs, which are excluded from the above, were $129 million and $127 million as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 , respectively, as these amounts are eliminated in consolidation. The assets of each of these consolidated VIEs can only be used to settle the obligations of the VIE. As of June 30, 2020 , all of the liabilities are non-recourse to us except for the debt of certain VIEs. See Debt of variable interest entities and guarantees of third-party debt under Note 3. Notes Payable, Finance Leases, and Commercial Bank Financing for further discussion. The risk and reward characteristics of the VIEs are similar. Other VIEs We have several investments in entities which are considered VIEs. However, we do not participate in the management of these entities, including the day-to-day operating decisions or other decisions which would allow us to control the entity, and therefore, we are not considered the primary beneficiary of these VIEs. The carrying amounts of our investments in these VIEs for which we are not the primary beneficiary were $78 million and $71 million as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 , respectively. Our maximum exposure is equal to the carrying value of our investments. The income and loss related to equity method investments and other investments are recorded in loss from equity method investments and other income, net, respectively, in our consolidated statements of operations . We recorded losses of $10 million and $22 million for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , respectively, and $12 million and $25 million for the three and six months ended June 30, 2019 , respectively.

RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS

RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Related Party Transactions [Abstract]
RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS	RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS: Transactions with our controlling shareholders David, Frederick, J. Duncan, and Robert Smith (collectively, the controlling shareholders) are brothers and hold substantially all of our Class B Common Stock and some of our Class A Common Stock. We engaged in the following transactions with them and/or entities in which they have substantial interests: Leases. Certain assets used by us and our operating subsidiaries are leased from entities owned by the controlling shareholders. Lease payments made to these entities were $1 million for both the three months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019 and $3 million and $2 million for the six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019 , respectively. For further information, see Note 3. Notes Payable, Finance Leases, and Commercial Bank Financing . Charter Aircraft. We lease aircraft owned by certain controlling shareholders. For all leases, we incurred expenses of less than $1 million for both the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 . For all leases, we incurred expenses of less than $1 million for the three months ended June 30, 2019 and $1 million for the six months ended June 30, 2019 . Cunningham Broadcasting Corporation Cunningham owns a portfolio of television stations, including: WNUV-TV Baltimore, Maryland; WRGT-TV Dayton, Ohio; WVAH-TV Charleston, West Virginia; WMYA-TV Anderson, South Carolina; WTTE-TV Columbus, Ohio; WDBB-TV Birmingham, Alabama; WBSF-TV Flint, Michigan; WGTU-TV/WGTQ-TV Traverse City/Cadillac, Michigan; WEMT-TV Tri-Cities, Tennessee; WYDO-TV Greenville, North Carolina; KBVU-TV/KCVU-TV Eureka/Chico-Redding, California; WPFO-TV Portland, Maine; and KRNV-DT/KENV-DT Reno, Nevada/Salt Lake City, Utah (collectively, the Cunningham Stations). Certain of our stations provide services to the Cunningham Stations pursuant to LMAs or JSAs and SSAs. See Note 8. Variable Interest Entities , for further discussion of the scope of services provided under these types of arrangements. As of June 30, 2020 , we have jointly and severally, unconditionally, and irrevocably guaranteed $44 million of Cunningham's debt, of which $9 million , net of $0.4 million deferred financing costs, relates to the Cunningham VIEs that we consolidate. The voting stock of Cunningham is owned by an unrelated party. All of the non-voting stock is owned by trusts for the benefit of the children of our controlling shareholders. We consolidate certain subsidiaries of Cunningham with which we have variable interests through various arrangements related to the Cunningham Stations. The services provided to WNUV-TV, WMYA-TV, WTTE-TV, WRGT-TV and WVAH-TV are governed by a master agreement which has a current term that expires on July 1, 2023 and there are two additional 5 -year renewal terms remaining with final expiration on July 1, 2033. We also executed purchase agreements to acquire the license related assets of these stations from Cunningham, which grant us the right to acquire, and grant Cunningham the right to require us to acquire, subject to applicable FCC rules and regulations, 100% of the capital stock or the assets of these individual subsidiaries of Cunningham. Pursuant to the terms of this agreement we are obligated to pay Cunningham an annual fee for the television stations equal to the greater of (i) 3% of each station’s annual net broadcast revenue or (ii) $5 million . The aggregate purchase price of these television stations increases by 6% annually. A portion of the fee is required to be applied to the purchase price to the extent of the 6% increase. The cumulative prepayments made under these purchase agreements were $53 million and $51 million as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 , respectively. The remaining aggregate purchase price of these stations, net of prepayments, as of both June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 , was approximately $54 million . Additionally, we provide services to WDBB-TV pursuant to an LMA, which expires April 22, 2025, and have a purchase option to acquire for $0.2 million . We paid Cunningham, under these agreements, $2 million for both the three months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019 and $4 million for both the six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019 . The agreements with KBVU-TV/KCVU-TV, KRNV-DT/KENV-DT, WBSF-TV, WEMT-TV, WGTU-TV/WGTQ-TV, WPFO-TV, and WYDO-TV expire between December 2020 and August 2025 and certain stations have renewal provisions for successive eight -year periods. As we consolidate the licensees as VIEs, the amounts we earn or pay under the arrangements are eliminated in consolidation and the gross revenues of the stations are reported in our consolidated statements of operations . Our consolidated revenues include $32 million and $39 million for the three months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019 , respectively, and $71 million and $73 million for the six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019 , respectively, related to the Cunningham Stations. In April 2016, we entered into an agreement with Cunningham to provide master control equipment and provide master control services to a station in Johnstown, PA with which Cunningham has an LMA that expires in June 2022. Under the agreement, Cunningham paid us an initial fee of $1 million and pays us $0.2 million annually for master control services plus the cost to maintain and repair the equipment. In August 2016, we entered into an agreement, expiring in October 2021, with Cunningham to provide a news share service with the Johnstown, PA station beginning in October 2016 for an annual fee of $1 million . Atlantic Automotive Corporation We sell advertising time to Atlantic Automotive Corporation (Atlantic Automotive), a holding company that owns automobile dealerships and an automobile leasing company. David D. Smith, our Executive Chairman, has a controlling interest in, and is a member of the Board of Directors of, Atlantic Automotive. We received payments for advertising totaling less than $0.1 million for both the three months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019 and both the six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019 . Leased property by real estate ventures Certain of our real estate ventures have entered into leases with entities owned by members of the Smith Family. Total rent received under these leases was $0.1 million and $0.2 million for the three months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019 , respectively, and $0.4 million for both the six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019 . Equity method investees YES Network . In August 2019, YES Network, an equity method investee, entered into a management services agreement with the Company, in which the Company provides certain services for an initial term that expires on August 29, 2025. The agreement will automatically renew for two 2 -year renewal terms, with a final expiration on August 29, 2029. Pursuant to the terms of the agreement, the YES Network paid us a management services fee of $1 million and $3 million for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , respectively. In conjunction with the acquisition of the RSNs on August 23, 2019, as discussed in Note 2. Acquisitions and Dispositions of Assets , we assumed a minority interest in certain mobile production companies, which we account for as equity method investments. For the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , we made payments to these investees totaling $2 million and $9 million , respectively, for production services. Sports Programming Rights For the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , the Company paid $136 million and $206 million , respectively, under sports programming rights agreements covering the broadcast of regular season games, to five professional teams who have non-controlling equity interests in certain of our RSNs. These agreements expire on various dates during the fiscal years ended 2030 through 2033 .

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS	FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS: Accounting guidance provides for valuation techniques, such as the market approach (comparable market prices), the income approach (present value of future income or cash flow), and the cost approach (cost to replace the service capacity of an asset or replacement cost). A fair value hierarchy using three broad levels prioritizes the inputs to valuation techniques used to measure fair value. The following is a brief description of those three levels: • Level 1: Observable inputs such as quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities. • Level 2: Inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly. These include quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets and quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active. • Level 3: Unobservable inputs that reflect the reporting entity’s own assumptions. The following table sets forth the carrying value and fair value of our financial assets and liabilities for the periods presented (in millions): As of June 30, 2020 As of December 31, 2019 Carrying Value Fair Value Carrying Value Fair Value Level 1: STG: Money market funds $ 157 $ 157 $ 354 $ 354 Deferred compensation assets 37 37 36 36 Deferred compensation liabilities 32 32 33 33 DSG: Money market funds 61 61 559 559 Level 2 (a): STG: 5.875% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2026 348 342 350 368 5.625% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2024 550 528 550 566 5.500% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2030 500 463 500 511 5.125% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2027 400 364 400 411 Term Loan B 1,322 1,259 1,329 1,326 Term Loan B-2 1,290 1,229 1,297 1,300 DSG: 12.750% Senior Secured Notes due 2026 (b) 31 30 — — 6.625% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2027 (b) 1,744 929 1,825 1,775 5.375% Senior Secured Notes due 2026 3,050 2,207 3,050 3,085 Term Loan 3,275 2,661 3,292 3,284 Debt of variable interest entities 19 19 21 21 Debt of non-media subsidiaries 18 18 18 18 Level 3 DSG: Variable payment obligations (c) 235 235 239 239 (a) Amounts are carried in our consolidated balance sheets net of debt discount, premium, and deferred financing cost, which are excluded in the above table, of $189 million and $231 million as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 , respectively. (b) On June 10, 2020, we exchanged $66.5 million aggregate principal amount of the DSG 6.625% Notes for cash payments of $10 million , including accrued but unpaid interest, and $31 million aggregate principal amount of the newly issued DSG 12.750% Secured Notes. See Note 3. Notes Payable, Finance Leases, and Commercial Bank Financing for further information. (c) The Company records its variable payment obligations at fair value on a recurring basis. These liabilities are further described in Other Liabilities within Note 5. Commitments and Contingencies . Significant unobservable inputs used in the fair value measurement are projected future operating income before depreciation and amortization; and weighted average discount rate of 9% . Significant increases (decreases) in projected future operating income would generally result in a significantly higher (lower) fair value measurement. Significant increases (decreases) in discount rates, would result in a significantly (lower) higher fair value measurement. The following table summarizes the changes in financial liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis and categorized as Level 3 under the fair value hierarchy for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 (in millions): Variable Payment Obligations Fair value at March 31, 2020 $ 235 Payments (3 ) Measurement adjustments 3 Fair value at June 30, 2020 $ 235 Variable Payment Obligations Fair value at December 31, 2019 $ 239 Payments (10 ) Measurement adjustments 6 Fair value at June 30, 2020 $ 235

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING FINANCI

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING FINANCIAL STATEMENTS	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Condensed Financial Information Disclosure [Abstract]
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING FINANCIAL STATEMENTS	CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING FINANCIAL STATEMENTS: Sinclair Television Group, Inc. (STG), a wholly-owned subsidiary and the television operating subsidiary of Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (SBG), is the primary obligor under the STG Bank Credit Agreement , 5.625% Notes, 5.875% Notes, 5.125% Notes, and 5.500% Notes (collectively, the Notes are referred to as the" STG Notes "), and, until they were redeemed, STG's 5.375% Notes and 6.125% Notes. STG’s 5.625% Notes were publicly registered on a Registration Statement on Form S-3ASR (No. 333-203483), effective April 17, 2015, and, until they were redeemed, STG’s 6.125% Notes were publicly registered on a Registration Statement on Form S-4 (No. 333-187724), effective April 16, 2013. Our Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock as of June 30, 2020 , were obligations or securities of SBG and not obligations or securities of STG. SBG is a guarantor under the STG Bank Credit Agreement , 5.625% Notes, 5.875% Notes, 5.125% Notes, 5.500% Notes and, until they were redeemed, STG's 5.375% Notes and 6.125% Notes. As of June 30, 2020 , our consolidated total debt, net of deferred financing costs and debt discounts, of $12,399 million included $4,422 million related to STG and its subsidiaries of which SBG guaranteed $4,381 million . SBG, KDSM, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of SBG, and STG’s wholly-owned subsidiaries (guarantor subsidiaries) have fully and unconditionally guaranteed, subject to certain customary automatic release provisions, all of STG’s obligations. Those guarantees are joint and several. There are certain contractual restrictions on the ability of SBG, STG, or KDSM, LLC to obtain funds from their subsidiaries in the form of dividends or loans. The following condensed consolidating financial statements present the consolidated balance sheets, consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income, and consolidated statements of cash flows of SBG, STG, KDSM, LLC and the guarantor subsidiaries, the direct and indirect non-guarantor subsidiaries of SBG and the eliminations necessary to arrive at our information on a consolidated basis. These statements are presented in accordance with the disclosure requirements under SEC Regulation S-X, Rule 3-10. CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING BALANCE SHEET AS OF JUNE 30, 2020 (in millions) (unaudited) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair Cash and cash equivalents $ — $ 168 $ 3 $ 451 $ — $ 622 Accounts receivable, net — — 494 491 — 985 Other current assets 12 86 201 781 (95 ) 985 Total current assets 12 254 698 1,723 (95 ) 2,592 Property and equipment, net 1 33 702 100 (27 ) 809 Investment in consolidated subsidiaries 2,258 3,497 — — (5,755 ) — Goodwill — — 2,091 2,625 — 4,716 Indefinite-lived intangible assets — — 149 14 — 163 Definite-lived intangible assets, net — — 1,342 6,366 (44 ) 7,664 Other long-term assets 84 1,632 280 476 (1,647 ) 825 Total assets $ 2,355 $ 5,416 $ 5,262 $ 11,304 $ (7,568 ) $ 16,769 Accounts payable and accrued liabilities $ 31 $ 99 $ 277 $ 261 $ (95 ) $ 573 Current portion of long-term debt — 27 5 41 (2 ) 71 Other current liabilities 1 — 99 159 — 259 Total current liabilities 32 126 381 461 (97 ) 903 Long-term debt 700 4,336 36 8,291 (1,035 ) 12,328 Other long-term liabilities 13 59 1,351 624 (830 ) 1,217 Total liabilities 745 4,521 1,768 9,376 (1,962 ) 14,448 Redeemable noncontrolling interests — — — 510 — 510 Total Sinclair Broadcast Group equity 1,610 895 3,494 1,220 (5,610 ) 1,609 Noncontrolling interests in consolidated subsidiaries — — — 198 4 202 Total liabilities, redeemable noncontrolling interests, and equity $ 2,355 $ 5,416 $ 5,262 $ 11,304 $ (7,568 ) $ 16,769 CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING BALANCE SHEET AS OF DECEMBER 31, 2019 (in millions) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair Cash and cash equivalents $ — $ 357 $ 3 $ 973 $ — $ 1,333 Accounts receivable, net — — 561 571 — 1,132 Other current assets 5 41 264 188 (50 ) 448 Total current assets 5 398 828 1,732 (50 ) 2,913 Property and equipment, net 1 31 659 96 (22 ) 765 Investment in consolidated subsidiaries 2,270 3,558 — — (5,828 ) — Goodwill — — 2,091 2,625 — 4,716 Indefinite-lived intangible assets — — 144 14 — 158 Definite-lived intangible assets, net — — 1,426 6,598 (47 ) 7,977 Other long-term assets 82 1,611 279 618 (1,749 ) 841 Total assets $ 2,358 $ 5,598 $ 5,427 $ 11,683 $ (7,696 ) $ 17,370 Accounts payable and accrued liabilities $ 142 $ 109 $ 286 $ 296 $ (51 ) $ 782 Current portion of long-term debt — 27 4 41 (1 ) 71 Other current liabilities — 1 133 147 — 281 Total current liabilities 142 137 423 484 (52 ) 1,134 Long-term debt 700 4,348 32 8,317 (1,030 ) 12,367 Other long-term liabilities 13 53 1,418 547 (934 ) 1,097 Total liabilities 855 4,538 1,873 9,348 (2,016 ) 14,598 Redeemable noncontrolling interests — — — 1,078 — 1,078 Total Sinclair Broadcast Group equity 1,503 1,060 3,554 1,069 (5,684 ) 1,502 Noncontrolling interests in consolidated subsidiaries — — — 188 4 192 Total liabilities, redeemable noncontrolling interests, and equity $ 2,358 $ 5,598 $ 5,427 $ 11,683 $ (7,696 ) $ 17,370 CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME FOR THE THREE MONTHS ENDED JUNE 30, 2020 (in millions) (unaudited) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair Net revenue $ — $ 25 $ 627 $ 671 $ (40 ) $ 1,283 Media programming and production expenses — — 312 83 (12 ) 383 Selling, general and administrative expenses 3 26 151 63 (25 ) 218 Depreciation, amortization and other operating expenses — 4 52 136 (2 ) 190 Total operating expenses 3 30 515 282 (39 ) 791 Operating (loss) income (3 ) (5 ) 112 389 (1 ) 492 Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries 257 67 — — (324 ) — Interest expense (4 ) (47 ) (1 ) (120 ) 7 (165 ) Other income (expense) 1 8 (10 ) 4 (3 ) — Total other income (expense) 254 28 (11 ) (116 ) (320 ) (165 ) Income tax benefit (provision) 1 (9 ) (34 ) (12 ) — (54 ) Net income 252 14 67 261 (321 ) 273 Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests — — — (12 ) — (12 ) Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests — — — (9 ) — (9 ) Net income attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group $ 252 $ 14 $ 67 $ 240 $ (321 ) $ 252 Comprehensive income $ 252 $ 14 $ 67 $ 252 $ (321 ) $ 264 CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME FOR THE THREE MONTHS ENDED JUNE 30, 2019 (in millions) (unaudited) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair Net revenue $ — $ — $ 705 $ 89 $ (23 ) $ 771 Media programming and production expenses — — 318 33 (16 ) 335 Selling, general and administrative expenses 19 33 162 4 (1 ) 217 Depreciation, amortization and other operating expenses — 1 70 46 (4 ) 113 Total operating expenses 19 34 550 83 (21 ) 665 Operating (loss) income (19 ) (34 ) 155 6 (2 ) 106 Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries 56 118 — — (174 ) — Interest expense — (51 ) (1 ) (5 ) 3 (54 ) Other income (expense) 1 4 (11 ) — — (6 ) Total other income (expense) 57 71 (12 ) (5 ) (171 ) (60 ) Income tax benefit (provision) 4 17 (24 ) — — (3 ) Net income 42 54 119 1 (173 ) 43 Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests — — — (1 ) — (1 ) Net income attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group $ 42 $ 54 $ 119 $ — $ (173 ) $ 42 Comprehensive income $ 42 $ 54 $ 119 $ 1 $ (173 ) $ 43 CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED JUNE 30, 2020 (in millions) (unaudited) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair Net revenue $ — $ 49 $ 1,366 $ 1,564 $ (87 ) $ 2,892 Media programming and production expenses — — 640 599 (28 ) 1,211 Selling, general and administrative expenses 6 70 319 130 (48 ) 477 Depreciation, amortization and other operating expenses — 5 103 283 (6 ) 385 Total operating expenses 6 75 1,062 1,012 (82 ) 2,073 Operating (loss) income (6 ) (26 ) 304 552 (5 ) 819 Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries 386 240 — — (626 ) — Interest expense (7 ) (102 ) (2 ) (247 ) 13 (345 ) Other (expense) income (1 ) 6 (19 ) 12 (6 ) (8 ) Total other income (expense) 378 144 (21 ) (235 ) (619 ) (353 ) Income tax benefit (provision) 3 20 (40 ) (25 ) — (42 ) Net income 375 138 243 292 (624 ) 424 Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests — — — (32 ) — (32 ) Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests — — — (17 ) — (17 ) Net income attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group $ 375 $ 138 $ 243 $ 243 $ (624 ) $ 375 Comprehensive income $ 375 $ 138 $ 243 $ 283 $ (624 ) $ 415 CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED JUNE 30, 2019 (in millions) (unaudited) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair Net revenue $ — $ — $ 1,361 $ 172 $ (40 ) $ 1,493 Media programming and production expenses — — 619 63 (28 ) 654 Selling, general and administrative expenses 21 59 318 9 (2 ) 405 Depreciation, amortization and other operating expenses — 2 148 90 (6 ) 234 Total operating expenses 21 61 1,085 162 (36 ) 1,293 Operating (loss) income (21 ) (61 ) 276 10 (4 ) 200 Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries 80 207 — — (287 ) — Interest expense — (104 ) (2 ) (9 ) 7 (108 ) Other income (expense) 1 5 (23 ) (1 ) — (18 ) Total other income (expense) 81 108 (25 ) (10 ) (280 ) (126 ) Income tax benefit (provision) 4 29 (41 ) — — (8 ) Net income 64 76 210 — (284 ) 66 Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests — — — (3 ) 1 (2 ) Net income (loss) attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group $ 64 $ 76 $ 210 $ (3 ) $ (283 ) $ 64 Comprehensive income $ 64 $ 76 $ 210 $ — $ (284 ) $ 66 CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED JUNE 30, 2020 (in millions) (unaudited) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair NET CASH FLOWS (USED IN) FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES $ (124 ) $ (98 ) $ 313 $ 243 $ — $ 334 NET CASH FLOWS USED IN INVESTING ACTIVITIES Acquisition of property and equipment — (6 ) (83 ) (13 ) 5 (97 ) Spectrum repack reimbursements — — 52 — — 52 Proceeds from the sale of assets — — 18 — — 18 Purchases of investments (1 ) (5 ) (22 ) (20 ) — (48 ) Other, net 1 — (8 ) 11 — 4 Net cash flows used in investing activities — (11 ) (43 ) (22 ) 5 (71 ) NET CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) FINANCING ACTIVITIES Proceeds from notes payable and commercial bank financing — 648 — 225 — 873 Repayments of notes payable, commercial bank financing and finance leases — (663 ) (2 ) (263 ) — (928 ) Repurchase of outstanding Class A Common Stock (261 ) — — — — (261 ) Dividends paid on Class A and Class B Common Stock (35 ) — — — — (35 ) Dividends paid on redeemable subsidiary preferred equity — — — (24 ) — (24 ) Redemption of redeemable subsidiary preferred equity — — — (198 ) — (198 ) Distributions to noncontrolling interests, net — — — (7 ) — (7 ) Distributions to redeemable noncontrolling interests — — — (378 ) — (378 ) Increase (decrease) in intercompany payables 420 (65 ) (268 ) (82 ) (5 ) — Other, net — — — (16 ) — (16 ) Net cash flows from (used in) financing activities 124 (80 ) (270 ) (743 ) (5 ) (974 ) NET DECREASE IN CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH — (189 ) — (522 ) — (711 ) CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, beginning of period — 357 3 973 — 1,333 CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, end of period $ — $ 168 $ 3 $ 451 $ — $ 622 CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED JUNE 30, 2019 (in millions) (unaudited) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair NET CASH FLOWS (USED IN) FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES $ — $ (122 ) $ 328 $ 22 $ (5 ) $ 223 NET CASH FLOWS USED IN INVESTING ACTIVITIES Acquisition of property and equipment — (2 ) (64 ) (1 ) 5 (62 ) Spectrum repack reimbursements — — 22 — — 22 Purchases of investments (2 ) (9 ) (30 ) (6 ) — (47 ) Other, net — 2 — 3 — 5 Net cash flows used in investing activities (2 ) (9 ) (72 ) (4 ) 5 (82 ) CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) FINANCING ACTIVITIES: Proceeds from notes payable and commercial bank financing — — — 1 — 1 Repayments of notes payable, commercial bank financing and finance leases — (103 ) (2 ) (25 ) 21 (109 ) Repurchase of outstanding Class A Common Stock (125 ) — — — — (125 ) Dividends paid on Class A and Class B Common Stock (36 ) — — — — (36 ) Distributions to noncontrolling interests — — — (3 ) — (3 ) Increase (decrease) in intercompany payables 163 164 (270 ) (36 ) (21 ) — Net cash flows from (used in) financing activities 2 61 (272 ) (63 ) — (272 ) NET DECREASE IN CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH — (70 ) (16 ) (45 ) — (131 ) CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, beginning of period — 962 19 79 — 1,060 CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, end of period $ — $ 892 $ 3 $ 34 $ — $ 929

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMM_2

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Policies)	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Nature of Operations	Nature of Operations Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (the Company) is a diversified television media company with national reach and a strong focus on providing high-quality content on our local television stations, regional sports networks, and digital platforms. The content, distributed through our broadcast platform and third-party platforms, consists of programming provided by third-party networks and syndicators, local news, college and professional sports, and other original programming produced by us. Additionally, we own digital media products that are complementary to our extensive portfolio of television station related digital properties. Outside of our media related businesses, we operate technical services companies focused on supply and maintenance of broadcast transmission systems as well as research and development for the advancement of broadcast technology, and we manage other non-media related investments. As of June 30, 2020 , we had two reportable segments for accounting purposes, broadcast and local sports . The broadcast segment consists primarily of our 191 broadcast television stations in 89 markets, which we own, provide programming and operating services pursuant to agreements commonly referred to as local marketing agreements (LMAs), or provide sales services and other non-programming operating services pursuant to other outsourcing agreements (such as joint sales agreements (JSAs) and shared services agreements (SSAs)). These stations broadcast 631 channels as of June 30, 2020 . For the purpose of this report, these 191 stations and 631 channels are referred to as "our" stations and channels. The local sports segment consists primarily of 21 regional sports network brands (the Acquired RSNs), the Marquee Sports Network (Marquee) joint venture, and a 20% equity interest in the Yankee Entertainment and Sports Network, LLC ( YES Network ). We refer to the Acquired RSNs and Marquee as "the RSNs." The RSNs and YES Network , on a combined basis, own the exclusive rights to air, among other sporting events, the games of 44 professional sports teams and the RSNs have reached an agreement in principle for rights with one team.
Principles of Consolidation and Interim Financial Statements	Principles of Consolidation The consolidated financial statements include our accounts and those of our wholly-owned and majority-owned subsidiaries, including the operating results of the regional sports networks acquired on August 23, 2019, as discussed in Note 2. Acquisitions and Dispositions of Assets , and variable interest entities (VIEs) for which we are the primary beneficiary. Noncontrolling interests represent a minority owner’s proportionate share of the equity in certain of our consolidated entities. Noncontrolling interests which may be redeemed by the holder, and the redemption is outside of our control, are presented as redeemable noncontrolling interests. All intercompany transactions and account balances have been eliminated in consolidation. We consolidate VIEs when we are the primary beneficiary. We are the primary beneficiary of a VIE when we have the power to direct the activities of the VIE that most significantly impact the economic performance of the VIE and have the obligation to absorb losses or the right to receive returns that would be significant to the VIE. See Note 8. Variable Interest Entities for more information on our VIEs. Investments in entities over which we have significant influence but not control are accounted for using the equity method of accounting. Income from equity method investments represents our proportionate share of net income generated by equity method investees.
Equity Investments	Equity Investments
Equity Method Investments	We account for our investment in the YES Network as an equity method investment, which is recorded within other assets in our consolidated balance sheets , and in which our proportionate share of the net income generated by the investment is represented within loss from equity method investments in our consolidated statements of operations
Use of Estimates	Use of Estimates The preparation of financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues, and expenses in the consolidated financial statements and in the disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities. Actual results could differ from those estimates. The impact of the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to create significant uncertainty and disruption in the global economy and financial markets. It is reasonably possible that these uncertainties could materially impact our estimates related to, but not limited to, revenue recognition, goodwill and intangible assets, program contract costs, sports programming rights, and income taxes. As a result, many of our estimates and assumptions require increased judgment and carry a higher degree of variability and volatility. Our estimates may change as new events occur and additional information emerges, and such changes are recognized or disclosed in our consolidated financial statements.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements	Recent Accounting Pronouncements In June 2016, the FASB issued amended guidance on the accounting for credit losses on financial instruments. Among other provisions, this guidance introduces a new impairment model for most financial assets and certain other instruments. For trade and other receivables, held-to-maturity debt securities, loans and other instruments, entities will be required to use a forward-looking “expected loss” model that will replace the current “incurred loss” model that will generally result in the earlier recognition of allowances for losses. We adopted this guidance during the first quarter of 2020. The impact of the adoption did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. In August 2018, the FASB issued guidance which aligns the requirements for capitalizing implementation costs incurred in a hosting arrangement that is a service contract with the requirements for capitalizing implementation costs incurred to develop or obtain internal-use software, with the capitalized implementation costs of a hosting arrangement that is a service contract expensed over the term of the hosting arrangement. We adopted this guidance during the first quarter of 2020. The impact of the adoption did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. In October 2018, the FASB issued guidance for determining whether a decision-making fee is a variable interest. The amendments require organizations to consider indirect interests held through related parties under common control on a proportional basis rather than as the equivalent of a direct interest in its entirety (as currently required in GAAP). We adopted this guidance during the first quarter of 2020. The impact of the adoption did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. In March 2019, the FASB issued guidance which requires that an entity test a film or license agreement within the scope of Subtopic 920-350 for impairment at the film group level, when the film or license agreement is predominantly monetized with other films and/or license agreements. We adopted this guidance during the first quarter of 2020. The impact of the adoption did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. See Broadcast Television Programming below for further information on our accounting for television program contracts. In December 2019, the FASB issued guidance which is intended to simplify various aspects related to accounting for income taxes. ASU 2019-12 removes certain exceptions to the general principles in Topic 740 and also clarifies and amends existing guidance to improve consistent application. ASU 2019-12 will be effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2020. Early adoption is permitted. We are currently evaluating the impact of this guidance, but do not expect a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. In March 2020, the FASB issued guidance providing optional expedients and exceptions for applying GAAP to contracts, hedging relationships, and other transactions affected by the discontinuation of the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) or by another reference rate expected to be discontinued. The guidance was effective for all entities immediately upon issuance of the update and may be applied prospectively to applicable transactions existing as of or entered into from the date of adoption through December 31, 2022. We are currently evaluating the impact of this guidance, if elected, but do not expect a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.
Broadcast Television Programming	Broadcast Television Programming We have agreements with rights holders for the rights to television programming over contract periods, which generally run from one to seven years . Contract payments are made in installments over periods that are generally equal to or shorter than the contract period. Pursuant to accounting guidance for the broadcasting industry, an asset and a liability for the rights acquired and obligations incurred under a license agreement are reported on the balance sheet when the cost of each program is known or reasonably determinable, the program material has been accepted by the licensee in accordance with the conditions of the license agreement, and the program is available for its first showing or telecast. The portion of program contracts which becomes payable within one year is reflected as a current liability in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets. The rights to this programming are reflected in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets at the lower of unamortized cost or fair value. Program contract costs are amortized on a straight-line basis except for contracts greater than three years which are amortized utilizing an accelerated method. Program contract costs estimated by management to be amortized in the succeeding year are classified as current assets. Payments of program contract liabilities are typically made on a scheduled basis and are not affected by amortization or fair value adjustments.
Sports Programming Rights	Sports Programming Rights We have multi-year program rights agreements that provide the Company with the right to produce and telecast professional live sports games within a specified territory in exchange for a rights fee. A prepaid asset is recorded for rights acquired related to future games upon payment of the contracted fee. The assets recorded for the acquired rights are classified as current or non-current based on the period when the games are expected to be aired. Liabilities are recorded for any program rights obligations that have been incurred but not yet paid at period end. We amortize these programing rights as an expense over each season based upon contractually stated rates. Amortization is accelerated in the event that the stated contractual rates over the term of the rights agreement results in an expense recognition pattern that is inconsistent with the projected growth of revenue over the contractual term.
Revenue Recognition	Distribution Revenue. We generate distribution revenue through fees received from multi-channel video programming distributors (MVPDs) and virtual MVPDs (vMVPDs, and together with MVPDs, "Distributors") for the right to distribute our stations, RSNs, and other properties. Distribution arrangements are generally governed by multi-year contracts and the underlying fees are based upon a contractual monthly rate per subscriber. These arrangements represent licenses of intellectual property; revenue is recognized as the signal or network programming is provided to our customers (as usage occurs) which corresponds with the satisfaction of our performance obligation. Revenue is calculated based upon the contractual rate multiplied by an estimated number of subscribers. Our customers will remit payments based upon actual subscribers a short time after the conclusion of a month, which generally does not exceed 120 days. Historical adjustments to subscriber estimates have not been material. Certain of our distribution arrangements contain provisions that require the Company to deliver a minimum number of live professional sports games or tournaments during a defined period which usually corresponds with a calendar year. If the minimum threshold is not met, we may be obligated to refund a portion of the distribution fees received if shortfalls are not cured within a specified period of time. Our ability to meet these requirements is primarily driven by the delivery of games by the professional sports leagues. The Company has not historically paid any material rebates under these contractual provisions as it is unusual for there to be an event which is significant enough to preclude the Company from meeting or exceeding these thresholds. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in significant disruptions to the normal operations of the professional sports leagues resulting in delays and uncertainty with respect to regularly scheduled games. Decisions made by the leagues during the second quarter of 2020 regarding the timing and format of the revised 2020 seasons have resulted, in some cases, in our inability to meet these minimum requirements and the need to reduce revenue based upon estimated rebates due to our distribution customers. These estimated rebates will be recognized over the measurement period of the rebate which in this case will be during the year ended December 31, 2020. For both the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , we reduced revenue and accrued corresponding rebates to Distributors of $124 million . The foregoing rebates assume that the leagues will complete their respective revised 2020 seasons as currently scheduled. However, there can be no assurance that will occur and any changes to the revised 2020 seasons may result in changes in the amount of actual rebates paid to the Distributors. See Subsequent Events within Note 1. Nature of Operations and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies . Advertising Revenue. We generate advertising revenue primarily from the sale of advertising spots/impressions within our broadcast television, RSN, and digital platforms. In accordance with ASC 606, we do not disclose the value of unsatisfied performance obligations for (i) contracts with an original expected length of one year or less and (ii) distribution arrangements which are accounted for as a sales/usage based royalty. Deferred Revenue.
Income Taxes	Income Taxes Our income tax provision for all periods consists of federal and state income taxes. The tax provision for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019 is based on the estimated effective tax rate applicable for the full year after taking into account discrete tax items and the effects of the noncontrolling interests. We provide a valuation allowance for deferred tax assets if we determine that it is more likely than not that some or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. In evaluating our ability to realize net deferred tax assets, we consider all available evidence, both positive and negative, including our past operating results, tax planning strategies and forecasts of future taxable income. In considering these sources of taxable income, we must make certain judgments that are based on the plans and estimates used to manage our underlying businesses on a long-term basis. A valuation allowance has been provided for deferred tax assets related to a substantial portion of our available state net operating loss (NOL) carryforwards, based on past operating results, expected timing of the reversals of existing temporary book/tax basis differences, alternative tax strategies and projected future taxable income. Our effective income tax rate for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 was less than the statutory rate primarily due to $21 million and $48 million , respectively, of federal tax credits related to investments in sustainability initiatives. Our effective income tax rate for the three and six months ended June 30, 2019 was less than the statutory rate primarily due to $8 million and $13 million , respectively, of federal tax credits related to investments in sustainability initiatives. We believe it is reasonably possible that our liability for unrecognized tax benefits related to continuing operations could be reduced by up to $4 million in the next twelve months, as a result of expected statute of limitations expirations, the application of limits under available state administrative practice exceptions, and the resolution of examination issues and settlements with federal and certain state tax authorities.
Reclassifications	Reclassifications Certain reclassifications have been made to prior years' consolidated financial statements to conform to the current year's presentation.
Fair Value Measurement	Accounting guidance provides for valuation techniques, such as the market approach (comparable market prices), the income approach (present value of future income or cash flow), and the cost approach (cost to replace the service capacity of an asset or replacement cost). A fair value hierarchy using three broad levels prioritizes the inputs to valuation techniques used to measure fair value. The following is a brief description of those three levels: • Level 1: Observable inputs such as quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities. • Level 2: Inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly. These include quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets and quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active. • Level 3: Unobservable inputs that reflect the reporting entity’s own assumptions.

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMM_3

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Tables)	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Disaggregation of Revenue	The following table presents our revenue disaggregated by type and segment (in millions): For the three months ended June 30, 2020 Broadcast Local sports Other Eliminations Total Distribution revenue $ 349 $ 610 $ 51 $ — $ 1,010 Advertising revenue 208 3 25 (1 ) 235 Other media, non-media, and intercompany revenues 35 3 28 (28 ) 38 Total revenues $ 592 $ 616 $ 104 $ (29 ) $ 1,283 For the three months ended June 30, 2019 Broadcast Local sports Other Eliminations Total Distribution revenue $ 335 $ — $ 32 $ — $ 367 Advertising revenue 315 — 24 — 339 Other media, non-media, and intercompany revenue 10 — 61 (6 ) 65 Total revenues $ 660 $ — $ 117 $ (6 ) $ 771 For the six months ended June 30, 2020 Broadcast Local sports Other Eliminations Total Distribution revenue $ 703 $ 1,362 $ 100 $ — $ 2,165 Advertising revenue 517 58 61 (1 ) 635 Other media, non-media, and intercompany revenues 72 8 72 (60 ) 92 Total revenues $ 1,292 $ 1,428 $ 233 $ (61 ) $ 2,892 For the six months ended June 30, 2019 Broadcast Local sports Other Eliminations Total Distribution revenue $ 655 $ — $ 65 $ (1 ) $ 719 Advertising revenue 602 — 45 — 647 Other media, non-media, and intercompany revenues 21 — 115 (9 ) 127 Total revenues $ 1,278 $ — $ 225 $ (10 ) $ 1,493

ACQUISITIONS AND DISPOSITIONS_2

ACQUISITIONS AND DISPOSITIONS OF ASSETS (Tables)	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Business Combinations [Abstract]
Schedule of Allocated Fair Value of Acquired Assets and Liabilities Assumed	The following table summarizes our current allocation of the fair value of acquired assets, assumed liabilities, and noncontrolling interests of the Acquired RSNs (in millions): Cash and cash equivalents $ 824 Accounts receivable, net 606 Prepaid expenses and other current assets 175 Property and equipment, net 25 Customer relationships, net 5,439 Other definite-lived intangible assets, net 1,286 Other assets 52 Accounts payable and accrued liabilities (181 ) Other long-term liabilities (396 ) Goodwill 2,615 Fair value of identifiable net assets acquired $ 10,445 Redeemable noncontrolling interests (380 ) Noncontrolling interests (248 ) Gross purchase price $ 9,817 Purchase price, net of cash acquired $ 8,993
Business Acquisition, Pro Forma Information	The table below sets forth unaudited pro forma results of operations, assuming that the RSN Acquisition, along with transactions necessary to finance the acquisition, occurred at the beginning of the period presented (in millions, expect per share data): Three Months Ended Six Months Ended Total revenue $ 1,764 $ 3,435 Net income $ 172 $ 347 Net income attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group $ 119 $ 235 Basic earnings per share attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group $ 1.29 $ 2.55 Diluted earnings per share attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group $ 1.27 $ 2.52

EARNINGS PER SHARE (Tables)

EARNINGS PER SHARE (Tables)	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
Schedule of Reconciliation of Income (Numerator) and Shares (Denominator) Used in Computation of Diluted Earnings Per Share	The following table reconciles income (numerator) and shares (denominator) used in our computations of basic and diluted earnings per share for the periods presented (in millions, except share amounts which are reflected in thousands): Three Months Ended Six Months Ended 2020 2019 2020 2019 Income (Numerator) Net income $ 273 $ 43 $ 424 $ 66 Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests (12 ) — (32 ) — Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests (9 ) (1 ) (17 ) (2 ) Numerator for basic and diluted earnings per common share available to common shareholders $ 252 $ 42 $ 375 $ 64 Shares (Denominator) Weighted-average common shares outstanding 80,425 91,764 85,517 92,032 Dilutive effect of stock-settled appreciation rights and outstanding stock options 312 1,399 464 1,157 Weighted-average common and common equivalent shares outstanding 80,737 93,163 85,981 93,189
Schedule of Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share	The following table shows the weighted-average stock-settled appreciation rights and outstanding stock options (in thousands) that are excluded from the calculation of diluted earnings per common share as the inclusion of such shares would be anti-dilutive: Three Months Ended Six Months Ended 2020 2019 2020 2019 Weighted-average stock-settled appreciation rights and outstanding stock options excluded 3,019 — 2,916 475

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Tables)	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Schedule of Non-Cancellable Commitments Relating to Sports Rights Agreement	The following table presents our annual non-cancellable commitments relating to our local sports segment's sports programming rights agreements as of June 30, 2020 . These commitments assume that sports teams fully deliver the contractually committed games, and do not reflect the impact of rebates expected to be paid by the teams. (in millions) 2020 (remainder) $ 793 2021 1,775 2022 1,529 2023 1,479 2024 1,409 2025 and thereafter 8,215 Total $ 15,200

SEGMENT DATA (Tables)

SEGMENT DATA (Tables)	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Segment Reporting [Abstract]
Schedule of segment financial information	Segment financial information is included in the following tables for the periods presented (in millions): As of June 30, 2020 Broadcast Local sports Other & Corporate Eliminations Consolidated Assets $ 4,657 $ 11,040 $ 1,152 $ (80 ) $ 16,769 For the three months ended June 30, 2020 Broadcast Local sports Other & Corporate Eliminations Consolidated Revenue $ 592 $ 616 $ 104 $ (29 ) (b) $ 1,283 Depreciation of property and equipment and amortization of definite-lived intangibles and other assets 60 109 7 — 176 Amortization of sports programming rights (a) — 5 — — 5 Amortization of program contract costs 21 — — — 21 Corporate general and administrative expenses 27 2 3 — 32 (Gain) loss on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment (29 ) — 1 — (28 ) Operating income (loss) 83 399 12 (2 ) 492 Interest expense including amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs 1 117 50 (3 ) 165 Income (loss) from equity method investments — 2 (9 ) — (7 ) For the three months ended June 30, 2019 Broadcast Local sports Other & Corporate Eliminations Consolidated Revenue $ 660 $ — $ 117 $ (6 ) $ 771 Depreciation of property and equipment and amortization of definite-lived intangibles and other assets 60 — 6 — 66 Amortization of program contract costs 22 — — — 22 Corporate general and administrative expenses 33 — 19 — 52 Gain on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment (14 ) — — — (14 ) Operating income (loss) 135 — (26 ) (3 ) 106 Interest expense including amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs 1 — 56 (3 ) 54 Loss from equity method investments — — (12 ) — (12 ) For the six months ended June 30, 2020 Broadcast Local sports Other & Corporate Eliminations Consolidated Revenue $ 1,292 $ 1,428 $ 233 $ (61 ) (b) $ 2,892 Depreciation of property and equipment and amortization of definite-lived intangibles and other assets 118 219 13 — 350 Amortization of sports programming rights (a) — 396 — — 396 Amortization of program contract costs 44 — — — 44 Corporate general and administrative expenses 70 4 7 — 81 Gain on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment (60 ) — — — (60 ) Operating income (loss) 234 565 26 (6 ) 819 Interest expense including amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs 2 240 108 (5 ) 345 Income (loss) from equity method investments — 8 (21 ) — (13 ) For the six months ended June 30, 2019 Broadcast Local sports Other & Corporate Eliminations Consolidated Revenue $ 1,278 $ — $ 225 $ (10 ) $ 1,493 Depreciation of property and equipment and amortization of definite-lived intangibles and other assets 122 — 10 — 132 Amortization of program contract costs 46 — — — 46 Corporate general and administrative expenses 59 — 21 — 80 Gain on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment (22 ) — — — (22 ) Operating income (loss) 230 — (24 ) (6 ) 200 Interest expense including amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs 3 — 112 (7 ) 108 Loss from equity method investments — — (26 ) — (26 ) (a) The amortization of sports programming rights is included within media programming and production expenses on our consolidated statements of operations. Due to the outbreak of COVID-19 and postponement of professional sports leagues, we stopped recording amortization of our sports contracts during the month of March 2020 and three months ended June 30, 2020. (b) Includes $25 million and $49 million for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 , respectively, of revenue and selling, general, and administrative expenses, respectively, for services provided by broadcast to local sports and other, which are eliminated in consolidation.

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES (Tab

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES (Tables)	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Schedule of Variable Interest Entities	The carrying amounts and classification of the assets and liabilities of the VIEs mentioned above, which have been included in our consolidated balance sheets as of the dates presented, were as follows (in millions): As of June 30, As of December 31, ASSETS Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 29 $ 39 Accounts receivable, net 37 39 Prepaid sports rights 72 10 Other current assets 3 6 Total current assets 141 94 Property and equipment, net 16 15 Operating lease assets 7 8 Goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets 18 15 Definite-lived intangible assets, net 85 93 Other assets 1 3 Total assets $ 268 $ 228 LIABILITIES Current liabilities: Other current liabilities $ 21 $ 19 Notes payable, finance leases and commercial bank financing, less current portion 13 15 Operating lease liabilities, less current portion 6 6 Program contracts payable, less current portion 5 7 Other long-term liabilities 5 1 Total liabilities $ 50 $ 48

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Tables

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Tables)	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]
Schedule of carrying value and fair value of notes and debentures	The following table sets forth the carrying value and fair value of our financial assets and liabilities for the periods presented (in millions): As of June 30, 2020 As of December 31, 2019 Carrying Value Fair Value Carrying Value Fair Value Level 1: STG: Money market funds $ 157 $ 157 $ 354 $ 354 Deferred compensation assets 37 37 36 36 Deferred compensation liabilities 32 32 33 33 DSG: Money market funds 61 61 559 559 Level 2 (a): STG: 5.875% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2026 348 342 350 368 5.625% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2024 550 528 550 566 5.500% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2030 500 463 500 511 5.125% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2027 400 364 400 411 Term Loan B 1,322 1,259 1,329 1,326 Term Loan B-2 1,290 1,229 1,297 1,300 DSG: 12.750% Senior Secured Notes due 2026 (b) 31 30 — — 6.625% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2027 (b) 1,744 929 1,825 1,775 5.375% Senior Secured Notes due 2026 3,050 2,207 3,050 3,085 Term Loan 3,275 2,661 3,292 3,284 Debt of variable interest entities 19 19 21 21 Debt of non-media subsidiaries 18 18 18 18 Level 3 DSG: Variable payment obligations (c) 235 235 239 239 (a) Amounts are carried in our consolidated balance sheets net of debt discount, premium, and deferred financing cost, which are excluded in the above table, of $189 million and $231 million as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 , respectively. (b) On June 10, 2020, we exchanged $66.5 million aggregate principal amount of the DSG 6.625% Notes for cash payments of $10 million , including accrued but unpaid interest, and $31 million aggregate principal amount of the newly issued DSG 12.750% Secured Notes. See Note 3. Notes Payable, Finance Leases, and Commercial Bank Financing for further information. (c) The Company records its variable payment obligations at fair value on a recurring basis. These liabilities are further described in Other Liabilities within Note 5. Commitments and Contingencies . Significant unobservable inputs used in the fair value measurement are projected future operating income before depreciation and amortization; and weighted average discount rate of 9% . Significant increases (decreases) in projected future operating income would generally result in a significantly higher (lower) fair value measurement. Significant increases (decreases) in discount rates, would result in a significantly (lower) higher fair value measurement.
Schedule of changes in Level 3 financial liabilities measured on recurring basis	The following table summarizes the changes in financial liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis and categorized as Level 3 under the fair value hierarchy for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 (in millions): Variable Payment Obligations Fair value at March 31, 2020 $ 235 Payments (3 ) Measurement adjustments 3 Fair value at June 30, 2020 $ 235 Variable Payment Obligations Fair value at December 31, 2019 $ 239 Payments (10 ) Measurement adjustments 6 Fair value at June 30, 2020 $ 235

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING FINAN_2

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Tables)	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Condensed Financial Information Disclosure [Abstract]
Schedule of condensed consolidating balance sheet	CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING BALANCE SHEET AS OF JUNE 30, 2020 (in millions) (unaudited) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair Cash and cash equivalents $ — $ 168 $ 3 $ 451 $ — $ 622 Accounts receivable, net — — 494 491 — 985 Other current assets 12 86 201 781 (95 ) 985 Total current assets 12 254 698 1,723 (95 ) 2,592 Property and equipment, net 1 33 702 100 (27 ) 809 Investment in consolidated subsidiaries 2,258 3,497 — — (5,755 ) — Goodwill — — 2,091 2,625 — 4,716 Indefinite-lived intangible assets — — 149 14 — 163 Definite-lived intangible assets, net — — 1,342 6,366 (44 ) 7,664 Other long-term assets 84 1,632 280 476 (1,647 ) 825 Total assets $ 2,355 $ 5,416 $ 5,262 $ 11,304 $ (7,568 ) $ 16,769 Accounts payable and accrued liabilities $ 31 $ 99 $ 277 $ 261 $ (95 ) $ 573 Current portion of long-term debt — 27 5 41 (2 ) 71 Other current liabilities 1 — 99 159 — 259 Total current liabilities 32 126 381 461 (97 ) 903 Long-term debt 700 4,336 36 8,291 (1,035 ) 12,328 Other long-term liabilities 13 59 1,351 624 (830 ) 1,217 Total liabilities 745 4,521 1,768 9,376 (1,962 ) 14,448 Redeemable noncontrolling interests — — — 510 — 510 Total Sinclair Broadcast Group equity 1,610 895 3,494 1,220 (5,610 ) 1,609 Noncontrolling interests in consolidated subsidiaries — — — 198 4 202 Total liabilities, redeemable noncontrolling interests, and equity $ 2,355 $ 5,416 $ 5,262 $ 11,304 $ (7,568 ) $ 16,769 CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING BALANCE SHEET AS OF DECEMBER 31, 2019 (in millions) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair Cash and cash equivalents $ — $ 357 $ 3 $ 973 $ — $ 1,333 Accounts receivable, net — — 561 571 — 1,132 Other current assets 5 41 264 188 (50 ) 448 Total current assets 5 398 828 1,732 (50 ) 2,913 Property and equipment, net 1 31 659 96 (22 ) 765 Investment in consolidated subsidiaries 2,270 3,558 — — (5,828 ) — Goodwill — — 2,091 2,625 — 4,716 Indefinite-lived intangible assets — — 144 14 — 158 Definite-lived intangible assets, net — — 1,426 6,598 (47 ) 7,977 Other long-term assets 82 1,611 279 618 (1,749 ) 841 Total assets $ 2,358 $ 5,598 $ 5,427 $ 11,683 $ (7,696 ) $ 17,370 Accounts payable and accrued liabilities $ 142 $ 109 $ 286 $ 296 $ (51 ) $ 782 Current portion of long-term debt — 27 4 41 (1 ) 71 Other current liabilities — 1 133 147 — 281 Total current liabilities 142 137 423 484 (52 ) 1,134 Long-term debt 700 4,348 32 8,317 (1,030 ) 12,367 Other long-term liabilities 13 53 1,418 547 (934 ) 1,097 Total liabilities 855 4,538 1,873 9,348 (2,016 ) 14,598 Redeemable noncontrolling interests — — — 1,078 — 1,078 Total Sinclair Broadcast Group equity 1,503 1,060 3,554 1,069 (5,684 ) 1,502 Noncontrolling interests in consolidated subsidiaries — — — 188 4 192 Total liabilities, redeemable noncontrolling interests, and equity $ 2,358 $ 5,598 $ 5,427 $ 11,683 $ (7,696 ) $ 17,370
Schedule of condensed consolidating statement of operations and comprehensive income	CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME FOR THE THREE MONTHS ENDED JUNE 30, 2020 (in millions) (unaudited) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair Net revenue $ — $ 25 $ 627 $ 671 $ (40 ) $ 1,283 Media programming and production expenses — — 312 83 (12 ) 383 Selling, general and administrative expenses 3 26 151 63 (25 ) 218 Depreciation, amortization and other operating expenses — 4 52 136 (2 ) 190 Total operating expenses 3 30 515 282 (39 ) 791 Operating (loss) income (3 ) (5 ) 112 389 (1 ) 492 Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries 257 67 — — (324 ) — Interest expense (4 ) (47 ) (1 ) (120 ) 7 (165 ) Other income (expense) 1 8 (10 ) 4 (3 ) — Total other income (expense) 254 28 (11 ) (116 ) (320 ) (165 ) Income tax benefit (provision) 1 (9 ) (34 ) (12 ) — (54 ) Net income 252 14 67 261 (321 ) 273 Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests — — — (12 ) — (12 ) Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests — — — (9 ) — (9 ) Net income attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group $ 252 $ 14 $ 67 $ 240 $ (321 ) $ 252 Comprehensive income $ 252 $ 14 $ 67 $ 252 $ (321 ) $ 264 CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME FOR THE THREE MONTHS ENDED JUNE 30, 2019 (in millions) (unaudited) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair Net revenue $ — $ — $ 705 $ 89 $ (23 ) $ 771 Media programming and production expenses — — 318 33 (16 ) 335 Selling, general and administrative expenses 19 33 162 4 (1 ) 217 Depreciation, amortization and other operating expenses — 1 70 46 (4 ) 113 Total operating expenses 19 34 550 83 (21 ) 665 Operating (loss) income (19 ) (34 ) 155 6 (2 ) 106 Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries 56 118 — — (174 ) — Interest expense — (51 ) (1 ) (5 ) 3 (54 ) Other income (expense) 1 4 (11 ) — — (6 ) Total other income (expense) 57 71 (12 ) (5 ) (171 ) (60 ) Income tax benefit (provision) 4 17 (24 ) — — (3 ) Net income 42 54 119 1 (173 ) 43 Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests — — — (1 ) — (1 ) Net income attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group $ 42 $ 54 $ 119 $ — $ (173 ) $ 42 Comprehensive income $ 42 $ 54 $ 119 $ 1 $ (173 ) $ 43 CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED JUNE 30, 2020 (in millions) (unaudited) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair Net revenue $ — $ 49 $ 1,366 $ 1,564 $ (87 ) $ 2,892 Media programming and production expenses — — 640 599 (28 ) 1,211 Selling, general and administrative expenses 6 70 319 130 (48 ) 477 Depreciation, amortization and other operating expenses — 5 103 283 (6 ) 385 Total operating expenses 6 75 1,062 1,012 (82 ) 2,073 Operating (loss) income (6 ) (26 ) 304 552 (5 ) 819 Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries 386 240 — — (626 ) — Interest expense (7 ) (102 ) (2 ) (247 ) 13 (345 ) Other (expense) income (1 ) 6 (19 ) 12 (6 ) (8 ) Total other income (expense) 378 144 (21 ) (235 ) (619 ) (353 ) Income tax benefit (provision) 3 20 (40 ) (25 ) — (42 ) Net income 375 138 243 292 (624 ) 424 Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests — — — (32 ) — (32 ) Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests — — — (17 ) — (17 ) Net income attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group $ 375 $ 138 $ 243 $ 243 $ (624 ) $ 375 Comprehensive income $ 375 $ 138 $ 243 $ 283 $ (624 ) $ 415 CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED JUNE 30, 2019 (in millions) (unaudited) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair Net revenue $ — $ — $ 1,361 $ 172 $ (40 ) $ 1,493 Media programming and production expenses — — 619 63 (28 ) 654 Selling, general and administrative expenses 21 59 318 9 (2 ) 405 Depreciation, amortization and other operating expenses — 2 148 90 (6 ) 234 Total operating expenses 21 61 1,085 162 (36 ) 1,293 Operating (loss) income (21 ) (61 ) 276 10 (4 ) 200 Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries 80 207 — — (287 ) — Interest expense — (104 ) (2 ) (9 ) 7 (108 ) Other income (expense) 1 5 (23 ) (1 ) — (18 ) Total other income (expense) 81 108 (25 ) (10 ) (280 ) (126 ) Income tax benefit (provision) 4 29 (41 ) — — (8 ) Net income 64 76 210 — (284 ) 66 Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests — — — (3 ) 1 (2 ) Net income (loss) attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group $ 64 $ 76 $ 210 $ (3 ) $ (283 ) $ 64 Comprehensive income $ 64 $ 76 $ 210 $ — $ (284 ) $ 66
Schedule of condensed consolidating statement of cash flows	CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED JUNE 30, 2020 (in millions) (unaudited) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair NET CASH FLOWS (USED IN) FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES $ (124 ) $ (98 ) $ 313 $ 243 $ — $ 334 NET CASH FLOWS USED IN INVESTING ACTIVITIES Acquisition of property and equipment — (6 ) (83 ) (13 ) 5 (97 ) Spectrum repack reimbursements — — 52 — — 52 Proceeds from the sale of assets — — 18 — — 18 Purchases of investments (1 ) (5 ) (22 ) (20 ) — (48 ) Other, net 1 — (8 ) 11 — 4 Net cash flows used in investing activities — (11 ) (43 ) (22 ) 5 (71 ) NET CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) FINANCING ACTIVITIES Proceeds from notes payable and commercial bank financing — 648 — 225 — 873 Repayments of notes payable, commercial bank financing and finance leases — (663 ) (2 ) (263 ) — (928 ) Repurchase of outstanding Class A Common Stock (261 ) — — — — (261 ) Dividends paid on Class A and Class B Common Stock (35 ) — — — — (35 ) Dividends paid on redeemable subsidiary preferred equity — — — (24 ) — (24 ) Redemption of redeemable subsidiary preferred equity — — — (198 ) — (198 ) Distributions to noncontrolling interests, net — — — (7 ) — (7 ) Distributions to redeemable noncontrolling interests — — — (378 ) — (378 ) Increase (decrease) in intercompany payables 420 (65 ) (268 ) (82 ) (5 ) — Other, net — — — (16 ) — (16 ) Net cash flows from (used in) financing activities 124 (80 ) (270 ) (743 ) (5 ) (974 ) NET DECREASE IN CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH — (189 ) — (522 ) — (711 ) CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, beginning of period — 357 3 973 — 1,333 CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, end of period $ — $ 168 $ 3 $ 451 $ — $ 622 CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED JUNE 30, 2019 (in millions) (unaudited) Sinclair Sinclair Guarantor Non- Eliminations Sinclair NET CASH FLOWS (USED IN) FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES $ — $ (122 ) $ 328 $ 22 $ (5 ) $ 223 NET CASH FLOWS USED IN INVESTING ACTIVITIES Acquisition of property and equipment — (2 ) (64 ) (1 ) 5 (62 ) Spectrum repack reimbursements — — 22 — — 22 Purchases of investments (2 ) (9 ) (30 ) (6 ) — (47 ) Other, net — 2 — 3 — 5 Net cash flows used in investing activities (2 ) (9 ) (72 ) (4 ) 5 (82 ) CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) FINANCING ACTIVITIES: Proceeds from notes payable and commercial bank financing — — — 1 — 1 Repayments of notes payable, commercial bank financing and finance leases — (103 ) (2 ) (25 ) 21 (109 ) Repurchase of outstanding Class A Common Stock (125 ) — — — — (125 ) Dividends paid on Class A and Class B Common Stock (36 ) — — — — (36 ) Distributions to noncontrolling interests — — — (3 ) — (3 ) Increase (decrease) in intercompany payables 163 164 (270 ) (36 ) (21 ) — Net cash flows from (used in) financing activities 2 61 (272 ) (63 ) — (272 ) NET DECREASE IN CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH — (70 ) (16 ) (45 ) — (131 ) CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, beginning of period — 962 19 79 — 1,060 CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, end of period $ — $ 892 $ 3 $ 34 $ — $ 929

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMM_4

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Nature of Operations (Details)	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020channelregional_sport_networksegmentstationprofessional_teammarket	Aug. 29, 2019
Schedule of Equity Method Investments [Line Items]
Number of reportable segments | segment	2
Number of television stations owned | station	191
Number of markets | market	89
Number of channels | channel	631
Number of professional sports team with exclusive regional distribution rights | professional_team	44
YES Network
Schedule of Equity Method Investments [Line Items]
Equity interest percentage	20.00%	20.00%
Local sports | Operating segments
Schedule of Equity Method Investments [Line Items]
Number of regional sports networks acquired | regional_sport_network	21

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMM_5

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Equity Investments (Details) - USD ($)	Aug. 29, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Dec. 31, 2019
Schedule of Equity Method Investments [Line Items]
Equity investments, net of cumulative impairment		$ 25,000,000		$ 25,000,000		$ 28,000,000
Cumulative impairment		7,000,000		7,000,000		$ 7,000,000
Impairment recorded		0	$ 0	0	$ 2,000,000
Income (loss) from equity method investments		$ (7,000,000)	$ (12,000,000)	$ (13,000,000)	$ (26,000,000)
YES Network
Schedule of Equity Method Investments [Line Items]
Equity interest percentage	20.00%	20.00%		20.00%
Cash consideration	$ 346,000,000
Income (loss) from equity method investments		$ 2,000,000		$ 7,000,000

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMM_6

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Broadcast Television Programming (Details) - Television programming contract rights - Maximum	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Television programming contract period	7 years
Contract period utilizing accelerated amortization method	3 years

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMM_7

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Non-cash Investing and Financing Activities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Non-cash transactions related to finance lease obligations	$ 6
Leased assets obtained in exchange for new operating lease liabilities	$ 9	$ 10

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMM_8

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Revenue Recognition, Disaggregation of Revenue (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	$ 1,283	$ 771	$ 2,892	$ 1,493
Distribution revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	1,010	367	2,165	719
Advertising revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	235	339	635	647
Other media, non-media, and intercompany revenues
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	38	65	92	127
Operating segments | Broadcast
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	592	660	1,292	1,278
Operating segments | Local sports
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	616	0	1,428	0
Operating segments | Other
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	104	117	233	225
Operating segments | Distribution revenue | Broadcast
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	349	335	703	655
Operating segments | Distribution revenue | Local sports
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	610	0	1,362	0
Operating segments | Distribution revenue | Other
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	51	32	100	65
Operating segments | Advertising revenue | Broadcast
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	208	315	517	602
Operating segments | Advertising revenue | Local sports
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	3	0	58	0
Operating segments | Advertising revenue | Other
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	25	24	61	45
Operating segments | Other media, non-media, and intercompany revenues | Broadcast
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	35	10	72	21
Operating segments | Other media, non-media, and intercompany revenues | Local sports
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	3	0	8	0
Operating segments | Other media, non-media, and intercompany revenues | Other
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	28	61	72	115
Eliminations
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	(29)	(6)	(61)	(10)
Eliminations | Distribution revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	0	0	0	(1)
Eliminations | Advertising revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	(1)	0	(1)	0
Eliminations | Other media, non-media, and intercompany revenues
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenues	$ (28)	$ (6)	$ (60)	$ (9)

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMM_9

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Revenue Recognition, Narrative (Details) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)customer	Jun. 30, 2019USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)customer	Jun. 30, 2019USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenues	$ 1,283	$ 771	$ 2,892	$ 1,493
Deferred revenue	$ 38		38		$ 54
Deferred revenue, revenue recognized			$ 41	$ 56
Customer Concentration Risk | Revenue Benchmark
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Number of customers | customer	3		3
Customer Concentration Risk | Revenue Benchmark | Customer One
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Percentage of concentration	21.00%		21.00%
Customer Concentration Risk | Revenue Benchmark | Customer Two
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Percentage of concentration	20.00%		19.00%
Customer Concentration Risk | Revenue Benchmark | Customer Three
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Percentage of concentration	12.00%		12.00%
Customer Concentration Risk | Accounts Receivable
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Number of customers | customer			3
Customer Concentration Risk | Accounts Receivable | Customer One
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Percentage of concentration			21.00%
Customer Concentration Risk | Accounts Receivable | Customer Two
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Percentage of concentration			18.00%
Customer Concentration Risk | Accounts Receivable | Customer Three
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Percentage of concentration			13.00%
Distribution Revenue Rebate
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Revenues	$ (124)		$ (124)

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUM_10

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Income Taxes (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Federal tax credits related to investments in sustainability initiatives	$ 21	$ 8	$ 48	$ 13
Unrecognized tax benefits reduced (up to)	$ 4		$ 4

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUM_11

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Share Repurchase Program (Details) - USD ($)	Aug. 04, 2020	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2020	Aug. 09, 2018	Sep. 06, 2016
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Stock repurchase program, additional authorized repurchase amount				$ 1,000,000,000
Stock repurchase program, authorized amount					$ 150,000,000
Stock repurchase program, remaining authorized repurchase amount		$ 462,000,000	$ 462,000,000
Class A Common Stock
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Treasury stock, shares acquired (in shares)		5,000,000	15,000,000
Treasury stock, value acquired		$ 85,000,000	$ 261,000,000
Subsequent Event
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Stock repurchase program, additional authorized repurchase amount	$ 500,000,000
Subsequent Event | Class A Common Stock
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Treasury stock, shares acquired (in shares)	4,000,000
Treasury stock, value acquired	$ 72,000,000

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUM_12

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Subsequent Events (Details)	Aug. 05, 2020$ / shares
Subsequent Event
Subsequent Event [Line Items]
Dividends declared per share (USD per share)	$ 0.20

ACQUISITIONS AND DISPOSITIONS_3

ACQUISITIONS AND DISPOSITIONS OF ASSETS - Narrative (Details) $ in Millions	Aug. 23, 2019USD ($)national_basketball_association_teamnational_hockey_league_teammajor_league_baseball_teamprofessional_team	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)station	May 31, 2019USD ($)brand	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2020USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2019USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)station	Jun. 30, 2019USD ($)	Jan. 31, 2020USD ($)
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Gain on sale of assets				$ 28		$ 14	$ 60	$ 22
Number of stations assigned new channels | station							100
Broadcast incentive auction, total legislation funds to reimburse stations							$ 3,000
Broadcast incentive auction, gain recognized on sale				29		14	52	22
Broadcast incentive auction, total capital expenditure				19		$ 12	41	$ 25
RSNs
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Number of brands | brand			21
Purchase price, unadjusted initial consideration expected to be transferred			$ 9,600
Purchase price	$ 9,817
Number of professional teams | professional_team	42
Definite-lived intangible assets acquired	$ 6,725
Goodwill estimated to be deductible for tax purposes	2,400
Acquisition related costs				4			4
Net revenue from acquiree				598			1,403
Operating income from acquiree				$ 413			604
RSNs | Customer relationships, net
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Definite-lived intangible assets acquired	$ 5,439
Amortization period, weighted average useful life	13 years
RSNs | Favorable/Unfavorable Contracts With Sports Teams
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Definite-lived intangible assets acquired	$ 1,271
Amortization period, weighted average useful life	12 years
RSNs | Tradenames/Trademarks
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Definite-lived intangible assets acquired	$ 15
Amortization period, weighted average useful life	2 years
Radio station assets
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Purchase price							$ 7
Television station assets
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Purchase price, unadjusted initial consideration expected to be transferred		$ 9
Number of television stations | station		2
Major League Baseball | RSNs
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Number of professional teams | major_league_baseball_team	14
National Basketball Association | RSNs
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Number of professional teams | national_basketball_association_team	16
National Hockey League | RSNs
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Number of professional teams | national_hockey_league_team	12
KGBT Non-License Assets | Disposal Group, Disposed of by Sale, Not Discontinued Operations
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Aggregate purchase price									$ 36
Gain on sale of assets					$ 8

ACQUISITIONS AND DISPOSITIONS_4

ACQUISITIONS AND DISPOSITIONS OF ASSETS - Fair Value of Acquired Assets and Liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020
Allocated fair value of acquired assets and assumed liabilities
Goodwill	$ 4,716	$ 4,716
RSNs
Allocated fair value of acquired assets and assumed liabilities
Cash and cash equivalents	824
Accounts receivable, net	606
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	175
Property and equipment, net	25
Other assets	52
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	(181)
Other long-term liabilities	(396)
Goodwill	2,615
Fair value of identifiable net assets acquired	10,445
Redeemable noncontrolling interests	(380)
Noncontrolling interests	(248)
Gross purchase price	9,817
Purchase price, net of cash acquired	8,993
Customer relationships, net | RSNs
Allocated fair value of acquired assets and assumed liabilities
Intangible assets	5,439
Other definite-lived intangible assets, net | RSNs
Allocated fair value of acquired assets and assumed liabilities
Intangible assets	$ 1,286

ACQUISITIONS AND DISPOSITIONS_5

ACQUISITIONS AND DISPOSITIONS OF ASSETS - Pro Forma Information (Details) - RSNs - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Millions	3 Months Ended	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Total revenue	$ 1,764	$ 3,435
Net income	172	347
Net income attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group	$ 119	$ 235
Basic earnings per share attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group (USD per share)	$ 1.29	$ 2.55
Diluted earnings per share attributable to Sinclair Broadcast Group (USD per share)	$ 1.27	$ 2.52

NOTES PAYABLE, FINANCE LEASES_2

NOTES PAYABLE, FINANCE LEASES, AND COMMERCIAL BANK FINANCING - Bank Credit Agreements (Details)	Mar. 17, 2020USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Borrowings under revolving credit facility exceed total commitments (as a percent)		35.00%
STG Revolving Credit Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Maximum borrowing capacity		$ 650,000,000
Debt term		5 years
Drew down from credit facility	$ 648,000,000
First lien leverage ratio		4.5
Borrowings outstanding		$ 0
DSG Revolving Credit Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Maximum borrowing capacity		$ 650,000,000
Debt term		5 years
Drew down from credit facility	$ 225,000,000
First lien leverage ratio		6.25
Borrowings outstanding		$ 0
LIBOR | STG Revolving Credit Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Basis spread on variable rate		2.00%
LIBOR | DSG Revolving Credit Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Basis spread on variable rate		3.00%

NOTES PAYABLE, FINANCE LEASES_3

NOTES PAYABLE, FINANCE LEASES, AND COMMERCIAL BANK FINANCING - STG Notes (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	May 21, 2020	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gain on extinguishment of debt		$ 3	$ 0	$ 5	$ 0
Senior Notes | 5.875% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2026
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Redeemed amount	$ 2.5
Interest rate (as a percent)		5.875%		5.875%
Notes balance, net of deferred financing costs		$ 344		$ 344
Gain on extinguishment of debt		$ 0.2
Consideration	$ 2.3

NOTES PAYABLE, FINANCE LEASES_4

NOTES PAYABLE, FINANCE LEASES, AND COMMERCIAL BANK FINANCING - DSG Notes (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Jun. 10, 2020	Mar. 23, 2020	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gain on extinguishment of debt				$ 3	$ 0	$ 5	$ 0
Senior Notes | DSG 6.625% Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Redeemed amount	$ 66.5	$ 5	$ 10
Interest rate (as a percent)			6.625%	6.625%		6.625%
Consideration		$ 3	$ 7	$ 7		$ 7
Gain on extinguishment of debt				3		5
Cash payments	10
Notes balance, net of deferred financing costs			$ 1,708	$ 1,708		$ 1,708
Senior Notes | DSG 12.750% Senior Secured Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)			12.75%	12.75%		12.75%
Aggregate principal amount	31
Notes balance, net of deferred financing costs			$ 56	$ 56		$ 56
Debt premium	$ 25
Redemption percentage						100.00%
Senior Notes | 5.375% Senior Secured Notes due 2026
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)			5.375%	5.375%		5.375%
Redemption period one | Senior Notes | DSG 12.750% Senior Secured Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Redemption percentage						102.688%
Redemption period two | Senior Notes | DSG 12.750% Senior Secured Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Redemption percentage of principal amount						40.00%
Redemption percentage						101.344%
Redemption period three | Senior Notes | DSG 12.750% Senior Secured Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Redemption percentage						100.00%

NOTES PAYABLE, FINANCE LEASES_5

NOTES PAYABLE, FINANCE LEASES, AND COMMERCIAL BANK FINANCING - Notes Payable and Finance Leases to Affiliates, and Debt of VIEs and Guarantees of Third-Party Debt (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Jun. 30, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Current portion of notes payable, finance leases, and commercial bank financing	$ 71	$ 71
Notes payable, finance leases, and commercial bank financing, less current portion	12,328	12,367
Consolidated total debt	12,399
Affiliated Entity
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Current portion of notes payable, finance leases, and commercial bank financing	2	2
Notes payable, finance leases, and commercial bank financing, less current portion	7	9
Guarantee Obligations
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Unconditional and irrevocably guaranteed debt	53	57
Consolidated VIEs
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Notes payable, finance leases, and commercial bank financing, less current portion	13	15
Consolidated total debt	$ 18	$ 20

REDEEMABLE NONCONTROLLING INT_2

REDEEMABLE NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Jan. 21, 2020	Jun. 30, 2020	Mar. 31, 2020	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Aug. 23, 2019
Temporary Equity [Line Items]
Aggregate redemption price	$ 200	$ 13		$ 13
Redemption price, percent	100.00%
Dividends accrued during the period		11	$ 13	24	$ 0
Redeemable subsidiary preferred equity		$ 510		$ 510
30-Day Period Following January 2, 2020
Temporary Equity [Line Items]
Non-controlling equity holder right to sell, fair market sale value						$ 376
Redeemable Preferred Stock
Temporary Equity [Line Items]
Redeemed units (in shares)	200,000
Floor
Temporary Equity [Line Items]
Cash interest rate		0.75%		0.75%
LIBOR
Temporary Equity [Line Items]
Cash interest rate		7.50%		7.50%
Percent higher than the rate payable if dividends were paid in cash		0.50%		0.50%

EARNINGS PER SHARE - Schedule o

EARNINGS PER SHARE - Schedule of Earnings per Share (Details) - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
Income (Numerator)
Net income	$ 273	$ 43	$ 424	$ 66
Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests	(12)	0	(32)	0
Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests	(9)	(1)	(17)	(2)
Numerator for basic and diluted earnings per common share available to common shareholders	$ 252	$ 42	$ 375	$ 64
Shares (Denominator)
Weighted average common shares outstanding (shares)	80,425	91,764	85,517	92,032
Dilutive effect of stock-settled appreciation rights and outstanding stock options (shares)	312	1,399	464	1,157
Weighted average common and common equivalent shares outstanding (shares)	80,737	93,163	85,981	93,189

EARNINGS PER SHARE - Summary of

EARNINGS PER SHARE - Summary of Antidilutive Securities (Details) - shares shares in Thousands	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
Weighted-average stock-settled appreciation rights and outstanding stock options excluded (in shares)	3,019	0	2,916	475

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES_2

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Schedule of Non-Cancellable Commitments Relating to Sports Rights Agreement) (Details) - Sports Programming Rights $ in Millions	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)
Other Commitments [Line Items]
2020 (remainder)	$ 793
2021	1,775
2022	1,529
2023	1,479
2024	1,409
2025 and thereafter	8,215
Total	$ 15,200

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES_3

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Narrative) (Details) $ in Millions	Aug. 07, 2020lawsuit	Jul. 20, 2020USD ($)shares	May 22, 2020USD ($)petition	Dec. 21, 2017USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2019USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2019USD ($)	Oct. 03, 2018lawsuit
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
Interest expense and amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs					$ 165	$ 54	$ 345	$ 108
Various Cases Alleging Violation of Sherman Antitrust Act
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
Loss contingency, number of other broadcasters | lawsuit									13
Breach of Merger Agreement
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
Agreement to pay to resolve FCC investigation			$ 48
Compliance plan term			4 years
Number of petitions filed | petition			2
Legal expense							2.5
Unfavorable Regulatory Action
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
Proposed fine				$ 13
Fixed Payment Obligations | RSNs
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
Other current liabilities					57		57
Other long-term liabilities					144		144
Interest expense and amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs					2		4
Variable Payment Obligations | RSNs
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
Other current liabilities					33		33
Other long-term liabilities					202		202
Interest expense and amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs					$ 3		$ 6
Subsequent Event | Various Cases Alleging Violation of Sherman Antitrust Act
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
Loss contingency, new claims filed, number (lawsuit) | lawsuit	22
Subsequent Event | Settlement Stipulation
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
Agreement to pay to resolve FCC investigation		$ 20.5
Compliance plan term		5 years
Aggregate amount of settlement fund to be used		$ 5
Share based compensation to be forfeited, canceled, or returned | shares		638,298

SEGMENT DATA - Narrative (Detai

SEGMENT DATA - Narrative (Details)	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020regional_sport_networksegmentmarket
Segment data
Number of reportable segments | segment	2
Number of markets	89
Operating segments | Broadcast
Segment data
Number of markets	89
Operating segments | Local Sports
Segment data
Number of regional sports networks | regional_sport_network	23

SEGMENT DATA - Segment Financia

SEGMENT DATA - Segment Financial Information (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions		3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
		Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Dec. 31, 2019
Segment data
Assets	[1]	$ 16,769		$ 16,769		$ 17,370
Total revenues		1,283	$ 771	2,892	$ 1,493
Depreciation of property and equipment		176	66	350	132
Amortization of sports programming rights		5		396	0
Amortization of program contract costs		21	22	44	46
Corporate general and administrative overhead expenses		32	52	81	80
(Gain) loss on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment		(28)	(14)	(60)	(22)
Operating income		492	106	819	200
Interest expense and amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs		165	54	345	108
Loss from equity method investments		(7)	(12)	(13)	(26)
Intersegment revenues		25		49
Operating segments | Broadcast
Segment data
Assets		4,657		4,657
Total revenues		592	660	1,292	1,278
Depreciation of property and equipment		60	60	118	122
Amortization of sports programming rights		0		0
Amortization of program contract costs		21	22	44	46
Corporate general and administrative overhead expenses		27	33	70	59
(Gain) loss on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment		(29)	(14)	(60)	(22)
Operating income		83	135	234	230
Interest expense and amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs		1	1	2	3
Loss from equity method investments		0	0	0	0
Operating segments | Local sports
Segment data
Assets		11,040		11,040
Total revenues		616	0	1,428	0
Depreciation of property and equipment		109	0	219	0
Amortization of sports programming rights		5		396
Amortization of program contract costs		0	0	0	0
Corporate general and administrative overhead expenses		2	0	4	0
(Gain) loss on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment		0	0	0	0
Operating income		399	0	565	0
Interest expense and amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs		117	0	240	0
Loss from equity method investments		2	0	8	0
Operating segments | Other & Corporate
Segment data
Assets		1,152		1,152
Total revenues		104	117	233	225
Depreciation of property and equipment		7	6	13	10
Amortization of sports programming rights		0		0
Amortization of program contract costs		0	0	0	0
Corporate general and administrative overhead expenses		3	19	7	21
(Gain) loss on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment		1	0	0	0
Operating income		12	(26)	26	(24)
Interest expense and amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs		50	56	108	112
Loss from equity method investments		(9)	(12)	(21)	(26)
Eliminations
Segment data
Assets		(80)		(80)
Total revenues		(29)	(6)	(61)	(10)
Depreciation of property and equipment		0	0	0	0
Amortization of sports programming rights		0		0
Amortization of program contract costs		0	0	0	0
Corporate general and administrative overhead expenses		0	0	0	0
(Gain) loss on asset dispositions and other, net of impairment		0	0	0	0
Operating income		(2)	(3)	(6)	(6)
Interest expense and amortization of debt discount and deferred financing costs		(3)	(3)	(5)	(7)
Loss from equity method investments		$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0
[1]	Our consolidated total assets as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 include total assets of variable interest entities (VIEs) of $268 million and $228 million , respectively, which can only be used to settle the obligations of the VIEs. Our consolidated total liabilities as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 include total liabilities of VIEs of $32 million and $27 million , respectively, for which the creditors of the VIEs have no recourse to us. See Note 8. Variable Interest Entities .

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES - Na

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions		3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
		Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Dec. 31, 2019
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Carrying amount	[1]	$ 16,769		$ 16,769		$ 17,370
Eliminations
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Carrying amount		(7,568)		(7,568)		(7,696)
VIEs which are not primary beneficiary
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Carrying amount		78		78		71
(Loss) income from equity method investments		(10)	$ (12)	$ (22)	$ (25)
Consolidated VIEs
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Variable interest entities outsourcing agreement initial term				5 years
Carrying amount		268		$ 268		228
Consolidated VIEs | Eliminations
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Liabilities associated with the certain outsourcing agreements and purchase options		$ 129		$ 129		$ 127
[1]	Our consolidated total assets as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 include total assets of variable interest entities (VIEs) of $268 million and $228 million , respectively, which can only be used to settle the obligations of the VIEs. Our consolidated total liabilities as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 include total liabilities of VIEs of $32 million and $27 million , respectively, for which the creditors of the VIEs have no recourse to us. See Note 8. Variable Interest Entities .

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES - Sc

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES - Schedule of Variable Interest Entities Assets and Liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions		Jun. 30, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents		$ 622	$ 1,333
Accounts receivable, net		985	1,132
Prepaid sports rights		725	113
Other current assets		150	232
Total current assets		2,592	2,913
Property and equipment, net		809	765
Operating lease assets		220	223
Other definite-lived intangible assets, net		7,664	7,977
Total assets	[1]	16,769	17,370
Current liabilities:
Other current liabilities		169	155
Notes payable, finance leases, and commercial bank financing, less current portion		12,328	12,367
Operating lease liabilities, less current portion		211	217
Program contracts payable, less current portion		31	39
Other long-term liabilities		520	434
Total liabilities	[1]	14,448	14,598
Consolidated VIEs
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents		29	39
Accounts receivable, net		37	39
Prepaid sports rights		72	10
Other current assets		3	6
Total current assets		141	94
Property and equipment, net		16	15
Operating lease assets		7	8
Goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets		18	15
Other definite-lived intangible assets, net		85	93
Other assets		1	3
Total assets		268	228
Current liabilities:
Other current liabilities		21	19
Notes payable, finance leases, and commercial bank financing, less current portion		13	15
Operating lease liabilities, less current portion		6	6
Program contracts payable, less current portion		5	7
Other long-term liabilities		5	1
Total liabilities		$ 50	$ 48
[1]	Our consolidated total assets as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 include total assets of variable interest entities (VIEs) of $268 million and $228 million , respectively, which can only be used to settle the obligations of the VIEs. Our consolidated total liabilities as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 include total liabilities of VIEs of $32 million and $27 million , respectively, for which the creditors of the VIEs have no recourse to us. See Note 8. Variable Interest Entities .

RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS - T

RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS - Transactions with our Controlling Shareholders (Details) - Entities owned by the controlling shareholders - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
Lease Services
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Lease payments made to entities	$ 1	$ 1	$ 3	$ 2
Charter Aircraft
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Aircraft expenses	$ 1	$ 1
Charter Aircraft | Maximum
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Aircraft expenses			$ 1	$ 1

RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS - C

RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS - Cunningham Broadcasting Corporation (Details) $ in Millions	1 Months Ended		3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Aug. 31, 2016USD ($)	Apr. 30, 2016USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2019USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)renewal	Jun. 30, 2019USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Consolidated total debt			$ 12,399		$ 12,399
Total revenues			$ 1,283	$ 771	$ 2,892	$ 1,493
Affiliated Entity | Cunningham
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Right to acquire capital stock			100.00%		100.00%
Total payments made under the LMA excluded from liabilities			$ 53		$ 53		$ 51
Remaining purchase price			54		54		54
Purchase options, broadcast stations			0.2		$ 0.2
Proceeds from sale of master control equipment		$ 1
Annual revenue from master control services		$ 0.2
Annual revenue for share service	$ 1
Affiliated Entity | Cunningham | LMA
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Number of additional renewal terms | renewal					2
Agreement renewal period					5 years
Lease payments made to entities			$ 2	2	$ 4	4
Affiliated Entity | Cunningham | LMA | Minimum
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Percentage of net broadcast revenue used to determine annual LMA fees required to be paid			3.00%		3.00%
Amount used to determine annual LMA fees required to be paid			$ 5		$ 5
Annual increase in aggregate purchase price			6.00%		6.00%
Cunningham license related assets | Cunningham
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Agreement renewal period					8 years
Total revenues			$ 32	$ 39	$ 71	$ 73
Guarantee Obligations
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Unconditional and irrevocably guaranteed debt			53		53		57
Guarantee Obligations | Affiliated Entity | Cunningham
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Unconditional and irrevocably guaranteed debt			44		44
Consolidated VIEs
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Consolidated total debt			18		18		$ 20
Consolidated VIEs | Affiliated Entity | Cunningham
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Consolidated total debt			9		9
Deferred financing costs			$ 0.4		$ 0.4

RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS - A

RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS - Atlantic Automotive Corporation (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
Maximum | Atlantic Automotive Corporation | Advertising time | Affiliated Entity
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Amount received (less than)	$ 0.1	$ 0.1	$ 0.1	$ 0.1

RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS - L

RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS - Leased Property by Real Estate Ventures (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020
Entities owned by the controlling shareholders | Lease Services
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Amount received	$ 0.1	$ 0.2	$ 0.4

RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS - E

RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS - Equity Method Investees (Details) $ in Millions	1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended	6 Months Ended
	Aug. 31, 2019renewal	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)
YES Network
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Number of renewal terms | renewal	2
Renewal period	2 years
Management service fee		$ 1	$ 3
Mobile Trucks
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Amount paid		$ 2	$ 9

RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS - S

RELATED PERSON TRANSACTIONS - Sports Programming Rights (Details) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2019USD ($)	Aug. 23, 2019professional_team
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Sports programming rights payments		$ 1,025	$ 0
Sports Teams Affiliates | RSNs
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Sports programming rights payments	$ 136	$ 206
Number of sports rights agreements assumed | professional_team				5

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Detail

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Jun. 10, 2020	May 21, 2020	Mar. 23, 2020	Jun. 30, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt discount and deferred financing costs				$ 189	$ 231
Level 1 | Carrying Value
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Deferred compensation assets				37	36
Deferred compensation liabilities				32	33
Level 1 | Fair Value
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Deferred compensation assets				37	36
Deferred compensation liabilities				32	33
Level 2 | Carrying Value | Debt of variable interest entities
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				19	21
Level 2 | Carrying Value | Debt of non-media subsidiaries
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				18	18
Level 2 | Fair Value | Debt of variable interest entities
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				19	21
Level 2 | Fair Value | Debt of non-media subsidiaries
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				$ 18	18
Senior Notes | 5.875% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2026
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Interest rate (as a percent)				5.875%
Redeemed amount		$ 2.5
Senior Notes | 5.625% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2024
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Interest rate (as a percent)				5.625%
Senior Notes | 5.500% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2030
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Interest rate (as a percent)				5.50%
Senior Notes | 5.125% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2027
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Interest rate (as a percent)				5.125%
Senior Notes | 12.750% Senior Secured Notes due 2026
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Interest rate (as a percent)				12.75%
Aggregate principal amount	$ 31
Senior Notes | 6.625% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2027
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Interest rate (as a percent)				6.625%
Redeemed amount	66.5		$ 5	$ 10
Cash payments	$ 10
Senior Notes | 5.375% Senior Secured Notes due 2026
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Interest rate (as a percent)				5.375%
Senior Notes | Level 2 | Carrying Value | 5.875% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2026
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				$ 348	350
Senior Notes | Level 2 | Carrying Value | 5.625% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2024
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				550	550
Senior Notes | Level 2 | Carrying Value | 5.500% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2030
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				500	500
Senior Notes | Level 2 | Carrying Value | 12.750% Senior Secured Notes due 2026
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				31	0
Senior Notes | Level 2 | Carrying Value | 6.625% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2027
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				1,744	1,825
Senior Notes | Level 2 | Carrying Value | 5.375% Senior Secured Notes due 2026
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				3,050	3,050
Senior Notes | Level 2 | Fair Value | 5.875% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2026
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				342	368
Senior Notes | Level 2 | Fair Value | 5.625% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2024
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				528	566
Senior Notes | Level 2 | Fair Value | 5.500% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2030
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				463	511
Senior Notes | Level 2 | Fair Value | 12.750% Senior Secured Notes due 2026
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				30	0
Senior Notes | Level 2 | Fair Value | 6.625% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2027
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				929	1,775
Senior Notes | Level 2 | Fair Value | 5.375% Senior Secured Notes due 2026
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				2,207	3,085
Term Loan | Level 2 | Carrying Value | 5.125% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2027
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				400	400
Term Loan | Level 2 | Carrying Value | Term Loan B
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				1,322	1,329
Term Loan | Level 2 | Carrying Value | Term Loan B-2
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				1,290	1,297
Term Loan | Level 2 | Carrying Value | Term Loan
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				3,275	3,292
Term Loan | Level 2 | Fair Value | 5.125% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2027
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				364	411
Term Loan | Level 2 | Fair Value | Term Loan B
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				1,259	1,326
Term Loan | Level 2 | Fair Value | Term Loan B-2
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				1,229	1,300
Term Loan | Level 2 | Fair Value | Term Loan
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Debt fair value disclosure				2,661	3,284
Variable Payment Obligations | Level 3 | Carrying Value
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Variable payment obligations				235	239
Variable Payment Obligations | Level 3 | Fair Value
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Variable payment obligations				$ 235	239
Valuation, Income Approach | Variable Payment Obligations | Measurement Input, Discount Rate | Carrying Value
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Other liabilities, measurement input				0.09
STG Money Market Funds | Level 1 | Carrying Value
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Money market funds				$ 157	354
STG Money Market Funds | Level 1 | Fair Value
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Money market funds				157	354
DSG Money Market Funds | Level 1 | Carrying Value
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Money market funds				61	559
DSG Money Market Funds | Level 1 | Fair Value
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:
Money market funds				$ 61	$ 559

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS - Sched

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS - Schedule of Level 3 Activity (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2020
Fair Value, Liabilities Measured on Recurring Basis, Unobservable Input Reconciliation, Calculation [Roll Forward]
Fair value, beginning balance	$ 235	$ 239
Payments	(3)	(10)
Measurement adjustments	3	6
Fair value, ending balance	$ 235	$ 235

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING FINAN_3

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - Narrative (Details) $ in Millions	Jun. 30, 2020USD ($)
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Consolidated total debt	$ 12,399
Subsidiary Issuer
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Consolidated total debt	4,422
Amount of debt guaranteed by parent	$ 4,381
5.375% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2021 | Sinclair Television Group, Inc. | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)	5.375%
5.375% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2021 | Guarantor Subsidiaries and KDSM, LLC | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)	5.375%
5.625% Senior Unsecured Notes Due 2021 | Sinclair Television Group, Inc. | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)	5.625%
6.125% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2022 | Sinclair Television Group, Inc. | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)	6.125%
6.125% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2022 | Guarantor Subsidiaries and KDSM, LLC | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)	6.125%
5.875% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2026 | Sinclair Television Group, Inc. | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)	5.875%
5.875% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2026 | Guarantor Subsidiaries and KDSM, LLC | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)	5.875%
5.125% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2027 | Sinclair Television Group, Inc. | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)	5.125%
5.125% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2027 | Guarantor Subsidiaries and KDSM, LLC | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)	5.125%
5.500% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2030 | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)	5.50%
5.500% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2030 | Sinclair Television Group, Inc. | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)	5.50%
5.500% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2030 | Guarantor Subsidiaries and KDSM, LLC | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)	5.50%
5.625% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2024 | Sinclair Television Group, Inc. | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)	5.625%
5.625% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2024 | Guarantor Subsidiaries and KDSM, LLC | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)	5.625%

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING FINAN_4

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - Balance Sheet (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions		Jun. 30, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING BALANCE SHEET
Cash and cash equivalents		$ 622	$ 1,333
Accounts receivable, net		985	1,132
Other current assets		985	448
Total current assets		2,592	2,913
Property and equipment, net		809	765
Investment in consolidated subsidiaries		0	0
Goodwill		4,716	4,716
Indefinite-lived intangible assets		163	158
Definite-lived intangible assets, net		7,664	7,977
Other long-term assets		825	841
Total assets	[1]	16,769	17,370
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities		573	782
Current portion of long-term debt		71	71
Other current liabilities		259	281
Total current liabilities		903	1,134
Long-term debt		12,328	12,367
Other long-term liabilities		1,217	1,097
Total liabilities	[1]	14,448	14,598
Redeemable noncontrolling interests		510	1,078
Total Sinclair Broadcast Group equity (deficit)		1,609	1,502
Noncontrolling interests in consolidated subsidiaries		202	192
Total liabilities, redeemable noncontrolling interests, and equity		16,769	17,370
Reportable legal entities | Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING BALANCE SHEET
Cash and cash equivalents		0	0
Accounts receivable, net		0	0
Other current assets		12	5
Total current assets		12	5
Property and equipment, net		1	1
Investment in consolidated subsidiaries		2,258	2,270
Goodwill		0	0
Indefinite-lived intangible assets		0	0
Definite-lived intangible assets, net		0	0
Other long-term assets		84	82
Total assets		2,355	2,358
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities		31	142
Current portion of long-term debt		0	0
Other current liabilities		1	0
Total current liabilities		32	142
Long-term debt		700	700
Other long-term liabilities		13	13
Total liabilities		745	855
Redeemable noncontrolling interests		0	0
Total Sinclair Broadcast Group equity (deficit)		1,610	1,503
Noncontrolling interests in consolidated subsidiaries		0	0
Total liabilities, redeemable noncontrolling interests, and equity		2,355	2,358
Reportable legal entities | Sinclair Television Group, Inc.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING BALANCE SHEET
Cash and cash equivalents		168	357
Accounts receivable, net		0	0
Other current assets		86	41
Total current assets		254	398
Property and equipment, net		33	31
Investment in consolidated subsidiaries		3,497	3,558
Goodwill		0	0
Indefinite-lived intangible assets		0	0
Definite-lived intangible assets, net		0	0
Other long-term assets		1,632	1,611
Total assets		5,416	5,598
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities		99	109
Current portion of long-term debt		27	27
Other current liabilities		0	1
Total current liabilities		126	137
Long-term debt		4,336	4,348
Other long-term liabilities		59	53
Total liabilities		4,521	4,538
Redeemable noncontrolling interests		0	0
Total Sinclair Broadcast Group equity (deficit)		895	1,060
Noncontrolling interests in consolidated subsidiaries		0	0
Total liabilities, redeemable noncontrolling interests, and equity		5,416	5,598
Reportable legal entities | Guarantor Subsidiaries and KDSM, LLC
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING BALANCE SHEET
Cash and cash equivalents		3	3
Accounts receivable, net		494	561
Other current assets		201	264
Total current assets		698	828
Property and equipment, net		702	659
Investment in consolidated subsidiaries		0	0
Goodwill		2,091	2,091
Indefinite-lived intangible assets		149	144
Definite-lived intangible assets, net		1,342	1,426
Other long-term assets		280	279
Total assets		5,262	5,427
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities		277	286
Current portion of long-term debt		5	4
Other current liabilities		99	133
Total current liabilities		381	423
Long-term debt		36	32
Other long-term liabilities		1,351	1,418
Total liabilities		1,768	1,873
Redeemable noncontrolling interests		0	0
Total Sinclair Broadcast Group equity (deficit)		3,494	3,554
Noncontrolling interests in consolidated subsidiaries		0	0
Total liabilities, redeemable noncontrolling interests, and equity		5,262	5,427
Reportable legal entities | Non- Guarantor Subsidiaries
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING BALANCE SHEET
Cash and cash equivalents		451	973
Accounts receivable, net		491	571
Other current assets		781	188
Total current assets		1,723	1,732
Property and equipment, net		100	96
Investment in consolidated subsidiaries		0	0
Goodwill		2,625	2,625
Indefinite-lived intangible assets		14	14
Definite-lived intangible assets, net		6,366	6,598
Other long-term assets		476	618
Total assets		11,304	11,683
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities		261	296
Current portion of long-term debt		41	41
Other current liabilities		159	147
Total current liabilities		461	484
Long-term debt		8,291	8,317
Other long-term liabilities		624	547
Total liabilities		9,376	9,348
Redeemable noncontrolling interests		510	1,078
Total Sinclair Broadcast Group equity (deficit)		1,220	1,069
Noncontrolling interests in consolidated subsidiaries		198	188
Total liabilities, redeemable noncontrolling interests, and equity		11,304	11,683
Eliminations
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING BALANCE SHEET
Cash and cash equivalents		0	0
Accounts receivable, net		0	0
Other current assets		(95)	(50)
Total current assets		(95)	(50)
Property and equipment, net		(27)	(22)
Investment in consolidated subsidiaries		(5,755)	(5,828)
Goodwill		0	0
Indefinite-lived intangible assets		0	0
Definite-lived intangible assets, net		(44)	(47)
Other long-term assets		(1,647)	(1,749)
Total assets		(7,568)	(7,696)
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities		(95)	(51)
Current portion of long-term debt		(2)	(1)
Other current liabilities		0	0
Total current liabilities		(97)	(52)
Long-term debt		(1,035)	(1,030)
Other long-term liabilities		(830)	(934)
Total liabilities		(1,962)	(2,016)
Redeemable noncontrolling interests		0	0
Total Sinclair Broadcast Group equity (deficit)		(5,610)	(5,684)
Noncontrolling interests in consolidated subsidiaries		4	4
Total liabilities, redeemable noncontrolling interests, and equity		$ (7,568)	$ (7,696)
[1]	Our consolidated total assets as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 include total assets of variable interest entities (VIEs) of $268 million and $228 million , respectively, which can only be used to settle the obligations of the VIEs. Our consolidated total liabilities as of June 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 include total liabilities of VIEs of $32 million and $27 million , respectively, for which the creditors of the VIEs have no recourse to us. See Note 8. Variable Interest Entities .

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING FINAN_5

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - Statement of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
Total revenues	$ 1,283	$ 771	$ 2,892	$ 1,493
Media program and production expenses	383	335	1,211	654
Selling, general and administrative	218	217	477	405
Depreciation, amortization and other operating expenses	190	113	385	234
Total operating expenses	791	665	2,073	1,293
Operating income	492	106	819	200
Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	0	0	0	0
Interest expense	(165)	(54)	(345)	(108)
Loss from the extinguishment of debt	3	0	5	0
Other income (expense)	0	(6)	(8)	(18)
Total other expense, net	(165)	(60)	(353)	(126)
Income tax benefit (provision)	(54)	(3)	(42)	(8)
NET INCOME	273	43	424	66
Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests	(12)	0	(32)	0
Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests	(9)	(1)	(17)	(2)
NET INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO SINCLAIR BROADCAST GROUP	252	42	375	64
Comprehensive income	264	43	415	66
Reportable legal entities | Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
Total revenues	0	0	0	0
Media program and production expenses	0	0	0	0
Selling, general and administrative	3	19	6	21
Depreciation, amortization and other operating expenses	0	0	0	0
Total operating expenses	3	19	6	21
Operating income	(3)	(19)	(6)	(21)
Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	257	56	386	80
Interest expense	(4)	0	(7)	0
Other income (expense)	1	1	(1)	1
Total other expense, net	254	57	378	81
Income tax benefit (provision)	1	4	3	4
NET INCOME	252	42	375	64
Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests	0		0
Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests	0	0	0	0
NET INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO SINCLAIR BROADCAST GROUP	252	42	375	64
Comprehensive income	252	42	375	64
Reportable legal entities | Sinclair Television Group, Inc.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
Total revenues	25	0	49	0
Media program and production expenses	0	0	0	0
Selling, general and administrative	26	33	70	59
Depreciation, amortization and other operating expenses	4	1	5	2
Total operating expenses	30	34	75	61
Operating income	(5)	(34)	(26)	(61)
Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	67	118	240	207
Interest expense	(47)	(51)	(102)	(104)
Other income (expense)	8	4	6	5
Total other expense, net	28	71	144	108
Income tax benefit (provision)	(9)	17	20	29
NET INCOME	14	54	138	76
Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests	0		0
Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests	0	0	0	0
NET INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO SINCLAIR BROADCAST GROUP	14	54	138	76
Comprehensive income	14	54	138	76
Reportable legal entities | Guarantor Subsidiaries and KDSM, LLC
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
Total revenues	627	705	1,366	1,361
Media program and production expenses	312	318	640	619
Selling, general and administrative	151	162	319	318
Depreciation, amortization and other operating expenses	52	70	103	148
Total operating expenses	515	550	1,062	1,085
Operating income	112	155	304	276
Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	0	0	0	0
Interest expense	(1)	(1)	(2)	(2)
Other income (expense)	(10)	(11)	(19)	(23)
Total other expense, net	(11)	(12)	(21)	(25)
Income tax benefit (provision)	(34)	(24)	(40)	(41)
NET INCOME	67	119	243	210
Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests	0		0
Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests	0	0	0	0
NET INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO SINCLAIR BROADCAST GROUP	67	119	243	210
Comprehensive income	67	119	243	210
Reportable legal entities | Non- Guarantor Subsidiaries
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
Total revenues	671	89	1,564	172
Media program and production expenses	83	33	599	63
Selling, general and administrative	63	4	130	9
Depreciation, amortization and other operating expenses	136	46	283	90
Total operating expenses	282	83	1,012	162
Operating income	389	6	552	10
Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	0	0	0	0
Interest expense	(120)	(5)	(247)	(9)
Other income (expense)	4	0	12	(1)
Total other expense, net	(116)	(5)	(235)	(10)
Income tax benefit (provision)	(12)	0	(25)	0
NET INCOME	261	1	292	0
Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests	(12)		(32)
Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests	(9)	(1)	(17)	(3)
NET INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO SINCLAIR BROADCAST GROUP	240	0	243	(3)
Comprehensive income	252	1	283	0
Eliminations
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
Total revenues	(40)	(23)	(87)	(40)
Media program and production expenses	(12)	(16)	(28)	(28)
Selling, general and administrative	(25)	(1)	(48)	(2)
Depreciation, amortization and other operating expenses	(2)	(4)	(6)	(6)
Total operating expenses	(39)	(21)	(82)	(36)
Operating income	(1)	(2)	(5)	(4)
Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	(324)	(174)	(626)	(287)
Interest expense	7	3	13	7
Other income (expense)	(3)	0	(6)	0
Total other expense, net	(320)	(171)	(619)	(280)
Income tax benefit (provision)	0	0	0	0
NET INCOME	(321)	(173)	(624)	(284)
Net income attributable to the redeemable noncontrolling interests	0		0
Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests	0	0	0	1
NET INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO SINCLAIR BROADCAST GROUP	(321)	(173)	(624)	(283)
Comprehensive income	$ (321)	$ (173)	$ (624)	$ (284)

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING FINAN_6

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - Statement of Cash Flows (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Mar. 31, 2020	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
NET CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) OPERATING ACTIVITIES			$ 334	$ 223
CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) INVESTING ACTIVITIES:
Acquisition of property and equipment			(97)	(62)
Spectrum repack reimbursements			52	22
Proceeds from the sale of assets			18	0
Purchases of investments			(48)	(47)
Other, net			4	5
Net cash flows used in investing activities			(71)	(82)
CASH FLOWS USED IN FINANCING ACTIVITIES:
Proceeds from notes payable and commercial bank financing			873	1
Repayments of notes payable, commercial bank financing, and finance leases			(928)	(109)
Repurchase of outstanding Class A Common Stock			(261)	(125)
Dividends paid on Class A and Class B Common Stock			(35)	(36)
Dividends paid on redeemable subsidiary preferred equity	$ (11)	$ (13)	(24)	0
Distributions to noncontrolling interests, net			(7)	(3)
Distributions to redeemable noncontrolling interests			378	0
Redemption of redeemable subsidiary preferred equity			(198)	0
Increase (decrease) in intercompany payables			0	0
Other, net			(16)	0
Net cash flows used in financing activities			(974)	(272)
NET DECREASE IN CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH			(711)	(131)
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, beginning of period		1,333	1,333	1,060
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, end of period	622		622	929
Reportable legal entities | Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
NET CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) OPERATING ACTIVITIES			(124)	0
CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) INVESTING ACTIVITIES:
Acquisition of property and equipment			0	0
Spectrum repack reimbursements			0	0
Proceeds from the sale of assets			0
Purchases of investments			(1)	(2)
Other, net			1	0
Net cash flows used in investing activities			0	(2)
CASH FLOWS USED IN FINANCING ACTIVITIES:
Proceeds from notes payable and commercial bank financing			0	0
Repayments of notes payable, commercial bank financing, and finance leases			0	0
Repurchase of outstanding Class A Common Stock			(261)	(125)
Dividends paid on Class A and Class B Common Stock			(35)	(36)
Dividends paid on redeemable subsidiary preferred equity			0
Distributions to noncontrolling interests, net			0	0
Distributions to redeemable noncontrolling interests			0
Redemption of redeemable subsidiary preferred equity			0
Increase (decrease) in intercompany payables			420	163
Other, net			0
Net cash flows used in financing activities			124	2
NET DECREASE IN CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH			0	0
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, beginning of period		0	0	0
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, end of period	0		0	0
Reportable legal entities | Sinclair Television Group, Inc.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
NET CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) OPERATING ACTIVITIES			(98)	(122)
CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) INVESTING ACTIVITIES:
Acquisition of property and equipment			(6)	(2)
Spectrum repack reimbursements			0	0
Proceeds from the sale of assets			0
Purchases of investments			(5)	(9)
Other, net			0	2
Net cash flows used in investing activities			(11)	(9)
CASH FLOWS USED IN FINANCING ACTIVITIES:
Proceeds from notes payable and commercial bank financing			648	0
Repayments of notes payable, commercial bank financing, and finance leases			(663)	(103)
Repurchase of outstanding Class A Common Stock			0	0
Dividends paid on Class A and Class B Common Stock			0	0
Dividends paid on redeemable subsidiary preferred equity			0
Distributions to noncontrolling interests, net			0	0
Distributions to redeemable noncontrolling interests			0
Redemption of redeemable subsidiary preferred equity			0
Increase (decrease) in intercompany payables			(65)	164
Other, net			0
Net cash flows used in financing activities			(80)	61
NET DECREASE IN CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH			(189)	(70)
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, beginning of period		357	357	962
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, end of period	168		168	892
Reportable legal entities | Guarantor Subsidiaries and KDSM, LLC
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
NET CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) OPERATING ACTIVITIES			313	328
CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) INVESTING ACTIVITIES:
Acquisition of property and equipment			(83)	(64)
Spectrum repack reimbursements			52	22
Proceeds from the sale of assets			18
Purchases of investments			(22)	(30)
Other, net			(8)	0
Net cash flows used in investing activities			(43)	(72)
CASH FLOWS USED IN FINANCING ACTIVITIES:
Proceeds from notes payable and commercial bank financing			0	0
Repayments of notes payable, commercial bank financing, and finance leases			(2)	(2)
Repurchase of outstanding Class A Common Stock			0	0
Dividends paid on Class A and Class B Common Stock			0	0
Dividends paid on redeemable subsidiary preferred equity			0
Distributions to noncontrolling interests, net			0	0
Distributions to redeemable noncontrolling interests			0
Redemption of redeemable subsidiary preferred equity			0
Increase (decrease) in intercompany payables			(268)	(270)
Other, net			0
Net cash flows used in financing activities			(270)	(272)
NET DECREASE IN CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH			0	(16)
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, beginning of period		3	3	19
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, end of period	3		3	3
Reportable legal entities | Non- Guarantor Subsidiaries
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
NET CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) OPERATING ACTIVITIES			243	22
CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) INVESTING ACTIVITIES:
Acquisition of property and equipment			(13)	(1)
Spectrum repack reimbursements			0	0
Proceeds from the sale of assets			0
Purchases of investments			(20)	(6)
Other, net			11	3
Net cash flows used in investing activities			(22)	(4)
CASH FLOWS USED IN FINANCING ACTIVITIES:
Proceeds from notes payable and commercial bank financing			225	1
Repayments of notes payable, commercial bank financing, and finance leases			(263)	(25)
Repurchase of outstanding Class A Common Stock			0	0
Dividends paid on Class A and Class B Common Stock			0	0
Dividends paid on redeemable subsidiary preferred equity			(24)
Distributions to noncontrolling interests, net			(7)	(3)
Distributions to redeemable noncontrolling interests			378
Redemption of redeemable subsidiary preferred equity			(198)
Increase (decrease) in intercompany payables			(82)	(36)
Other, net			(16)
Net cash flows used in financing activities			(743)	(63)
NET DECREASE IN CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH			(522)	(45)
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, beginning of period		973	973	79
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, end of period	451		451	34
Eliminations
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
NET CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) OPERATING ACTIVITIES			0	(5)
CASH FLOWS FROM (USED IN) INVESTING ACTIVITIES:
Acquisition of property and equipment			5	5
Spectrum repack reimbursements			0	0
Proceeds from the sale of assets			0
Purchases of investments			0	0
Other, net			0	0
Net cash flows used in investing activities			5	5
CASH FLOWS USED IN FINANCING ACTIVITIES:
Proceeds from notes payable and commercial bank financing			0	0
Repayments of notes payable, commercial bank financing, and finance leases			0	21
Repurchase of outstanding Class A Common Stock			0	0
Dividends paid on Class A and Class B Common Stock			0	0
Dividends paid on redeemable subsidiary preferred equity			0
Distributions to noncontrolling interests, net			0	0
Distributions to redeemable noncontrolling interests			0
Redemption of redeemable subsidiary preferred equity			0
Increase (decrease) in intercompany payables			(5)	(21)
Other, net			0
Net cash flows used in financing activities			(5)	0
NET DECREASE IN CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH			0	0
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, beginning of period		$ 0	0	0
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH, end of period	$ 0		$ 0	$ 0