A controversial documentary critical of Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry’s Vietnam activities will be televised by two local stations owned by media giant Sinclair Broadcasting Group.

The film, “Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal,” will be broadcast in a prime-time spot as a special news event on all of Sinclair’s 62 stations, including KDSM in Des Moines and KGAN in Cedar Rapids, less than two weeks from the election.

This has caused a number of complaints from Democrats.

Sinclair has been criticized by the Kerry campaign for using its corporate power to attempt to influence the election.

“This is another one of President Bush’s powerful corporate friends trying to help him out,” said Carrie Giddins, Iowa Democratic Party spokeswoman.

Iowa Democratic Party Chairman Gordon Fisher said he isn’t surprised by the broadcast, since the president has had a close relationship with corporations. It was only a matter of time, Fisher said, until corporations would pay Bush back for the relationship.

“My understanding of it is it’s filled with distortions, lies and half-truths,” he said. “I don’t see Sinclair Broadcasting showing ‘Fahrenheit 9/11’ or any movie critical of Bush. It’s basically a corporate giveaway to President Bush.”

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said he did not see a problem with the Sinclair broadcast.

“I wonder why there is a question about that when there’s no question about ‘Fahrenheit [9/11],'” he said.

Grassley said he believed it was a double standard to have films critical of Bush, like “Fahrenheit 9/11” out, but for people to try to block films that are against Kerry.

One problem with the broadcast is that Sinclair is portraying the documentary as a news program, which makes it exempt from federal regulations that require equal time for political candidates, said Barbara Mack, associate professor in journalism and communication and expert in media law.

According to Section 315 of the Communications Act of 1937, once a station allowed a legally qualified candidate to use the airwaves, the station must give all other candidates equal opportunities to broadcast their message. However, the law made special exemptions for news programs.

In a pre-recorded voicemail message, Sinclair Vice President Mark Hyman said Kerry had been invited to participate in the event. Officials at KDSM declined to comment. Kerry would more than likely decline the offer, Giddins said.

“I think this raises questions the FCC has not dealt with before,” Mack said.

Traditionally, she said, broadcasters were in control of the news content that was transmitted. This was the first time she was aware that a news broadcast was done by someone besides the broadcaster.

The broadcast, she said, also pushes the limits of what is able to be passed off as news.

A major difference between how this program is perceived compare to politically-charged films is the fact that it is being broadcast, she said. Broadcasters has always had substantially tighter rules than other mediums of communication because broadcasting is seen as a public service, she said.