Dr. Phil's Media Company Accuses Christian Network of ‘Sabotage'
In the suit, filed with the Bankruptcy Court in the Northern District of Texas, Merit Street Media claimed Christian network Trinity Broadcasting of Texas Inc. (TBN) "reneged on its obligations and abused its position as the controlling shareholder of Merit Street" to burden the company with over $100 million in debt.
"These failures by TBN were neither unintended nor inadvertent," the lawsuit read. "They were a conscious, intentional pattern of choices made with full awareness that the consequence of which was to sabotage and seal the fate of a new but already nationally acclaimed network."
Newsweek has reached out to TBN and Merit Street Media outside of regular working hours for comment.
Merit Street Media's bankruptcy comes just over a year after its launch as a self-avowed anti-woke alternative to mainstream news outlets. Beyond the alleged actions of its distribution partner, its collapse highlights the difficulties of attempting to break into and compete in the cable television market-a sector which continues to be threatened as customers migrating to streaming services and digital news platforms.
Upon officially launching Merit Street Media in April 2024, McGraw said the network would represent a "resource of information and strategies to fight for America and its families, which are under a cultural 'woke' assault as never before."
"I love this country and I believe family is the backbone of our society. Together we are going to stand strong and fight for the very soul and sanity of America and get things that matter back on track," his statement read.
The company aimed to become "one of the most widely distributed startup networks in modern history," driven by flagship show Dr. Phil Primetime and a broad lineup of shows starring other notable figures, including Nancy Grace and Steve Harvey. Its programming has included McGraw accompanying Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during raids in Chicago and Los Angeles, and McGraw's 2024 interview with Donald Trump during the presidential campaign.
Merit Street Media is suing TBN over alleged breach of contract, claiming that its former distribution partner failed to deliver on key commitments. Examples alleged in the lawsuit include failing to guarantee Merit Street's national distribution and providing "comically dysfunctional" production services, which left the network without viable means of airing its programming, per the suit.
More critically, Merit Street Media claimed that TBN used its position as a controlling shareholder to "to advance its own interests and those of its CEO," and unfairly shift liabilities onto the company.
The company is also suing TCT Ministries in the suit, in relation to a $25 million loan it says was originally made to Merit Street by a company "closely connected" to TBN and which TCT took over.
Newsweek has also reached out to TCT Ministries for comment.
In its coinciding bankruptcy filing, the company reported assets and liabilities of between $100 million and $500 million, according to Bloomberg.
Merit Street Media, in the lawsuit filed Wednesday, said: "TBN formed Merit Street as a joint venture and contractually committed to provide valuable services to the joint venture. But TBN then reneged on its obligations and abused its position as the controlling shareholder of Merit Street to improperly and unilaterally burden Merit Street with unsustainable debt, doing so either without notice or in direct violation of promises not to do so."
According to court filings, Merit Street Media is seeking unspecified damages from TBN, as well as the cost of its legal fees.
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