WASHINGTON — A national fitness chain with locations in Maryland and Virginia is banning cable news channels from its gyms’ TV screens.
Life Time, which is headquartered in Minnesota, said the decision came after “significant member feedback” and what the company called its “commitment to provide family oriented environments free of consistently negative or politically charged content.”
In a statement posted on Twitter, the company said the change “is consistent with the desires of overall membership as well as our healthy way of life philosophy.”
An emailed statement from company spokeswoman Natalie Bushaw said the cable news ban, which went into effect at the start of 2018, includes CNN, Fox News and MSNBC.
“Local news station affiliates are still on our large screens and we have Wi-Fi throughout our clubs so members can view the content of their choice on their own devices,” Bushaw said in the statement.
Bushaw said the company has “received both messages of support and others seeking more detail around the decision.”
The company has 130 locations in 27 states, including six in the D.C. area. There are Life Time gyms in Rockville, Maryland; Gaithersburg, Maryland; Columbia, Maryland; Fairfax, Virginia; and Reston, Virginia.
