MUST-SEE TV? NBC AFFILIATE CRITICIZED FOR BULLETS COVERAGE

     The exclusive relationship between DC's WRC-TV and the
Bullets on the team's name change is criticized by Leonard
Shapiro of the WASHINGTON POST.  WRC-TV, an NBC affiliate, was
one of the sponsors of the "contest" to rename the team and was
granted exclusive rights on the announcement of the new name on a
news telecast last week.  WRC sports anchor George Michael was
also a member of the panel that helped select the finalist.
Shapiro writes the tie-in between team and station "makes perfect
sense," since NBC Sports owns rights to the NBA, but "it is yet
another example of the 'partnership' between pro sports leagues
and the TV business that helps pay their bills."  When that
"partnership both manages the news and collides with the
journalistic responsibilities of the media, red flags should be
raised."  Shapiro adds that Michael is "there to report the news,
not shape it" (WASHINGTON POST, 2/24).