The WASHINGTON POST and USA TODAY note NBC's research and
tilt toward female viewers (WASH. POST, 7/23; USA TODAY,
7/23)....The Marquee Group notes that over 25% of NBC's on-air
talent is represented by its subsidiary, Athletes & Artists (The
Marquee Group)....CNN's "Moneyline" reported on the Games as a
"ratings bonanza" for NBC. Analyst Stuart Rossmiller: "It has a
phenomenon of rooting for the home town and the hometown is now
Atlanta and not Barcelona. The torch has been run all across the
country over the course of the last three months. Everyone knows
the torch was going to Atlanta and that was great advertising for
NBC" (CNN, 7/22)...."Showbiz Tonight" reported on how other over-
the-air and cable networks are coping with NBC's highly rated
coverage. ESPN Senior VP/Programming John Wildhack: "We're not
just going to take these two and a half weeks and step aside.
We're going to program as aggressively as we can. As good as the
[NBC] numbers will be, not everyone will be tuned in" (CNN,
7/22)....In Toronto, William Houston notes CBC's coverage has
been "clean, well thought out and mostly interesting." He adds
CBC's 14-hours of coverage a day is "far superior" to NBC (GLOBE
& MAIL, 7/23). The TORONTO STAR's Ken McKee notes CBC is not
using its full complement of ads, 12 minutes per hour. Peter
Krez, CBC's GM Sales & Marketing, said after they sold 90% of ad
time, "we had more than met our target" (TORONTO STAR, 7/23).
