COBB VS. SI: Actor & former boxer Tex Cobb's libel suit
against Sports Illustrated for a '93 article begins today in
Nashville. SI claims Cobb "won't be able to prove the
article was published with malice, or that the statements in
the article were false." Cobb is seeking $50M in actual
damages and $100M in punitive damages (TENNESSEAN, 5/23).
MORE NOTES: USA TODAY's Rudy Martzke, on this weekend's
NBA playoffs: "All it took for the drama and excitement
marking the first round of the playoffs to disappear was one
lopsided weekend for NBC and TNT" (USA TODAY, 5/24)....In
Hartford, Desmond Conner profiled ESPN anchor Stuart Scott.
HARTFORD COURANT columnist Jeff Jacobs, who has been
critical of Scott's role on "SportsCenter" in the past,
said, "There's a line between journalism and vaudeville.
When Stuart doesn't cross it, I enjoy his distinctive style.
When he does cross it, I squeal." Scott's response: "If you
don't like my style, that's fine, turn me off" (HARTFORD
COURANT, 5/23)....In Dallas, Barry Horn wrote that hockey
fans "swear that HDTV (high-definition television) will
revolutionize the way we look at the fractured relationship
between hockey and television." Horn: "Maybe. But all we
know about HDTV now is that it could set you back $5,000 per
screen" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 5/22)....In Atlanta, Guy
Cutright profiled sports Web sites and wrote that ESPN.com
"would be the top site if you didn't have to pay for some of
the best stuff." CBS SportsLine is a "good site for real-
time game updates of ... sports, but again you have to pay
for the best columns" (ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 5/23). ...The
U.S. Senate passed legislation on Thursday, which allows
satellite broadcasters to carry the signals of local TV
stations (ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 5/22).
