Superior Court Judge Timothy Patti ruled yesterday that
Charlotte Observer reporter LIZ CHANDLER "does not have to
testify in" Hornets Owner GEORGE SHINN's slander suit
against LESLIE PRICE, the woman who accused him of sexual
assault. Shinn's attorney subpoenaed Chandler and wanted
her to detail interviews she conducted in her reporting on
the case. But Patti ruled that the "harm in requiring Ms.
Chandler to testify ... outweighs any minimal benefit the
Plaintiff could receive" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 7/27).
BRADLEY IN SPORTS ARENA: In Boston, Mary Leonard
examines support for Democratic Presidential nominee BILL
BRADLEY within the sports industry. The Bradley campaign
holds "Hoopla," its single largest sports-centered fund-
raiser today in Chicago. It will feature many of Bradley's
NBA colleagues. Officials can't estimate how much of the
$11.7M collected by the campaign so far comes from the
"basketball network," but 15 to 20 of Bradley's largest
fund-raisers "have been headlined by sports figures" (BOSTON
GLOBE, 7/27). Among early supporters of GEORGE W. BUSH:
Yankees Owner GEORGE STEINBRENNER, MLBPA Exec Dir DONALD
FEHR and Cowboys Owner JERRY JONES (CBS MarketWatch, 7/25).
OTHER NAMES: LARRY KENT, the first President of NFLP,
died earlier this month at his home in FL. Kent was largely
seen as a pioneer in sports merchandising (N.Y. TIMES,
7/27)....Warner Bros.' "THE REPLACEMENTS," a movie about the
'87 Redskins strike team that was undefeated, has been
refused permission to use Redskins trademarks in the film.
The team will now be called The Sentinels. NFL
VP/Communications GREG AIELLO said the league decided the
movie "wasn't in its best interest" (USA TODAY, 7/27).
....MICHAEL OVITZ's Artists Management Group will merge with
Renaissance Talent and Literary Agency, giving his AMG a
publishing division. Rockwell Capital Management
Entertainment Analyst ARTHUR ROCKWELL, on Ovitz: "He can
dabble in other areas, like real estate and bringing the NFL
to Los Angeles, but he can't escape his destiny --
Superagent" (N.Y. POST, 7/27)....HBO's James Brown profiled
Yankees SS DEREK JETER on "Real Sports" last night. Jeter,
on his popularity and being considered a "heartthrob": "I
think I'm one of the guys on the team, one of the few guys
there, that is not married. So I really don't think the
fans have much more of a choice. I think they're pretty
much stuck with me" ("Real Sports," 7/26)....JOHN ELWAY is
among those rumored to be acquiring a $2M ownership block in
Pebble Beach to help defray the $831M paid by a group led by
ARNOLD PALMER and CLINT EASTWOOD (GOLFWEEK, 7/24 issue).
