TV MONITOR: Last night's 11:00pm ET edition of FSN's
"Primetime" led with Rams-49ers, followed by Seahawks-
Chiefs. The first non-NFL story, at 9:51 into the
broadcast, was Sonics-Suns. "Primetime" reported on the MLS
Cup at 39:56. The 11:00pm edition of CNN/SI's "Sports
Tonight" and the 11:30pm ET edition of ESPN's "SportsCenter"
both led with Patriots-Dolphins, followed by Bills-Jets.
The first non-NFL story on "Sports Tonight," at 9:30, was
the season-ending NASCAR Winston Cup NAPA 500 in Atlanta.
The MLS Cup was covered at 26:39 into the "Sports Tonight"
broadcast. The first non-NFL story on "SportsCenter," at
9:08, was Sonics-Suns. "SportsCenter" reported on the MLS
Cup about 38:00 into its broadcast (THE DAILY).
PRESS ETHICS: On CBS SportsLine, Len Pasquarelli
reported that Dolphins coach Jimmy Johnson's "penchant for
controlling the news carried over" to last week's media
sessions, as media members were told on occasion by Dir of
PR Harvey Greene what questions they were not permitted to
ask. Pasquarelli: "Greene is one of the premier public
relations directors in the league, and for the coach to have
him attempting to sanitize the news is reprehensible" (CBS
SportsLine, 11/19)....In DC, Leonard Shapiro wrote that
ABC/ESPN's Robin Roberts made a "mistake" in hosting the
Bill Bradley fund-raiser at MSG: "Journalists don't endorse
candidates, let along play host to fund-raising affairs"
(WASHINGTON POST, 11/20)....In N.Y., Richard Sandomir wrote
that the "message" on NBA Entertainment's production of the
event is that NBAE is "an event-producer for hire, not that
it provided a special, one-time-only service for a former
player who was a New York star" (N.Y. TIMES, 11/21).
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD ON DBS COVERAGE: Congress approved
a bill that would allow satellite companies to carry local
TV channels and prevent "cybersquatting" on the Web.
President Clinton must sign the bill into law. Under the
legislation, trademark holders could sue cybersquatters for
up to $100,000 in damages (AP, 11/20). Meanwhile, both
DirecTV and Echostar said they will "hit" N.Y. with a "major
ad drive" as soon as the bill is signed. DirecTV is
"already talking about undercutting cable prices once local
service starts" (N.Y. POST, 11/22).
