ESPN's "SportsCenter" on Sunday morning had touted its show
as the one to watch for the "first" pairings of the NCAA Men's
Basketball Tournament. ESPN's Tom Mees said "You'll find out all
about it first at 6:27!" But as Richard Sandomir points out,
while ESPN's show came on at 6:27pm, CBS, through its exclusive
deal with the NCAA, had "dibs on first reports on which teams go
where." ESPN spokesperson Mike Soltys said the network was
"having fun with the start time," and said they didn't mean to
deceive the viewer. But CBS spokesperson Leslie Anne Wade said,
"They lied. We felt it was deceptive." The CBS "Selection Show"
produced a 5.7 overnight rating, up from its 4.8 for an hour-long
version in '95. CBS' show went up against the Bulls-Knicks on
NBC, which won the 6:30-7:00pm time slot with a 7.9 rating (N.Y.
TIMES, 3/12). NEWSDAY's Steve Zipay writes that ESPN "lied to
viewers" on having the selection results first. Zipay notes they
were on the air before CBS, but "had to recant 'first'" (NEWSDAY,
3/12). CBS hopes to "turn around an NCAA tournament rating that
has slipped 22% since 1993." CBS' Len DeLuca: "We look forward
to rebuilding" (Rudy Martzke, USA TODAY, 3/12).
