Ommunicat O N S September/October 1985 $4.00
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A Child's Garden of Fantasy, by Bruno Bettelheim w %.1 OMMUNICAT O N S SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 1985 $4.00 ,Qr:vC''a:..s'sf--:.b`,i,--.+®. Al:+ñ?..:i NETWORK TV THEATER OF PROGRAMMERS WITH THE SUPERB PASSION A BROADCASTING ON TOP OF THE NEWS IN FAMILY'S PRIDE PRIME TJ\4E THE INCREDIBLE RADIO'S THINKING HEADS GREATEST HIT / also All the President's Media Sidestepping the Filter of Journalism Unleashing the Cable Monopoly What's Irving Kahn Up To Nov 7r Smutbusters Take Aim at Video Newhart, TV's Bland Emir ,A x iwww.americanradiohistory.com www.americanradiohistory.com ItEt^j1 TV's funniest cast is back together... with pleity of new surprises! It's the brand new WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW!! 22 ALL NEW FIRST-RUN EPISODES AVAILABLE FALL '85! in association with LBS Ccmmunications, Inc. www.americanradiohistory.com SEPTEMBER/ OCTOBER 1985 VOLUME 5, NUMBER 3 NN ISSUES & REPORTS All the President's Media Political leaders sidestep CROSSCURRENTS PAGE 6 normal journalistic channels with satellite hookups. PUBLIC EYE BY MICHAEL DAVID AND "Broadcasting's PAT AUFDERHEIDE Vanishing Species" BY LES BROWN PAGE 15 What's Irving COMMENT & CRITICISM Kahn Up to Now? The indomitable promoter invests in the future with the PRIVATE EYE passion of a believer. "A Season to Remember BY JAMES TRAUB Television By" BY WILLIAM A. HENRY III PAGE 63 PROGRAM NOTES A Child's Garden "Newhart: Prime Time's of Fantasy Bland Eminence" TV gives children the BY MICHAEL POLLAN PAGE 66 daydreams they need, but "TV's Celebration there are hazards. of Itself" BY BRUNO BETTELHEIM BY MARK EDMUNDSON PAGE 67 BOOKS No Sense of Place Smutbusters Take By Joshua Meyrowitz Aim at Video REVIEWED BY ROBERT KUBEY_ PAGE 69 Porn at the push of a button IDEAS & OBSERVATIONS alarms local prosecutors and federal officials. David Burnham, Tom Goldstein, Jack B. Haskins, Hendrik BY TOM McNICHOL Hertzberg, and Richard Dyer MacCann PAGE 71 DISTANT SIGNALS FRANCE: A Revolution COVER ILLUSTRATION BY in the Making HOVIK DILAKIAN BY ROGER M. WILLIAMS COVER CALLIGRAPHY BY RAPHAEL BOGOSLAV CARTOONS BY CHARLES BARSOTTI ANYBODY NAMED BRANDON THE HEART OF COUNTRY Stoddard and Tartikoff The Grand Ole Opry By Lee Margulies PAGE 27 P\GEPAGE 38 By Bob Allen ON TOP OF THE NEWS to TV THEATER OF IN PRIME TIME THE SUPERB CBC Journal te MC American Playhouse By Martin Knelman PAGE 30 PAGE 42 By John J. O'Connor THE INCREDIBLE THE PRIDE OF THINKING HEADS Celebrating those who set the DOROTHY S. BULLIT'I' The Media and Society Seminars highest standards in the KING -TV, Seattle By Michael I. Meyerson PAGE 35 electronic media. PAGE 45 By Roger Downey PAGE 25 2 Channels SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER '85 www.americanradiohistory.com There is more than a comma's difference... NBC NIGHTLY NEWS "It's often said that there isn't a comma difference between the three network newscasts, but that's not true. In many ways NBC has become a more thoughtful and interesting network in its coverage It often takes a different direction especially in its special reports.... The 'NBC Nightly News' often includes stories of more depth and significance ... Serious newswatchers come away with more substance." 'TODAY' Tom Dorsey, Louisville Couder-Journal "In Rome it managed to gain unusual access to an institution historically wary of news and television organizations." E.J. Dionne, Jr., New York Times AMERICAN ALMANAC "An NBC winner. Mudd is his usual incisive self." Lee Winfrey, Philadelphia Inquirer PRIMETIME NEWS SPECIALS "The First Lady ... sensitive, delightful, sometimes moving." Arthur Unger, Christian Science Monitor "Portrait of the Press, Warts and All, by John Chancellor, marks the first time a network has probed the issue with decent objectivity." Harriet Van Horne, Newsday "Women, Work and Babies is a prime example of the new direction in NBC News. Solidly interesting ... totally relevant." Arthur Unger, Christian Science Monitor "Vietnam-Lessons of a Lost War ... if you see only one television news program make sure this is it." NBC NEWS John Corry, New York Times "Its week-long exploration of the Soviet Union won the Edward Weintal prize for diplomatic reporting .. NBC sent `Today' to Rome for a week of broadcasting that were similarly admired.... And `Nightly News' was the first American news program to carry BBC footage of the horrific famine in Ethiopia, a decision that generated enormous viewer reaction:' Eric Mink, Washington Journalism Review NBC NEWS ON THE MOVE www.americanradiohistory.com r H A NN E I. S ----11111111111111- EDITOR -IN -CHIEF Les Brown PUBLISHER George M. Dillehay MANAGING EDITOR One of the Most Audrey Berman SENIOR EDITOR Steve Behrens Important Stories in the World ASSOCIATE EDITOR James Traub DEPARTMENTS EDITOR Richard Barbieri ASSISTANT EDITOR Jeffrey L. Wolf CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Walter Karp. Martin Koughan, David Lachenbruch, Michael Pollan. Michael Schwarz, Brian Winston COPY EDITOR ExCELLENCE has a way of bene- This year Channels has trained its Randy Blunk fiting the com- sights on in programming. We everyone, even excellence INTERN petition. Babe Ruth, in his looked for beacons-there were many- Rebecka Jerome day, may have clobbered the and made some remarkable finds: rival teams, but he filled their A nightly prime -time news program DESIGN DIRECTION ballparks with customers and elevated that surpasses the vaunted American and Marian Chin the stature of all ballplayers. It's the same British newscasts in providing context in every field, of course. Excellence may for global events. SALES AND MARKETING be its own reward, but it produces divi- An American series that rivals the dends as well. drama of the British, who do it so well. VICE PRESIDENT Myles M. Fuchs In the field of electronic media, the A radio program that has defied all good apples have been known to redeem the changes in the medium over the past ACCOUNT MANAGER Tracey Wilen the whole barrel. Whenever the broad- half century and remains live, unique, cast industry is on the griddle in Washing- and faithful to its audience. MARKETING ASSOCIATE Marirose Erskine ton-for exploiting violence, for exam- A television station that still creates ple, or airing songs with indecent lyrics local programs and dedicates itself to ADVERTISING SALES OFFICES on defends itself by reciting its public service. New York: 19 West 44th St., New York, NY 10036. radio-it 212-302-2680. achievements on the high road of pro- An educational program that helps West Coast: Gwen Campbell Winthrop, gramming, as if Roots, the Olympics, and citizens understand complex public is- 15167-E Magnolia Blvd.. coverage of the Kennedy assassination sues without boring them to death. Sherman Oaks, CA 91403, 213-784-3493. were mainstays of the schedule. Two network program executives England: Jack Durkin & Co. "You can't take excellence to the who are not enslaved by the crass num- 130 Earlsfield Road bank," say the Wall Street sages, who bers used to measure success in Ameri- London S W 18 rate media companies strictly on their can television-the Nielsens, the bottom Tel: 01-870-9082 ability to earn money. Yes, but excel- line, and the stock digits. They not only lence can buy what all the corporate bot- excel in their line of work but create a FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION in tom lines together cannot-an industry's climate which others may excel, as CONTROLLER good name. William S. Paley did in his great days at Joseph E. Edelman the CBS (see Ideas and Last fall, editors of Channels began Observations). OFFICE MANAGER a search for excellence in television, ra- As we come to know excellence better, Carlton Hill dio, and cable-and documented it in a we find that it is not a value added but CHANNELS of Communications (ISSN 0276-1572) series of articles-to discover not just something built into the genes of an enter- is published bimonthly for $18 a year by C.C. where but also why it exists in an industry prise. The excellent don't ask if they can Publishing, Inc., 19 West 44th Street. New York, NY 10036. Application to mail at second class postage that doesn't demand it. To our great sur- take it to the bank; they excel because ratei is pending at New York, NY and additional prise, it was not a difficult search. Excel- they cannot abide mediocrity. mailing offices. Volume 5, Number 3, Sept./Oct. 1985. Copyright CO 1985 by C.C. Publishing, Inc. All lence stands out like a beacon. Last We will continue to salute excellence in righ:s reserved. All foreign countries add S6 per year. year's articles on five indisputably excel- Channels, not just because it represents Please address all subscription mail to CHANNELS of Communications, Subscription Service Dept., Box lent companies found that, for all their affirmative criticism, but because we be- 2001, Mahopac, NY 10541, or call 914-628-1154. differences, they were alike in having vi- lieve excellence to be one of the most im- Pasämaster: Send address changes to CH AN N ELS of Communications, Subscription Service Dept., sionary founders, stable managements, portant stories in the world. As a society Box.2001, Mahopac. NY 10541. and a stubborn refusal to compromise we need to know what is transcendent, Editorial and business offices: 19 West 44th Street, New York. NY 10036; 212-302-2680. Unsolicited their principles for expedient trendiness. because that helps us to know who we manuscript, cannot be considered or returned unless Above all, each had made a choice to be are. Excellence is the prelude to great- accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope. No part of this magazine may be reproduced in any excellent, even while recognizing that ness, and greatness is the glory of the hu- form without written consent.