tBXBBBHL *******************ALL FOR ADC 07099 *0711590374P 19980622 edl ep SADC LAURA K JONES, ASSITANT MGR WALDENBOOKS 42 MT PLEASANT AVE WHARTON NJ 07885-2120SE:I) 11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 Vol. 7 No. 36 THE NEWS MAGAZINE OF THE MEDIA September 29, 1997 $3.00 MARKET INDICATORS National TV: Moving Jacor: Next inLine 4th -quarter scatter money is still corn ng in, but the majori-y of busi- No. 3 radio group seen as switching from buyer tosellerPAGE 4 ness is done. Prices re- main 15-20 percent over record upfront.CD%ls. WASHINGTON Net Cable: Active Broadcasters Market is flush but has few places to spend. Alter Course Some niche rets are boosting CPN1 increas- On Digital TV es north of 20 percent. The majors are closer ABC's Padden and to 5 percent. other network execs Spot TV: Healthy rev up HDTV under Political buys are heat- pressure from D.C. ing up the Northeast. Football, basebal play- PAGE 5 off inventory is moving well. Autos, movies, TV SPORTS telecom, packace good's all brisk. Marxet ABC Seeks awaiting usual boom in Big Deals 4th -quarter toy biz. Radio: Tighter For Bowls Little inventory is avail- Nokia close on first able for mid -October, and buyers forecast big big ad package for business for Novembe- 4 top college games r/ sweepsEsincreas- ingly radio-reliert cable PAGE 6 nets compete w.t-i A half dozen high -profile broadcast in holiday SYNDICATION crush for prime ad time. A Slowdown media moguls are out looking Magazines: Solid Automotive, bui'ding In Action for new jobs. We offer a peek at materials and luxury goods are spending Glut of new shows where, these golden -parachuted big; fashion also :s strong. One :she tar is trouble for genre PAGE 20 executives may land next. book just closed is fat- PAGE 8 test issue of tne. decade. 1 1111 3 9 > 0 54968 89931 2 www .NBC .com www .NBC .com ...iww.NBC.corn wvry.,.NBC.com J r When Toyota wanted to drive home their message using more than Just banners, they knew they could turn to NBC.com. We can develop, position and customize your brand message to become a dynamic part of our site, like the way we created Jay Leno's "Garage", a special feature built for Toyota.It's interactivity with results.It's what we call Integrated. So, if you're looking for innovative ways to interact with your customers and maximizetheeffectivenessof your advertising dollars. join NBC.com. From cross promotions to sponsorships and content development, you get interactivity that's real, not virtual.Isn't it time you joined us for a spin? To make your brand a star, call us at (212) 664-7543. GET NBC.conil, INTEGRATED MEDIAWEEK September 29, 1997 http://www.mediaweek.com PAGE 3 SEP 10 1997 Laura K.Jones AT DEADLINE Broadcaster Lee Still Fighting for License Miller Seen As Buyer for NYT Co. Magazines Lawyers for veteran broadcaster Zeb Lee of WZLS in Asheville, The New York Times Co. is about to wrap up its long -running N.C., argued before the federal court of appeals in Washington on effort to sell most of its magazine properties. "We have a primary Sept. 26 that their client should be able to keep his interim license. candidate, and we hope to make an announcement [about the buy- Biltmore Forest Consortium, whose owners include Rep. Mel Watt er] by the end of the month," Gordon Medenica, group publisher (D-N.C.), now operates the station, which has been the subject of a of the six titles on the block, including Tennis and Snow County, 10 -year ownership battle. A new provision in the federal budget bill said last week. "It's in the lawyers' hands now." Medenica would would mandate auctions for the few stations whose ownership dis- not identify the candidate, but a well -placed source at the maga- putes are still alive at the FCC. The appeals court zine group said that it is Miller Publishing. Another asked the FCC in a letter to explain how this new Times source said the asking price is well under the law would affect Lee's case. The answer was: We're once -rumored $100 million. Miller has assembled not sure. The statute says auctions are mandatory, INSIDE an eclectic group of properties in recent months, but the conference report isn't as clear. Meanwhile, acquiring Vibe, Spin and Where, a tourist guide. A North Carolina Republican senators Jesse Helms Times Co. representative declined to comment on and Lauch Faircloth have expressed concern that the the sale; phone calls to Miller went unreturned. nominee to chair the FCC, William Kennard, will be confirmed this week, before the Lee case is resolved. Sullivan Resigns UPN Post Kennard, an acquaintance of Rep. Watt, was FCC The suspense about whether Mike Sullivan, general counsel during crucial decisions in the case. UPN's president of entertainment, would stay with the network under new chairman Dean Comcast Confident Against DirecTV Valentine ended last week with Sullivan resigning. A Comcast Corp. executive said last week the com- Sullivan said he would not seek a new contract pany is confident it will not be penalized by the FCC upon the expiration next month of his current over a complaint by DirecTV last week that charges deal. He plans to start his own independent film Comcast with unfair methods of competition. company. A UPN representative declined to com- DirecTV filed the complaint over Comcast Sports - ment on who Valentine is considering for Sulli- Net, a regional sports network to launch in Philadel- van's replacement. Hollywood insiders said that phia on Oct. 1. Comcast has refused to offer the ser- NBC Productions' Tom Noonan and Dream - vice to DirecTV. Joe Waz, vp of external affairs and Works' Dan McDermott are likely candidates. public policy for Comcast, said the part of the 1992 Cable Act that forces cable operators to make their CBS Celebrates Christmas With Tiger networks available to competing distributors pertains As CBS Sports looks to grab a piece of new NFL or only to satellite -delivered services. Comcast Sport- NBA TV contracts, it is launching a premier sports sNet is delivered to area cable and wireless operators event all its own: Tiger and Friends, an all-star golf by microwave. outing pitting star swinger Tiger Woods against Ken Griffey Jr., Kevin Costner and possibly Michael Jor- Sponsors Exit ABC's 'Sacred' Drama dan. Slated to air on Christmas Day from 2-4 p.m., Following a boycott call from the Catholic League the match will be formatted so that every time Tiger for Religious and Civil Rights, five advertisers have loses a hole, the threesome playing against him gets withdrawn their ads from ABC's new drama Noth- to remove a club from his bag. Woods' rep firm, ing Sacred. According to the League, Weight IMG, Cleveland, is selling acts; sources familiar with Watchers, Isuzu, Kmart, Benckiser and DuPont asked ABC to the show said AmEx and Nike are likely to sponsor. shift their ads from the drama about a rebellious priest to other ABC programs. A Weight Watchers representative said the com- Gaylord/Westinghouse Gets IRS Nod pany wanted its ads moved in response to consumer complaints Gaylord Entertainment Co. said it received a favorable ruling about the show's controversial plots. A Kmart representative con- last week from the Internal Revenue Service on its tax-free, $1.55 firmed the retailer is moving its ads, but said they ran mistakenly billion merger with Westinghouse. The deal, expected to close in the premiere episode because of the premiere -date change; Sept. 30, gives Westinghouse control over The Nashville Network Kmart had told ABC it wished to avoid Nothing Sacred. and Country Music TV. MEDIAWEEK (ISSN 0155-176X) is published 47 times a year. Regular issues are published weekly except the last week of July and the second and fourthweeks of August and the last two weeks of December by ASM Communications, Inc., a subsidiary of BPI Communications Inc., 1515 Broadway, New York, NY, 10036. Subscriptions are$125 one year; $215 two years. Canadian subscriptions $280 per year. All other foreign subscriptions are $280 (using air mail). Registered as a newspaper atthe British Post Office. Periodicals postage paid at New York, N.Y. and additional mailing offices. Subscriber Service (1-800) 722-6658. MEDIAWEEK, 1515 Broadway, New York, NY, 10036.Editorial: New York, (212) 536-5336; Los Angeles, (213) 525-2270; Chicago, (312) 464-8525. Sales (212) 536-6528. Classified (1-800-7-ADWEEK). POSTMASTER: Send address changes to MEDIAWEEK,P.O. Box 1976, Danbury, CT 06813-1976. Copyright, 1997 ASM Communications, Inc. PAGE 4 http://www.mediaweek.com September 29, 1997 MEDIAWEEK MEDIA WIRE Fox Affils Hurry to Fill 'Vicki' Void; Syndicators Rush In OnceaBuyer, Fox's abrupt announcement last week that it will cancel The Vicki Lawrence Show on Oct. 3 after a five -week run has affiliates scrambling to fill the 9-10 a.m. time slot and syndicators moving quickly to provide replacement programming. The failure of Vicki, which averaged a NowaSeller 0.9 rating/4 share, ends Fox's year -long attempt to fill the time period with its own programming; Vicki predecessor Fox Jacor seen as switching sides inmerger roulette After Breakfast, a hit on Fox's FX cable RADIO / By Claude Brodesser network, never caught on after Fox ton -based American Radio Systems (which was moved it to broadcast. aving come up short in bidding wars sold this month for $2.6 billion to CBS) and for On many Fox stations, Vicki lead -out for two major station groups in New York-based SFX (sold in August for $2.1 Home Team With Teny Bradshaw has also recent weeks, Jacor Communica- billion to Hicks, Muse's CapStar Broadcast Part- been struggling, averaging a 1.0 rating/5 tions, the country's third -largest ners unit).