On the five broadcast stations - KYW-3, 6ABC, NBC 10, WB17, and Fox-Philadelphia, a sports fan must sit through over 90 percent of the late night newscast before getting a measly two to four minutes of sports.

By LAURA NACHMAN
Courier Times
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At the beginning of CN8's "The Sports Connection," which airs weeknights from 11 p.m.- midnight, host Lou Tilley asks "Why sit through over 25 minutes of news you won't use, weather, and anchor yak before getting your leftover crumbs of sports on the broadcast stations?"

Tilley, formerly of KYW-3 raises a valid point.

On the five broadcast stations - KYW-3, 6ABC, NBC 10, WB17, and Fox-Philadelphia, a sports fan must sit through over 90 percent of the late night newscast before getting a measly two to four minutes of sports. The worst case is the 6 p.m. news on NBC 10 where sports was recently reduced to one minute and 15 seconds.

In a town that is sports-crazed, why is sports an afterthought for channels 3, 6, 10, 17, and 29?

According to WB17 news director Rich Scott, the news operations are only doing what the people want. "Just about all the research on what viewers look for in a local newscast, puts sports at the bottom of the priority list. Studies show many news viewers reach for the remote when sports comes on. So sports ends up at the end of the show, to minimize 'tune-out.'

"Across the country, sports are traditionally one of the last things in the newscast, because of the research mentioned earlier. A couple of stations across the country (including Las Vegas) have eliminated sports altogether from their newscasts, with no noticeable drop in ratings."

Tilley, a sportscaster here for over 15 years doesn't buy it. "My research is from the people in the diners, around town, etc., and sports are still huge."

A behind-the-scenes staff member at a broadcast station concurred: "I don't understand why management makes sports the low man on the totem pole. Philadelphia is passionate about sports, but we are always the first segment to get cut."

One possible reason why sports isn't a high priority for the stations is that it's a different ballgame for the broadcast stations with competition from several 24-hour cable sports networks and the internet for sports news.

Cable stations Comcast SportsNet and CN8 have the luxury of time.

A behind-the-scenes staffer at a broadcast station acknowledged the broadcast stations can't compete with CSN.

That could explain why sportscasters like Ukee Washington, Mike Dardis and Scott Palmer have moved into news, and why many sports names such as Michael Barkann, Neil Hartman, Al Meltzer, Tom Stathakes, Jim Cuddihy, Scott Facenda and Tilley have defected from broadcast to cable.

So would Tilley, who saw his sports segment go from five minutes at quarter after the hour in 1986 to around half the time at 27 after the hour by the end of his tenure at KYW-3 in 1998, return to broadcast TV?

"Never! There is no comparison," Tilley said. "The sportscasters at the broadcast stations have been neutered. It is a liberating feeling to be at a place that cares about sports."

Laura Nachman writes about television and radio sports for the Courier Times. Write her in care of the Courier Times, 8400 Route 13, Levittown, PA 19057, fax 215-949-4177 or e-mail bradyresident@aol.com

Friday, December 28, 2001