A little history will be made at the upcoming Winter Olympics, and not necessarily in the competition. Looking for a way to offset part of its $243 million rights fee, CBS saw the future. And the future was Turner
Broadcasting`s cable empire.
Turner`s TNT will become the first cable network to take part in the Games. For $20 million, Turner Broadcasting purchased 45 hours of daytime coverage-five hours a day from Feb. 10-14 and from Feb. 18-21.
”When we first talked about getting involved in the Olympics, it was basically for identification purposes,” says Don McGuire, Turner Sports senior vice president/executive producer. ”TNT had been on the air very briefly. We had found through our research the Olympics trademark is the most respected trademark in the world. We wanted to be associated with it. The second reason was trying to find new viewers for TNT.”
To Turner Sports executives, it`s just a beginning. McGuire plays down any major role in the 1996 Summer Games slated for TNT`s home base, Atlanta, saying, ”It was just too onerous to take on.” But McGuire sees cable as an Olympics force in the future.
”There may be a new balance in the next Olympics,” he says. ”You may see fewer hours on network and more on cable. I don`t think you`ll see all of the Olympics on pay-per-view or cable. But I do see a Winter Olympics with 45 hours on network and 116 on cable.”
Only this month, it`s the other way around. CBS will telecast 116 hours, but because of the time difference, less than one-third will be live. That`s something of which TNT plans to take advantage.
”The agreement with CBS is very informal,” McGuire says. ”We`re working that out as we go. We`re not embargoed from carrying any sport. There`s no embargo on news. We can give results. We`re just embargoed from showing any winning competition until CBS releases it to us.
”If we happen to have a camera outside the door as the U.S. (hockey)
team comes out hugging and kissing, there isn`t much of a way to embargo that. You won`t see a shot of the winning goal or that sort of stuff until it`s appeared on CBS. (But) there`s not a hustle embargo. We`re not going to be kept from hustling.”
Since Nick Charles and Fred Hickman will host the Games coverage from an Atlanta studio, TNT is keeping production costs to a minimum. While CBS will have nearly 1,000 people in the Savoie region, TNT will have 51.
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”I know there`s a perception of (TNT showing) leftovers,” McGuire says. But he`s not approaching it that way. ”The opportunity here is to do more of the Olympic Games.”
Part of the CBS agreement helped Turner save more money. TNT can only use the world feed provided by the French-run Olympics Radio and Television Organization. TNT will have its own cameras at only the figure skating and hockey rinks.
”Our rights are all trickle-down from CBS,” explains McGuire. ”When we get credentials, we get them from CBS. This is a very small operation. Our budget is $4 million. We`re paying 10 percent of the bid and getting more than 10 percent of the coverage.”
All of TNT`s telecasts will start at 7 p.m. in France, leaving three sports available for live coverage-figure skating, hockey and curling, ”which CBS has not mentioned embargoing yet,” jokes McGuire. ”It`s a very informal arrangement. We`re going to have meetings around the clock just to talk about it. . . . And it`s my understanding that once we agree on what we`re going to take, that`s it. There`s no `kings-X`s` involved.”
– CBS unofficially begins its Winter Games coverage with a two-hour special at 7 p.m. Thursday on WBBM-Ch. 2, hosted by Paula Zahn and Tim McCarver. . . . Brian Davis` reports from the Winter Olympics for WBBM-AM will be heard at 15 and 45 minutes after the hour, starting Saturday.
– Weekend wanderings: In a curious piece of timing (and one that caught its own publicity staff by surprise), CBS Sports named former Notre Dame coach Digger Phelps as an analyst for the NCAA basketball tournament during halftime of Saturday`s Connecticut-St. John`s game. CBS executive producer Ted Shaker explained, ”We`re very excited to have someone with Digger`s credentials.”
. . . Magic Johnson made a strong debut as an analyst (where did all that animosity toward Byron Scott come from?) during NBC`s telecast of the Bulls-Lakers game Sunday. . . . Best shot: Northwestern`s Cedric Neloms hugging teammates after his game-winning basket against Illinois. . . . Strongest comment: ABC`s Dick Vitale calling LSU`s Shaquille O`Neal ”one of the four best centers in the world.” . . . Best feature: NBC`s Quinn Buckner on Warriors star Chris Mullin. . . . Strangest line: CBS` Gary McCord on golfer Mark O`Meara`s winning putt at the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am: ”If you`ve got the funk, go ahead and hit it.” . . . Shameless plug: NBC cameras finding Nadia Comaneci and Bart Conner, stars of Saturday`s ”SportsWorld” skating and gymnastics exhibition, at the Bulls-Lakers game. . . . And was that really Mr. Integrity, Bob Knight, shilling for Domino`s Pizza?