WDBJ 7 news at 6 for 03/30/00

[1-News-Head]

[TALENT=Keith]

The News is coming right up with concerns over contract talks at Dan River... concerns over the same-sex dates for
the high school prom...
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

And prospects of downtown living breathe new new life into an old office building in Roanoke.
(------------)

[Sports-Head]

[ANCHOR=steve]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=sma]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=]

In sports, words from Winston Cup rookie Stacy Comtpon who was at Martinsville today, Virginia tech all -American Corey Moore talks about the approaching NFL draft
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

and Radford and Virginia tech go head to head at English Field in baseball.
(------------)
[WX-Head]
[TALENT=Patrick]
[SS=None]

Clear skies tonight, sunshine tomorrow, and warm weekend highs. Your complete weather story is on the way.

[Dan-River]

[ANCHOR=]
[NEWSCAST=]
[WRITER=sch]
[TAPE#=00-04 TC56:50]
[GRAPHIC=Dan River Negotiations]

Dan River Mills will open new contract talks next month.
The announcement has Dan River employees worried.
[Double Boxes=Surae and Keith/Danville Bureau]

Surae Chinn has been looking at union contract talks and the company's finances.
She's in our Danville Newsroom with our lead story.
[Live=Surae Full/Danville Bureau]
[SUPER=@Surae1;]
[SUPER=05-Danville;]

Keith, since the workers' union agreed to begin talks with the company, both sides have been busy comparing calendars and fine tuning their requests.
Company officials say those negotiations will begin within 2 weeks.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=These negotiations]
[SUPER=01-Joe Bouknight/Dan River Inc. Spokesperson; :00]
[SUPER=03-Danville/January; :14]
[SUPER=01-Wayne Martin/Business Analyst; :33]
[RUNS=1:27]
[OUT Q=given them some stability]
((((JOE BOUKNIGHT/DAN RIVER INC.: THESE NEGOTIATIONS ARE ABOUT JOB SECURITY REALLY BECAUSE WE WOULD LIKE TO REACH AN AGREEMENT THAT GIVES DAN RIVER A LEVEL OF COMFORT IN INVESTING MORE MONEY IN DANVILLE.)) [RUNS:12]
Ever since the largest employer in Danville decided to move nearly 500 jobs to Mexico job security has become the main issue for the 32-hundred remaining workers. Neither side will say what areas the contract talks will cover. Business analysts like Wayne Martin can only speculate.
[SOT 1:45:06]
((WAYNE MARTIN/BUSINESS ANALYST: I THINK THE QUESTION COMES DOWN TO HOW MUCH DO WE AS EMPLOYEES HAVE TO SACRIFICE TO SECURE SOME OF OUR JOBS.)) [RUNS:16]
And how secure are those jobs? Company officials say Dan River incorporated is healthy and strong. But according to their annual report last year, operating profits dropped 82 percent in its apparel fabrics operation. That's the operation heading to Mexico. However, profits are up 50 percent in its home fashions division. Martin says by focusing on that success, the company has avoided the path other textile businesses have taken.
[SOT 1:41:17]
((WAYNE MARTIN/BUSINESS ANALYST: NARROWING THEIR PRODUCT LINE AND BECOMING MORE SPECIALIZE DID ALLOW THEM TO BECOME COMPETITIVE AND THAT HAS GIVEN THEM SOME STABILITY.)) [RUNS:10]))
(-------------)
[Live=Surae Full/Danville Bureau]
[SUPER=05-Danville;]

But stability is not the word many employees we talked to would chose. They're experiencing a number of emotions.
Some don't care, some are looking for new jobs and getting training elsewhere.
[DOUBLE BOXES=Surae and Keith/Danville Bureau]
Keith, some said they're too afraid to think about it.
(QUESTION: Have union leaders commented on the situation yet?)

[Pulaski-Furniture]

[ANCHOR=Keith]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=mjo]
[TAPE#=99-60 TC1:45:14]
[GRAPHIC=Pulaski Furniture]

If you own stock in Pulaski Furniture, today you hit paydirt.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Pulaski/June 1997;]

Pulaski Furniture's C-E-O and senior managers arranged to buy the company for 125-million dollars... with the unanimous approval of its Board of Directors.
They're buying shares from stockholders at 30-percent above their recent value on NASDAQ.
Pulaski Furniture employs more than two-thousand people in southwestern Virginia.
Analysts call the buyout a "sign of strength and confidence" that forecasts good things for the company.
(------------)

[Floyd-Prom]

[ANCHOR=Keith]
[NEWSCAST=6]
[WRITER=tte]
[TAPE#99-58 TC1:35:51]
[GRAPHIC=None]
The Floyd County high school is letting a female student take her girlfriend to the prom. The A-C-L-U threatened to sue the school if it did not. But the girl's plan enrages local residents, who call it a sin.
[Double Boxes=Keith and Tina/Newsroom]
Tina Tenret went to Floyd today. She's in our newsroom tonight. Tiffany Lapine and her family just moved to Floyd County this year.
[Live=Tina Full/Newsroom]
[SUPER=@Tina1;]
They don't want to appear on camera to protect their privacy. Tiffany asked the school principal if she could bring a girl to the prom -- The principal said he'd have to think about it because the girls wanted to wear what he calls non-traditional clothing.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=The school ]
[SUPER=01-Kent Willis/American Civil Liberties Union; :00]
[SUPER=03-Floyd Co.; :10]
[SUPER=01-Sean Peters/Floyd Co. H.S. Student; :48]
[RUNS=1:05]
[OUT Q=never get changed]
(((///// SOT /////)
[SOT 2:29]
[IN Q=THE SCHOOL]
((KENT WILLIS/ACLU: THE SCHOOL MAY HAVE BEEN LOOKING FOR A PRETEXT. THEY MAY HAVE BEEN LOOKING FOR SOME OTHER REASON TO PREVENT THIS YOUNG WOMAN FROM BRINGING HER DATE.)) [RUNS:10]
[OUT Q=HER DATE]
Kent Willis of the American Civil Liberties Union fired off a letter to the principal, saying if he did not let Tiffany bring a girl to the prom -- he'd be discriminating against lesbians. The high school handbook says nothing about same sex dates or non-traditional clothing at dances.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 2:44]
[IN Q=It is very]
((KENT WILLIS/AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION: IT IS VERY CLEAR THE SCHOOL EITHER HAD A DEFACTO POLICY OR A LONG TRADITION AGAINST SAME SEX DATES AT THE SCHOOL BUT THEY KNEW THEY COULDN'T CONTINUE WITH THAT.)) [RUNS:14]
[OUT Q=with that]
But Floyd County residents say they don't have to accept the alternative lifestyles brought in by outsiders.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 13:21:41]
[SOT 13:26:16]
[SOT 3:37]
[IN Q=We're Christian]
((VIVIAN COX/FLOYD CO. RESIDENT: WE'RE CHRISTIAN PEOPLE AND WE DO NOT BELIEVE IN HOMOSEXUALITY.
SEAN PETERS/FLOYD CO. H.S. STUDENT: A LOT OF PEOPLE DON'T LIKE IT BECAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF REDNECK PEOPLE IN FLOYD. IT DOESN'T REALLY MAKE A DIFFERENCE TO ME BUT I THINK SHE'LL GET PICKED ON A LOT IF SHE DOES IT. KENT WILLIS/ACLU: UNLESS SOMEONE STICKS THEIR NECK OUT THESE KINDS OF THINGS NEVER GET CHANGED.)) [RUNS:14]
[OUT Q=CHANGED]))
[Live=Tina Full/Newsroom]
The principal refused to appear on camera too because he just wants the publicity to end.
[Double Boxes=Keith and Tina/Newsroom]
He and some residents say that this whole affair gives Floyd County a bad image.

[Blacksburg-Baby]

[ANCHOR=Keith]
[NEWSCAST=6]
[WRITER=mjo]
[TAPE#=00-01 1:25:56]
[GRAPHIC=Legal Scales]

The woman accused of throwing her newborn baby's body in a Blacksburg dumpster was in court this morning.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg;]

Rosetta Elizabeth Clark plead NOT guilty to the misdemeanor charge of improperly disposing of the infant.
The 21-year-old Virginia Tech student declined to comment on her case.
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg/March 11;]

Police found the baby boy's body in a dumpster at Clark's apartment complex nearly three weeks ago.
A medical examiner later ruled that the baby was dead at birth.
Clark will be tried in Blacksburg next month.
(------------)

[Tease#1]
[ANCHOR=Keith]
[SS=NONE]

David Duke may be coming to Virginia to support a Confederate Heritage proclamation.
More on that when News 7 at Six returns.
(---------------)
[VO-NAT]

And you may have seen them around Blacksburg-- the changing colors of traffic signs... how they may affect highway safety.
(----------------)

[Downtown-Housing]

[ANCHOR=Keith]
[NEWSCAST=Six]
[WRITER=jda]
[TAPE#=99-59 TC1:14:32]
[GRAPHIC=None]

Urban Planners say housing is a missing ingredient in the redevelopment of downtown Roanoke.
Tonight there are plans to address that with new apartments in a Roanoke landmark.
[Double Boxes=Keith & Joe/Microwave]

Joe Dashiell is there this evening with more on the plan.
[Live=Joe Full/Microwave]
[SUPER=@Joe1;]
[SUPER=05-Roanoke]

Keith, the landmark we're talking about is the old Norfolk and Western building on Jefferson near the railroad tracks. By converting this vacant building into upscale apartments, downtown leaders hope to build on improvements that are already showing significant progress nearby.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=The sign is up]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke; :00]
[SUPER=01-Ed Hall/Foundation President; :21 (approx)]
[SUPER=01-Matt Kennell/Downtown Roanoke Inc.; :44 (approx)]
[RUNS=1:00 (approx)]
[OUT Q=this project will fill up.]

((The sign is up over the new entrance... and the Roanoke Higher Education Center is now awash in workmen.
Soon, downtown Roanoke officials hope the same will be true of the building next door.
During a Hotel Roanoke news conference, they unveiled plans for 87 upscale apartments in the former N&W office building known as GOB South.
[SOT ED HALL 09:17:42]
[IN Q=Many, many lifestyles are changing]
[RUNS= :11]
[OUT Q=truly 24 hour city.]

Monthly rents would range from 595 dollars for a studio to 875 dollars for a three-bedroom apartment. And officials say they are convinced there are enough people willing to pay that price.
[SOT MATT KENNELL 09:21:51 ]
[IN Q=I'm sure that the demand is there]
[RUNS= :17]
[OUT Q= this project will fill up] ))

[Live=Joe Full/Microwave]
[SUPER=05-Roanoke]

The nine million dollar project will be financed with a mortgage or bonds and supporters say it could be underway within the year.
And Keith,
[Double Boxes=Keith & Joe/Microwave]
the Roanoke Foundation for Downtown is also finalizing plans for the old N & W passenger station, and we should know more about that in the next couple of months.

[David-Duke]

[ANCHOR=Keith]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=equ]
[TAPE#=00-06 TC29:42]
[GRAPHIC=none]

The same minister who blasted Governor Jim Gilmore this week for his plans to proclaim "Confederate History Month" in Virginia is organizing a shopping mall boycott in his home county of Chesterfield.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Richmond/July 1999]

And now, former K-K-K leader and "European American rights" advocate David Duke says he's coming to Virginia this weekend for a counter-protest.
Duke was in Richmond last year for the Lee mural controversy.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 14:34:53]
[IN Q=I am impressed]
((REV. GERALD GLENN/NEW DELIVERANCE EVANGELICAL CHURCH: I AM IMPRESSED WITH THEIR ORGANIZATION. MR. DUKE AND HIS ORGANIZATION APPARENTLY FEEL THAT THIS IS OF SUCH IMPORTANCE THAT HE WILL LEAVE HIS HOME IN LOUISIANA.))
[SUPER=01-Rev. Gerald Glenn/New Deliverance Evan. Church;]
[RUNS=:11]
[OUT Q=in Louisiana.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Chesterfield Co.]

Reverend Glenn's calling on black Chesterfield County residents to boycott local malls Saturday.
That's because Chesterfield's the only county in Virginia to name its own "Confederate History Month," and NOT let citizens speak at the meeting where the vote took place.
David Duke is encouraging Confederate supporters to turn out in force at the malls.
He says he'll be there, shaking the hands of shoppers who are protesting the boycott.
(------------)

[Fatal-Accident]

[ANCHOR=Keith]
[NEWSCAST=6]
[WRITER=mjo]
[TAPE#=00-03 TC1:20:55]
[GRAPHIC=Fatal Accident]

A head-on collision this morning killed a Shawsville man.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Montgomery Co.;]

It happened on Alleghany Springs Road just before 9:30.
State police say 77-year-old Julius Sisson had just waved to a neighbor... when he veered across the center line and hit an oncoming truck.
Sisson died at the scene.
The passengers in the other truck -- a man and his 12-year-old son -- suffered minor injuries.
(------------)

[Lewis-Gale]

[ANCHOR=Keith]
[NEWSCAST=6p]
[WRITER=jmc]
[TAPE#=None]
[GRAPHIC=Departing Docs]

Nine Lewis-Gale Clinic doctors who are forming a group practice say they've worked out a way to settle their legal and financial obligations.
(XXXXXXXXX)
[Take FS Board]
The members of Valley Anesthesia say they have "taken the necessary steps" to insure they can leave the clinic and continue to provide services to their patients.
(-------------)
[ANCHOR=Keith]
[SS=HOLD]

The anesthesiologists are setting up a practice at Lewis-Gale Hospital next door.
Their clinic contract says they can't practice within 50 miles of Salem, unless they pay a substantial penalty.
A clinic spokesman says it doesn't know what arrangements Valley Anesthesia has made to take care of that.

[Stocks]

[ANCHOR=Keith]
[NEWSCAST=6]
[WRITER=]
[TAPE#=None]
[GRAPHIC=NONE]

A selloff in Technology stocks took a big bite out of Wall Street today. [TAKE DOW, NASDAQ & BLOOMBERG PAGE ]
[RUNS=:30]
[SUPER=x5102;]
[SUPER=430-y/38.47/10980.25/y/186.78/4457.89/y/1.08/109.88;]

The DOW lost 38 points to close at 10-thousand- 980.
NASDAQ lost four percent of its value-- falling 187 points.
The Bloomberg News 7 Index was down a point.
[SUPER=431-h!/29*/i2f/57g/i1#/50r/ig/61e/h*/24f;]
[SUPER=432-h*/27f/u/2b/h1a/38a/id/35a/i%/35$;]
[SUPER=433-i4/159/ie/17$/ha/14a/i4%/28/h2a/21e;]
[SUPER=434-hd/16g/i1c/57b/h&/34g/ir/66f/hf/59e;]

[Traffic-Signs]

[ANCHOR=Keith]
[NEWSCAST=6]
[WRITER=mjo]
[TAPE#=99-57 TC1:37:17]
[GRAPHIC=Highway Safety]

If you've driven through Blacksburg, you MAY have noticed some new traffic signs that are hard to ignore.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg;]

These "Test Route" signs ... in fluorescent pink, yellow and purple are part of an experiment.
Virginia Tech's Transportation Institute put them around town to test how drivers respond to bolder colors.
Researchers say that, down the road, the colors that prove to be most eye-popping will be used nationwide to warn drivers of accidents and road conditions.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 26:20 - :33]
[IN Q=What V-DOT]
((VICKI NEALE/TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH SCIENTIST: WHAT V-DOT HAS FOUND IS THAT IF YOU HAVE A SIGN COLOR THAT IS DIFFERENT FROM EVERYTHING ELSE AND YOU CAN GET THE PERSON'S ATTENTION TO THAT SIGN, THEN PEOPLE WILL FOLLOW IT AND UNDERSTAND WHERE THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO GO, NO MATTER WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON.))
[SUPER=01-Vicki Neale/Transportation Research Scientist;]
[RUNS=:13]
[OUT Q=else is going on.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

Researchers alternate the sign colors and monitor "test drivers'" responses to them.
The experiment ends in three weeks.
(------------)

[48-Hours]

[ANCHOR=Keith]
[NEWSCAST=6]
[WRITER=khu]
[TAPE#=00-02 TC1:20:00]
[GRAPHIC=None]

The under-cover cyber cops of Bedford County are on network television tonight.
(------------)
[V/O-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Bedford]

"Operation Blue Ridge Thunder" is featured on the C-B-S News Magazine 48 Hours.
Correspondent Peter Van Sant watches Investigator Jamie Watson work the dark side of the Internet.
Posing as a 13-year old girl, Watson snares a school bus driver in Albany, New York.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 12:18:15]
[IN Q=And he invited]
((PETER VAN SANT/"48 HOURS" CORRESPONDENT: AND HE INVITED THIS GIRL TO COME UP TO ALBANY, SENT A 1-WAY AIRLINE TICKET. WE FOLLOWED THEM TO ALBANY TO APPREHEND THIS GUY. I'D KIND OF LIKE YOU TO WATCH TO SEE HOW IT TURNS OUT. IT'S PRETTY INTERESTING.))
[SUPER=01-Peter Van Sant/"48 Hours" Correspondent]
[RUNS=14]
[OUT Q=pretty interesting.]
(------------)
[V/O-NAT]
"48 Hours" airs tonight at 10 right here on Your Hometown Station.
(------------)

[Sports tease]

[ANCHOR=steve]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=sma]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=]
Radford and Virginia Tech battle in baseball in Blacksburg, Winston Cup rookie Stacy Comtpon was at Martinsville today, we caught up with him,
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

and Virginia tech all -American Corey Moore talks about the approaching NFL draft.
(------------)

[S-Baseball]

[ANCHOR=Steve]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=rst]
[TAPE#=SP-65 (10:05)]
[GRAPHIC=Baseball Logo]

We start with baseball. Virginia Tech and Radford renewed their rivalry this afternoon at English Field in Blacksburg.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg/Radford vs Virginia Tech]

The Highlanders would lead the game until the bottom of the fifth.
Rocky Mount's Chad Foutz hits a shot to left centerfield, it bounces over the fence for a ground rule double scoring a runner from second and the Hokies tied the game at 1 to 1.
Tech would score 3 more times in the fifth. Addison Bowman hits a grounder that
[SUPER=34-Virginia Tech/5/Radford/4;]
goes under the Highlander short stops glove into left field scoring a run and the Hokies led 2 to 1.
Then Tech third baseman Marc Tugwell gets all of this pitch it floats over the left centerfield wall for a two run homer to make it 4 to 1 and Tech wins it 5-4.
(------------)

[S-FFE]

[ANCHOR=Steve]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=sma]
[TAPE#=SP-54]
[GRAPHIC=FFE]

One of our Friday Football Extra schools has named a new head coach. News 7 sports has learned that
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Salem; :00]

Ron Loy is the new head football coach at Parry McCluer. Loy has served as an assistant coach with the Fighting Blues for a number of years under Charlie Wheeler, who recently stepped down. Loy is also the Blues Wrestling coach.
(------------)

[S-Compton]

[ANCHOR=steve]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=sma]
[TAPE#=SP-63 7:51]
[GRAPHIC=Stacy Compton]

Stacy Compton is the fifth Winston Cup rookie to test at Martinsville this week.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Martinsville; :00]

However some inclement weather prevented the Hurt native from getting on the track this morning. He and his car stayed inside. Through all six races, Compton has an average start of 29th and a finish of 30th. He is currently 35th in the Winston Cup points and coming back to Martinsville, one of his favorite tracks, April ninth gives him a lift.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q="we brought]
[SUPER=01-Stacy Compton/Driver of Melling Racing Ford; :00]
[RUNS=:17]
[OUT Q=....coming back"]
(--------)

[S-CBS]

[ANCHOR=steve]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=sma]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=]
(XXXXXXX)
[WIPE TOT PINNACLE!!!!!!!]
[@PAGE-----7512]

You can Stacy and the wrest of the Cup field in the DirectTV 500 at the one and a half mile Texas Motor Speedway right here on your hometown station. CBS begins it's coverage Sunday at 1:30.
(-------------)

[S-Moore]

[ANCHOR=Steve]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=rst]
[TAPE#=SP-61 (1:12:58)]
[GRAPHIC=NFL Draft]

The N-F-L draft is just a couple of weeks away. Virginia Tech's Corey Moore spoke at the football banquet at Gretna High School Last night and he had these comments about the draft.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q="first audio]
[SUPER=01-Corey Moore/Virginia Tech All American; :]
[RUNS=:19]
[OUT Q=........waiting game."]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg; :]

Moore has worked out at the combines at a linebacker position and he's projected to go late in the second round.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q="In order..]
[RUNS=:09]
[OUT Q=...covering people."]
(---------------)

[S-Jones]

[ANCHOR=Steve]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=sma]
[TAPE#=SP-64]
[GRAPHIC=none]
(------------)
[VO-NAT WIPE TO #ENG!!!]
[SUPER=03-Charlottesville; :00]

On the Virginia side, running back Thomas Jones is projected as a high first round pick. Mel Kiper Junior picks the UVa senior to go number 10 overall in the first round. Draft experts like the fact Jones has exceptional balance and runs low to the ground. He is the first running back the critics say will be selected.
(------------)

[S-Women]

[ANCHOR=steve]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=sma]
[TAPE#=SP-58]
[GRAPHIC=Womens final four]

The First Union Center in Philadelphia is the site of tomorrow night's NCAA Women's final four. Tennessee battles Rutgers at seven o'clock and then UConn takes on Penn State at nine. Connecticut's Gina Aeremma is the coach of the year while Tennessee forward Tamika Catchings is the player of the year. The lady Vols appear the favorite, but don't tell them that.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q="it's]
[SUPER=01-Pat Summitt/Tennessee Head Coach; :00]
[RUNS=:16]
[OUT Q=...preparing for Rutgers"]
(----------)

[S-Boards]

[ANCHOR=Steve]
[NEWSCAST=6pm]
[WRITER=sma]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=men's final four]
And don't forget, you can catch the men's NCAA basketball finale four on WDBJ Saturday.
(XXXXXXXXX)
[WIPE TO PINNACLE!!!]
[@PAGE1-------7511]

North Carolina, Florida, Michigan State and Wisconsin will fight it out in Indianapolis.
Wisconsin and Michigan State tip off at the RCA Dome at 5:42. UNC and Florida then battle at 8:17, again, all of the action is right here on your Hometown Station. (-------------)