Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, January 30, 1994 TAG: 9401270120
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By MARC GUNTHER KNIGHT-RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The syndicated "Babylon 5" sci-fi adventure and PBS' "Washington Week in Review" have little in common - except for their appeal to small, loyal, almost cultish audiences.
This relatively narrow appeal has led them to seek out creative ways to interact with viewers, through computer on-line services. Producers of both shows will make themselves available to viewers on-line.
The "Babylon 5" venture is extensive and innovative. Warner Bros., which is syndicating the show (seen occasionally on FOX Channels 21/27), has developed a computerized information kit available on-line at no cost to viewers.
The kit includes descriptions of the program, cast lists, story lines, biographies of the stars, production credits and, most interesting, a series of "digital trading cards" of visuals from the series.
They're available on such on-line services as CompuServe, America On-Line and GEnie, all of which have active groups of science fiction fans.
"The computer program is a unique way to reach a highly targeted science fiction audience," says Jim Moloshok, senior vice president of marketing at Warner Bros.
J. Michael Straczynski, the creator and executive producer of "Babylon 5," is a regular visitor to bulletin boards who often responds to comments from fans. When the fictional names he created for a mega corporation and a mineral were rejected for legal reasons, Straczynski went onto GEnie and asked for suggestions. Sci-fi fans created the names of Quantium-40 for the mineral and Universal Terraform for the company.
"Washington Week in Review," meanwhile, is preparing to offer a forum on America On-Line beginning in April, after the show's new moderator, Ken Bode, has been on the air for a while. Bode is replacing Paul Duke as host of the 28-year-old talk show.
Details are still being worked out, but "Washington Week" intends to give viewers a chance to suggest topics for the program, debate issues, learn more about the panelists and and join in "live chat" sessions with them after the 8 p.m. Friday telecasts.
"If there's a primary motivation, it's to increase the dialogue between the viewers of the program and the people who make it every week," says David McGowan, the senior vice president of the Washington TV station WETA, which produces the show.
"The buffs, the people who really watch these programs, may want to know more about Gloria Borger than the moderator can say in a two-minute introduction."
"Washington Week" may also make congressional information and public documents available on-line. The show joins C-SPAN and CNN, which already operate public affairs discussions on America On-Line.
Indeed, a growing number of TV shows are staking claims in cyberspace. Actress Markie Post of CBS's "Hearts Afire" recently responded to questions from viewers on Prodigy, as did the executive producers of NBC's "Viper," Danny Bilson and Paul DiMeo.
The most-visited newsstand in America is to be found not on any street corner but in cyberspace. Some 25,000 people a day stop by the Electronic Newsstand, a place where travelers on the information superhighway can browse through magazines and order subscriptions.
The Electronic Newsstand, which features more than 80 magazines, offers the current table of contents, a few selected stories, a statement describing the magazine and a subscription offer. A wide range of titles are represented, ranging from the New Yorker to the Economist, from Eating Well to the Journal of NIH Research, from Technology Review to Canoe & Kayak.
The business was launched in July 1993 by Jeffrey Dearth, president of the New Republic, one of the first magazines to become hip to the world of computer communications. The founders get a cut of every subscription ordered. "We started with a handful of orders, but that has picked up dramatically in the last couple of months," says Paul Vizza, associate publisher of the New Republic.
Here's the catch: The Internet remains a forbidding place, so getting to the Electronic Newsstand isn't easy for computer novices.
To sign up for an on-line service, you need a computer and modem. You can call Compuserve (1-800-848-8990), Prodigy (1-800-284-5933), GEnie (1-800-638-9636) or America On-Line (1-800-827-6364) to sign up. The "Babylon 5" information kits usually can be found in the sci-fi forums.
For information on the Electronic Newsstand, you can e-mail paul vizza at vizza`at'enews.com. Experienced Internet users can telnetto gopher.internet.com and then login as enews.
For comments or questions for Marc Gunther, please e-mail him on Compuserve (72732,1006) or America On-Line (Marcgu) or at marcg`at'well.sf.ca.us.
by CNB