Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, December 20, 1994                   TAG: 9412200084
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B-5   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: MIAMI                                  LENGTH: Short

CNN TO ADMIT MISTAKE

As he prepared to sentence the network for contempt, U.S. District Judge William Hoeveler gave CNN a choice: pay a substantial fine of any amount he chooses for contempt of court, plus the cost of the prosecution, or broadcast an admission of error and pay only the prosecution cost.

After a short recess, CNN agreed to admit it made a mistake and pay the lesser costs, $85,000.

The law places no limits on the fine a judge can impose in a criminal contempt case.

CNN President Tom Johnson said the broadcasts were to start at 6 p.m. Monday.

``I simply wanted to do the right thing based on all of the available information,'' Johnson said.

Four years ago, the network quoted from leaked tapes of the deposed Panamanian leader's telephone conversations with lawyers. Noriega was later convicted of drug charges and is serving a 40-year sentence.

The Atlanta-based network had argued it was legally entitled to broadcast the tapes, even though the judge had ordered it not to, because it had a journalistic responsibility to show what it suspected was government misconduct for taping Noriega's calls.

But Hoeveler, who presided at Noriega's trial, convicted CNN of contempt.

CNN agreed to broadcast a statement saying that the network ``realizes it was in error in defying the order of the court'' instead of just appealing it.