THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, August 2, 1995 TAG: 9508020491
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: LARRY BONKO
LENGTH: Medium: 63 lines
It seems like only yesterday when Laurence A. Tisch, chairman, president and chief executive officer of CBS, stood before TV writers in Los Angeles to say that his network was not for sale.
He was emphatic about it.
``Let me make it abundantly clear. Let me set you straight. CBS was not for sale yesterday. It is not for sale today. Why don't you people in the press face reality? CBS is not for sale.''
Even after that statement a few months ago, the TV writers pressed on with their questions. And why not? Broadcasting was buzzing with reports that CBS had been on the block for a year or so, with Barry Diller of QVC, Ted Turner of Turner Broadcasting, and of late, Westinghouse, in the bidding to buy what was once called the Tiffany network.
Sales? Takeovers?
Nonsense, said Tisch, a short, balding man who seemed irritated at being questioned over and over about the possible sale.
``Why is this matter on every writer's front burner? There is no basis in fact to justify all this conversation about the sale of a network I've been associated with for over eight years.''
Listening to Tisch, and watching his face redden with anger, I said to myself, ``The chairman doth protest too much, methinks.''
In the wake of those denials, Tisch on Tuesday approved the sale of CBS to Westinghouse in a $5.4 billion deal that did not rock broadcasting as did the merger of Capital Cities/ABC and Disney announced the day before.
Another day. Another deal.
On CBS' evening newscast Tuesday, anchor Paula Zahn gave the merger second billing after first bringing on reports of Hurricane Erin approaching Florida's mainland. It was a bit odd to watch her sit there and say ``this network'' has been sold.
You almost expected somebody to come along and pull the plug. (Locally, the general manager of CBS affiliate WTKR, Elden A. Hale Jr., was not available to comment on what the deal might mean to viewers here. The general managers of CBS affiliates in Richmond and Roanoke did not return phone calls.)
Despite Tisch's words to the contrary, the CBS-to-Westinghouse sale had been brewing for some time. During the semiannual Television Critics Association media tour that concluded a few days ago, there was not a whisper of the ABC-Disney deal, but plenty of talk about the potential sale of CBS.
When he met the media, the incoming president of CBS Entertainment, Leslie Moonves, was introduced as a potential Westinghouse employee of the month. If the sale comes, Moonves said, he will try not to be distracted by it, and will plunge ahead with attempting to elevate CBS from the No. 3 network to No. 1.
``I honestly don't think the merger will affect what I do. If it comes, I will continue to do my job, keep my head straight ahead, roll with the punches.'' Moonves said he has seen large media mergers from the inside more than once.
``You're talking to a guy who was there when Lorimar was evolving into Lorimar Telepictures, and then was bought by Warner Brothers, which merged with Time Warner.''
Now this. CBS and Westinghouse will soon be one. Moonves has been here before. by CNB