THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 
              Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Wednesday, May 22, 1996               TAG: 9605220145
SECTION: BUSINESS                PAGE: D1   EDITION: FINAL 
SOURCE: BY DAVE MAYFIELD, STAFF WRITER 
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH                    LENGTH:   47 lines

AD AGE SAYS IFE BEING PURSUED BY THREE SUITORS BEACH-BASED PARENT OF FAMILY CHANNEL DECLINED TO COMMENT ABOUT POSSIBLE SALE.

Another round of speculation that The Family Channel's parent company is a takeover candidate was kicked off with a trade-press report this week that named NBC, CBS and Sony Corp. as potential suitors.

International Family Entertainment Inc., the Virginia Beach-based enterprise controlled by Pat Robertson and his son, Timothy, has already rebuffed an offer from NBC, the trade magazine Advertising Age reported Monday. The magazine said CBS and Sony are pursuing a deal with IFE, but that no details were available.

The Ad Age report came amidst a strong recent surge in IFE's stock and unusually heavy trading in its shares. In the past two weeks, the price of IFE's Class B shares has risen 17 percent.

The stock closed Tuesday at $17.87 a share, up 75 cents. Nearly 232,000 shares were traded Tuesday - about eight times IFE's average daily trading volume over the past three months.

David R. Humphrey, an IFE senior vice president, declined to comment on reports of a potential sale of the company. ``We talk to lots of people about lots of things,'' he said. ``As to specific rumors about XYZ or CBS or whoever you like, I'm not going to get into it.''

Humphrey said IFE's strong first-quarter earnings - up 50 percent from the year before - and recent ratings gains for The FamilyChannel justify the stock's rise.

IFE holds its annual shareholders' meeting today. The company gave no indication Tuesday that it plans to address the takeover issue at that meeting.

In January, Wall Street investor Mario Gabelli, whose mutual funds own about 13 percent of IFE's stock, kicked off speculation of a potential takeover. He told the Barron's newspaper that he considered IFE a buyout candidate.

Gabelli's comment was largely discounted by analysts, however, because he has a history of talking up companies in which he has a large stake as takeover candidates.

IFE is one of two local cable-network operators that are reported to be in deal talks. Privately held Landmark Communications Inc., the Norfolk-based parent of The Virginian-Pilot, has been discussing a potential sale of The Travel Channel to Discovery Communications Inc., parent of The Discovery Channel and The Learning Channel. by CNB