THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, October 28, 1996 TAG: 9610260048
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E1 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Column
SOURCE: Larry Bonko
LENGTH: 74 lines
LOCAL TV NEWS and views to ponder during the half hour between ``Friends'' and ``Seinfeld'':
It's about time - With more than 400,000 residents, is Virginia Beach big enough for two TV stations? Yes, says the Federal Communications Commission, which recently opened UHF channel 21 in the resort city to applicants. (WVBT in Virginia Beach, Channel 43, is affiliated with the Warner Brothers network).
Until now, the bidders (Steven Soldinger, Paul Lucci and WinStar Broadcasting) have been relatively small players in the TV game. However, the giants are now involved, with the A.H. Belo Corp., owners of WVEC and 15 other TV stations, the latest to bid on channel 21.
The other TV big boy in the hunt is Sinclair Broadcasting, with 22 TV properties, including WTVZ here. A crowded landscape. Don't go searching for channel 21's programs in your TV Guide anytime soon. It's not likely to sign on until the next century.
Let the candidates speak - WVBT last week joined with its partner, WAVY - the stations have a local marketing agreement - to make available a primetime forum for candidates running for U.S. Senate and House seats in Virginia and North Carolina. Andy Fox hosted the ``Newsbreakers'' specials.
Fan is short for fanatic - A Norfolk man recently pleaded no contest to charges that he was stalking a woman who up until recently co-anchored the news at a local network affiliate.
The judge in Norfolk Circuit Court gave the man a suspended sentence and ordered that he have no further contact with the TV newswoman he allegedly harassed, her family or employees at the station where she worked until a few months ago.
Type casting - Up in Richmond, they're filming a movie (``Christmas Every Day'') that will be seen on The Family Channel come the holiday season. When a part for a governor came up, FAM didn't have far to go.
FAM found its man in the governor's mansion. Gov. George Allen agreed to do an outdoor scene with actor Erik vonDetten on Hawthorne Avenue in Richmond, said FAM spokesman Ann Abraham.
Complaint department - Norfolk reader Gwen Gillette says she's crazy about ``Siskel & Ebert,'' the long-running series devoted to film clips, comments and criticism. But Gillette is not happy about the ``S&E'' timeslot on WVEC - 35 minutes past midnight on Saturday night.
``Any way to get the show on earlier?'' she asks. WVEC general manager Rick Keilty says the station is obliged to carry the ``Psi Factor'' for now at 11:35 - it's about the paranormal - but promised to take another look at the Saturday night schedule soon.
Getting to know you - Bet WVEC co-anchor Terry Zahn knows Regina Mobley's favorite cologne by now. Bet she knows what after-shave he prefers. The two co-anchored three daily newscasts (at 5, 6 and 11) for two weeks straight not long ago. That's closeness.
The Channel 13 bosses liked what they saw of these two together, because last week Mobley was picked to co-anchor the 6 p.m. news with Zahn on a permanent basis. What's it like working with Zahn?
Mobley gave a one-word answer: ``Comfortable.''
Conflict of interest? - Am I the only one who is uneasy about seeing WTKR's anchors promoting a car maker in the public-service announcements for the Chrysler Museum?
And the winner is . . . - I've had mail from a carpet dealer in Norfolk who says he was unfairly thrashed by a recent ``10 on Your Side'' report aired by WAVY. He may not appreciate Channel 10's crusaders, but the Virginia Beach Division of Consumer Affairs does.
WAVY recently won the city's consumer recognition award for the kind of aggressive consumerism that upset the carpet dealer.
People pleaser - Judging by what I've heard on Infoline, WVEC's new cool-mod-Big 13-Skymax blue news set has won the hearts of the viewers. Among 63 callers, not one had anything but nice things to say about the new look at Channel 13. Alice E. Smith of Norfolk got emotional, calling the set ``be-you-tee-full.'' MEMO: (Call me on Infoline at 640-5555, press 2486). by CNB