WASHINGTON The House Telecommunications subcommittee yesterdayheard the leaders of the three television networks insist thatbudgetary cutbacks have not affected the quality of broadcast news.
Though the panel was looking into news operations at each of thenetworks, one congressman zeroed in on NBC and suggested that GeneralElectric Co. be required to divest the network it purchased from RCACorp. for $6.3 billion only last year.
Rep. Jim Slattery (D-Kan.) noted that General Electric hasDefense Department contracts valued at $6.8 billion - one-quarter ofGE's annual revenues - and questioned whether NBC News can reportobjectively on issues of concern to its parent company.
Lawrence Grossman, NBC News president, said, "GE hasdemonstrated the capacity to keep news operations separate from otherparts of the business," and said that from the time the GE-RCA mergerwas first proposed, keeping news separate from GE's other businesseswas considered essential.
"It's a legitimate question but the track record of GE has beenvery clear," Grossman said.
Slattery suggested "some kind of legislation" might be necessaryto prevent other companies with large government contracts frompurchasing networks in the future. "Maybe we should consider havingGeneral Electric divest of NBC," he said.
The three-day-long hearings, which conclude today with thescheduled appearance of each network's chief officers, were called bysubcommittee Chairman Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), and came afterbudgetary cutbacks throughout the network television business.
The focus of the hearings centers on the new management at thenetworks. Along with NBC ownership changes, ABC, in 1985, alsomerged with Capital Cities Communications Inc. And though CBStechnically was not taken over, last year its board deposed itsformer president and replaced him with Laurence Tisch, who also isCBS's largest shareholder.
"I can state with confidence that the news reportingcapabilities of today's CBS News are equal to those at any other timein its history," said Howard Stringer, president of the network'snews division, who addressed the subcommittee along with RooneArledge, president of ABC News, and Grossman, each of whom also saideconomies in the news division haven't affected what viewers see.
The bulk of the questioning, however, had to do with the networknews cuts, particularly at CBS, where the news division's $300million annual budget has been slashed by $30 million and 200staffers were laid off.
"Each network has undergone major reconstructive surgery," Markeysaid, referring to the management changes and budget cuts at thenetworks. "We wonder whether they will function as well as before.We wonder whether their values will be changed."
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