KCBS Decides to Just Do It

KCBS-TV Channel 2 anchor-reporter Tritia Toyota is in the midst of a frenzied mob inside a gift shop in Nagano, Japan. She talks to the camera while shoppers swirl around her, looking for prized Winter Olympics souvenirs.

“This is the ultimate in Olympic commercialism,” says Toyota.

But in its frequent daily reports from Nagano, KCBS might be accused of engaging in a little commercialism of its own.

Toyota and other correspondents from the station such as sports anchor Jim Hill and weekend anchor Gretchen Carr, dispatched by KCBS to bring a local flavor to CBS’ Olympic coverage, have been wearing jackets and clothing bearing the logo for Nike, one of the major Olympic sponsors. Toyota was wearing such a jacket in her report on souvenir shoppers.

Some reporters from KCBS, which is owned and operated by CBS, have continued to wear the Nike-stamped clothing even after CBS ordered network announcers and correspondents not to wear the logo. The network came under fire early in the Games from the Society of Professional Journalists and other news professionals who complained that the white Nike swoosh was visible on the clothing of CBS reporters and announcers.

“I just don’t get it, why KCBS is continuing to do this,” said Steve Geimann, chair of the Society of Professional Journalists’ ethics committee, who also helped write the open letter about the Nike symbol to the network. “The whole issue is one about separating the sponsors from the presenters of the information, whether it’s the network or an owned-and-operated station.”

The letter charged that CBS had crossed the line between professional journalism and commercial endorsements by wearing the logo.

Although CBS banned the logo, executives said it was not in response to the criticism from the journalism group.

However, Geimann said that after the letter, “The network seems to have realized their mistake and pulled back. I would think that KCBS would want to follow in their footsteps, given that they are an extension of the network. It just confuses the viewer. Who are the reporters working for, the station or the sponsor?”

But KCBS Vice President and General Manager John Culliton denied that there was any conflict of interest or improper behavior with the wearing of the Nike symbol.

“For us, this is a nonissue,” Culliton said Thursday. “The wearing of these clothes is as serendipitous and random as any other piece of clothing. And not one viewer has called us or notified us with e-mail to complain.”

Culliton added that in terms of the furor that erupted over the CBS-Nike clothing, “There is no linkage from the network to the local.”

Another station executive said that the Nike jackets came from CBS, and “there’s a feeling that it’s not really an issue.”

Carr could be seen in several live reports this week wearing a jacket with the Nike logo. In many of those reports, she was standing next to Hill, who sometimes displayed a Nike symbol and other times didn’t.

The questions surrounding KCBS have added to the controversy surrounding the Olympic coverage, which has gotten an icy reception from viewers during much of its run. In addition to bad weather and bad planning plaguing much of the Winter Games, the coverage has been hobbled by a 17-hour time difference between Nagano and Los Angeles, meaning that all of the sporting events have taken place long before they are shown to viewers, robbing them of urgency.

That time difference has also presented another dilemma for KCBS in regard to its nightly 7:30 p.m. Olympic preview, helmed by head news anchors Michael Tuck and Ann Martin. The events that will be shown in prime time have long been concluded, and radio and television outlets have already reported the outcome. But even though the KCBS preview show is being produced by the station’s news division, Tuck, Martin and their colleagues generally promote rather than report what happened.

During Tuesday’s coverage, weekend anchor Kyle Kraska told viewers, “Not to give anything away, but you’ve got to check out the aerial competition.” He added that “two men and a woman have a chance to strike gold, so don’t miss it.”

Tuck responded, “I’m reading between the lines.” Added Martin, “Good read.”

But KCBS has also shown some flexibility.

With the highly touted women’s figure skating competition Wednesday night, Kraska did show a chart displaying the standings at the end of the event. Before the chart was shown, Kraska warned viewers who did not want to know the outcome to cover their eyes and wait until he told them it was safe to look at the screen again.

Culliton said of the nightly program: “The people we are trying to do a good job for is the viewers. It’s a pretty common practice for us to give people a heads-up.

“This is not a news program,” Culliton said. “This is a local program that celebrates the Olympics. We’re not compromising anything.”

Although ratings for the network coverage of the Games have been struggling, Culliton said that the station’s ratings have skyrocketed, outperforming the rest of the country. He added that the ratings for the 11 p.m. news, which normally trail those of rivals KNBC-TV Channel 4 and KABC-TV Channel 7, are now running ahead. “Our late news is winning. We’re taking advantage of the sampling,” he said.