MediaWatch: August 1988
Table of Contents:
Revolving Door: Thomas Rodgers
Thomas Rodgers, NBC's Vice President for policy planning and business development, promoted to head NBC Cable. The new division will soon launch the Consumer News and Business Channel.
Before moving to NBC in 1986 Rodgers served as Senior Counsel to the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and Finance chaired by then Congressman Tim Wirth, now a liberal Senator from Colorado. In early August Capital Cities/ABC Inc. named Mark McCarthy to the post of Vice President, government affairs in Washington. For the past seven years he's served as a professional staff member handling communications policy for the House Energy and Commerce Committee chaired by liberal Democrat John Dingell of Michigan.
The Democratic National Committee (DNC) recruited some experienced media hands to help promote their party line during July's convention. They hired former CBS News correspondent Ike Pappas to produce interviews and feature pieces for the DNC's "Convention Satellite News Service" fed to local stations.
The DNC also produced Party Line, an hourly "dope sheet" distributed to reporters. Its Co-Editor, Lance Morgan, was once Washington correspondent for the Yorkshire Post and Birmingham Evening News and a contributor to The Guardian, three British newspapers. Mary Russell, a Capitol Hill reporter for The Washington Post in the 1970's, headed the "quote patrol," searching for newsworthy utterances.
Last month's "Study" listed 34 former political operatives who are now playing a role in campaign coverage, mainly liberal activists turned reporters. Here are two commentators for the growing list: Former Reagan Communications Director Patrick Buchanan and Mark Green, the 1986 Democratic New York Senate candidate, provided commentary during CNN's convention coverage.
Through November, Conus Communications is offering analysis from former Mondale campaign Manager Bob Beckel and former Reagan White House political aide Haley Barbour to their 78 subscribing television stations. During the Republican Convention Conus affiliates could also air commentary from Jack Kemp's campaign Manager, Ed Rollins.
CORRECTION: The July "Revolving Door" column stated that Dan Noyes, a new general assignment reporter with ABC News, once worked for the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR). MediaWatch was mistaken. There is a Dan Noyes at CIR and another with ABC News.
