Columnist Tim Graham: TV sends scrambled signal on UNLV affairs

Tim Graham

Wednesday, June 3, 1998 | 11 a.m.

TIM GRAHAM is a Las Vegas Sun sportswriter. His media column appears Wednesdays. He can be reached on the Internet at tim@lasvegassun.com

When it came to learning the score at UNLV, it was a confusing weekend.

It started out like a crack of thunder on Friday, when university president Dr. Carol Harter offered a muddled reprieve to athletic director Charles Cavagnaro after an investigation looked into his alleged racist and homophobic slurs.

Harter's faxed release was of huge public interest, easily the biggest story of the day. But little could be done without a press conference.

The public had more questions, but with fewer journalists on duty (including all three local TV sports directors), most went unanswered. People were hungry for analysis but got none.

KLAS Channel 8, which up until Friday had barely uttered a word about the investigation, gushed over Cavagnaro's good fortune. It was not surprising. KLAS sports director Dave McCann is not ashamed to admit he is a university employee.

Then on Saturday, the UNLV golf team claimed only the second national team title in school history. It was a major story and probably should have led off each station's newscast.

But UNLV's golfers didn't even top the sports.

KTNV Channel 13 sports anchor Mario Diaz dealt with the victory as if it were minutiae. He didn't mention it at all during the "Eleven at 11" portion and reported it in an "oh-by-the-way" manner during sports.

KVBC Channel 3 sports anchor Brian Lippai even went so far as to give the Frank Sinatra charity golf tournament top billing. Wow.

It was a big weekend for UNLV athletics, but most of the public -- for one reason or another -- was ignorant to most that happened.

Dropping the puck

For the second straight year, KVVU Channel 5 bounced a Stanley Cup playoff game because of its obligation to air the Children's Miracle Network Telethon. Sunday's Eastern Conference Finals game between the Detroit Red Wings and Dallas Stars didn't air anywhere, live or taped.

KVVU vice president and general manager Rusty Durante claimed it wasn't meant to slight sports fans, but rather to promote a worthy cause.

"It's really not a matter of ratings, but hockey is the lowest-rated sport we air," Durante said. "In fact, it doesn't even get a rating it's so low.

"But the reason we aired (the telethon) was our commitment to the community and the Children's Television Network."

Last year, KFBT Channel 33 picked up the orphaned Red Wings-Philadelphia Flyers game. But no such move was made this time.

"That's not our call, it's Fox's," Durante said.

Hopped up

One of the funniest series ever to air on television, including full-length shows, is ESPN's "This is SportsCenter" line of commercials. Those are the ads that feature top athletes, coaches and team mascots cavorting around the ESPN studios.

One currently running either is an inside joke or a overdose of irony. Sportscaster Gary Miller divulges that Hall of Fame pitcher Gaylord Perry was his childhood hero. Perry hangs around the office and hassles the help.

How appropriate, considering both Miller and Perry have been accused of using illegal substances.

Miller was arrested last year in Cleveland for urinating on two off-duty police officers, possession of drug paraphernalia, public indecency and resisting arrest. He was convicted of the first charge, and the rest were dropped.

Perry was notorious for doctoring the baseball with everything from spit to Vaseline, but it's not known if he ever used such substances on off-duty policemen.

Bullish ratings

Sunday's Game 7 of the Eastern Conference title series between the Chicago Bulls and Indiana Pacers generated a 20.8 overnight rating and could become the highest-rated non-NBA Finals game ever when the figure is verified.

Spurred by the possibility of seeing Michael Jordan for the last time, at least 55 million people tuned in. The Indianapolis market scored an outrageous 50.2 rating, while the Chicago area recorded a 43.8.

* STATIC: "The Magic Hour," starring Magic Johnson, debuts Monday night on Fox. ... KLAV 1230-AM has decided to drop its overnight San Diego Padres schedule. The station originally wanted to experiment with "Padre Replay," which aired at 2 a.m. ... Las Vegan Al Bernstein is the host and chief writer of "Big Fights Boxing Hour" on Classic Sports Network. The 13-week series debuted Tuesday at 5 p.m. and airs the same time every week. ... Beloved baseball voice Bob Uecker will leave NBC following this season. Uecker, 63, will have four discs replaced in his lower back. ... ESPN's award-winning "Outside the Lines" series chronicles the U.S. World Cup team next Tuesday at 6 p.m.