OHNDN :
Nebraskan
Editorial Board
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Chris Ilopfensperger.. . . . „.Editor, 472-1766
Dionne Searcey.Opinion Page Editor
Kris Karnopp...Managing Editor
Alan Phelps.*.Wire Editor
Wendy Navratil.Writing Coach
Stacey McKenzie...Senior Reporter
Jeremy Fitzpatrick ...Columnist
--
Turn on radio
UNL should ignore TV sports coverage
It’s a little late in the game for UNL to be looking at a bid for
exclusive television rights to Comhusker football games.
■ - Especially when radio is a sure winner, ~-r- — -
Last week, Omaha’s WOWT-Channel 6 offered the University
of Nebraska-Lincoln a proposal for television rights, beginning in
the fall of 1993, to all Nebraska football games not carried on
network TV.
Under the proposal, WOWT would pay $1.8 million for the rights
over a five-year period.
Kim Phelps, assistant vice chancellor for business and finance at
UNL, said university officials had listened to the proposal, but had
not given the station a response.
Not enough time has passed, Phelps said, for WOWT’s proposal
to work its way “through university channels.”
Granted, “university channels” could mean another 20 years
before anything more is heard of WOWT’s proposal.
But forget TV channels, folks.
Radio is the ticket.
UNL is about to score a touchdown with a radio contract that could
bring in $8(X),(XX) annually as part of a three- or five-year deal.
KFAB currently broadcasts Husker games, but its contract ex
pires July 31, 1993. The station is attempting to have that contract
renewed.
Twoothcr Omaha stations—WOW and KKAR—arc competing
with KFAB for the exclusive radio rights to Nebraska football and
men's basketball games.
The contract is to be awarded today. The NU Board of Regents
then will have to approve it.
A five-year contract for radio rights would generate $4 million for
UNL, while a bid from WOWT would net only $1.8 million.
At the same time, if the university accepted the television offer,
KFAB would reduce its bid, said Bob Sweet, the station’s general
manager.
Sweet also warned that the other radio stations most likely would
follow suit.
Comhusker radio rights after a television contract was awarded to
Comhusker football and basketball would be “nowhere near worth
$4 million,” he said.
“Do they want to generate revenue off of radioor television? They
cannot do both at this level.”
And what would expanded television coverage do to already
dwindling student football ticket sales?
This year, 7,5(X) student tickets were sold, 5(X) less than last year
— a trend that has continued for the past 10 years, said Joe Sclig,
Nebraska’s athletic ticket manager. With Nebraska football always
on television, UNL would risk losing more students, and other fans,
to the comfort of their living room screens, especially on those chilly
November afternoons.
Nebraska’s major football games—the ones worth watching into
the second half — already arc televised by the networks.
So why bother?
If UNL officials arc keeping score, they’ll realize that a television
contract is a waste of time.
Staff editorials represent the official policy of the Fall 1992 Daily Nebraskan. Policy is set by
the Daily Nebraskan Editorial Board. Editorials do not necessarily reflect the views of the
university, its employees, the students or the NU Board of Regents. Editorial columns represent
the opinion of the author. The regents publish the Daily Nebraskan. They establish the UNL
Publications Board to supervise the daily production of the paper. According to policy set by
the regents, responsibility for the editorial content of the newspaper lies solely in the hands of
us students.
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Letters will be selected for publication on the basis of clarity, originality, timeliness and space
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Nebraskan, 34 Nebraska Union, 1400 R St., Lincoln, Neb. 6858^-0448.
i
I
Republican Party angers women
. . encourages women to leave
their husbands, kill their children,
practice witchcraft, destroy capital
ism and become lesbians.” — Pal
Robertson
Thisquolc by the Rev. Robertson
docs not refer to culls, Satan or
indeed any religious topic.
This is how Robertson described
the feminist movement.
It seems to me that
Robertson is just
slightly out of touch
with the feminist
movement. I imagine
there are very few in
the n\jgvcmeni practic
ing witchcraftand sac
rificing their children,
but apparently
Robertson has some sort of bizarre
fear of feminists.
The quote might have passed into
obscurity but for one very important
factor: Robertson was recently a feav
lured speaker at the Republican Na
tional Convention.
His appearance highlights an im
portant development in the Republi
can Parly. It has ceased to be the “big
tent” party and now increasingly ea
ters to the radical far right.
In the process of this change, the
parly has alienated a large segment of
the American population: moderate
women voters.
In addition to Robertson’s com
ments—about which little else needs
to be said — the party’s platform
includes a plank on abortion calling
for a constitutional amendment to end
abortion once and for all.
A majority of Americans docs not
approve of changing the Constitution
in this matter.
The plank would outlaw abortion
in al I eases except where the 1 i fc of the
mother is in danger? This policy ig
nores the very important exceptions
of abortion in the ease of rape and/or
incest.
Many anti-abortion advocates will
agree that a 13-ycar-oldwhohas been
raped by her father may have a right to
an abortion. Many of the people who
i 1 . .
feel this way are women who are
naturally closer to this issue than the
men who wrote this plank of the plat
form.
The rigidity of the Republican
Party’s stand on abortion does not sit
well with many of the Reagan demo
crats who also voted for Bush four
years ago.
Many of these voters may shift
back to the Democratic Party that
realizes abortion is a problem that
needs solved. The Democrats also
accept the fact that this is a real-world
problem that cannot be solved by
forcing abortion underground — out
of sight, out of mind as it were.
The talk of family values has also
created a sore spot. It seems that
those preaching family values are re
ally saying that women need men and
cannot survive without them. While it
is important for children to have posi
tive male role models, the single
mother docs not need a husband to
raise a family.
Both the outright attacks on a suc
cessful wording mother, Hillary
Clinton, and the veiled threats di
rected at her, seem to be saying that
she, and in essence, all working moth
ers, cannot be as good as the mothers
who stay home.
Marilyn Quayle, in her speech to
the convention, indicated that women
get more satisfaction from raising a
family than do men. This may be true
for her family, but it docs not apply to
all families.
She also patted herself on the back
for giving up her successful law ca
reer to follow her husband and raise
their family. Again, good for her, but
what she was really saying is that
women who do otherwise arc not as
good, or as loving as women who stay
home.
These views may have been the
norm in the 1950s, but they have very
little in common with the 1990s. The
changing demographics of the family
and the increasing number of women
in the workplace have changed the
reality of the American family.
The leadership of the Republican
Parly, in adopting its rigid stance, has
proven itself to be out ol touch with
mainstream America in general and
specifically with women.
It is not only the radical party
leadership that has alienated women.
The Anita Hill/Clarcncc Thomas hear
ings showed America just how certain
U.S. senators feci about women.
Sens. Alan Sampson of Wyoming
and Arlcn Specter of Pennsylvania
provided what should be considered
some of the lowest, sleaziest and most
sexist comments ever to air on televi
sion.
Hill, who had nothing to gain, came
out with her accusations and was vili
fied on national television while Tho
mas, who had everything to lose, was
believed to the point that he now has
a lifetime appointment on the most
important court in the land.
i ms was a aramauc step oautwaju
for all women. With one vote, the
Senate did more to harm women in the
workplace than had been done by the
previous 11 years of Rcagan/Bush,
which were significant in its own
right.
Luckily, Specter is facing a very
tough battle for re-election. Lynn
Ycaklcy entered the race in large pari
because of Specter’s actions during
the hearings and proceeded to win ihe
Democratic primary.
Hopefully the votersof Pennsylva
nia will see Specter for what he really
is: out of touch, misguided, sexist and
just plain against women.
President Bush has done a remark
ably poor job backing up his family
values rhetoric with meaningful ac
tion. He has vetoed a recent family
leave bill and has threatened to veto a
similar bill this year. He doesn’t ap
pear to support equal pay and oppor
tunity for women in the workplace.
Asa potential parent, I would rather
place my faith in a party and a leader
who not only support women’s rights,
but also back up their actions wilh
concrete deeds. I have great respect
for a woman and working mother who
is not afraid to voice her opinions as
Hillary Clinton has done.
Heckman Is a graduate student in politi
cal science and a Daily Nebraskan columnist.
P.S. Write back
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