Replay Montag, 14. April 1986

NEWS RACE HEATS UP WITH TIE

Date: 14 April 1986

By Peter J. Boyer

Peter Boyer

When the latest evening news ratings arrived at the networks, members of the NBC ''Nightly News'' staff were so pleased that they canceled lunch plans, ordered pizza and threw a little party for themselves. And they hadn't even won. The ''Nightly News'' had only tied the ''CBS Evening News'' with Dan Rather, but that was victory enough for the moment. Last week's ratings, which measured viewership from the week before, marked the first time since February 1982 that NBC had caught Mr. Rather in the weekly ratings. It was the first time ever that Tom Brokaw, who became NBC's anchor in 1983, had equaled Mr. Rather, who had won the ratings competition for 205 consecutive weeks.

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NEWS SUMMARY: TUESDAY, APRIL 15, 1986

Date: 15 April 1986

International U.S. bombers attacked Libya in a series of strikes against what the White House called ''terrorist centers'' and military bases. President Reagan, in a broadcast speech, said the American forces had succeeded in their mission of retaliating for what he termed the ''reign of terror'' waged by Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi against Americans. [ Page A1, Columns 1-6. ] Libyan agents have been deployed around the world for attacks against United States embassies in as many as 30 countries, according to Secretary of State George P. Shultz. He said the American bombing raids in Libya were necessary to deter it from future terrorist attacks. [ A1:3-4. ]

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NEWS SUMMARY: MONDAY, APRIL 14, 1986

Date: 14 April 1986

International A decision by President Reagan on whether to order an attack against Libya was near, senior Administration officials said. Tension continued to build as Vernon A. Walters, the chief American representative at the United Nations, held confidential briefings in key allied capitals about American plans, and two United States Navy carrier battle groups exercised in the central Mediterranean not far from Libya. Senator Richard G. Lugar, chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, who complained to Secretary of State George P. Shultz about not being briefed on possible war plans, said he was reached by Mr. Shultz and told to come to the White House today for a meeting with Mr. Reagan that is expected to discuss the possible response. [ Page A1, Column 6. ] High-level talks in Bonn and Paris on Libya were held by Mr. Walters amid indications of growing allied concern about a possible American strike. There were conflicting reports from London about Mr. Walters's meeting there Saturday with Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. British newspapers reported that Mrs. Thatcher had agreed to possible use of American F-111 fighter-bombers based at Suffolk and Oxfordshire for a strike against Libya. [ A6:1. ]

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2 PAPERS IN DETROIT PLAN TIE

Date: 15 April 1986

By John Holusha, Special To the New York Times

John Holusha

One of the bitterest battles for newspaper supremacy in a major American city ended today as the owners of The Detroit News and The Detroit Free Press agreed to merge all but the news operations of the two papers. Executives of the Gannett Company, which owns The News, and Knight-Ridder Newspapers Inc., which owns The Free Press, said the action was being taken to stanch large losses at the newspapers. In the last five years, they said, The Free Press has lost more than $35 million and The News, which carries more advertising, more than $20 million. Allen H. Neuharth, chairman of Gannett, which will have the upper hand in managing the combined operations, told News employees this morning that the losses ''and present-day economics of newspaper publishing clearly indicate that this market cannot support two high-quality, high-cost independent newspapers.''

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IN THE U.S., AUDIENCES LISTEN IN ON THE ATTACK

Date: 15 April 1986

By Robert D. McFadden

Robert

Vivid reports of the American air strikes in Libya - of thundering explosions, jets roaring overhead and fires dancing on the horizon of a darkened city - were broadcast live to nationwide audiences last night by American network correspondents in Tripoli. Though confined to their hotel during the bombing and unable to provide pictures to accompany their audio reports, the correspondents nonetheless gave dramatic running accounts of what they could see and hear from windows and balconies overlooking the city and the harbor. They told of explosions that shook their building, the pounding of antiaircraft guns and the scream of planes coming in. Some also told of bursts of tracer fire in the night sky and fires leaping from targets that could not be identified.

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EDITORS' MOOD IS OPTIMISTIC DESPITE WORRIES ON ECONOMY

Date: 14 April 1986

By Alex S. Jones, Special To the New York Times

Alex Jones

Many of the nation's newspaper editors, gathered in record numbers here this week for an annual convention, grumbled in hotel corridors with the sophistication of publishers about flat advertising revenues that threaten to squeeze news budgets. In the modern newspaper, top editors who once shunned business concerns have had to become knowledgeable about corporate finance as well as news coverage, and the American Society of Newspaper Editors reflects that change. For instance, the four top officers of the society have publishing experience or corporate titles. But while the issue of flat advertising revenues aroused some anxiety at this year's meeting, especially among editors of smaller papers in farm and oil states, the mood was also ebullient and even self-congratulatory.

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Burger and the Press

Date: 14 April 1986

By Wayne King and Warren Weaver Jr

Wayne King

The challenge of organizing next year's bicentennial celebration for the Constitution has had the unpredictable side effect of bringing Chief Justice Warren E. Burger and the press closer. The Chief Justice, chairman of the commission on the bicentennial, has long been famous in Washington for his resistance to news coverage.

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OPPOSITION IS SEEN ON DETROIT LINKUP

Date: 15 April 1986

By Alex S. Jones

Alex Jones

Yesterday's announcement that The Detroit Free Press and The Detroit News had agreed to merge came as no surprise to newspaper analysts who have watched them wage a costly competitive war. By merging production, advertising and circulation operations, while retaining separate news departments, the two newspapers could quickly become very profitable after years of losses. But some experts in newspaper antitrust law predict that the proposed Free Press-News joint operating agreement, known in the industry as a j.o.a., will prompt a fierce legal challenge. They say competing suburban newspapers and unions are likely to oppose the merger on the ground that the resulting mega-daily would represent an economic monopoly that would thwart suburban competition and eliminate jobs.

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Calling Mr. Bush

Date: 15 April 1986

By Wayne King and Warren Weaver Jr

Wayne King

As interest increased in Vice President Bush's recent comments on collapsing oil prices, news reporters seeking to talk with Mr. Bush found their task more difficult than usual. One who called the White House to ask for him was told no one knew where he was, and the caller was given another number to call. That number had been disconnected.

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POLL SHOWS CONFUSION ON AID TO CONTRAS

Date: 15 April 1986

By David K. Shipler

David Shipler

Americans are uncertain about which side the United States is backing in Nicaragua and only one out of four supports President Reagan's request for $100 million in aid to the rebels who are trying to overthrow the Nicaraguan Government, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News Poll. With the approach of another key vote by the House of Representatives on the President's proposal, majorities of those polled accepted his argument that Nicaragua is a risk to American interests, but opposed his remedy of $100 million in aid. Only 38 percent knew that Washington was supporting the guerrillas and not the Government. That confusion extended to the nature of Nicaragua's Government, which is aligned with the Soviet Union; just 20 percent said it was Communist, 19 percent said it was a right-wing dictatorship and 49 percent said they didn't know. Nicaraguan Threat Perceived Nevertheless, after questions about the Reagan aid plan had been asked, a more defined image of Nicaragua seemed to emerge. Fifty-nine percent of the 1,601 adults interviewed by telephone from April 6 through 10 answered yes when asked if they thought the Nicaraguan Government would provide the Soviet Union with military bases, and 56 percent agreed that Nicaragua constituted a threat to the security of other Central American countries. The survey's margin of sampling error was plus or minus three percentage points.

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