Newspaper Page Text
The Red and Black
Athens, Ga. Friday, January 29, 1982 Voi.B9, No.54 An independent student newspaper serving the University of Georgia community News 543-1809 Advertising 543-1791
State network assumes control of WGTV
By JIM MASSARA
Red and Hlark Staff Writer
In case you hadn't noticed — and ac
cording to all parties involved, most
people don’t— the new Public Telecom
munications Commission formally took
control of WGTV-TV on Jan 1. The
license had been held by the Board fo
Regents, but was transferred by the ex
ecutive order that last year created the
commission.
The transition from one licensee to
another has also changed the role of the
people who used to run WGTV at the
University's Georgia Center for Conti
nuing Education Most of them are still
on the University payroll, but they now
function as employees of an indepen
dent production company—“University
TV”—with no control over any par
ticular television station.
“The station has changed very lit
tle,” Hill Bermont, director of special
projects for University TV and former
program director for WGTV. "As far
as the public is concerned, they will
hardly see the difference."
George Wearn, program director for
Georgia Public Television, the
statewide network that now controls
WGTV, said that any immediate
changes arc more a matter of “style"
than content.
"But that’s a very subtle thing,”
Wearn said. “I’m not sure the casual
viewer would even notice it.”
The style changes include things like
more promotional announcements for
upcoming programs. Also, WGTV is no
longer identified as being a service of
the University.
“The changes, realistically, are go
ing to come over a period of the next six
or eight months," Wearn said. "They'll
simply happen as we buy new program
ming for the coming season, nothing
abrupt."
Wearn added that the addition of
WGTV to the network should mean
“greater buying power” and "better
programming" for all stations involv
ed.
“One of the things that we attempted
to do was to work very closely with Hill
Bermont and his staff so that there
would be few changes,” Wearn said.
“The changeover occurred at a natural
time in that the first week of January
was a season change anyway.”
Wearn also pointed out that since
Athens is part of WGTV's coverage
area by the terms of its FCC license,
programs that are “specifically
‘University’ or ‘Northeast Georgia' in
character” will still be shown, and that
most of those programs will be supplied
by University TV
Richard Ottinger, interim head of the
Public Telecommunications Commis
sion, which oversees the statewide net
work, said, “A good work relationship
is being developed and will continue
with the studios and the people at the
center."
Currently, two blocks of
programming—one from 6:30 to 7:30
p.m., and the other from 11:00 p.m. io
sign-off—still originate in Athens. In
other words, the films or tapes are ac
tually played from studios in the
Georgia Center and are piped directly
to the transmitter on Stone Mountain.
All other programming originates in
Atlanta, and is broadcast via a direct
line from the Atlanta studio to the
transmitter.
The two blocks were retained
because of contractual obligations bet
ween WGTV and the program sup
pliers. The early evening block, which
includes a popular yoga program, will
end in April The late evening block,
which consists of a well-received
package of old movies, will end in June.
After that, all programming will be
played back from studios in Atlanta—
although some of it will still be produc
ed in Athens—and will be identical to
programming shown by the other seven
network stations.
"About 12" employees “involved
mostly in technical and promotional
jobs" arc still in limbo because of the
changeover, Ottinger said. Personnel
problems like that are being solved
now, he said The transmitter
engineers stayed with the station when
it changed he added
One other personnel problem is the
question of a new chief executive of
ficer for the commission. Ottinger, ex
ecutive director of the old Georgia
Educational Television Network and
chairman of the committee that guided
creation of the new commission, said a
screening committee has just started
placing advertisements on campuses
and in trade publications for applica
tions. Asked if he were in the running
for the permanent post, Ottinger said "I
certainly hope so."
Bermont said he is enthusiastic about
the new status of the old WGTV crew.
which is still part of the communica
tions division of the Georgia Center.
University TV will continue to produce
"Behind the News," “Georgia Issues
and Opportunities” and "Atlanta in
Person” for WGTV, Bermont said.
Please See WGTV, Page 2
Two more victims linked to Williams
ATLANTA (UPI) — A pair of wit
nesses Thursday linked Wayne
Williams to two more of the 28 slain
young Atlanta blacks, but defense
attorneys scored a rare victory by
tripping both of them somewhat on
cross-examination.
Witnesses Nellie Trammell and
Charmaine Kendrick placed Williams
with victims Larry Rogers and Terry
Pue — bringing to five the number of
slain young blacks that witnesses have
testified seeing with Williams.
The 23-year-old black defendant, who
is charged in the slaying of Jimmy Ray
Payne, 21, and Nathaniel Cater, 27, has
denied ever meeting any of the victims
Prosecutors say Williams is linked to
the slayings of nine of the other 26
victims, and is a suspect in a 10th
killing that was never added to the list
of 28 victims
Trammell’s testimony proved to be
the most damaging when she told the
jury of eight blacks and four whites she
saw Rogers, 20, slumped and
unresponsive in a green station wagon
driven by Williams last March 30 — the
day Rogers vanished.
But the defense scored a minor
victory by asking her if she had ever
identified Williams' photograph in a
police file. She said she had. last April
Williams, however, did not become a
suspect in the case until May 22 when he
was stopped near a Chattahoochee
Who is this little Dawg fan?
Do you know this cheerleader? If you do, call us. We spent forever Thurs
day evening trying to find out who she was, but to no avail. Me know a nice
young man we’d like to escort this little lady to his elementary school prom.
If you know who she is, contact The Red and Black Junior Dating Service at
M3-1X09.
River bridge, moments after a stakeout
officer heard a loud splash in the water.
A misleading question by prosecutor
Jack Mallard led to similar problems
with another witness, Charmaine
Kendrick, a waitress in a fast food
restaurant frequented by Pue.
Mallard asked Kendrick to "go back
to last April,” and then began
questioning her When it was pointed
out that Pue’s body was found three
months earlier, Mallard took the wit
ness back on direct examination to try
to correct the error, but the court ruled
he could not challenge his own witness
Prosecutors told reporters later the
witnesses were just confused on their
dates.
The state later produced witnesses
who offered details about the deaths of
John Porter, 28, and William Barrett,
17. Both victims had been stabbed,
although it was ruled Barrett died of
asphyxiation.
Porter, whose name was never in
cluded among the list of 28 slayings,
was stabbed six times, including one
time in the heart
The state claims that blood stains in
Williams' auto match the blood type of
the two victims. Witnesses were ex
pected to elaborate on that link during
testimony Friday.
Earlier, Trammell said she saw
Larry Rogers, another of the victims,
slumped over in a car driven by
Williams the same day the retarded
black man disappeared.
Trammell said she saw Rogers riding
with Williams in a green station wagon
She said she noticed Rogers, who was a
neighbor, when the vehicle slopped
beside her at a stop sign last March 30.
She said Rogers was sitting on the
passenger side
Trammell also testified she saw
Williams at the funerals ol both Rogers
and Pue
Rogers, 21, was found dead in an
abandoned apartment last April 9.
Trammell’s testimony was
proceeded by a witness called "Cool
Breeze,” who proved an em
barrassment for the prosecution, but
high comedy for the rest of the cour
troom — especially defense attorney A1
Binder
“Cool Breeze” — Tilbert Baynham, a
former heroin addict — told a ram
bling. disjointed story of seeing Rogers
with Williams three times in one day on
March 27. But he also admitted he was
high on marijuana he smoked with his
coffee before coming to the courthouse
There was no lack of clarity in
Trammell’s testimony.
She said she first saw Williams
March 20 "over at Techwood during the
bat patrol." It was the Techwood
housing project that militant blacks —
much to the consternation of many
residents — organized a much-
publicized "bat patrol" to protect
children from the killer.
Student destroys antiques
By MARIA HURT
and CASEY BROGDON
Rnl and Black Stall WrHcra
Interfratemity Council adviser John
Opper said Thursday the Sigma Nu
fraternity would be held responsible for
damage done to the Taylor-Grady
House on 634 Prince Avenue Saturday
night.
The fraternity was holding a formal
at the house when an unidentified
fraternity member damaged several
pieces of antique furniture, said Bill
Bracewell, director of Judicial
Programs
Two small antique tables, valued at
$600 apiece, were beyond repair and
“only good for kindling now,"
Bracewell said.
“A member of the fraternity got mad
— a domestic disturbance, I guess — it
was not a fight," Opper said “He broke
up some furniture. ”
The Taylor-Grady House, which is
owned by the City of Athens and leased
to the Athens Junior League, is on the
National Register of Historic Places
The Athens Junior League rents the
house to other organizations
Sigma Nu Commander Edmund
Strickland would not comment Thur
sday on the incident
"Some antique furniture that belongs
to the University was damaged," Barry
Wood, University Public Relations
director,said
"When you use a facility, there is
some damage — beer spilled, etc. It is a
contractual relationship They have
violated the contract and have to pay
for any cleaning." Opper said
“I’ve been talking with the Sigma Nu
commander, and he assures me
something will be done,” Upper said
Mrs Richard Lane, Athens Junior
League president, confirmed the in
cident, but refused comment
The TaylorGrady House is located in
the histone Cobbham district of Athens
which includes the University
President's House TaylorGrady was
built in 1845 by General Robert Taylor
and was later sold to W.S Grady
Henry W Grady, for whom the
University's journalism school is
named, spent his boyhood years in the
house After it was bought by the city of
Athens, the house was restored by the
Athens Junior League
New technology, low funds
may revolutionize public TV
By JIM MASSARA
Krd and Hlack Staff Writer
New video technology and less fun
ding from the government will pro
bably do more to change the way
WGTV looks over the next few years
than its new affiliation with the
statewide educational network.
George Wearn, program director for
Georgia Public Television, said he sees
“very subtle changes taking place" in
the way viewers perceive free TV.
“This is the influence of cable, video
cassette recorders, disc players, cheap
movies and everything else," Wearn
said.
For one thing, this electronic
smorgasbord has served to fragment
traditional TV audiences. And ac
cording to Richard E Ottinger, interim
head of the Georgia Public Telecom
munications Commission, it could
make public television's strong suit-
catering to a limited audience with
specialized programing— all the more
viable.
"If we keep our five or 10 to 12 per
cent of the audience while the major
networks are losing theirs," Ottinger
said, "then the game may become
much more equal ."
Wearn expects WGTV—along with
the other stations in the state
Network—to provide a “narrower"
selection of programming over the next
few years, consisting primarily of
public and cultural affairs and with a
special accent on Georgia.
By "cultural" programming, Wearn
means culture native to Georgia as
much as the more conventional fine
arts presentations. He referred to
“Next Set," a show devoted to country
singers and songwriters from Gerogia,
as a particularly popular example.
The Public Broadcasting Service is
considering dealing with the new
technology in a more direct way by
starting its own pay-TV channel. The
service would be offered to cable
subscribers for an additional fee, much
like Home Box Office. Local cable
operators would receive a percentage
of the fee and PBS and their affiliate
stations would get the rest.
PBS Associate Public Information
Director Nancy Neubauer emphasized
that the idea is still in the “developmen
tal" stage, but said a study committee
will report on It to the PBS board by
June. A final decision should be reach
ed by spring of 1983
The proposed pay-TV channel would
concentrate on the performing arts
with a three-hour block during prime
time, and would work in conjunction
with local symphony orchestras, drama
groups and the like. Much of the pro
gramming on the channel would even
tually be shown on the regular PBS net
work within a year. Wearn said this
would make the programming cheaper
for affiliates by charging viewers for
the privilege of seeing it on its first run.
And that economy could be impor
tant. The corporation for Public Broad
casting, PBS’s parent organization,
relies on Congress for 30 percent of its
budget The last allocation from the
federal government was $177 million.
“And within two years, we're not even
going to have half of that money coming
in,” Ottinger said.
The pay-TV channel would not
necessarily compete with PBS af
filiates like WGTV, since it v > Id be
limited to the larger TV markets. Ot
tinger said he recalls speculation that
only the top 50 markets will be con
sidered, which in Georgia would in
clude Atlanta, and possibly Savannah
and Columbus
Many of the smaller cable systems
would not be able to carry it if they
wanted to, anyway. For example,
Liberty Communications, Inc., which
holds the cable franchise for the Athens
area, currently offers only 12 channels,
all of which are filed. General Manager
Bob Denson said there are no im
mediate plans to change the station
line-up or to expand the system.
Another fund-raising idea that Ot
tinger is not as ford of is selling com
mercial time on public stations A
Federal Communications Commission
task force is conducting an experiment
authorized by Congress last year that
would allow about 15 stations to do just
that. Roughly 40 stations have express
ed an interest in participating, but none
are in Georgia.
U.S. General Dozier
freed by anti-terrorists
PADUA, Italy (UPI) - Elite anti-
terrorist police stormed a Red Brigades
hideout and freed kidnapped U.S. Army
Brig Gen. James L Dozier unharmed
Thursday just as one of his captors was
about to kill him with a gun pointed to
his head.
“Stupendous operation," said Dozier,
who told officials he thought he was
about to die. “Just marvelous ... I feel
very good, very good indeed "
Officials said the 50-year-old general,
held captive for 42 days, was in good
condition at a U.S. military hospital in
nearby Vicenza where his wife Judith
was flying to meet him
Five Red Brigades terrorists — three
men and two women — were arrested
at the five-room Padua apartment
where Dozier apparently had been held
since his abduction from his Verona
home Dec. 17.
Ebullient police officials said not a
shot was fired in the entire operation,
which took but 90 seconds from the
moment 10 crack commandos, wearing
masks and bullet-proof vests, burst
down the door to the time a stunned
Dozier, being freed from his bonds,
cracked a smile.
One of the male terrorists was in
jured by a blow to the head and
hospitalized One of the women wore a
fur coat and hid her face with a silk
scarf as police dragged her away.
In 11 bloody years of terrorism,
Dozier was the first victim of the Red
Brigades ever to be found and freed
alive But if the commandos who saved
him had taken even seconds longer, he
might not have enjoyed that distinction
As the assault squad burst through
the door at exactly 11:36 a m. (5:36
a m EST), one of the terrorists pointed
a silenced pistol at Dozier, lying blind
folded and bound by chains in a tent
erected in the second room, police said
One of the commandos grabbed the gun
just as the terrorist was about to shoot,
they said.
"At that moment, a gun was pointed
at me and 1 didn’t know if it would go
off. if that was going to be my last
minute,” Dozier told U.S. Ambassador
Maxwell Rabb in a phone conversation
afterward
"He told me how nice it was to see the
sun again, to be again a part of the
world," Rabb said "He seems to be in
excellent health. Over the telephone his
voice had a robust tone ”
Rabb said Dozier, sporting a beard
and dressed in the same blue track suit
he was wearing when he was kid
napped, would stay indefinitely at the
U.S. military hospital in Vicenza, siteof
a NATO air base, to undergo medical
exams and spend time with his wife and
daughter Cheryl, an army lieutenant
They flew in from Frankfurt, where
they had been visiting friends. "We
want to thank all the people in the world
for their prayers and love," Mrs.
Dozier said before leaving Frankfurt
“We believe in prayer and believe our
prayers have been answered ’’
In Washington, jubilant White House
and Defense Department spokesmen
lavished praise on the Italian com
mandos, members of an elite force
formed after the Red Brigades kid
napping and killing of former Prime
Minister Aldo Moro in 1978
President Reagan spoke by phone
with Dozier and Italian President
Sandro Pertini, telling them "our
prayers have been answered."
At the Pentagon, spokesman Henry
Catto held up a sign proclaiming “Viva
Italia!"
In Cairo, Secretary of State
Alexander Haig emerged from talks
with Egyptian President Hosni
Mubarak and declared, "We finally
won one. It’s very good, very good
indeed."
Dozier’s release followed the most
massive manhunt since the 1978 kid
napping of former Prime Minister Aldo
Moro More than 5,000 police scoured
the country, chasing down false tips
that Dozier was dead, searching
everything from remote farmhouses to
gondolas in Venice
All the time, Padua Police Chief
Gianfranco Corrias said, Dozier was
being held in the second floor apart
ment of a condominium on Via Pin-
demonte on the outskirts of Padua, 45
miles from his Verona home.
Corrias said police staked out the
building Wednesday after checking out
a telephoned “tip " Washington was
notified later that night and informed
that the elite special security
operations police — popularly known as
"leathernecks” — were being
assembled for the raid. They wore
masks to protect their identities and
avoid becoming targets for terrorists
themselves