TV & VIDEO - Oct. 25, 1989

Controversial talk show host Morton Downey Jr. will start having a nightly “Showdown” on CNBC cable on Dec. 4. Downey’s chief adversary on the half-hour “issue-oriented program” will be New York Daily News columnist Richard G. Carter. CNBC President Michael Eskridge says the new show “will be a serious exchange of views on timely and important topics, with the chairs nailed to the floor. It will not be ‘The Morton Downey Jr. Show’ revisited.” Downey, a self-proclaimed loudmouth, drew heat last season with his syndicated show that eventually was dropped after attracting more ink than audience.