Religion Networks Fighting for Places on Cable Systems : Television: Competing factions are taking potshots at rivals as cable operators are being more selective about their religious programming.

Some major religious television networks are having to fight to be carried on cable systems. And they aren’t always turning the other cheek.

In Buffalo, N.Y., for example, supporters of the Catholic-oriented Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) threatened to oppose renewal of a cable system’s franchise with the city and to cancel its cable service unless EWTN was put on the air.

A written marketing presentation to cable operators from an executive with Tustin-based Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) called the promotional claims of Vision Interfaith Satellite Network (VISN) “bunk” and “totally meaningless when you get past the hype.”

And an executive of the Warner Cablevision system in Cincinnati was the target of a mail and phone campaign by Birmingham (Ala.)-based EWTN and its supporters after Warner announced plans to drop it because of low viewership.

Taking potshots at rivals and applying pressure to cable officials has become more common since VISN went on the air in 1988 and cable operators started being more selective about what religious programming they offer to subscribers.

Some of the nation’s largest cable corporations provided millions of dollars and other help to Protestant, Catholic, Jewish and Eastern Orthodox groups who created VISN in the aftermath of scandals involving television evangelists Jim Bakker and Jimmy Swaggert.

Cable officials had also became weary of appeals for money on religious programs, said Robert Thomson, a vice president of Tele-Communications Inc. of Denver, the nation’s largest operator of cable systems.

VISN is the only network operated by a coalition of diverse faiths. Its key selling points are “no on-air solicitation of funds and no proselytizing.”

New York City-based VISN obtains revenue by charging cable systems to carry its programming, a common practice. TBN takes a different approach by paying cable companies to carry its programming in an effort to increase its availability to the 54 million homes that have cable.

The importance of cable is apparent by the industry’s continued growth. Fifty-nine percent of the nation’s homes have cable service, and one industry official estimates that it will be 72% by the end of the decade.

Cable systems typically allot only one channel for national religious programs, thereby intensifying the competition. Religious broadcasters also want to get on what is estimated at between 40% and 60% of cable systems that carry no national religious programs.

But the religious networks are not competing just among themselves. They must also vie with music, movie and other types of programming for access to limited channels.

Tactics used by the networks to get on the air are having mixed results.

In Cincinnati, Warner stuck with its decision to replace EWTN and TBN with VISN, despite receiving 500 to 600 letters and calls, said Steve Rohan, an executive with the cable company. EWTN’s founder, a Catholic nun who uses the name Mother Angelica, urged viewers to resist the plans, and parish newsletters in the area supported the campaign, Rohan said. Catholics describe Mother Angelica as theologically orthodox or conservative.

Pressure from EWTN supporters did work in Buffalo, however. TCI of New York Inc. announced in September that it would carry EWTN programming.

Marynell Ford, EWTN’s senior vice president of marketing, said network officials were not involved with the campaign in Buffalo. She added, however, “I guess all is fair in love and war.”

VISN’s marketing president, Bill Airy, called the campaign in Buffalo coercive and said his network would tell its supporters never to use such tactics.

Just how rough the competition has sometimes become is illustrated by the presentation to cable operators in which a TBN official made critical remarks about VISN.

In the presentation, Jack Hightower, until recently the network’s cable marketing director, called one of VISN’s premises--that many major denominations have not been widely included on national religious television--”a false representation.”

Hightower did acknowledge that TBN was “protecting our turf.” He also has described VISN as “a network that is developed by liberal, non-Bible believing denominations.”

The competition will heat up even more because of the purchase of Bakker’s former PTL network by San Diego-based evangelist Morris Cerullo, Hightower predicted. Officials of the Cerullo organization did not respond to questions about its plans.

Cerullo and Paul F. Crouch, who operates TBN, are former Assemblies of God ministers.

TBN had been a key competitor before it began significantly reducing efforts to get on cable systems several weeks ago. Crouch’s organization owns many television stations and is no longer emphasizing reaching viewers via cable systems, officials said. Hightower said Crouch believes TBN has peaked on cable systems because of the limited channels now available. And TBN officials said the network is already on more than 1,000 cable systems.

But TBN has been a victim of the competition.

Dimension Cable Services, which serves part of Orange County and is owned by Times Mirror Co., parent company of The Times, last year cut back TBN from 24 hours of programming to 12 hours in order to carry some VISN shows.

VISN’s Airy said few cable systems have dropped other religious networks to add his, but he expects that will begin happening more often.

According to figures from the networks, EWTN is available by cable to between 14.8 million and 16 million homes; TBN to 13.1 million; Fort Worth-based ACTS (American Christian Television System), operated by Southern Baptists, to 7 million, and VISN to 6.4 million homes. The Inspirational Network, Bakker’s former PTL operation, would not disclose the number of homes into which it is carried, although cable industry publications estimate it is about 6.5 million.

Networks established by two of the best known religious leaders in the country are generally not part of the competition.

For example, the FamilyNet network, operated by Jerry Falwell, an independent Baptist, is available to only 1 million cable subscribers. About 30% of its programming consists of family entertainment.

Almost all of the programming offered by The Family Channel network (formerly CBN), which was established by Pat Robertson, is family-oriented entertainment programs.

Some industry officials believe that the type of backing VISN has will be essential for success in the future.

“I think that over the long term EWTN and TBN simply will not meet our customer standards,” predicted Thomson of Tele-Communications. “Already there has been customer resistance to their fund-raising.

“The only economically feasible” method of operation will be “a partnership of denominations,” the same method VISN uses, he said.