They Didn’t Give Robinson a Fair Shot

Nothing wrong with being provocative on talk radio.

But when provocative banter turns to character assassination, as it did on KMPC this week, it’s time to draw the line.

Joe McDonnell and Doug Krikorian returned from vacations chomping at the rhetorical bit to tear into their favorite target, John Robinson.

All Robinson was guilty of was returning as football coach at USC.

But McDonnell and Krikorian, for the entire 4 1/2 hours they were on the air Monday, treated Robinson as if he were a serial killer, or worse.

McDonnell, whose rough edges drew a lot of criticism from both KMPC management and the station’s listeners, was quoted in this space recently as saying, “I’m now a kinder, gentler Joe McDonnell.”

Well, it may be a new year, but the old McDonnell is back. And Krikorian, dripping with sarcasm, has sunk to McDonnell’s level.

No big surprise, though, since Krikorian for years has been ripping Robinson in his newspaper columns in the Herald Examiner and, these days, in the Long Beach Press-Telegram.

McDonnell and Krikorian claim that faxes to the station were running about 50-50 on their stand. They also say that, unlike their brethren in the media, they refuse to be apologists for Robinson.

“This guy is a very public figure, and he left USC and the Rams amid much controversy,” Krikorian said. “We felt we had to balance the fawning applause that was accorded Robinson’s return to USC.”

As crass as McDonnell and Krikorian were, things actually could have been worse. McDonnell wanted to play a 1972 song by the O’Jays called “Back Stabbers,” because, they believed, Robinson had back-stabbed his USC predecessor, Larry Smith, while serving as a commentator on Prime Ticket this season, and also for not standing behind his Ram assistants when they were fired two years ago.

Fortunately, program director Len Weiner nixed that idea. Also, producer Nick Zaccagnino, seeking balance, put a number of Robinson supporters on the program. The voices of reason included Channel 2’s Jim Hill, The Times’ Allan Malamud, former USC tight end Fred Cornwell, and Dodger Manager Tom Lasorda.

It sounded as if McDonnell called the hiring of Robinson by USC a “farce” and a “charade,” but he said it was Krikorian who used those words. Krikorian thought it was McDonnell.

Whatever, here are a couple words they both should try on for size: fair play.

This is one of the two best weekends of the NFL season--two playoff games on Saturday and two more on Sunday, just as there were last weekend.

For some opinions on this weekend’s games, the best football announcer on television was sought out.

John Madden?

No, he might be the best commentator, but the best announcer overall--at least the most entertaining and opinionated--is Terry Bradshaw, star of CBS’ “NFL Today.”

Bradshaw has been right so many times this season they should borrow Bill Walsh’s tag and start calling him a genius. Bradshaw has come a long way since the days he was tagged a dummy from Louisiana.

Actually, that was a misnomer. Bradshaw, deciding he didn’t want to go to Louisiana State but afraid to admit it, failed an entrance exam on purpose, and the whole thing kind of snowballed from there.

Hollywood Henderson once said Bradshaw was so dumb that he couldn’t spell cat if you spotted him the C and the A.

But now, when Bradshaw talks, people listen.

Reached at his home in Denton, Tex., Bradshaw said he likes the Dallas Cowboys over the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday because he likes Troy Aikman over Randall Cunningham. And he likes the San Francisco 49ers over the Washington Redskins on Saturday because he likes Steve Young over Mark Rypien.

Bradshaw said on the air a few weeks ago that the 49ers were making a mistake bringing back Joe Montana, that the move would serve as a distraction and rattle Young.

“The way Young has handled it, that hasn’t been the case,” Bradshaw said. “At least so far.”

What doesn’t Bradshaw like about Cunningham?

“He forces passes, trying to make things happen,” Bradshaw said. “He got away with a couple last weekend, throwing into double coverage.”

He also said Cunningham is a “selfish player, at least he appears to be a selfish player.”

This isn’t the first time Bradshaw has criticized Cunningham, who refuses to talk to Bradshaw.

“You’ve got to be honest, even if some people don’t like it,” Bradshaw said.

Although Bradshaw says Rypien played well against the Minnesota Vikings last weekend, he says Rypien also forces too many passes. In the first “Terry Awards,” televised on “NFL Today” Dec. 27, Bradshaw named Rypien his MDP--most disappointing player.

In the AFC games, Bradshaw likes Pittsburgh--”I’ve still got some Steeler in me”--and San Diego Chargers.

“Now that’s who I like,” he said. “But ask me who’s actually going to win and I’ll say I don’t know. It’s impossible to pick these games.”

TV-Radio Notes

Mike Ditka was fired by the Chicago Bears this week, but he hasn’t gone away. On Wednesday, NBC announced he will be an in-studio guest on “NFL Live,” Sunday at 12:30 p.m. On Thursday, CBS announced he would be on “NFL Today” Saturday at 12:30 p.m., doing an interview with Greg Gumbel and Terry Bradshaw from Chicago. Quipped one NBC staffer: “When you can’t get the real thing you have to use a satellite.” . . . NBC will have Warren Moon in studio on Saturday. Give Moon credit for having the nerve to show his face after the Houston Oilers’ collapse against Buffalo Bills last weekend. . . . CBS will have commentator Randy Cross, formerly of the San Francisco 49ers, UCLA and Crespi High in Encino, as its studio analyst both days. Of course, Cross says the 49ers will beat Washington, particularly if it is raining. “The Redskins better pray it doesn’t rain because nobody plays in that slosh better than the 49ers,” he said.

Radio ratings: There is some good news for Joe McDonnell and Doug Krikorian. In the 35-64 age bracket, one of the two categories KMPC uses to sell advertising, their Arbitron ratings rose from 1.0 during the summer book to 1.7 in the fall book released this week. The morning show stayed the same at .9 and the midday block went from .8 to 1.0. Overall, it’s not good news for KMPC. In the major 12-and-over category, the station went from a 1.0 to a .8 and now ranks 29th in the market. . . . Meanwhile, in San Diego, XTRA went from a 1.1 to a 3.6 and ranks ninth in the market. XTRA got a .5 in Los Angeles. In men, 25-54, XTRA went from a 2.5 to a 7.6 in San Diego, and ranks second in that category. The “Loose Cannons” in the mornings went from a 1.6 to a 6.8, Jim Rome went from a 2.6 to a 7.8 and Lee Hamilton, showing the smallest gain, went from a 4.5 to a 7.4. Weekends made the biggest gain, 2.0 to 9.4. Nothing like having a winning team like the Chargers to boost ratings. Hamilton says there is a different reason XTRA is doing so much better than KMPC. “The difference is we have dynamic announcers,” he said. “They have just a bunch of people.”

TV ratings: Fred Roggin’s “Sports Bowl ‘92” on Channel 4 last Friday at 10 p.m. got a 9.8 Nielsen rating despite having a lead-in rating of only 3.3. The 9.8 was the highest rating on Channel 4 that day, beating the 8.4 for the Cotton Bowl. The Fiesta Bowl got a 2.8 and the Orange Bowl a 2.5. . . . On Channel 7, Todd Donoho’s year-end special, with the Sugar Bowl as a lead-in, did well, but not as well as Roggin’s special. Donoho got an 8.5.

ABC, which will televise the final round of the Infiniti Tournament of Champions at La Costa on Sunday--today’s and Saturday’s rounds will be on ESPN--has added touring pros Peter Jacobsen and Jerry Pate to its announcing team. They join Bob Rosburg, Judy Rankin, Mark Rolfing and Frank Hannigan. The T of C is the first of 26 golf tournaments ABC will televise this year. Jacobsen will work 11 tournaments for ABC, sometimes joining host Brent Musburger in the 18th tower. Musburger has taken some heat from golf buffs for not knowing the game, but Jacobsen says he knows enough. “When I go to a restaurant, I don’t care if the waitress is enlightening or does a song and dance,” Jacobsen said. “I just want her to serve my meal and get out of the way. It’s kind of like that with announcers.”

TNT has Patrick Ewing and the New York Knicks vs. Shaquille O’Neal and the Orlando Magic tonight at 5 p.m., and at halftime of Sunday night’s TNT Boston-New York telecast will be an interview with Pat Riley. . . . Chick Hearn did a nice job in his halftime interview with Michael Jordan the other night on Channel 9, forgetting about basketball and asking him about such things as his family and how his deals with his public. One question Hearn didn’t need to ask, though, was whether Jordan thought the Chicago Bulls could three-peat. What did Hearn expect Jordan to say, “No, I don’t think so.”? . . . Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, making his debut as a basketball commentator Monday night on ESPN, was a little stiff, as might be expected, but he loosened up as the game between UC Santa Barbara and Alabama Birmingham progressed. Abdul-Jabbar is doing the smart thing by getting some experience on Big West games that aren’t shown until 11:30 p.m. in the East.

Michael Weisman, former NBC Sports executive producer, has been hired by World Cup USA 1994 to supervise and develop TV programming for the event. World Cup USA 1994 Chairman Alan Rothenberg said Weisman would create and oversee the production of specials leading up to the games that begin June 17, 1994, in Chicago and conclude with the championship game July 17 at the Rose Bowl.