TELEVISIONElection Exposure: NBC said Tuesday that it...

TELEVISION

Election Exposure: NBC said Tuesday that it will give time to the major presidential candidates to speak directly to voters during “Dateline NBC,” “NBC Nightly News” and other NBC News programs during the 60 days before the November election. “This will give viewers more time than before to hear the candidates, in a variety of settings,” NBC News Vice President William Wheatley said. CNN said Tuesday that it will give five minutes a week to each candidate on its prime-time “Inside Politics” show during the last month of the campaign. A public-interest group has called upon the networks to offer free prime-time air time to presidential candidates. CBS announced Monday that it will give free time within CBS News programs; ABC said Tuesday it has made no decision on the proposal. Fox and PBS have already said they’ll give prime-time air time to candidates.

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Missing ‘Caines’: Nine months ago, NBC announced that a comedy series called “Raising Caines” was being developed for mid-season, starring Mel Harris (“thirtysomething”), Judge Reinhold (“Beverly Hills Cop”) and Barry Corbin (“Northern Exposure”). The project from executive producer Bob Brush (“The Wonder Years”) focuses on a contemporary American family “trying to make the right choices in an increasingly complicated world.” Six episodes were shot, but the 1995-96 TV season is nearly over and there has been no sign of “Caines.” So what happened? TriStar Television, which produced the series, says it doesn’t know, and NBC executives aren’t talking. A network spokesperson would say only that the series is not presently scheduled and will be evaluated later.

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Programming Notes: The Fox network’s new morning show, “Fox After Breakfast,” based on the fX cable network’s program “Breakfast Time,” will premiere on Aug. 12. The program, which will air weekdays from 9-10 a.m., will be hosted from New York by Tom Bergeron and Laurie Hibberd. . . . “Caryl & Marilyn: Real Friends,” the new hourlong weekday daytime talk show starring Caryl Kristensen and Marilyn Kentz, stars of the former sitcom “The Mommies,” will premiere June 10 at 10 a.m. on ABC. . . . Cable’s Comedy Central has signed comedian Don Rickles for a series of network promotional spots. Meanwhile, Craig Kilborn, former anchor of ESPN’s “SportsCenter,” has been named host of “The Daily Show,” a new weeknight 11:30 p.m. reality-based talk series scheduled to debut on the comedy channel on July 15.

STAGE

Les ‘Miserables’?: Calling his Stockholm actors “miserable,” Ingmar Bergman has decided not to bring his stage version of “The Misanthrope” to New York. The play had been scheduled to open June 8 at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. His staging of Moliere’s 17th century masterpiece at Stockholm’s Royal Dramatic Theater has been praised by critics, but Bergman reportedly believes the show has deteriorated since it opened last year.

POP/ROCK

Tupac Watch: Rapper Tupac Shakur--currently on bail as he appeals convictions for sex abuse in New York and probation violations in Los Angeles--can avoid another jail sentence if he stays out of trouble for four months and organizes a benefit concert for underprivileged children. The 24-year-old rapper promised to do both Monday as he pleaded guilty in Los Angeles to a misdemeanor charge of illegal weapons possession. The judge delayed sentencing until Sept. 12, when he could send Shakur to prison for 16 months if he does not comply. Shakur said afterward that details of the concert were still being worked out, but he planned to perform with labelmates Snoop Doggy Dogg and Tha Dogg Pound, as well as with Alanis Morissette and Rage Against the Machine. However, a spokeswoman for Morissette said this was “false and untrue,” while a Rage spokeswoman was unaware of any plans for the band to perform at the benefit.

QUICK TAKES

Sources say that CBS today will name Jane Robelot and Mark McEwen to replace Harry Smith and Paula Zahn as co-anchors on the revamped “CBS This Morning.” Robelot is the news reader on the show; McEwen, the weather reporter and entertainment correspondent. . . . Going on the road seems to pay off in late night, as “Late Show With David Letterman’s” heavily promoted week in San Francisco began Monday with Tom Hanks as a guest, tying “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno” in overnight ratings in 33 major cities metered by Nielsen. Each show claimed 15% of the audience, marking the highest-rated night for Letterman since March 1. . . . Cable’s Independent Film Channel will provide exclusive live coverage of the Cannes Film Festival. Opening ceremonies will air Thursday at 10 a.m., and closing ceremonies, hosted by critic Roger Ebert, will air on May 20 at 10 a.m. The closing ceremonies include all festival award presentations, including the highly coveted Palme d’Or. . . . Gramercy Pictures and Polygram Home Video will aim to increase the box-office fortunes of Pamela Anderson Lee’s “Barb Wire,” which opened with a disappointing take of $1.84 million last weekend, by releasing 100,000 copies of “The Making of ‘Barb Wire,’ ” including behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with Lee. The video, released as a free rental, will be shipped to stores next week.