Nets devote mags to Iraqi air strikes
'48 Hours,' 'Dateline' focus away from impeachment
The Big Three broadcast webs went on the air between 1 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. PST with reports on what an embattled President Clinton described as "a strong, sustained series of air strikes" in response to the latest twist in the long-running soap opera starring Iraq topper Saddam Hussein and an ensemble cast of United Nations weapons inspectors.
CBS and NBC later delivered expanded hour-long editions of their nightly newscasts. CBS was set to offer a special edition of its newsmag "48 Hours" Wednesday night from 9-10 p.m., while NBC was to devote its regularly skedded 8 p.m. edition of "Dateline" to the bombing. Each of the Big Three webs said they would extend their coverage deeper into primetime as warranted.
It just so happens...
ABC already had skedded a 10 p.m. news spec on the historic impeachment debate that was set for today but was delayed at least one day by Congress due to the Iraqi situation. As a result, ABC newsies rushed to revamp the spec to reflect the day's news, with special attention to the tensions in Washington spurred by those GOP solons who openly questioned Clinton's motive for the timing of the Iraqi attack.
A Fox rep said late Wednesday that there were no plans to preempt primetime programming, barring any significant developments on the bombing or the impeachment issue.
Not surprisingly, the all-news cablers were wall-to-wall Iraq and impeachment news Wednesday. CNN stood out early on with live coverage from Baghdad by the web's star foreign correspondent Christiane Amanpour.
