A consumer's guide to the best and worst of sports media and merchandise. Ground rules: If it can be read, played, heard, observed, worn, viewed, dialed or downloaded, it's in play here.

A consumer’s guide to the best and worst of sports media and merchandise. Ground rules: If it can be read, played, heard, observed, worn, viewed, dialed or downloaded, it’s in play here.

By LARRY STEWART

Oct. 1, 1998 12 AM PT

What: “Starlight Children’s Foundation Special: Wish Upon a Star”

Where: Fox Sports West 2

When: Tonight at 6:30

The business of sports television too often seems to be only about the bottom line. We all know about lengthy commercial breaks, the overabundance of promos, the proliferation of shameless cross-promotions, the extensive means of justifying huge rights fees and the escalating cable fees.

But Fox Sports West’s involvement with the Starlight Children’s Foundation is a case of sports television doing something good simply for the sake of doing something good. Fox Sports West, which has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Special Olympics in recent years, this summer put together a fund-raising charity auction for the Starlight Children’s Foundation at the House of Blues in Hollywood.

But it’s more than just a look at the auction and the celebrities who took part. Hosts Bill Macdonald and Stacey St. James and producers Micah King, Stephanie Moore and Mark Shah also take a look at the Starlight Children’s Foundation and the good it does for terminally and chronically ill children by granting their wishes.

There is a feature on Lachlan Dansk, a 6-year-old Australian boy whose wish to come to the United States and see a major league baseball game was granted by the foundation. Lachlan, the victim of a brain tumor who endured six weeks of radiology treatments, and his parents got to attend a Dodger game, and Eric Karros presented Lachlan with his own Dodger jersey.

Among those taking part were Tom Lasorda, actor Jimmy Smits, Dodgers Karros, Gary Sheffield, Bobby Bonilla, former Dodger Steve Garvey, the Lakers’ Robert Horry and the Kings’ Luc Robitaille.

The special has several airings on Fox Sports West 2. Besides tonight, they include Friday at 3 p.m., Wednesday at 10:30 p.m., Oct. 14 at 3:30 p.m., and Oct. 22 at 3:30 p.m.