CBS Chief Touts Network Dominance

CBS Chairman and Chief Executive Leslie Moonves spent much of early Saturday boasting to national television writers about his network being on fire, with a dominant prime-time schedule, numerous hit series and several promising projects in development -- including a new entry in the “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” franchise.

But he also came under fire during a significant portion of the session with television reporters, and defended his handling of decisions ranging from the network’s deals with Michael Jackson and the chairman’s cancellation of a miniseries on the Reagans to his feud with NBC and billionaire Donald Trump.

Moonves, who addressed several reporters by their first names during the gathering at the Hollywood Renaissance Hotel, initially joked about the controversies, saying his chief press representatives, normally charged with getting his name in the paper, had done a poor job with his new desire to keep his name out of the media.

Turning serious, he reiterated that CBS hadn’t paid Jackson a special fee in exchange for an interview the singer gave to “60 Minutes” correspondent Ed Bradley, as was alleged in several published reports.

“We don’t pay for interviews, and we would never do anything to compromise the integrity of CBS News,” Moonves said.

He acknowledged that it was he who made the decision to air a Jackson music special earlier this month that had been pulled in November, a few days after authorities accused Jackson of child molestation. The network had said in November that it would be inappropriate to broadcast the program until “the wheels of justice had turned” and the charges were heard in a court of law.

Moonves explained his about-face by saying Jackson had addressed the molestation charges in the “60 Minutes” interview. “60 Minutes” creator and Executive Producer Don Hewitt, speaking at another session later Saturday, also strenuously defended the integrity of the 35-year-old newsmagazine.

Moonves repeated his reasons for canceling a miniseries on Ronald and Nancy Reagan in November, saying he didn’t believe that it lived up to his assurances that it would be fair and balanced. The miniseries instead aired late that month on pay-cable channel Showtime, which, like CBS, is owned by Viacom.

The executive’s mood lightened when he was asked to respond to a tirade earlier this week by Trump, who called Moonves “the most highly overrated person in television.” The New York real estate developer also said Moonves would be dumped quickly if he were a contestant on Trump’s new unscripted NBC series, “The Apprentice,” in which would-be moguls compete for an executive job in the Trump organization, with one participant fired each week.

Trump, who has squabbled with Moonves over the broadcast of Trump’s Miss Universe pageant, and NBC were upset that CBS ran an original episode of TV’s most-watched show, “CSI,” against the premiere of “The Apprentice.”

“I like Donald, and I’ve always had a cordial relationship with him, so I’m going to take the high road and chalk up his behavior to having a bad-hair day,” Moonves joked, referring to Trump’s windblown look.

The CBS chief said such competitive scheduling maneuvers were TV tradition: “It wasn’t that big a deal. Yeah, it was a little shot across the bow. But things like this used to be fun.”

He also took a swipe at NBC and Fox, which both announced during earlier news conferences at the semiannual Press Tour that they would break with usual practice and start their new seasons in late summer.

Moonves, who oversees the most-watched network, said that starting the season before the customary late September launch period made no sense if the shows were “no good.”

Though Moonves continued to focus on CBS’ triumph over its network rivals, the session took an unexpected turn soon after he discussed the ratings growth of the long-struggling “The Early Show,” which he said is up 1 million viewers from last year. Julie Chen, one of the morning show’s anchors and the host of CBS’ “Big Brother,” has been romantically linked with Moonves, who is in the middle of a divorce.

Gail Shister, TV columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer, asked Moonves if he planned to stay out of decisions about “The Early Show.” The question marked the first time that Moonves had been asked in front of the gathering of reporters about his relationship with Chen, who was not mentioned by name.

He was clearly surprised, responding, “What, are you writing for Page Six now, Gail?” referring to the New York Post gossip page. He then said he and CBS News President Andrew Heyward had worked out a system on “The Early Show” that was “above board.”

Moonves also said the network was developing “CSI: New York,” the third edition of the “CSI” franchise, and had already renewed four freshman shows: “Two and a Half Men,” “Navy NCIS,” “Joan of Arcadia” and “Cold Case.”