Spot squeeze play in Nashville: NBC finds that Meredith's WSMV-TV compressed network feed to fit more commercials. (Top of the Week).(violates network affiliation agreement)

Broadcasting & Cable, October, 2002 by Trigoboff, Dan

NBC said Friday it was in talks with Meredith Corp. to resolve charges that Meredith's WSMV-TV Nashville, Tenn., used compression technology to add extra commercial spots during network prime time in violation of its affiliation agreement. The disclosure by the network followed quickly NBC Executive Vice President for Affiliate Relations John Damiano's conclusion that the station had added a 30-second spot to the Oct.

2 West Wing. He had reviewed tapes supplied by a Nashville journalist who had informally probed the station's practices. Prior to the resolution talks, NBC had planned to investigate other recent network airings over WSMV-TV through monitoring services. On Friday, a Meredith spokesman referred the matter to a company attorney who...

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