Cablevision Appoints James Dolan Chairman of Madison Square Garden Board of Directors; Robert Lemle Named Vice Chairman of MSG Board.

BETHPAGE, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 1, 1999--

Cablevision Systems Corporation (ASE: CVC) today announced that James L. Dolan, president and CEO of Cablevision, has been named chairman of the Madison Square Garden board of directors and Robert Lemle, executive vice president, general counsel and secretary of Cablevision, has been named a vice chairman of the MSG board.

Mr. Dolan, who previously served as a Madison Square Garden vice chairman, assumes the chairman's position left vacant by the death of long-time Cablevision executive Marc Lustgarten in August. Charles F. Dolan, Cablevision's chairman, continues to serve as a vice chairman of the three-member Garden board. Dave Checketts remains president and CEO of the Garden and will report to James Dolan.

James Dolan (44) has served as Cablevision's chief executive since 1995. In that position, Mr. Dolan oversees Cablevision's broad portfolio of media, sports, entertainment and telecommunications companies and operations. Previously, he had been chief executive of Rainbow Programming Holdings (now Rainbow Media), the company's extensive programming and entertainment arm.

Commenting on today's announcement, Mr. Dolan said, "For the past four and a half years, Madison Square Garden has been an essential element of Cablevision's New York business strategy. The Garden will continue to play a vital role in Cablevision's plans and we look forward to the strong performance of the Garden's teams and the continued growth of its businesses."

The Madison Square Garden board of directors is responsible for the oversight of the Garden's expanded portfolio of sports and entertainment businesses. The MSG holdings include: the Arena complex, located in the heart of the New York metropolitan area; its sports teams the New York Knicks, the New York Rangers, and the New York Liberty; programming networks MSG Network and FOX Sports New York; Radio City Entertainment, which includes the world-famous Rockettes, the Christmas Spectacular and the operation of New York's Radio City Music Hall; the Clearview Cinema Group; as well as the Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL) hockey team and the management and operation of the Hartford Civic Center.

In announcing the appointment of Robert Lemle to the Garden board, James Dolan added, "Robert has played a key role in Cablevision's strategic expansion. His insights and guidance range well beyond the realm of traditional legal counsel. Joining Charles Dolan and me as a member of the MSG board, he will increase his involvement with this fast-growing and important part of Cablevision's New York Market-focused business strategy."

Mr. Lemle (46) has served as general counsel and secretary of Cablevision Systems Corp. since 1983, and was named executive vice president in 1994. During a dynamic period of rapid industry change, regulatory shifts, and the company's aggressive expansion through a series of strategic transactions, he has provided Cablevision's principal legal counsel. As a member of both the company's board of directors and its office of the CEO, Mr. Lemle also helps guide Cablevision's strategic decision-making. He joined Cablevision in 1982 from the New York law firm of Cravath, Swaine and Moore.

President of the board of trustees and a founder of the Long Island Children's Museum in Garden City, N.Y., Mr. Lemle is also a member of the board of trustees of Oberlin College, his undergraduate alma mater. He received his J.D. from New York University School of Law.

Cablevision Systems Corporation is one of the nation's leading media, entertainment and telecommunications companies. The Company owns a controlling interest in Madison Square Garden and its related properties. Its cable television operations serve more than 3.4 million customers located primarily in the New York, Boston and Cleveland metropolitan areas. Cablevision's commercial telephone service, Lightpath, provides superior, facilities-based local and long distance phone service to business customers, while the company's Optimum Telephone and Optimum-branded high-speed Internet services meet the telecommunications needs of residential customers. Rainbow Media Holdings, Inc., a subsidiary of Cablevision, manages entertainment, news and sports programming businesses, including American Movie Classics, Bravo, the Metro Channels and the News12 regional news networks. The Company also owns and operates The Wiz consumer electronics stores at 40 locations, as well as the Clearview Cinema Group which features 290 motion picture theatre screens in the New York Metropolitan area.

For Internet Users: Information about Cablevision Systems Corporation, as well as background on its executives and other materials is available on the World Wide Web at (http://www.cablevision.com).