MEDIA ON TARGET IN VICK CASE.

Byline: TOM HOFFARTH

MEDIA

Not even Michael Vick can scramble from reading, watching or hearing the latest news about himself.

That's because the media, on every level, already has persecuted him far beyond any other misguided athlete.

Or so we're told. Again. Particularly by some teammates trying to show support for him.

Vick's guilty plea-bargain arrangement for his association with a group of friends that apparently have been exploiting dogs, as well as gambling on their fighting ability, has been portrayed as something worse than any other crime a person in today's society can commit. We apparently have found the breaking point of what really makes someone even more heinous than a pedophile, murderer, rapist, drunk driver, burglar or, at least, a jaywalker. And the media, apparently, is the reason why this continues to be rehashed on a daily basis.

Good. From the media's side, let's keep it up.

It seems the more we push things on this end, perhaps to an extreme, the more resistance comes, to a point where productive discussion begins on what's fair, what's right, what's the next step. We're not endorsing the ever-present media from going overboard on the subject. When you've got 24-hour sports channels and blogs to fill, it's a function of the beat.

But it's not the media's place, or its nature, to stop digging for information, opinions and solutions. It's those who consume the media who choose to respond back, say enough's enough when they think it is and keep the media working for them instead of against them.

Whenever an athlete is charged with doing something that society deems inappropriate, the argument gets old about the media's part in the equation. We're told the media always is looking for the negative and digging through dirty laundry because any positive spin on a story makes it non-newsworthy.

That's only half the story, the half those readers choose to believe.

Opinions, fueled more and more by bloggers who want to have a voice but lack any sort of journalistic, ethical background, swirl around on the Internet and too often get regurgitated as fact -- even by the respected journalists who read them. Speculation unfortunately replaces reporting.

Vick's daily saga just shines the spotlight on this issue again, and there's a volume control element in which the consumer is encouraged to participate. The starting point to the media's coverage several months ago was when Vick, based on an FBI investigation, was alleged to have been involved in something that will prevent him from performing on the field. Now we get into the charges and how long that will keep him from playing. That's what the fans, and teammates, should want to know about.

But once they've heard some details behind what's going on -- and they all haven't come out yet -- it's tougher to deal with, and fingers get pointed as to who's making this a bigger issue.

Then you've got some who want to make it a black-vs.-white issue. That's crossing a whole other line. But it's one that ESPN.com's Jemele Hill, a black female columnist, addressed perfectly this week in trying to educate the black men who continue to defend Vick despite what evidence appears to be against him:

"You can say Vick was persecuted unfairly by the white media, say we should be more concerned with the war in Iraq than an illegal dog-fighting ring or say his downfall wouldn't be a 24-hour news event if he were the highest-paid white quarterback.

"But it's impossible to stand on moral high ground while trying to defend something so low. Vick did something wrong, something against the law, something disgusting and vile. Even worse, he appears to be the financial backer and mastermind behind the dog-fighting ring.

"I understand Vick's guilt is a tough, humbling thing to swallow because the one thing black men in this society understand is the feeling of being piled upon, discounted and discarded. Black men have a history of being marginalized and demonized in the mainstream, so although your rush to defend Vick was misguided, it also was understandable.

"But now that we know of his guilt and complicity, let's be honest and not use racism as an excuse. Let's not point to Rae Carruth, Ray Lewis and Leonard Little and cite their crimes -- as if wrongs can exonerate other wrongs. Racism isn't putting Vick in jail. Awful decisions did that."

It's an awfully powerful media statement. And very accurate.

Dodgers find new revenue in Spanish broadcasts

Despite reports that make it seem as if the arrival of David Beckham with the Galaxy undid the Dodgers' contract talks to keep its Spanish-language games on KWKW 1330-AM, the team's new three-year plan to move those broadcasts to KHJ 930-AM hinged on the potential to generate more exposure and revenue from Spanish radio than any other team in baseball.

Dodgers chief operating officer Marty Greenspun said the team had some issues, but would have liked to stayed at KWKW, where it had been since 1987. But it got a much better deal -- and a stronger signal -- with KHJ, the No. 1-rated Spanish-language AM station. Not only will KHJ carry all 162 games, plus spring training, without delays, but the cross-promotion component with the Lieberman Broadcasting company's four radio stations (KBUE 105.5/94.3-FM, KWIZ 96.7-FM and KRQB 96.1-FM), and television's Channel 62 making the move earlier, adds to the scope of game coverage.

That left the Angels (and Galaxy, which it has yet to formally sign) as a backup plan for KWKW once it was sure the Dodgers were leaving.

"It's a first in pro sports, if not pro baseball, to have this kind of integrated and marketing arrangement with a Spanish broadcasting company," Greenspun said. "The promotional and marketing initiatives were a key driving point in looking at other options. No one else delivered that."

The Dodgers had been in talks with stations aside from KWKW before Beckham signed with the Galaxy. KWKW, which also carries the Lakers, had been talking about adding international soccer broadcasts that could have interrupted Dodgers programming.

The Dodgers also made a wise play by allowing Spanish-language Hall of Fame broadcaster Jamie Jarrin, in his 49th season with the team, to announce the team's new deal during a scheduled on-line chat with fans Tuesday.

"KWKW couldn't guarantee us more than 120 games a year and to accept that would have been a disservice to our audience," Jarrin said in the chat. "I think that we are improving tremendously regarding coverage. We are going to be reaching areas that we couldn't reach in the past."

Meanwhile, the Angels' announcement later Tuesday that KWKW agreed to a five-year deal to do its Spanish-language games seemed to have resolved the problem of conflicts. KWKW president Jim Kalmenson said the ESPN Deportes' L.A.-based home network would do every Angels game, moving some to affiliate KWKU 1220-AM if there were conflicts with the Galaxy.

The Angels plan to switch the Arte Moreno-owned KLAA 830-AM from Spanish to English programming, with the team's English-language games on that station in 2008. As a result, KWKW doesn't suffer such a large blow by losing the Dodgers.

CAPTION(S):

photo, 2 boxes

Photo:

ESPN broke in for live coverage of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick's arraignment in late July.

Jonathan Ernst/Getty Images

Box:

(1) WHAT SMOKES

(2) WHAT CHOKES