RADIO TALK SHOW HOST REVEALS KOBE ACCUSER'S NAME.

Byline: Valerie Kuklenski Staff Writer

Tom Leykis, host of a sex-oriented, nationally broadcast radio talk show, has made public the name of the woman who accused Laker star Kobe Bryant of sexual assault, stirring debate Wednesday over whether the media should release the names of alleged victims of sex crimes.

Leykis' disclosure Tuesday on his self-titled show, the No. 1-rated afternoon talk show in Los Angeles (KLSX-FM, 97.1), came after the name, address and telephone number of the 19-year-old Colorado woman had been posted on some Web sites.

But being named on a syndicated radio program carried by 60 stations nationwide is a different matter.

``There is a difference between someone searching for it (on the Internet) for whatever reason and a radio station putting it out there for everyone to hear,'' said Cynthia Rawitch, a professor of journalism ethics at California State University, Northridge, and associate dean of its College of Arts, Media and Communications.

``Listeners aren't tuning in with the expectation of learning that information.''

Print and broadcast news media, including the Daily News, generally withhold names and photos of sex crime victims unless a victim gives permission to be identified. Bryant's accuser has not been named publicly by Eagle County authorities, who have said she and her family wish to maintain their privacy.

Rawitch said Leykis ``would probably make the argument that he's not news media and he's not bound by that rule, and he may be right.''

KLSX management Wednesday referred questions to a spokesman for its parent company, CBS Radio, who could not be reached for comment.

But in an interview with Reuters, Leykis said he does not believe Bryant's accuser, and he suspects she is seeking attention and money. He said he feels it is unfair to identify the accused but not the accuser.

He also raised a point key to the ongoing discussion of whether to divulge identities of sex crime victims.

``We're told that rape is violence, not sex, and if that's true, there's no reason she should feel shame or embarrassment,'' Leykis said.

A more commonly held view is that being named in the context of Leykis' program is stigmatizing for a sexual assault victim who might be willing to come forward under other circumstances.

In a 2000 interview with the Daily News, Leykis, said, ``I am a talk radio whore. There's a reason there's a red light outside the studio door. Somebody's paying me to feign intimacy to have a conversation with you. At least I'm honest about it. I'm in the advertising business. My job is to get as many people as possible listening.''

Bryant, 24, has denied the criminal accusation, expressing regret instead for what he called an act of adultery. He is due in court Aug. 6 in Colorado for the reading of charges. If convicted, he faces a possible prison term of four years to life.

Valerie Kuklenski, [phone]

valerie.kuklenski(at)dailynews.com

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KLSX-FM radio talk show host Tom Leykis revealed the name of Kobe Bryant's accuser, saying it is unfair to name Bryant and not the woman.

Daily News file photo