Dateline

NBC set out yesterday to close the book on its "Dateline NBC" debacle with a blizzard of high-minded statements, three firings, a demotion and the creation of a task force to avoid similar mistakes.But sources at NBC News wondered whether top network management understood how deep the news division's problems ran and how they led to the rigged test-crash of a General Motors Corp. pickup during a November broadcast."Understand us clearly," NBC President and CEO Bob Wright said in a statement.

Initial reports from the terrorist attacks in India's financial capital suggested that American and British hotel guests were targeted. But the duration of the attacks - over three days - and the choice of iconic landmarks in Mumbai reveal a broader agenda: India's economic progress and standing in the international community. The alarming scale and sophistication of the Mumbai attacks should have the global anti-terrorist network working overtime to help the Indian government identify the origin and motive of the perpetrators.

Remember all the media experts who said "Dateline NBC" was finished last year after it admitting rigging a test-crash of a GM pickup truck?The conventional wisdom was that it cost the magazine -- and possibly NBC News -- its credibility, and they could never get that back.The phony test crash did cost Michael Gartner his job as president of NBC News. But "Dateline" is an entirely different story.There are not one but two nights of "Dateline" on the network each week this summer. Come September, there are going to be three nights of "Dateline" -- Tuesday at 10, Wednesday at 9, and Friday at 9. And NBC News President Andrew Lack says there are more to come.

If you ever had any questions about the accuracy of the Nielsen TV ratings, it probably won't help to know that my family is now serving as a Nielsen sample household. This all began a few weeks ago when the phone rang and a voice on the other end said something like: "How would you like to perform a tremendous service for your country by being a Nielsen participant and keeping track of all the mind-numbing, soul-sapping junk you watch on TV?" Sure, I said, because I don't have a lot going on in my life.

Maryland's criminal justice system failures are officially attracting national attention. Tonight on "Dateline NBC," Dawn Fratangelo will be looking at the case of Richard Spicknall, the Howard County man who was able to purchase a gun despite a court-issued restraining order that should have shown up at the time of his criminal background check. Spicknall later allegedly used the gun to shoot and kill his 2-year-old son and 3-year-old daughter. Subsequent investigation showed the restraining order against Spicknall was just one of hundreds never entered into the state's background-check database.

LOS ANGELES -- "Dateline NBC," the ever-growing newsmagazine with Jane Pauley and Stone Phillips, is going to expand again -- placing it in head-to-head competition with CBS' "60 Minutes," the oldest and most successful newsmagazine in network history.Starting March 17, "Dateline" will air at 7 p.m. Sundays, in addition to 10 p.m. Tuesdays and 9 p.m. Wednesdays and Fridays, Andrew Lack, president of NBC News, announced yesterday.With "Dateline" riding the tide of a 33 percent increase in viewership compared with last year, while "60 Minutes" is down 20 percent, much is going to be made of the impending ratings battle.

An article in The Sun yesterday on the congressional race in California's 37th District should have carried a dateline of Cathedral City.

EDUCOM, a consortium of higher education institutions, has selected a Naval Academy interactive video project as one of top three of 116 entries in its Higher Education Software Award Program.Professor Gladys Rivera-La Scala, language studies department chairwoman, was presented with an award of $3,000.MARCIL DECORATEDDATELINE: ANNAPOLISArmy Capt. Roger B. Marcil, son of Roger B. Marcil of Annapolis, has been decorated with the Meritorious Service Medal.Marcil is aproperty and services branches officer at Ft. Wainwright, Alaska.

Army Pvt. Christopher Brown is stationed at Fort Wainwright in Fairbanks, Alaska. He is the son of Mrs. Carolyn Dulke.DATELINE: ANNAPOLISILLUSTRATION: PHOTOCAPTION: CHRISTOPHER BROWNFort Wainwright, Fairbanks, AlaskaLT. JEREMIAH MCENERNEYNavy Lt. JeremiahMcEnerney is stationed in Dharan, Saudi Arabia. His wife, Robin, lives in Annapolis.DATELINE: ANNAPOLISILLUSTRATION: PHOTOCAPTION: JEREMIAH MCENERNEYDharan, Saudi ArabiaSEAMAN MATTHEW MCMAHONNavy Seaman Matthew McMahon is stationed in Dharan, Saudi Arabia.

Air Force Airman 1st Class David J. Fugiel, son of Jack H. Fugiel ofAnnapolis, has arrived for duty at Andrews Air Force Base in Missouri.Fugiel is a fuels specialist.MELLEMA FINISHES COURSEDATELINE:ANNAPOLISArmy Reserve Pvt. Ernest R. Mellema IV, son of Mr. and Mrs. Ernest R. Mellema of Annapolis, has completed a unit supply specialist course at Ft. Jackson, S.C.Mellema is a 1990 graduate of Broadneck Senior High School.PRANN AT FT. RILEYDATELINE: ANNAPOLISArmy Spec. John C. Prann, son of Valeria Johnson of Annapolis, has arrived for duty at Ft. Riley, Kan.Prann is a 1988 graduate of Annapolis Senior High School.

Hey, Baltimore's a great place! It says so right there in Frommer's, the popular travel guide. Last week, it rated Baltimore as one of the top 10 "up-and-coming" summer travel destinations in the whole world! Charm City is right there with Barcelona and Belize, the Catskills in New York and the Cook Islands in the South Pacific. This comes on the heels of kudos to the Queen City of the Patapsco from another noted trend-spotting publication - The Wall Street Journal. Last Wednesday, in the coveted upper-left-hand corner of Page One was publicity all the promotional money in the world can't buy. The story - dateline BALTIMORE - told of a house bought for $77,000 a year ago that, after a bit of renovation, sold recently for $300,000.

In his final column for The New York Times, former Hollywood reporter Bernard Weinraub included a startling confession: That perhaps he should have stopped writing about the film industry after marrying a powerful studio executive. "Clearly, I stayed too long on my beat, clinging to a notion that I could sidestep conflicts of interest by avoiding direct coverage of Sony," he wrote last Sunday of his 1997 marriage to Amy Pascal, who would later become the chairwoman of Sony Pictures. Weinraub switched coverage areas several years after the fact, but critics maintained that this was too late, and in the column, Weinraub expressed regret that his marriage may have sullied his newspaper's reputation.

Last week's top TV shows, according to A.C. Nielsen Co.: ........................................ ....................................... Rating 1 CSI: Crime Scene Investigation CBS 9.5 2 Everybody Loves Raymond CBS 8.7 3 48 Hours, Monday CBS 7.7 3 (tie) Law & Order NBC 7.7 5 Becker CBS 7.6 6 Law & Order: Criminal Intent NBC 7.0 7 Meet My Folks NBC 6.8 7 (tie) Primetime, Thursday ABC 6.8 9 Dateline, Sunday NBC 6.7 9 (tie) Dog Eat Dog NBC 6.7 11 American Idol, Tuesday Fox 6.6 11 (tie)

Founded: 1820. Location: Bloomington, Ind. Enrollment: 30,157 undergraduates. Tuition and fees: $4,735 in-state, $14,469 out-of-state. Famous alumni: NBC's Dateline anchor Jane Pauley; violinist Joshua Bell; actor Kevin Kline; Secretary of Treasury Paul O'Neill; Secretary of Education Rodney Paige; sportscaster Dick Enberg. Academic ranking: No. 28 among public national universities, according to U.S. News & World Report (September 2001). School colors: Red and white. Nickname: Hoosiers.

The General George G. Meade Chapter of the Military Order of the World Wars will meet at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 19 in the Officer's Club.The featured speaker is Hank Dillon, Pentagon liaison officer to the Army in Europe.Information and reservations: 465-5474 or 266-5804.DESERT STORM ANNIVERSARYThe Maryland National Guard has scheduled a one-year anniversary celebration for families of soldiers called up for Operation Desert Storm at 7 p.m. at Overlea Caterers, 6809 Belair Road.Information: 576-6188.

Marine 1st Lt. David C. Kirby, son of Delores K. Jones of Annapolis,has reported for duty at Marine Barracks in Washington.A graduate of Annapolis Senior High School and Davis and Elkins College in West Virginia, Kirby joined the Marine Corps in May 1983.SHEEHY PROMOTEDDATELINE: ANNAPOLISMarine Lance Cpl. Patrick J. Sheehy, son of Donald J. and Mary C.Sheehy of Annapolis, was promoted to his present rank while serving with Marine Corps Security Force Company, St. Mawgan, United Kingdom.A 1986 graduate of St. Mary's High School, Sheehy joined the Marine Corps in September 1990.