TV & VIDEO - Jan. 27, 1988

Las Vegas headliner Wayne Newton has rejected a reduced $5.3-million award in his libel suit against NBC, clearing the way for a new trial to determine how much the network owes him. The new trial will be for damages only, and will not address a jury’s previous determination that NBC defamed Newton in a 1980-81 series of news reports linking him to organized crime figures. In November, a Las Vegas federal judge threw out all but $5.3 million of the record $22.8 million won by Newton. But Newton refused to accept the lower figure and chose, instead, to go for a new trial. No date’s been set for the new trial, which will be held in Los Angeles because of previous objections by the network that Las Vegans are biased in favor of Newton. NBC still plans to appeal the original libel verdict.