Broadcasting (Oct 1931-Dec 1932)

Record Details:

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CONVENTION NOTABLES— Left to right, Capt. A. H. Stackpole, WHP, Harrisburg, Pa.; Lambdin Kay, WSB, Atlanta; Ralph Atlass, WJKS, Gary, Ind., and WLAP, Louisville; Dr. George E. Halley, KMBC, Kansas City; Edgar L. Bill, WMBD, Peoria, III.; Carl Meyers, WGN, Chicago; Arthur Church, KMBC, Kansas City; Walter Evans, Westinghouse Radio Stations, and John Patt, WGAR, Cleveland. tacks than any other industry, barring none," he continued. "All are after our scalps. If we don't get together we are going to get up some morning and find that we don't have our radio stations. The 50 kilowatters and the 100 watters are being given just about the same consideration in Washington." He referred to the case of Stations WIBO and WPCC, Chicago, ordered off the air by the Commission Oct. 16 to make way for WJKS, Gary, Ind. Bellows Makes Report : READING the report of the legislative committee, Mr. Bellows said the problems presented this year are of great importance. By all odds the most serious legislative menace to the orderly progress of broadcasting, he declared, lies in the efforts being made to induce Congress to take back some part of the authority to allocate broadcasting facilities, which, by the Radio Act, was fully conferred on the Commission. "It is the sincere belief of your committee," he said, "that the moment Congress breaks down this wholly wise provision of the Radio Act of 1927 by legislation prescribing the allocation of so much as a single frequency, the orderly progress of federal radio regulation is at an end, and the industry will be plunged into a chaotic, endless and enormously expensive series of court battles." The breakdown of the existing system, Mr. Bellows continued, would "inevitably result from the legislative dealing out of broadcasting facilities as political prizes," and this would be the first step in the direction of government ownership and operation of all the country's radio facilities. He offered the following resolution: "Resolved, that the National Association of Broadcasters, in convention assembled, heartily commends the wisdom of the Congress of the United States in giving complete authority to allocate broadcasting facilities to the Federal Radio Commission, under Section 4 of the Radio Act of 1927, and expresses its unqualified disapproval of any effort to break down this orderly method of allocation, as created by the Congress, through any form of special legislation whatsoever, and be it further "Resolved, that the National Association of Broadcasters, accepting the definition of broadcasting established by the International Broadcast Union, to the effect that broadcasting is that form of wireless transmission wherein the service is designed to reach all classes of listeners, without exception, strongly reaffirms its opposition to the segregation of any broadcast channel, or group of such channels, for any form of special interest or activity whatsoever, and to any designation of broadcast channels on the basis of other than engineering principles as applied to geographical service areas." Copyright Committee: THE Vestal copyright bill having been successfully blocked in the last Congress, Mr. Bellows said it was unwise to make specific recommendations concerning such legislation. The committee did recommend, however, that the temporary joint committee on Copyright Legislation be continued, with what ever personnel the president may select and with broad authority to represent the NAB in presenting to Congress recommendations on any legislation concerning copyright. Supplementary legislation to clarify and improve certain administrative provisions of the Radio Act of 1927 was recommended in another resolution. This resolution recommended elimination of the requirement for construction permits, but if this amendment be not adopted, another amendment to reinstate the provision for an appeal of any unsuccessful applicant for a construction permit; that the Commission record every vote and official act; that its proceedings shall be public upon the request of any party interested, together with the requirement that it file a written opinion or memorandum stating the reasons for any decision or order resulting from a hearing or investigation, and that the association does not favor the bill offered at the last session which among other things would give the Commission power to suspend the license of any station for a period of 30 days. Hit Zone System: WHILE the committee saw little hope of any action at the forthcoming session looking toward the elimination of the "preposterous zone system," it did, however, offer a resolution identical with that adopted at the last convention on the subject. The system, the resolution said, is contrary to all recognized principles of radio engineering, and its sole effect is to deprive large sections of the American people of the service to which they are entitled. It asked that the law be amended to make service to radio listeners the sole basis for the distribution of facilities, rather than the Davis amendment. Concerning state legislation the committee recommended the adoption of substantially the same resolution adopted last year, but with a further provision pertaining to libel and slander. It repeated that the NAB is definitely opposed to the enactment of state legislation regulating or seeking to regulate radio transmission on the ground that all broadcasting, as interstate commerce, is subject to federal regulation. In connection with slander or libel, the resolution said that_ states should give due consideration to the provisions of Section 18 of the Radio Act, under which the broadcaster is specifically denied any power or censorship over the material broadcast by any preson who is a legally qualified candidate for any public office, and that such proposed state legislation should specifically release the broadcaster of any liability with respect to utterances of which he could not have had knowledge in advance of the actual broadcast. Face Mexican Problem: READJUSTMENT of North American broadcast frequencies, cited by Chairman Bellows as one of the most important problems facing the broadcasters, was the basis of another resolution. Mentioning particularly the activities in Mexico in station construction, the report said that within the next year it is altogether probable that something will have to be done by the Fedtral government to stabilize and readjust the relations between the United States and other North American countries in the matter of use of frequencies. Immediate appointment of a special committee on international broadcast relations was recommended. "It is clearly the duty of our government to protect to the utmost of its ability the interests of American broadcasters when these interests are threatened from abroad," the committee stated. This resolution was offered: "Resolved, that the NAB, in convention assembled, hereby authorizes and directs its president to appoint a standing committee on international broadcast relations, which committee shall have authority to formulate a program for the guidance of this association in matters concerning international broadcast relations, and to represent this association at any conference regarding1 the international allocation of broadcasting facilities which may hereafter be arranged by any department of the United States Government, and the association reouests that any such department will give advance notice of any such conference, with an invitation to this association to be represented thereat to the managing director of this association." Oppose Rate-Fixing: INTERVENTION by the NAB in the test case now pending before the Interstate Commerce Commission invoking the rate-regulating authority of that agency was proposed in a last-minute resolution. Viewed as of possibly far-reaching importance, the committee said that if a decision were to be handed down in favor of the complainant, the I. C. C. would, in effect, assume complete jurisdiction over the advertising rate structure of every station in the country. The resolution authorized the executive committee to make application to the I. C. C. for permission to appear as intervenor in the hearing "of any complaint before the said I. C. C. in which the alleged right or duty of said commission to establish or regulate rates for broad cast advertising service appears as an issue, for the purpose of presenting before the 1. C. C. the claim of this association that a radio broadcasting station is not and cannot be regarded as a common carrier under the law." Dispute Over Lotteries: AMENDMENT of the federal radio law to insert a provision prohibiting the broadcast of lotteries was recommended by the committee and provoked considerable floor discussion. A resolution to this end said the association "favors an amendment to section 29 of the Radio Act prohibiting the broadcasting of any statement, proposal, offer or other verbal communication which, if written or printed, would be subject to exclusion from the United states mails under the postal laws of this country." Mr. Cummins, WRAK, Williamsport, Pa., insisted he could see no objection to lotteries and that he feit they were distinctly of public service. Leo Sheehan, WELL, Battle Creek, Mich., disputed Mr. Cummins' argument, declaring that to circumvent the lottery laws evidence must be shown that the particular enterprize is a game of skill and not of chance. J. L. Kaufman, WCAE, Pittsburgh, asserted that his station long since had abandoned the scheme of trying to give something away to the audience until a program had been tried and tested. Some advertisers, he asserted, are more interested in getting fan letters than in merchandizing their products. In open discussion Mr. Cummins told of the plight of the local station in his dealings with the Commission. "Any tramp on a park bench with a two-cent stamp," he asserted, "can get a hearing before the Commission and force a hardworking broadcaster to travel even across the country to defend himself." He advocated public hearings on general orders proposed by the Commission, and urged "loosening up" of regulations having to do with phonograph record announcements and with the 12-hour broadcasting day requirement. All this should be done to relieve the hardship on low-powered stations, he said. A special subcommittee of the legislative committee, made up of Louis G. Caldwell, attorney, and Mr. Butcher, then presented its report, which, along general lines, embraced the matters raised by Mr. Cummins. Presented by Mr. Caldwell, the report urged that hearings be held before adoption of general orders, and that the Commission, by arbitration, endeavor to settle time-sharing or other minor disputes between stations, rather than cite them for formal hearing in Washington. Evils that have arisen from General Order 105, dealing with the broadcasting day, also should be ironed out through conferences, the report stated. Supplementing this presentation, Mr. Butcher suggested that some sort of resolution expressing the sentiment of the industry along these lines be adopted. Reads Saltzman's Paper: SUBSTITUTING for General Saltzman, Dr. C. B. Jolliffe, chief engineer of the Radio Commission, on Page 28 BROADCASTING • November 7, 1931