Radio age (Jan 1927-Jan 1928)

RADIO AGE for January, 192; The Magazine of the Hour IMPORTANT work is being done for radio broadcasting by the National Radio Co-ordinating Committee, which has been formed to push the passage of legislation that will regulate the number of stations, their wave lengths and their power. The committee realizes that it is going to be difficult to obtain definite action from the next congress but they are prepared to do their best to convince our national legislators that delay in passing a radio bill is sure to work hardship on a great industry and inflict an increasing annoyance upon twentyfive millions or more of broadcast listeners. It is obvious to everybody that if the present unregulated rush for wave lengths continues the broadcast listener is going to suffer. The man who has invested considerable sums in receiving equipment will be discouraged by continued failure to tune in his favorite stations without interference from wave-jumpers. His attitude will be communicated to the man who is considering the question of buying a receiver. The facts are so plain they seem almost too obvious to be mentioned. The owners of WGN recently obtained an injunction against WGES on the contention that in moving its wave length up to 316 it was trespassing upon the wave band used by WGN, whose wave length is 303. WGN alleged that in operating a station and causing upwards of 500,000 persons to take such interest in advance programs of the station that they would buy The Chicago Tribune to obtain the program information the station had established a property right to the air, or a band of the air. This contention was upheld by the court. The Tribune also was upheld in its argument that priority in operating on a wave-length further established the property right. Various stations have given warning that they will protect their wave length by injunction proceedings but WGN is the first to bring the matter to a definite issue. There will be a trial of the WGN-WGES controversy to determine whether the injunction will be permanent. There will be appeals and further litigation and none can say what may be the outcome. It is clearly set out in the court's decision in the WGNWGES suit that the court regards the regulation of wave lengths as one properly within the province and duties of congress. It is intimated that any decisions in present controversies will be supplanted and should be supplanted by federal legislation. That is why every man interested in the progress of radio as a social factor should exert his influence toward prompt action by congress. In any case it should be remembered that it is not the interest of the broadcast station owner which is paramount in any settlement of the question of rights on the air. The prime object should be to care for the millions of radio listeners who are gettings news, entertainment and instruction from the broadcast stations. If anybody doubts the immense interest of the public in radio broadcasting let then] eliminate broadcasting for a week and then take note of the country-wide howl that would certainly be the first reaction. Radio demands a federal law which is applicable to radio as it functions today. All other means of regulation and control must necessarily break down. ***** OUEEN MARIE of Roumania afforded Americans an interesting example of the rather autocratic attitude of royalty toward the common herd. And Americans supplied the Queen, with a demonstration of how the home folks in a free country regard even the appearance of slight on the part of distinguished visitors. The Queen was to have spoken from a New York station at a definitely scheduled time and announcements from the station had led hundreds of thousands of listeners to tune in for the Queen's talk. It appears that the Queen arrived at the studio in advance of the time she was scheduled to speak. She wanted to go on at once, explaining that she was in haste to keep another engagement,etc. The studio directors on their side explained that vast numbers of radio listeners expected to hear her at a given moment and that if the time were advanced most of them would be disappointed. The Queen and her entourage declined to wait and departed from the studio. The royal party must have received considerable proof of the general annoyance caused by this failure to carry out the announced program for the Queen's apologies and explanations were profuse on the following morning. The Queen found out two things about America. The people take their radio seriously and they are not Roumanian in their popular interpretation of the rules that govern the relations between royalty and home folks. The Queen was an indefatigable broadcast talker for the remainder of her tour. ***** THIS magazine enters its sixth year with the present issue. We take this opportunity of wishing a happy and prosperous 1927 for all those who have been our loyal friends since we established the magazine, back in the pioneering days of broadcasting, and to those new friends who are constantly appearing in our list of regular readers. We start the new year with two new departments which we believe will interest those who are radio experimenters as well as many who are not. Everyday mechanics and current developments of science are subjects of sufficient fascination to appeal to all classes of readers. To the readers of Radio Age, who, we assume, are inclined to be technically-minded, we believe the pages on mechanics and popularized science will be particular!} welcome.