Sponsor (Oct-Dec 1964)

Bell Calls for Talks Between Broadcasters. Advertisers NAB Code director suggests informal meetings to swap ideas on problems; sees need for clearing house New York — Calling for "even closer liaison in the problem areas of advertising," Howard H. Bell, director of the NAB's Code Authority, last week suggested to about 500 members of the International Radio and Television Society an extension of recent closed-door tripartite meetings between NAB. ANA. 4A. "Perhaps a small informal group representing all three interests should meet occasionally to exchange ideas and keep open the lines of communication," Bell said. "This would be a practical extension of a series of meetings, on a much larger scale, held earlier this year by the representatives of the three organizations." Bell prefaced his suggestion by listing the areas of difficulty NAB encounters in advertising content. • Misuse of testimonials • Demonstrations not proving product effectiveness • Derogation of competitors • Inadequate clinicals to support claims NAB Code To Publish Monthly Roster New York — In an effort to identify on a regular basis those "who do and those who do not support the industry's self-regulatory efforts." the NAB Code Authority has decided to publish a monthly list of new subscribers to the Code, plus those stations which resign or are dropped. Speaking before the IRTS newsmaker luncheon, Howard H. Bell, NAB Code director, said the codes' most effective sanction is public awareness of the codes, what they seek to accomplish "and which stations are subscribing to these standards." In the past. Code rosters were only published periodically. puffery • Pseudo-therapeutic claims • Encouragement of self-diagnosis beyond reasonable caution • Questionable surveys in support of claims • Exaggerated claims beyond Declared Bell: "The advertiser pays the bills, it is true, but it is the broadcaster under license, not the advertiser, who must always set the ground rules as to how the medium will be utilized." Bell added that NAB's "relationship to the advertising community is not that of picador to bull. We see our role not as a protagonist or tormentor, but as an ally our common objective is acceptable advertising." The NAB code director continued: "However, it should be clearly understood that where a conflict over a clearance arises, the decision of the Code Authority, as umpire, must prevail." Bell also called for establishment "within the structure of the codes of a central commercial clearance mechanism" for certain product categories which include over-thecounter drugs, among others. "In these categories," he said, "the competition is so intense that the temptation to cross that fine line of propriety is considerable." Bell cited a similar plan in the toy field where the Code Authority now serves as a clearing house "with the full, if not enthusiastic, support of subscribers and advertisers" as ample proof of the workability and feasibility of such a plan. Turning to the recent request by the Republican Party that the Code Authority rule on political spots (i.e. the Democratic Party's commercial portraying a little girl and a nuclear bomb explosion), and a similar request by the Democrats, Bell said: "We turned down these requests for rulings, not because of a lack of concern over good taste in all advertising, but because of the dif a closer riason" ficulty in applying code standards to politics." Bell added that rejection of the complaints "was our way of saying we believe prior censorship of political ideas is very dangerous in our society." He added that the voter, in essence, is the real censor. As for future Code activity in the political area. Bell said that this will be taken up at a meeting of the Television Code Review Board in December, as it was at the Radio Code board meeting in September. NBC International Reports Record Sales New York — With sales of over 3000 tv hours in a six-week period, NBC International reports 21 percent higher profits in the third quarter of this year as compared w'th the same period in 1963. According to Joseph M. Klein, president of the division, 30 countries figured in the sales for the sixweek period. Properties sold ranged from Olympic Games programing for Latin America, Africa and the Caribbean to entertainment shows in East European countries. Among the entertainment shows sold abroad are Bonanza, still the top-rated program in the U.S., Dr. Kildare, the Dick Powell series, The Richard Boone Show^ Laramie, Wild Kingdom and Kentucky Jones. 16 SPONSOR