Television digest with electronic reports (Jan-Dec 1952)

PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY RADIO NEWS BUREAU^ WYATf BLDG. • WASHINGTON 5, D.C. • TELEPHONE STERLING 1755 • VOL. 8, No. 3 I' i >. 4 jr. 2i 1952 y Wt> .... u-iS a January 19, 1952 {FCC Geared for Major Assault on Freeze, page 1. WOR & WOR-TV Transfer Deal Approved, page 5. Public Has Spent $6.5 Billion on TV, page 2. DuMont-Paramount Phase of Hearings Starts, page 7. Looking-and/or-Listening at 7-9 A.M.? page 3. Inventory Up, January Buying Hiatus, page 8. NPA Reconsiders Theatre-TV Color Ban, page 3. “Bare-Knuckles” Rivalry Between Films and TV, page 11. FCC GEARED FOR MAJOR ASSAULT ON FREEZE: FCC's next go-around on allocations, as it drives towards freeze-end, comes Jan. 21 (instead of expected Jan. 18) when commissioners gather to scrutinize staff's labors since last such session (Vol. 7:49). Just how much underbrush Commission will clear, or expects to clear, is anyone's guess. But it certainly has plenty to consider. Not only is city-by-city allocation up for revision, but power-height formulas are getting new appraisal. Lifting power ceilings is given fair chance, at very least. Hiking uhf maximum above 200 kw appears quite likely, particularly in view of Chairman Coy's ardent advocacy of such action (Vol. 7:37). One possibility of power increases lies in "ratio'1 principle — that of permitting a station to increase output as long as ratio between its power and that of nearby co-channel and adjacent-channel stations doesn't exceed certain maximum. Intensity of Commission's efforts to force freeze to quick conclusion is indicated by fact 30-odd professional staff members are assigned to task. This week, everyone put in 3 nights on job and they expect to put in more from now on. * * * * Some educators are running into rough weather in plans to use proposed reserved channels. In Miami, county school board met Jan. 9, heard Supt. James T. Wilson report that station construction-operation costs would be so great that best idea would be to use Miami's reserved Channel 2 as "bargaining point" to be "surrendered" to the commercial applicant promising to give schools most free time. Board decided to ask its Washington counsel to find out FCC's reaction to proposal. Educators were brought up sharply, too, on suggestion by Joint Committee on Educational TV that educational stations be permitted to carry commercial network programs until commercial stations come into their service areas (Vol. 7:50). Long brief filed by 3 Illinois stations (WMBD, Peoria; WHBF, Rock Island; WDWS, Champaign) said FCC couldn't, accept suggestion because it was made too late, reminded JCET that Chairman Coy himself had termed any attempt by educators to use reserved channels commercially "a snare and a delusion" (Vol. 7:29). TV FACTBOOK No. 14 OFF THE PRESS: Expanded facilities, personnel and rate changes among stations, scores of new companies associated with TV, most stations and companies in TV doing vastly more business than they did 6 months or a year ago. These are part of the basic industry data set forth in the Jan. 15, 1952 edition of our semi-annual TV Factbook No. 14, which goes to all full-service subscribers via first-class mail herewith. Adless like its preceding editions, this compendium has become the standard reference guide of the telecasting , the TV-radio manufacturing and all related industries. Its 112 pages this time compare with 96 in July 15, 1951 edition, 72 pages just year ago. Among its major features: Personnel and facilities data, with digests of rate cards, of all networks and all the 109 TV stations serving U.S. audiences, together with complete listings COPYRIGHT 1952 BY RADIO NEWS BUREAU