U. S. Radio (Jan-Dec 1960)

farm\V[radio Shorter segments of injormation and service to the suburbanite are programming issues at stake in farm radio. for farm information programminG; bv a growing number of stations. Although the idea itself has its friends and foes, many stations rej5ort giving it a try. '■\\x' are trying a new concept in dispensing farm information," says Bill Burn, sales manager of WDAY Fargo, N. D. "It consists of broadcasting capsule comments (two or three minutes) several times a day and evening. So far it is working very well. Busy as farmers are these days, thev know they don't have to listen for long periods of time to get the message. We still maintain our regular farm programs." Bill Martin, executive vice president of KMMJ Grand Island. Xeb., states, "Farm &: Home Radio (KMMJ and KXXX Colby, Kan.) made its major changes in farm programming a few years ago. These consisted of streamlining farm information and boiling it down for daily programming into shorter or meaty segments. While just as many — or even more — subjects in the farm field are treated in our farm blocks, we have eliminated time consuming extraneous material. We have continued, however, our policy of a morning farm block from sign-on to 7:45 a.m. and a noon farm block from 11:45 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. during which we give complete farm service." Can the shorter segments of information serve the needs of the farmer? One of the first pieces of evidence comes from WKY Oklahoma City, which a year ago took its 6 to 7 a.m. Farm Injormation Hour and capsulized its farm news throughout the period, bridging the various segmments with music, news and»weather. (Above) WLW Cincinnati and its Everybody's Farm help demonstrate U. S. Rubber boots. Bob Miller (I.), ■farm program director, and Mrs. Jack Conner, wife of the farm's manager, help the three Conner children with the fitting as part of the campaign. (Right) Howard Lanfitt, farm service director, WJDX Jackson, Miss., prepares to take his portable equipment out in the field for a "live" report. The program is sold in minute participations; there also are five-minute segments available and two-minulc capsules (one-minute commercial and one-minute information). The station reports that the entire hour is sold out. Among the advertisers are such major farm accoimts as International Harvester, Nutrena, Massey-Ferguson and Taylor-Evans Seed. "After the format had been in use approximately nine months," states ^V^ }. Willis, sales promotion manager, "one of the national agencies, Aubrey, Finlay, Marley & Hodgson Inc., Chicago, asked us if we would send one of its prepared questionnaires to some 500 farmers, ranchers and dairymen in the state in an effort to determine whether the present format was more acceptable than the former straight farm news format. . . Five hundred questionnaires were mailed, 325 replies were received. We had only five negative reports. All others indicated that the present farm format was most acceptable and that they were listen ing to farm radio more now than they were a year or two ago." An increase in demand for shorter segments of information is observed by Layne Beaty, chief of the radio-tv service of USDA. "We are getting continuing requests for one-, two and three-minute segments. There seems to be a growing demand, in fact, for farm information in general. Requests for our quarter-hour Agri-Tape, which can be integrated into local programming, have been rising. We are currently sending out about 113 copies a week compared with between 75 and 80 a week a year ago. It is estimated that the current tapes are actually heard on about 300 to 400 stations because of the further distribution provided by state extension organizations and other services." In addition, USDA now handles a 131/2-minute show called Agricultural U.S.A. It is a complete feature FARM RADIO (CONT'D ON P. 55) 26 U. S. RADIO February 1960