Weekly television digest (Jan-Dec 1960)

10 DECEMBER 19, 1960 The FCC James M. Landis missed his Dec. 15 deadline for submitting his analysis of federal regulatory agency problems to President-elect Kennedy (Vol. 16:50 p6). Holed up in temporary Washington offices in a converted house at 1707 N St., NW (not far from NAB hq), he tried to finish his report in time, but at last week’s end he advanced the schedule delivery date to Dec. 19 or 20. Landis may fly to Palm Beach to deliver the document personally to Kennedy, who will then decide if & when it will be released publicly. Landis said he wouldn’t disclose details of the report, which is expected to call — at least — ^for careful selection of heads of such agencies as FCC and for establishment of an overall overseeing administrative office. Landis probably will continue to work with the incoming Democratic administration as an advisor on agency policy issues, but he has scorned suggestions that he is a candidate for “czar” of the agencies or for any other govt, payroll job. Meanwhile, Rep. Thomas (D-Tex.), who handles regulatory agencies for the House Appropriations Committee, gave Kennedy some of his own ideas about what should be done about them. In a talk with the President-elect, Thomas said Commission members should work harder and that decisionmaking processes should be speeded up. Protest against stock transfers by WJPB-TV Weston, W.Va., filed by WSTV Inc. (Vol. 16:13 pl6), should be denied, according to an initial decision by FCC examiner Herbert Sharfman. The protestant, operator of WSTV-TV Steubenville, O., WBOY-TV Clarksburg, W.Va., etc., charged that there was a long & deliberate delay in the reporting to the Commission of the acquisition of 45% by Thomas P. Johnson and 5% by George W. Eby. In a 29page decision, Sharfman concluded that the protestant proved a portion of its charges but said that “it would be a drastic sanction indeed” to rule against WJPB-TV “because of the implications of a denial on the general right of WJPB-TV to retain the authorization.” Also to be considered, he said, “is the increased awareness of the requirements of the Commission reporting and the assurance of future compliance.” Expansion-minded Fla. ETV Commission is pressing for an extension of its ETV network, already the largest in any state (Vol. 15:3 p4). It has asked FCC to reserve 13 uhf channels for possible ETV stations in Florida and has filed with the state legislature a 1961-63 budget of $1,660,750 to expand the current 5-station network. Included in the budget are funds for construction of a vhf educational station on Ch. 11 at Orlando. Commission Chmn. Judson Freeman says the vhf station plus 2 uhf outlets can be on air by 1963, assuming availability of funds. Grant of Ch. 2, Portland, Ore. to Fisher Bcstg. Co., and denial of Tribune Publishing Co., was indicated by FCC last week as it instructed the staff to draft a decision affirming a Dec. 1959 examiner’s recommendation. Fisher Bcstg. ownership interlocks with KOMO-TV Seattle. Tribune Publishing operates KTNT-TV Tacoma-Seattle. TASO’s 210-page supplementary report — covering analysis & theory and the results of directional antenna tests — is now available in printed form for $10 from exec. dir. Dr. George R. Town, 104 Marston Hall, Iowa State U., Ames, la. The report was given to FCC on June 13. May V'ideo Inc. was lined u]» for a Ch. 13 grant in Panama City, P'la. last week when FCC examiner Elizabeth C. Smith recommended approval after competitor withdrew. Programming CBS lost $20 million last year on informational & public-seiwice telecasts; will probably top that figure in 1960. So said CBS news administrative vp Robert Lang last week in N.Y. to the Academy of TV Arts & Sciences. He added that the average network salesman has no conception of how to sell public-service programming. At the same session, David Burke, institutional programs mgr. for General Electric, pointed to one measure of reward for commercial sponsorship of public-affairs shows. GE, he stated, received more than 10,000 viewer letters of approval when it recently sponsored a one-shot education special, “The Influential Americans.” The encouragement, he added, has given “a new perspective” to GE for 1961-62 program planning. TV gives “greatest pleasure” among leisure activities, outranking movies & play-going by a wide margin. Pulse Inc. reported that fact last week on the basis of a N.Y.-area poll made in October among 500 men & w'omen. Of those interviewed, 50% gave TV top leisure-time honors. Runners-up were movies (16%) and Broadway shows (10%). TV, however, was outranked by newspapers (37%) and books (28%) from the viewpoint of “education & information,” with TV drawing a 24% score. A paradoxical inconsistency in the study: 77% of the respondents were of the opinion that the family members who would miss TV most were those in the 6-to-l 1-year age bracket. Plans for TV festival to be held in N.Y. & Washington next fall under National Academy of TV Arts & Sciences auspices are moving ahead. The 3 TV networks have each agreed to donate $25,000 to the international event. John Walsh has been appointed exec. dir. of the festival, and publicity man Tex McCrary has been named festival committee chmn. TV festivals (or cultural festivals that will include TV) are also planned by other groups for 1961 in Switzerland and the principality of Monaco. Cliff-hanger technique will be tried by Have Gun, Will Travel for the first time in the Western’s 4 seasons. Part one, which will actually be the first half of a 60-min. Western, is scheduled for Jan. 7, with the concluding episode Jan. 14. The drama is by Harry J. Fink, Buzz Kulik directing. Drama treating the controversial problem of school integration in the South is under consideration by NTA for Play of the Week's 1961-62 season. The play is “Black Monday,” by Reginald Rose, who hopes the TV airing will be a prelude to a Broadway production. Original dramatists haven’t been attracted to Play of the Week largely because of the small financial return ($2,000). WTVJ Miami is urging its viewers to buy Christmas toys for the 10,000 Cuban refugee children in South Florida. Manolo Reyes and Mike Alonso of the station’s Spanishlanguage news program originated the campaign, which by last week had netted more than 2,000 toys. Cuban refugee agencies in the area will distribute. Average rating of the 50 shows canceled last year was 13.9, reports Nielsen (1958: 16.4 average rating for 42 ca,nceled shows. 1957: 15.8 average for 45 canceled shows). Accenting the positive, 71 shows were continued in 1957 with a 23.7 average rating; 69 shows in 1958 with a 22.9 average; and 64 shows in 1959 w'ith a 22.0 average. WKAA-TV Dallas’s fir.st live telecast from its new $;j..')-million studio (Vol. 16:30 j)7) will be the Jan. 15 debut of Yoiiny America Speaks, which the station hails as “the first intercollegiate debate tournament ever televised.”