Broadcasting (Oct 1931-Dec 1932)

Propaganda Lures Parents-Teachers Ventura Free Press Forms Triple Alliance to Combat American Radio Plan; Newspapers Circularized AN ALLIANCE with the National Congress of Parents and Teachers for purposes of propaganda against Radio by the American Plan appears to have been formed by the Ventura Free Press, small southern California newspaper whose publisher has taken upon himself the crusade against the existing radio system for the avowed purpose of removing an alleged competitor of the press. The National Congress is an organization with a membership exceeding 1,000,000 and is already on record as favoring public ownership and operation of broadcasting. Leaders of the National Congress throughout the country have been circularized with a series of 61 articles prepared by the Ventura Free Press and have been asked to request their local newspaper editors to consider publishing them. Through the agency of newspapers now engaged in radio or friendly to radio, this propaganda has been made available to Broadcasting. The form letter to the leaders of the National Congress bears the date of Dec. 18, 1931, and the signature of Joy Elmer Morgan, chairman of the "special committee on radio" of the National Congress. Mr. Morgan, editor of the Journal of the National Education Association, is also chairman of the National Committee on Education by Radio, which is backing legislation in Congress to allocate 15 per cent of the broadcast channels for the use of educational institutions under state autonomy. Not Representative THIS triple alliance — the Ventura Free Press, the National Congress of Parents and Teachers and the National Committee on Education by Radio — represents itself as fighting the glorious cause of freedom of the air under the magical cloak of "education." Yet the Ventura Free Press, while claiming 1,000 newspapers allied in its cause, has vigorous opposition in highest newspaper ranks; the National Committee on Education by Radio is by no means representative of the educational world at large and is meeting internecine opposition, and the National Congress of Parents and Teachers appears to have been drawn into the vortex without serious consideration of the merits and motives of the alleged "causes" or the substance of the propaganda offered for distribution. The series of articles is contained in eight 7-column pages of newspaper-size newsprint headed by a letter to the -publisher and made available in "boiler-plate" or mat form to newspapers that will use the material. The material is offered with captions titled "The Empire of the Air" and with suggestions for promotional advertising to be printed. Newspapers using it are expected to remit to Western Newspaper Union, the manufacturer, the bare cost of the material. Mr. Morgan's letter, under the letter-head of the National Congress, is in multigraph form, and states : Text of Letter "HEREWITH is a series of 61 articles entitled 'The Empire of the Air.' The Ventura Free Press is offering these to the newspapers of the country as part of its effort to get the truth about radio to the people. This is in line with the resolution adopted by the National Congress of Parents and Teachers, which is as follows: " 'We believe that radio broadcasting is an extension of the home; that it is a form of education; that the broadcasting channels should forever remain in the hands of the public; that facilities should be fairly divided between national, state, and county governments; that they should be owned and operated at public expense and freed from commercial advertising.' "Will you not take this story of 'The Empire of the Air' to your local editor with the request that he consider favorably the use of it in his paper? America cannot afford to turn radio over to a commercial monopoly which is already going over the heads of parents in PICK YOURSELF a "meaningful" set of call letters, representing a slogan, for your station. Maybe some day you'll be known by it. Every once in a while one hears the question: "Why use that cold, mechanical, arbitrary system of call letters, and why don't stations adopt aesthetic names resembling those of theatres, possessing charm and beauty?" Such names as "The Voice of Heaven" and "The Invisible Enchantment" have been suggested. The argument is that the three or four letters designating stations cannot be pronounced, and, except to the patient fan, distant stations simply are a meaningless series of consonants, with a vowel thrown in now and then. As a matter of fact the proposal to permit stations to use names has many advocates in official ranks at Washington. They do not propose that call letters, required by international agreement, be abandoned but that they be relegated to the records, and be used as mere docket designations in the regulation of radio. It is recalled, however, that many stations already have picked names and slogans but that few are capitalizing them. WBBM, Chicago, calls itself "World's Best Broadcast Medium," and WGN, of the Chicago Tribune, means "World's Greatest Newspaper." WPG, At an effort to influence the children in their homes." Editor & Publisher, organ of the newspaper industry, for the first time takes coernizance of the Ventura Free Press campaign in its Jan. 16 issue in a column story headed "Coast Publisher Leading Fight Against Radio," and reports the fact that the series of 61 articles has been furnished to newspapers by H. O. Davis, publisher of the Ventura Free Press. It states that the newspaper has sent its "radio monopoly bulletins" from time to time to 3,000 publishers. "The Empire of the Air" begins with historical data and then attempts to build a "case" against "monopoly" by tracing the growth and development of the Radio Corporation of America and its advent into broadcasting. It is written wholly from a partisan viewpoint with obviously inspired interpretations. The word "trust" appears constantly and the ills of radio are blamed upon alleged monopoly. The fact that broadcasting, both network and local, is in competitive hands today is ignored, as are the cooperative and industrial efforts of broadcasters to carry a fair proportion of educational material in their program schedules. lantic City, means "World's Playground;" WOW, Omaha, is "Woodmen of the World," and WBIG, Greensboro, N. C, means "Where Business Is Good." Everybody knows that the "Voice of the South" is WSB, made famous by Lambdin Kay, of Atlanta, Ga. But few people know that Gene O'Fallon's KFEL, Denver, means "Kain't Find Enough Likker." WSM, Nashville, operated by Nashville Life and Accident Co., means "We Shield Millions," and WRUF, Gainesville, Fla., which is pronounced like the roar of the M-G-M lion "Leo," signifies the "Voice of Florida." Here are a few additional station slogans which come to mind: WIOD, Miami, "Wonderful Isle of Dreams;" WOS, Jefferson City, Mo., "Watch Our State;" KGW, Portland, Ore., "Keep Growing Wiser;" KHJ, Los Angeles, "Kindness, Happiness, Joy;" WAAW, Omaha, "Where Agriculture Accumulates Wealth," and WEAO, Columbus, O., "Where Education Advances Ohio." WHEN the talkies came, most California radio technicians flocked to the Hollywood film studios and landed berths at fat salaries. Now the pendulum swings backward and the trek back to broadcast stations has begun. Every Los Angeles station now has a long waiting list. Space Interview MICROPHONE interviews are no longer new, but NBC put over a fast one on the Pacific coast recently when Lloyd E. Yoder, manager of press relations of NBC's Pacific Division, from KGO, San Francisco, interviewed Coaches Howard Jones, of U. S. C, and Bernie Bierman, of Tulane, who were in the studio of KFI, Los Angeles. Bad weather had prevented Yoder from reaching Los Angeles by plane on scheduled time. The interview was carried on without a hitch just as though the three men were in the same studio. Davis Drive Fails To Win Publishers California Group Will Combat Radio, However, as a Rival THOUGH in agreement on its resolution to fight radio as an alleged competitor of the newspapers, the California Newspaper Publishers Association at its annual convention in San Bernardino Jan. 15 to 17 refused to endorse •the program for combatting the "radio menace" advanced by H. O. Davis, publisher of the Ventura Free Press, who has been conducting a campaign of propaganda against radio by means of news releases, clipsheets and boiler-plate matter which he claims 1,000 newspapers are using. By unanimous vote the resolution urging adoption of the Davis scheme, brought up by H. W. Wood, publisher of the Porterville (Cal.) Evening Recorder, was defeated in a closed session. Mr. Wood presented the resolution because Mr. Davis is not a member of the association. The convention did, however, adopt a resolution declaring that "radio should be treated as a direct competitor, such as billboards, magazines and other media, and that any promotion of radio, especially publication of free programs, must therefore be at the expense of our business." Another resolution deplored "monopolistic control of the air for special and privileged commercialized interests" and still another opposed giving news material to radio free of charge by such organizations as the Associated Press and United Press. Radio occupied much of the interest of the meeting, with varying views presented by various publishers. Roy Pinkerton, publisher of the VENTURA Star, declared that the solution of the radio problem lies in publishing better newspapers. Mr. Davis, who apparently has received no definite support from organized journalism to date for his campaign against radio, formerly was a Hearst newspaper executive and in 1915 was director of the San Diego exposition. His former chief, William Randolph Hearst, is one of the outstanding figures in journalism advocating newspaper cooperation with radio and has for the last year been actively interested in the acquisition of stations as adjuncts of his newspapers. Call Letters or Names? Proposal That Aesthetic Titles Replace Present System Recalls Some Colorful Station Slogans Page 12 BROADCASTING • February 1, 1932