Broadcasting (Oct 1931-Dec 1932)

B R®AD€ AITD IN € THE NEWS MAGAZINE THE FIFTH ESTATE MARTIN CODEL, Editor SOL TAISHOFF, Managing Editor F. GAITHER TAYLOR, Of Published Semi Monthly by BROADCASTING PUBLICATIONS, Inc. National Press Building Washington, D. C. Metropolitan 1022 Advertising Manager Executive and Editorial Offices: National Press Building, Washington, D. C. Subscription Price : S3.00 a Year 15c a Copy Copyright, 1932, by Broadcasting Publications, Inc. Watch Canada CANADA has reached the crossroads in broadcasting. One fork leads to government ownership, the other to an elaboration of its present system of private enterprise. The showdown comes by virtue of the recent decision of Privy Council, Great Britain's highest court, vesting complete control of radio in the Dominion government rather than in the provinces. Premier Bennett, of the Dominion, announced in an address to Parliament that a parliamentary committee will investigate the entire broadcasting structure and recommend a complete technical revision as well as the most satisfactory agency for carrying it into effect. Canada's problem is unique. The most populous areas now are getting what is conceded to be the world's best radio entertainment. It comes across the international border from United States stations. Both NBC and CBS have high power outlets in the Dominion on their regular networks. Most of Canada's citizens are accustomed to broadcasting by the American Plan and many will accept no substitute. According to Premier Bennett, Canada wants a homogeneous broadcasting system, the nature of which remains to be decided. "Canadians," he said, "have the right to a broadcasting system from Canadian stations equal to any which other countries enjoy." That is a large order. It is impossible of accomplishment under government ownership with a tax on radio receivers. The broadcasting bill of the United States is estimated at approximately $75,000,000 annually— paid by program sponsors. Although it has less than 10 per cent of the population of the United States, Canada is approximately as large in geographical area. It would take a good many stations and plenty of power to cover that Dominion, and it would entail expenditures that might compare favorably with its entire Government budget to provide program service "equal" to that of the United States. Certain of Canada's newspapers, following the lead of a faction of our own press, are espousing government ownership. The Ottawa Citizen suggests an annual license fee of three dollars as sufficient to give Canada broadcasting service equal to any in the world. What are the facts? Canada has about 600,000 licensed receiving sets, which would bring in an annual revenue of $1,800,000 to defray the cost of maintaining that ambitious broadcasting project. The sum is less than that appropriated by one national advertiser in this country for sponsored programs over both networks. Most of Canada's 60 stations favor the American Plan. They will tell the Parliamen tary Committee so. The facts, properly presented, ought to prove their case. No mention was made by Premier Bennett of the wave length situation. His address, reported in this issue, dealt with generalities. That is a phase, however, that bears watching, and is certain to arise in the Parliamentary investigation, just as it did in the Royal Canadian Commission's report of 1929. Rate-cutting is throat-cutting. The other fellow loses faith in you and you lose your self-respect. Individual stability alone can stabilize the broadcasting industry as a whole. Lotteries PRIZE CONTESTS would not be barred from the air under the Davis anti-lottery bill as certain publishing interests would like to lead the broadcasters to believe. The bill, recently passed by the House and expected to pass in the Senate, very specifically prohibits only the broadcasting of "information concerning any lottery, gift enterprise, or similar scheme, offering prizes dependent in whole or in part upon lot or chance." Few broadcasters will oppose such a measure, which simply places radio under practically the same restraints as newspapers and other users of the mails with respect to what are broadly known as "lottery schemes." The networks and stations under enlightened management have already imposed this restraint upon themselves. Drawings and raffles, fortune-telling, stock sellings, lucky number contests— none of these has a place on the radio. But contests that involve an element of skill, that test the listeners' capacities, that have nothing offensive or questionable about them, could still be broadcast. They might be advertised by radio just as they may be advertised in print. There is nothing in the Davis bill or in the postal laws to prohibit them. If such legitimate contests are sources of revenue for broadcasters and broadcast advertisers, there is no reason why they cannot continue to be. As a matter of fact, it is probable that the postal laws could be interpreted as they stand to apply to lottery broadcasts. Listeners responding to radio baits are asked to send their "guesses" or their "remittances" to the stations by mail. Delivery of such mail can be refused the stations by the postal authorities. This actually has been done in the case of one station in Mexico and one in Cuba, though lotteries are allowed under the law in both countries. If the Post Office Department can refuse delivery of mail to foreign stations, it certainly can refuse to deliver to domestic stations. The RADIO BOOK SHELF OUT OP RADIO has come a relatively small amount of permanent literature, but more and more features that have struck responsive chords among listeners are finding their way into book form rather than being lost to the infinity of the wave lengths. Recently Amos 'n' Andy appeared in a book containing some of their best dialogues. About a year ago Raymond Warren's "The Prairie President," a novelization of his highly successful Lincoln sketches over WLS, Chicago, appeared from the presses of Reilly & Lee, Chicago. One of the new books based on successful radio programs is "Cap'n Bailey and the Widder Dyer," by Charles W. Burton, manager of WEEI, Boston, (Marshall Jones Co., Boston, $2). Mr. Burton, originator of the Stetson Parades program carried on the NBC and of various other features, has recreated a group of Cape Cod characters, whose five-minute sketches over WEEI have been exceedingly popular. His new book is based on the continuities he wrote for these sketches and, besides being a refreshing story of middle-aged romance with an interesting mystery element, is replete with the dry but keen humor and philosophy of Cape Cod Yankees of sea-faring heritage. BECAUSE radio drama depends so greatly upon the development of actors and actresses with flexible but distinctive voices, T. H. Pear's "Voice and Personality As Applied to Radio Broadcasting," (John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, $3) should prove an interesting textbook for anyone who addresses his audience from a studio. The author explains at the outset the characteristics which distinguish voices and the importance of developing a voice personality, and then he discusses these topics in relation to the radio drama. Questionnaires concerning the personality of a radio personage are shown to produce surprising and amusing answers. The text is chopped up in chapter subsections and is consequently easy to read. The author is a professor of psychology in the University of Manchester and a Fellow of King's College, London. THE INFORMAL talks by Olin Downes, music critic for the New York Times, given over the CBS last winter in connection with the performances of Toscanini's PhilharmonicSymphony Orchestra at New York, have been collected and amplified in "Symphonic Broadcasts" (Lincoln Mac Veagh, The Dial Press; $2.50). The descriptive and anecdotal sketches concern various orchestral composers and are presented in popular style understandable to the man unversed in music. An interesting sidelight on the conditions under which the talks were originally presented is contained in the preface. IN THE INTERESTS of improved reception, the Radio Branch of the Canadian Department of Marine, of which C. P. Edwards is director, has issued Bulletin No. 2 on "Radio Inductive Interference" (F. A. Acland, Printer to the King's Most Excellent Majesty, Ottawa, 35 cents). The bulletin was prepared by H. O. Merriman, engineer in charge of the Interference Section, from data compiled by the Radio Branch after having investigated more than 30,000 sources of radio interference. Its 100 pages are well-illustrated and indexed, furnishing a valuable reference work for those whose interest it is to eliminate man-made interference from radio reception. Page 16 BROADCASTING • March 1, 1932