Broadcasting (July - Dec 1938)

before that was for one year salesman for Transamerican which represented WLW and the WLW Line. He stated he worked for Transamerican from September 1936 until September of last year. Asked whether he had solicited business for WLW as a salesman for Transamerican, Mr. Elges declared he had done so on numerous occasions and that he worked under instructions from John Clark, Transamerican president and former WLW general manager, and Frank L. Smith, then acting general manager of WLW. Representations made to advertisers in soliciting busines for WLW, he said, were on the basis of the station coverage. He identified two map exhibits previously placed in the record designed to show WLW primary and secondary coverage as principal data in these solicitations. While accounts and their agencies often held that WLW's rates were "a little expensive," he said the solicitation usually was effective because of the claim that WLW, with its high power, did a primary coverage job in eight important cities surrounding it. Usually, he said, WLW was sold against a combination of stations, naming WKRC, Cincinnati; WBNS, Columbus; WIRE, Indianapolis; WOWO, Fort Wayne; WAVE, Louisville; WBOW, Terre Haute; WSPD, Toledo, and WWVA, Wheeling. He said that the advertiser was given to understand that WLW covered this area and that the combined rates of these stations were higher than the single WLW rate. He said in that way they were able to show a "definite saving" in the way of WLW. 5,490,400 FAMILIES . . . need your product, and you can send your sales message to the greatest number of them at the lowest unit cost through our ultra modern 50,000-watt station in the heart of the rich Ohio Valley. Our national representatives are Edward Petry & Company. STATION W H A S LOUISVILLE •CBS Analysis Questioned in connection with his work as salesman for Rambeau in the solicitation of business for WIRE, Mr. Elges declared he had called on a great number of agencies and accounts and in every instance he cited, he said the client or agency expressed satisfaction with WLW's coverage of Cincinnati. Among the accounts cited were North American Accident Insurance Co., Gruen Watch, Remington-Rand, Axton-Fisher, Tudor Silver, and Armstrong Cork. He mentioned specific contacts with agency executives in connection with such solicitations, in several instances citing McCann-Erickson and its time buyer, Frank Conrad. Tells of Selling Points Used in Solicitations Under cross examination, Mr. Elges explained that while with Transamerican he also had solicited accounts for WHO, Des Moines, and WCAU, Philadelphia. He said the strongest selling points were made in connection with wide coverage of the clear-channel stations, which he admitted justified their higher rates. In selling local or regional stations, emphasis was placed on the concentration of signal in the market and the popularity of the stations, along with the contention that no "waste" coverage was involved. Mr. Patrick questioned him in connection with the WLW coverage maps, which he had identified on his direct testimony as those employed in solicitation of WLW accounts while he was with Transamerican. He said both of the maps were in connection with 500 kw. operation. Mr. Patrick, however, pointed out that one of the maps, which showed West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky as being in the WLW primary service area, was actually based on 50 kw. operation since it was published in April 1935, at which time WLW temporarily was operating with the lower power because of the interference situation with CFRB, Toronto. Commissioner Craven asked Mr. Elges whether he had any trouble in placing national spot business on local stations. The salesman responded that advertisers usually wanted at least a regional station and a network affiliation and for that reason difficulty was encountered. Mr. Patrick then carried him through an examination of the eight national spot accounts which he said he had solicited for WIRE COLUMBUS 50uO WATTS DAY "NICE WORK, MARTHA!" said R. G. Kenyon, Southern California Edison Co.'s advertising director, when he congratulated Martha Moore. Her Woman's Forum program on KNX, Hollywood, won that firm the "premier award for radio advertising" among public utilities in the 1938 better copy contest of the Public Utilities Advertising Association. Currently Woman's Forum is a five weekly quarterhour participating feature on KNX. unsuccessfully. He brought out that the eight accounts were concentrated in four agencies. Mr. Elges testified that only "10 major advertising agencies" placed the bulk of network spot business. Conflict in Stiles Arguments Conceded by Witness He also explained that while with Transamerican, he did not contact all of these accounts save one and that other Transamerican salesmen had the other assignments. Mr. Patrick asked whether it was not a fact that after he left Transamerican, where he solicited business for WLW, it became his job to go around and "unsell" what he previously had sold. He said this was not entirely so and that since he had left Transamerican he had sold "lots of spot business on WIRE" but not the particular accounts mentioned. Whereas he had testified that he had attempted to sell Gruen Watch and Axton-Fisher Tobacco Co. for WIRE, he did find that a listing of WIRE spot accounts showed these advertisers on the station. Summing up, Mr. Patrick asked if it was not a fact that Mr. Elges first endeavored to sell stations on the use of WLW because of its wide coverage and now, as a representative of WIRE, among others, contacted the same accounts endeavoring to "unsell" them. He asked if he did not work under a "handicap" because of that. The witness responded in the affirmative. Referring to his argument that eight stations in the WLW primary area were enumerated in the WLW solicitation as being covered by the latter station at a lower rate, Mr. Patrick asked him to identify the stations and their network affiliations and classifications. The witness was unable in several instances to state whether the stations were regionals, locals or clears or to give their network affiliations. He added under further examination that most of the time buyers were familiar with these factors and that he simply talked in terms of markets rather than stations. He declared it made no difference in such discussions whether the stations are regionals, clears or locals, and Mr. Patrick asked whether it was the custom of a salesman to assume that the purchaser knew facts which he himself did not know. Commission Counsel Porter objected to the "argument" with the witness. Ring Tells How Recordings Were Made As the Commission's final witness, Assistant Chief Engineer Andrew D. Ring was called to the stand. He explained how the two transcripts of WLW programs were made last April by the Grand Island monitoring station. Almost at the outset of the hearing Mr. Porter had sought to have these transcripts introduced but Mr. Patrick had objected to their admission on the grounds of immateriality, incompleteness and his blanket contention that programming matters had no place in the hearings. Despite this, Chairman Case had admitted the documents and Mr. Patrick had noted an exception. Mr. Ring explained the recordings were made at Grand Island through use of a Beverage antenna, an RCA-281 commercial receiver, a Presto amplifier and a Presto recorder, on April 20 and 29 respectively. Cross-examining the witness in connection with the manner in which the recordings were made, Mr. Patrick asked whether the equipment was better than that used by the ordinary listener. Mr. Ring said that the antenna was far superior to that used by the listener but the receiver was a 1935 commercial model and a "good receiving set" employing 12 tubes whereas the average receiver uses six or seven tubes. The automatic volume control used on it, while a standard make, nevertheless is superior to the average in use, he said. The recording equipment, he declared, did not contribute to the degree of satisfactory reception, since it was used only to record the output of the receiver and antenna. On direct examination by Mr. Porter, Mr. Ring described an exhibit he had prepared showing interference caused by WLW's 500 kw. operation with the secondary service area of WOR, operating on the adjacent channel of 710 kc. Both stations, he explained, use directional antennas. The interference is cross-talk developing in the secondary area and can be expected on average receiving sets, he said. The contours on the maps showed the areas in which this cross-talk is encountered. In connection with WOR-WLW situation, Mr. Ring declared that cross-talks existed as between the two stations prior to May 1934, WTCN OWNED AND OPERATED by St. Paul DispatchPioneer Press The Minneapolis Tribune Page 60 • August J, 1938 BROADCASTING • Broadcast Advertising B