Broadcasting (July - Dec 1939)

Milliken Explains Self-Control Plan Of Film Industry Says Movies and Radio Have Many Problems in Common COMMON problems, along with individual competitive advantages on both sides, give radio and motion pictures "a great responsibility together" in maintaining by self-regulation a freedom of expression completely within the bounds of good taste, Carl E. Milliken, secretary of Motion Picture Producers & distributors of America and former Governor of Maine, declared at a luncheon meeting July 11 during the general NAB convention sessions. Heard by virtually the entire membership at the convention, Mr. Milliken briefly reviewed the similarities and dissimilarities between the problems of the film and broadcast industries and pointed to the movie-makers' success in dealing with their problems by regulating through their own production code authority. Mass Audiences Vast audiences, amounting to about 250,000,000 persons a week for the movies, in 60,000 theatres all over the world, are not the only points in common of radio and the movies, Mr. Milliken said. Like radio, movies deal with a mass audience of varying tastes and necessarily must g u a g e production against public likes and dislikes, he continued. They both face the problem of determining what children should see and hear, since parents are unwilling to take any responsibility in making the choice, and place the burden squarely on the producers, he commented. Further, both serve audiences outside as well as inside the country, and both recognize the necessity for selfregulation, he said. Among dissimilarities Mr. Milliken listed radio's affording only sound, while movies give both sight and sound; the simultaneous and one-time presentation of radio programs, as against the exhibition of movies at will; the distribution problem arising from the necessity for photographic film in movies, as against radio transmission. Continuing, he said the customer, although the actual average amount has dropped from 28 to 23 cents in the last 10 years, still pays for his moving picture entertainment, while first-cost of a radio receiver is the only expense for the listener. He also drew attention to the convenience factor between sitting at home listening to the radio and bundling up for a trip downtown to see the movies, and pointed out that while the radio listener may accept the commercial part of the program as a necessary evil going with a free show, a movie-goer ordinarily resents a commercial film because he doesn't feel like buying admission to get an advertising message. Mr. Milliken also observed that while radio, through its very position, as an advertising medium, could promote a particular program on the air at small cost, the film industry must spend from $70,000,000 to $100,000,000 .\ year for Page 22 • July 15, 1939 GOV. CARL E. MILLIKEN AP Still Noncommittal RESULTS of the action taken recently [Broadcasting, June 1] by the board of directors of the Associated Press in making its news available for use on commercially sponsored broadcasts are still a matter of "no comment" at AP headquarters. It was admitted that there had been "some response" and that "some members are taking advantage of this provision," but no details were divulged. It was said that no statement will be made until W. J. McCambridge, assistant general manager of AP, who has had charge of the radio activities of the press association, returned from Europe in August. ELLIOTT ROOSEVELT, president of the Texas State Network, on July 11 was guest on the board of experts for Information Please, the program sponsored by Canada Dry Ginger Ale on NBC. Regionals Favor Pay-as-Use Policy Oppose RMA's Book Favoring Operation With Superpower j A POLICY of pay-as-you-use in ASCAP royalty payments and a ' firm stand against the Radio Manufacturers Association's alleged f "disregard for the rest of the radio , industry" in favor of superpower , drew full support of regional broadcasters attending a meeting , called July 10 by John Shepard ' 3d, chairman of the National Asso ■ ciation of Regional Broadcast Sta ■ tions. The regionals approved the stand taken earlier in the day by news i paper-owned stations for the payuse principle in ASCAP negotiations and instructed Mr. Shepard ' to "fight for that principle" in the NAB copyright committee meet ' ings. The attack on RMA centered on its recently published booklet, . "Wanted . . . Better Radio Facilities", which was termed "a treatise . for 500 kw. operation". i Resolution Adopted Members of the group adopted a resolution registering definite opposition to this type of RMA liter . ature and declaring that if RMA ' did not stop circulation of the cited booklet, the NAB-RMA cooperative I i promotion efforts should be brought i i to an end and the two organiza , ( tions "divorced" in such matters. ■ c The resolution followed a report by < , Ed Kirby covering industry comments on the booklet which included an explanation by A. S. Wells, , RMA president, that the booklet J , had been published by the RMA en ^ ' gineering department and was in ' no way connected with the activi ^ | ties of the RMA-NAB promotion I' ' committee. Mr. Kirby also declared i' = that industry promotion would con / i tinue on a broadcast basis even in i case of a "complete divorce" from ; t RMA, with immediate efforts cen . i tered on promotion of the fall pro ''I \ gram schedules. Paul D. P. Spearman, Washington attorney representing NARBS, , , reporting to the members, lauded j them for successful cooperation in securing 5 kw. nighttime operation provisions for regional stations in the new FCC rules and regulations , but declared the organization still [ ], had several jobs to do and must be , kept together. Among NARBS' ^ ^ present concerns he included the FCC's "temporary" 26 clear-chan ^ nel setup and the proposal to pro ■ s tect the present status of stations " ^ suffering little interference. ! Three members of the NARBS I a board of directors, whose terms of ' 4 office expired this year, were re ' i elected as a group at the meeting. 'I n They were E. B. Craney, KGIR, : i Butte, Mont.; Campbell Arnoux, ? r WTAR, Norfolk, and Hoyt Wooten, WREC, Memphis. N. Y. Milk Series NEW YORK STATE Bureau of Milk Publicity on Sept. 25 will start the radio portion of its sixth annual advertising campaign, which is backed by a $300,000 appropriation and handled by J. M. Mathes, New York. As in past years spot radio will again be used for 26 weeks with five announcements weekly on 17 stations in the state, call letters of which are not yet available. IRNA Votes Permanent Organization; May Hold Convention During September SETTING UP of a plan for a permanent organization by Independent Radio Network Affiliates was voted July 11 at a meeting of the group held in conjunction with the NAB convention in Atlantic City. Reelecting the present executive committee of IRNA, which has functioned for the last two years, with Samuel R. Rosenbaum, president of WFIL, Philadelphia, as its chairman, the group authorized drafting of the permanent organization plan, to be considered at a future meeting, probably in September. The present executive committee, plus members of the three committees designated last year to confer with the major networks on revisions of certain contractual arrangements, was authorized to serve as the planning committee. Mr. Rosenbaum's reelection was by unanimous vote of the some 100 representatives of affiliated stations present. It was regarded as a vote of confidence in his administration, carried on without a headquarters organization. Members have not been assessed dues for the last year, or since the initial functioning of IRNA in the negotiation of the schedule with the American Federation of Musicians covering staff orchestras. Pending Problems It was agreed the plan for a permanent organization should also encompass a plank dealing with proposals which affiliates desire to discuss with the major networks, having to do with station breaks, unrelated commercials, bulk sales of time, and similar network-affiliate problems of recent months. Moreover, it was agreed IRNA, as a group, should express itself on the copyright question in advance of concerted action by the NAB, advertising, embracing about 15,000 newspaper ads each day. To carry out a code of selfregulation, declared Mr. Milliken, it is necessary to have high-calibre leadership; acceptance among participants on a democratic basis, provision for standards higher than those the mass demands, i.e., pay attention to the cultural elements as well as box-office reports, and education of the public to select and appreciate their fare. particularly on the subject of clearance of programs at the source by networks. Adoption of the plan for the permanent structure came after a proposal that Edwin W. Craig, executive head of WSM, Nashville, be drafted to devise a new organization plan and platform. Mr. Craig, however, voiced the view that the present executive committee be empowered to devise the plan, explaining that his business obligations were such that he could not undertake the task. It was on his motion, unanimously adopted, that the present officers were retained, and also on his motion that the network negotiating groups were added to the executive committee membership as a board to draft the proposal. The convention of the affiliates at which the permanent plan will be considered was left to the discretion of the committee, with the instruction that it submit the plan to the membership by Sept. 1. Because of the possibility of a general NAB convention in September, perhaps in Chicago, on the ASCAPcopyright issue, it was thought the IRNA meeting might coincide with such a session. In any event, it was agreed that irrespective of a general convention, the plan should be presented for adoption this fall. Copyright Discussion At a special convention in Chicago, Aug. 16, 1938, IRNA organized itself as a section of the NAB. At that time the officers elected included, in addition to Chairman Rosenbaum, Mark Ethridge, WHAS, Louisville, vice-chairman; L. B. Wilson, WCKY, Cincinnati, treasurer, and George W. Norton Jr., WAVE, Louisville, secretary and counsel. The network negotiating committees, which held several conferences on policies with heads of NBC, CBS and MBS, and which will serve with the officers in drafting the new plan, were: NBC: Mr. Rosenbaum, chairman; Paul W. Morency, WTIC, Hartford; Walter J. Damm, WTMJ, Milwaukee; William J. Scripps, WWJ, Detroit; Robert T. Convey, KWK, St. Louis; Mr. Craig; Harold V. Hough, WBAP, Fort Worth; E. B. Craney, KGIR, Butte; Mr. Wilson. CBS: Mr. Ethridge, chairman; (Continued on Page 82) BROADCASTING • Broadcast Advertising i