Broadcasting (July - Dec 1939)

KRLD Dedicates New 50 kw. Plant Dallas Station Staff Enlarged As Power Is Increased NEW transmitter of KRLD, Dallas, was to be dedicated July 16, bringing the station's power up to 50,000 watts. Public officials and other dignitaries were slated to take part in the ceremonies, to be held in the Hotel Adolphus studios. The station has been operated since 1927, a year after its formation, by the Dallas Times Herald, with Edwin J. Kiest, owner and publisher, and Tom Gooch, president of KRLD Corp. and editor-in-chief. The Western Electric transmitter is located at Garland, 14 miles away, with two 475-foot radiators emitting a directional signal to the west, south and east. In charge of the installation were Roy M. Flynn, KRLD chief technician, and Jack Herber. Staflf Enlarged With the power increase the KRLD staff has been enlarged. James W. Crocker, formerly radio director of the Texas Pan American Exposition, has been placed in charge of announcing personnel and merchandising. He has been with the station nearly two years. Roy George is production manager. Three new announcers have joined the staff : Bill Ware, formerly of WKRC, Cincinnati; Thomas Meador Lowry, formerly of WHAS, Louisville, and Warwick Gilmoi-e, of Oklahoma City. KRLD officials, besides Mr. Kiest and Mr. Gooch, are J. W. Runyon, Times Herald advertising manager, managing director; Clyde Rembert, station and commercial manager. A special salute program was broadcast by CBS, with Texas Senators and Representatives participating. The station's own dedicatory program was broadcast at 6:30, with station and public officials taking part. During the inaugural week it was planned to broadcast transcribed salutes from 21 stations, including foreign stations. Senate Confirms Walker With a Unanimous Vote INDICATING a tapering off of Senatorial antagonism to the FCC was the confirmation, without debate, hearing or opposition of Commission Paul A. Walker to serve a new seven-year term on the FCC from July 1. The Senate June 29 confirmed President Roosevelt's renomination of Commissioner Walker by unanimous consent. Previously, the nomination had been discussed in committee, but the favorable report to the Senate was unanimous. The Oklahoma Democrat has been a member of the FCC since its creation in 1934 and was in charge of the far-reaching investigation of the American Telephone & Telegraph Co. and its subsidiary organizations. The next term expiration on the FCC is that of Commissioner Thad H. Brown, Ohio Republican, on June 30, 1940. Commissioner Brown has intimated that he may retire from public office by the end of this year to resume private practice of law. No formal announcement, however, has been made. A Listener Knew WAPI, Birmingham, was broadcasting the revealing information of the station's Did You Know? program. Answering the telephone, the WAPI operator heard: "Did you know you're off the air?" WAPI actually was off the air due to a power failure, but the trouble was fixed within a minute. NEW PLANT housing the 50,000watt transmitter of KRLD, Dallas, is shown above with its 475-foot vertical towers designed to send out a heart-shaped signal pointing to the Southwest. The transmitter, located at Garland, Tex,, was to be placed in operation July 16. It was constructed under the direction of Roy M. Flynn, KRLD chief technician. Ethyl to Go Musical ETHYL GASOLINE Corp., New York, which on Aug. 21 resumes Tune-up Time on CBS, Mondays, 8-8 : 30 p. m., will change the format of the program to purely musical omitting Walter O'Keefe and all comedy. A new m.c. will probably be selected, while Andre Kostelanetz and his orchestra and Kay Thompson and her Rhythm Singers will continue to supply the music. BBDO, New York, handles the account. Profit of $7,003,700 by Major Nets And 23 O&M Stations Shown in 1938 A NET INCOME of $7,003,700 on total revenues of $44,862,567 was earned by the three major network organizations (NBC, CBS and MBS) and their 23 managed and operated stations during 1938, according to an additional income statement released July 6 by the FCC on the basis of its questionnaire survey. The report supplements the figures for the industry as a whole released earlier [Broadcasting, July 1] which showed that 660 stations and the three major networks last year had total revenues of $111,358,378 and a net income of $18,854,784. According to the new report, network operations of NBC (Red and Blue), CBS and MBS resulted in total revenues from time sales and other sources, after deductions of commissions, of $32,229,618. The net income from network operations only, amounted to $4,349,446. M & O Stations Station operation by the networks resulted in total revenues of $12,632,949 and net income of $4,958,289, indicating that on a smaller dollar volume the 23 managed and operated stations earned a considerably larger net profit than did the networks as such. Included in the 23 managed and operated stations were the 14 NBCoperated stations: WEAF and WJZ, New York; WENR and WMAQ, Chicago; WRC and WMAL, Washington; KPO and KGO, San Francisco; WBZ-WBZA, Boston-Springfield (counted as one station); WTAM, Cleveland; KOA, Denver; KDKA, Pittsburgh; WGY, Schenectady. The other nine managed and operated stations were those of CBS: WABC, New York; WBBM, Chicago; WJSV, Washington; WKRC, Cincinnati; WBT, Charlotte, WCCO, Minneapolis; KMOX, St. Louis; WEEI, Boston; KNX, Los Angeles. MBS is represented in the aggregates as a network only, inasmuch as it does not own any stations but rather is itself owned by two of its stations — WOR, Newark, and WGN, Chicago. The revenue and profit figures for these stations are not included in the FCC report, nor are the NBC, CBS and MBS figures given separately. To the net revenue figure for networks ($4,349,446) and the net revenue figure for the 23 managed and operated stations ($4,958,289), the FCC accountants added $174,751 as "other income" to make a gross income of $9,482,486. From this figure, however, deductions for Federal and State income taxes and other items, totalinT $2,478,786, brought the net profit figure to $7,003,700. According to the report, nine kev stations of NBC and CBS had total revenues during 1938 of $5,356,846 and a net income of $2,.549.987. These stations were NBC's WEAF, WJZ, WMAO, WENR. KPO and KGO. and CBS's WABC, WBBM and KNX. Non-Key Profits The other 14 stations of the two networks, listed as non-key stations, had total revenues of $7,276,103 and a net income of $2,408,302. Thus the nine New York, Chicaeo, San Francisco and Hollywood key stations showed substantially higher revenues and a slightly lower net profit than the remaining 14. Breakdowns by individual stations and networks were not made available, but David Sarnoff, NBC board chairman, at the May 2 meeting of RCA stockholders disclosed that NBC during 1938 earned a net profit of $3,434,301 [Broadcasting, May 15]. In hi's 1938 annual renort, William S. Paley, CBS president, reported his company's net nrofit for the year as $3,541,740 [Broadcasting, April 15]. Total network time sales amounted to $54,938,879 during 1988, while the 23 stations sold $13,184,646 worth of time, the report shows, and the gross volume of business of the three organizations amounted to $68,123,525. Paid Posto-Photo to Add POSTO-PHOTO, Camden, N. J. (film developing and enlargements), on July 3 for 13 weeks started three quarter-hours weekly of the Make Believe Ballroom on WNEW, New York. The company, also sponsoring Phil Cook's morning program thrice weekly on WABC, New York, plans to add more stations to the campaign later this summer. Redfield Johnston, New York, handles the account. out to others for broadcast service was $19,483,369, which with other items brought total book revenues to $54,130,795. After deductions of $9,268,228 as commissions paid to agencies and brokers, the total reve n u e figure o f $44,862,567 i s reached. Schulenburg Asks Uniformity in Data Authentic and Standard Facts Declared a Vital Need STANDARDIZATION of radio coverage and audience data, generally along the lines of the objective of the now dormant Joint Committee on Radio Research, was urged July 3 by E. A. W. Schulenburg, of Gardner Advertising Co., St. Louis, in a letter to a list of broadcasters. Pointing out that the subject is one which has been discussed previously, although nothing definite has materialized, Mr. Schulenburg deprecated the lack of uniformity of such material. He urged that the whole question be settled at the NAB Convention in Atlantic City, looking toward the establishment of a bona fide organization. Declaring he had been giving considerable thought to what might be done by stations to standardize coverage material furnished to advertisers and agencies and at the same time to give this material an authoritative stamp, Mr. Schulenburg said that in the publishing field the Audit Bureau of Circulations handles such data. The Traffic Audit Bureau performs a similar function for billboards, and furnishes an acceptable statement of circulation for this medium. He suggested an organization of station owners, advertisers and agencies along lines similar to those followed by A. B.C. with a board of directors controlled by advertisers and agencies. The object of such a bureau would be to supply information on coverage along with essential data on a uniform and standardized basis, to be determined by the board. The cost of this service would necessarily have to be borne by stations, as well as the membership fees paid by advertisers and agencies. He suggested an organization of efficient engineer-auditors would have to be established for this work, so that coverage maps and data would be uniform for all stations. The Joint Committee, established some four years ago and equally | representative of broadcasters, advertisers and advertising agencies through their respective trade associations, has undertaken several , studies on receiving set ownership ' and distribution but has never ' adopted a formula for standard ; ization of coverage and audience data. ' Page 26 • July 15, 1939 BROADCASTING • Broadcast Advertising