Broadcasting (July - Dec 1939)

SA6E alrauf Oldest There Are ONE MILLION REASONS Why YOU SHOULD ADVERTISE ON WABI DURING THE SUMMER MONTHS. Maine's population increases by one million during the summer. Summer real estate owned by non-residents is valued at $110,000,000. In 1938 non-residents spent $2,000,000 in improving and building summer property. WABI COLUMBIA BKOA&CASTINO SYSTEM Tensor' Rule Change Foreseen (Continued frorii Page 32) sel of the NAB, highlighted the final session [see page 32]. Continuing during the afternoon session July 14 their inquiry into the conditions surrounding the filing June 3 of the NAB's letter of protest on the rules, FCC members questioned Neville Miller, NAB president, further on his conversations prior to the v^^riting of the letter. Mr. Miller said he felt he was acting in accord vi^ith his position as NAB president and that he had checked vs^ith many broadcasters, not with respect to his authority but to get their reactions. Among those with whom he talked, he said, were Harry C. Butcher, vice-president, and Paul A. Porter, Washington attorney for CBS; Frank M. Russell, NBC Washington vicepresident; Leon Levy, president of WCAU, Philadelphia, which operates an international station ; Walter Lemmon, president of World-Wide Broadcasting Corp. of Boston, operating WIXAL, and Duke Patrick, counsel for the Crosley Corp. Mr. Miller also stated that he thought it was proper procedure to address his letter to Chairman McNinch even though he were out of town, believing that through customary channels the communication would be directed to the acting chairman. After he had read into the record the resolution adopted at the Atlantic City convention approving his action in the international matter, Mr. Miller was asked by Commissioner Thompson what NBC and CBS stations were in John, you know that our competitor made more money than we did last year in the Sioux City trade area? Yes, but . . . Well, the only thing he did that we didn't was to use KSCJ — which he is still doing and . . . it is costing him less than .00004 of a cent per person to get his sales message across to the 1,6&8,810 consumers in KSCJ's territory! So . . . We want on KSCJ ? Right? Right! And I think the next twelve months will spell a different story! eluded in the group voting for the resolution "to show to what extent the resolution reflects the attitudes of network affiliates". Cross examined by William J. Dempsey, FCC general counsel, concerning the authority of his letter, Mr. Miller remarked, "If I had to go out and contact a crosssection of the industry every time I write a letter, I'd never get around to writing any". Claims Lack of Courtesy He said he had no comment on the FCC's plan to set aside frequencies for international as distinguished from domestic service except that, as stated in his letter, "it involves censorship". As he declared himself unable to answer certain questions involving technical operation and management, he remarked further, "Every witness who takes the stand is not necessarily able to comment on every phase of this hearing". Referred by Mr. Dempsey to testimony of Mark Ethridge, former NAB president, given last year before Congressional committees considering a bill to establish a Government-operated international shortwave station, in which it was brought out that the FCC should develop a standard of international interest, convenience' and necessity, Mr. Miller declared, "If this (the new rule) is the sample, we're opposed to it". The new regulations are "a bad sample of how that theory ought to be interpreted", he added. The remark by Mr. Dempsey that Mr. Miller was "disappointing" as a witness because of his inability to answer a greater variety of questions brought a stiff retort from NAB Counsel Sherley, who referred pointedly to the hearing as a "star chamber proceeding" and declared that "the courtesy shown the witness is rather conspicuous by its absence". He continued by observing that it was also unfair to place an objector to the form of a rule in the position of opposing the objectives of the rule, as he said was being done with Mr. Miller. Opening the July 15 session, Paul A. Porter, CBS Washington attorney, called E. K. Cohan, CBS director of engineering in charge of the technical operation of Seven world wide news services and special correspondents of four papers provide up to minute flashes for six daily news broadcasts. CJOR Vancouver, B. C. National Representatives: Joseph Hershey McGillvra W2XE, CBS international station. I Mr. Cohan described the facilities and technical operation of the sta I tion, pointing out that although the ' signals could be beamed accurately to cover certain points in Europe or Latin America, it was still impossible to secure a sharp boundary of transmission and for this reason, from a technical standpoint, it was possible for listeners in a country like Germany or Italy to receive signals directed at the British Isles or France. In some cases, he added, a program that would be popular with listeners in one country might be frowned upon by the governmerts of adjoining countries. CBS Program Service Mr. Porter also called Frederic A. Willis, assistant to the president of CBS, who is in charge of CBS shortwave operations, to explain the program service offered by W2XE. Mr. Willis declared flatly that he did not know just what the rule meant, and that although the service of the station had not been curtailed since issuance of the regulations, he .still did not know whether or not he was operating within the rule. He added that literal application of the rule would deprive foreign listeners of many of the present popular programs, reduce the listening audience, and curtail present operations of international stations. H. Thomas Austern, special counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union, at whose pleading the FCC had ordered the hearing, outlined the Union's stand in a brief argument concluding the Saturday morning session. Questioning the FCC's authority to issue such a rule, Mr. Austern declared it could be found neither in treaty law nor in the Communications Act, which he pointed out expressly prohibits censorship. So long as the Commission confines itself to a "quantitative" analysis of progi-ams, no censorship is involved, he continued, but beyond that point, and as soon as it begins to consider specific program content and "what is said", it amounts to censorship and abridgement of free speech in the eyes of the Union. "Section 42.03 as a whole is wholly ambiguous," Mr. Austern declared, adding that it will operate as a deterrent to discussions in the international field and practically all present types of programs. "Freedom of speech is paramount to any form of foreign repercussion," he continued. "If getting into the international broadcast field means ignoring the First Amendment, we feel the price is too high." What Is Culture? Following CBS and Mr. Austern, ] P. J. Hennessy Jr., NBC Washington counsel, called Dr. C. B. Jolliffe, in charge of the RCA frequency bureau and former FCC chief engineer, and Frank E. Mason, vicepresident in charge of NBC's international division. Dr. Jolliffe gave brief technical testimony on the facilities and operation of NBC's two shortwave stations, W3XAL and W3XL. Mr. Mason pointed out that the FCC regulation had all the attributes of "surveillance" censorship, which he described as a situation in which the writer or speaker censored himself, and Page 58 • August 1, 1939 BROADCASTING * Broadcast Advertising '