Broadcasting (Jan - Mar 1950)

ORCEDUISTENING ^'y C^es Need for Policy By JAMES LAWRENCE FLY 3E Grand Central Terminal has andoned its broadcasts in the terest of good will. The problem, wever, will arise again and ain, and the radio industry must prepared for a decision on polThe action of the Grand »ntral based upon considerations j institutional good will is worthy I note. [On the legal and philosophical yel I have argued against forced ktening. In a speech before the dvertising Club of Boston on (jpt. 28, 1943, I urged an interna)nal principle of "Freedom to sten," laying heavy emphasis )on the forced feeding laws of e dictator countries. This prinple was preserved in the drafts peace treaties. Freedom to iten necessarily includes the right selectivity and the right not to ;5ten. I Every other form of broadcast;[g or advex-tising leaves an avenue j; escape, the newspaper, the magiine, the car-card, the billboard iid the radio. Even the loud •eaker is a some-time thing, and jirmally affords some escape at |e moment. The whole idea of reed listening to one particular ling has seemed to me without I'ecedent in a free country and to Inack too much of arbitrary pwer. A man's right to be let lone stems from the deep well of pr legal lore. [ I But let us take a selfish apj poach. Warren Moscow in the j'i'ew York Times says: "When the I jiilroads came to balance the [inount they spent on institutional ! livertising for the cultivation of 1 l-Stitutional good will against the iivenue from the project [$90,000 pr annum] that was apparently jistering ill-will there was nothing i' do but give in." The resentment was more and j;Ore consistent than can easily ? imagined. My recent conJicts, largely social, have in'juded (believe it or not) numbers the Westchester and Park AveUe groups, business and profes sional men, bankers, advertising men and radio officials and lawyers. Comment was spontaneous, forceful and, with rare consistency, critical. One could not avoid the conclusion that the quick easy dollar wrung from captive audiences is, in the long run, at too dear a cost. But there are further implications. We may be at the threshold of an extensive development. Only a small portion of the actual and potential broadcasts come from radio. My industry friends agree that conceivably these captive operations may move into every salient point where masses of people must gather or pass. Routinized, the job can be done simply and at small expense. Once so developed, what is going to happen to the local advertising of the radio stations? It may well be shortsighted when broadcast stations contribute to a service which, changed and expanded, may turn to devour. I submit for mature reflection the proposition that in its own intellectual self-interest the industry should stick to the free and com BAKING STORY Continental Officials on CBS TWO RADIO advertisers portrayed themselves in The Rising Wonder a full hour special broadcast marking the 25th anniversary of the Continental Baking Co., presented on CBS Dec. 30. The two executives were Lee Marshall, chairman of the board of Continental and Ray Stritzinger, president of the firm. In addition to the executives, the program starred Mark Stevens as narrator of the Continental story. The script was prepared by Robert Lewis Shayon. The Baking Co. regularly sponsors Grand Slam Monday through Friday, 11:30-12 noon on CBS. Ted Bates Inc., New York, is the agency. We do not cover all of Connecticut, but we DO cover* NORWICH and most of New London county . . . 1948 retail sales $129,364,000.00. Have you been bypassing th is market? Remember you can BUY it on a station that has ONE rate both day night. UUICH FULL TIME. 14-OOKC ZoO Vv nORUUICH E ASTER N JOHN DEME SoAoZsulo NOEL BRLAULT PRE6 + taEN MiiR. COMPAMv >/i i f Mofi,. You'd be surprised af our coverage in New London. petitive system which has nurtured its growth. This better becomes the mightiest of the free services to the greatest of all free peoples. RMA CONFERENCE Committee Meets Jan. 78-79 INDUSTRIAL relations problems in the radio and television industry will be discussed at a conference to be held Jan. 18-19 at the Statler Hotel, New York, by the Industrial Relations Committee of Radio Mfrs. Assn. Titled "The Search for Security," the conference is being arranged by a subcommittee headed by Harvey T. Stephens, International Resistance Co. Informal discussions and talks will be taken up on a workshop basis, covering such topics as pensions and social security programs for the industry. Speakers will include Richard A. Lester, Princeton U.; Dr. Paul R. Beall, Penn State; Gerry E. Morse, Sylvania Electric Products; John D. Washburn, Sprague Electric Co.; A. F. Watters, RCA Victor Division; Godfrey P. Schmidt, New York attorney. Mr. Watters will discuss personnel problems as they relate to the economic future of the radio and television industry. Mr. Fly ACTIVE in radio for more than a decade, James Lawrence Fly is a partner in the New York law firm of Fly, Fitts & Shuebruk. He became FCC Chairman Sept. 1, 1939, serving five years. Prior to that time he had been general counsel of the Tennessee Valley Authority. The "captive audience" problem has been subject to public hearings in Washington, where transit radio was given official approval. In New York, Grand Central Terminal stopped its service after a trial period. Canada Marine Meet FCC COMRS. E. M. Webster and George E. Sterling, accompanied by two top staff executives, will attend the annual meeting of the Canadian Dominion Marine Assn. Jan. 17-19 at the Seigniory Club, Quebec. Staff executives who will attend are William N. Krebs, assistant chief engineer in charge of the Marine Radio & Safety Division, and A. L. Mcintosh, chief of the Frequency Allocation & Treaty Division. Discussions will center on common problems and objectives of the U. S. and Canada in the Great Lakes regions. WSJS 0ombt£dM bJhfi&ion'Sxxhm! (Gives Bonus Coverage of Greensboro and High Point) ® 1st EN LISTENING (Hooper) 9 1st IN NETWORK (nbC) 9 1st EN POWER (5C00 watts) ® 1st ON THE DIAL (600) ® 1st ON THE AIR (1930) Naturally, it follows that WSJS is FIRST in Advertising I-Local-General-Network Your FIRST and BEST Buyl Affiliated with NBC (^ WINSTON-SALEM ^ THE JOURNAL-SENTINEL STATIONS Represented by HEADLEYREED CO. ADCASTING • Telecasting January 9, 1950 • Page 43