Broadcasting (Oct - Dec 1950)

BROADCAST industry employment in 1949, as measured by the week ended Oct. 15, 1949, totaled 43,208 persons (fulltime) who received $3,344,950 in pay, according to a Dept. of Labor analysis covei'ing four nationwide networks, three regionals and 2,016 stations. Data are based on figures gathered by the FCC. The 1949 labor totals compare with 1948 figures showing 39,572 fulltime employes received a total $3,003,111. In 1949 the 8,816 parttime employes received $519,158 for the week. Fulltime employes worked a total of 1,650,822 hours during the week, an average of 40.49, compared to an average of 40.27 hours the year before. These figures do not include working hours of general executive officers and assistants. Average weekly pay of fulltime employes in 1949 was $72.52 compared to $71.22 the year before. Average weekly pay of the seven networks and their key stations was $93.33 in 1949 compared to $92.44 in 1948, according to the Labor Dept. study. At the 2,005 other stations average weekly pay was $68.05, compared to $67.02 in 1948. About half the stations reported 15 or more fulltime employes (in 4 NATION-WIDE NETWORKS, 3 REGIONAL NETWORKS AND 2,016 BROADCAST STATIONS*: ACTUAL HOURS AND ACTUAL COMPENSATION OF FULL-TIME EMPLOYES FOR THE WEEK ENDING OCT. 15, 1949 ^"I^oni/^cTf"** 7 Networks and 11 Key Sta»ions 2,005 Other Stations and 2,016 Stations -g -§ >» -o "«> eg 2o o» go 2o 01 O" go 5g Classification or employes a)> > oc «> # oc -^-c-i Si" >_ o5 ■OS _o _ S -OS _2 oot -0.2 -o -a Ea as OS Eo "= .-so Ea os of = E ot 0 0 o~ 00 -SS? .5 E oS oo Zs H-D l-u Z« t-O h-u Z » Z Zs 1-0 l-u I General officers and assistants 2,435 (§) $387,937 121 (§) $51,223 1,580 2,314 (g) $336,714 II StafF program employes: A. Supervisory .. 2,142 89,018 200,793 194 7,494 34,104 1,496 1,948 81,524 166,689 B. Non-supervisory 12,459 487,070 935,978 1,677 59,544 208,020 1,840 10,782 427,526 727,958 III Technical employes: ? A. Supervisory 2,149 91,652 202,520 147 6,003 24,650 1,646 2,002 85,649 177,870 B. Non-supervisory 8,747 370,249 664,970 1,202 51,132 137,377 1,895 7,545 319,117 527,593 IV Commercial employes: A. Supervisory 1,066 44,556 125,471 71 2,751 14,337 949 995 41,805 111,134 B. Non-supervisory 3,431 140,495 290,633 219 8,364 32,120 1,461 3,212 132,131 258,513 V Promotion and publicity employes: A. Supervisory 292 11,689 31,840 70 2,750 10,998 193 222 8,939 20,842 B. Non-supervisory 452 18,027 32,991 214 8,522 19,872 142 238 9,505 13,119 VI Clerical employes 8,059 320,573 366,618 2,663 103,959 134,125 1,719 5,396 216,614 232,493 VII Building service employes . . 1,568 61,191 70,855 580 22,231 34,645 569 988 38,960 36,210 VIII All other employes 408 16,302 34,344 184 7,344 23,657 130 224 8,958 10,687 IX Fuil-time employes (excluding general officers and assistants) 40,773 1,650,822 $2,957,013 7,221 280,094 $673,905 2,005 33,552 1,370,728 $2,283,108 X Average hours and overage compensation 40.49 $72.52 38.79 $93.33 40.85 $68.05 Xi Total: Full-time employes (including general officers and assistants) 43,208 (t) $3,344,950 7,342 (t) $725,128 2,005 35,866 (t) $2,619,822 * Includes AM-FM employes in a few instances where licensees report they are unable to make a segregation of personnel for jointly operated stations. § No scheduled hours, actual hours and scheduled compensation reported for general ofRcers and assistants. t No totals of scheduled hours, actual hours and scheduled compensation possible because of the absence of data for general officers and assistants. ^ Of the 10,896 technical employes reported, 7,737 were reported to hold First Class Radiotelephone Licenses. These were distributed as folliws: Networks and Key stations, 565; all other stations, 7,172. KMPC HEARING Editorial Issue Posed In Richards' Case FIRST PHASE of FCC's four-month-old hearing on G. A. (Dick) Richards' news policies was near an end last week, with t^'o prominent Democrats among the final witnesses for the station owner who has been accused of ordering news slanted against Democrats and certain minority groups. Another witness — Jack Tenney, * former chairman of the California State Senate's Un-American Activities Committee — challenged the origin of FCC's hearing and declared that if FCC may tell a radio station what it can say, "then we have Soviet Russia here in America." The Los Angeles phase of the hearing was to have been wound up last Friday, but appeared destined to continue through most of the week. FCC Examiner James D. Cunningham, conducting the hearing, said a recess of about 15 days would precede the opening of the Detroit phase dealing with Mr. Richards' plans for a trusteeship to control his stations — KMPC Los Angeles, WJR Detroit, and WGAR Cleveland. Sen. Sheridan Downey (D-Calif.) testified Tuesday that: "No human mind can be im partial. I knew Mr. Richards was a man of very strong feeling on certain matters, including Roosevelt. One of the reasons I was impressed with the Richards station, even though he had that personal view, was he was fair and impartial toward our [Democratic party] cause." Rollin L. McNitt, attorney and former chairman of the Los Angeles County Democratic Central Committee, joined Sen. Downey in testifying to the reputation of the Richards stations. He held that radio stations should have the same rights as newspapers to advocate particular viewpoints and edit news. "I have a peculiar philosophy, which may have come from my teaching of Constitutional law," Mr. McNitt said. "I believe that save for treasonable or seditious utterances or salacious matter, a newspaper or radio station has the right to present things in its own way." His testimony as to the station's good reputation, he said, should be considered in the light of his philosophy of radio broadcasting. Mr. Tenney said that during his tenure as chairman of the California Senate's Un-American Activities Committee he received many complaints about pro-Soviet commentators on California stations, but heard no criticism of KMPC. Hits 'Censorship' "If it is the attitude of the government to prohibit criticism of administration appointees," he declared at another point, "then freedom in America is gone. Unless we plan to have press and radio the same as Pravda is to the Soviet government, a radio station should have discretion in the selection and presentation of its news items." FCC General Counsel Benedict P. Cottone moved to strike por cluding the networks) and had 34,000 employes who received $2,805,381 during the 1949 week. Stations (1,045) vdth fewer than 15 employes had 9,208 persons on their payrolls fulltime in 1949. They received a total of $539,569 in compensation. Employment figures in the Labor Dept. survey are broken down into classes of employment, size of community, and class and time. Figures include some personnel working on FM stations but many licensees said they were unable to segregate personnel for jointly operated AM-FM stations. Complete data covering all reporting stations and networks (fulltime employes with hours and compensation) are reported in the attached table. The figures cover actual hours worked and actual pay received, including overtime payments. On the average the total weekly scheduled hours came within one hour per week of the number of hours actually worked. The scheduled pay was $69.72 compared to actual pay of $72.52. ROBERT BURTON Civil Defense Post' Seen ROBERT R. BURTON, formerly with the State Dept. as chief on high frequency problems and U. S. delegate to European radio frequency conferences, probably will head up the communications section of the new Civil Defense Administration when it is authorized by Congress, it has been learned. Mr. Burton, who recently was appointed to head up communications for temporary civil defense planning now crystalizing outside of National Security Resources Board, is expected to be named director, according to present plans. He would work with Leighton Peebles, official of the World War II War Production Board, who now supervises overall communications planning for NSRB. tions of Mr. Tenney's testimony from the record on grounds it was "not responsive," and Examiner Cunningham ruled that unresponsive portions would be deleted. Commander Craig of the American Legion testified KMPC and WJR had been generous in providing time for the Legion and identified awards given to the stations for their cooperation. Under cross-examination by Mr. Cottone he said he was not familiar with the facts involved in the hearing as they relate to Mr. Richards' policies in the internal operation of his stations. Other witnesses on behalf of Mr. Richards included: J. Wyn Austin, Los Angeles City Councilman; Mrs. Dorothy Corey Frothingham, partner and Los Angeles manager, Facts Consolidated Inc„ marketing research firm; Ralph Turner and Charles L. Stone, KMPC announcer-newscasters; Dare Manning, KGFJ Los Angeles announcer, formerly with KMPC. BROADCASTING • Telecasting October 16, 1950 • Page 29