Broadcasting (Oct - Dec 1950)

JffD INFLUENCE Radio Club Views 'Channels' THE HIGHLY controversial Red Channels, whose listing of Jean Muir ■with 150 other individuals suspected of being Communists, fellow travelers or dupes of Communist-front organizations and causes was responsible for General Foods Corp.'s action in dropping Miss Muir from the cast of its TV program, ★ The Aldrich Family, was given a thorough going over Thursday at the semi-monthly luncheon session . of the Radio Executives Club of New York. Robert Saudek, REC president and ABC vice president, , who presided, announced an equally arguable topic for the club's next luncheon on Nov. 2 — color tele i vision. ' T. C. Kirkpatrick, managing editor of Counterattack, publisher of ' Red Channels, quoted J. Edgar Hoover, FBI director, as having "gone out of his way" to inform a Senate investigating committee about Red activities in radio, and cited AFRA's recent move to change its constitution to bar Communists from membership in this union as proof that Communist infiltration of radio and television is not a vague threat but a real dan ! ger. Pointing out that Red Channels is chiefly a compilation of material already on public record, Mr. Kirkpatrick said the main purpose of publishing these records of proCommunist activities of radio personnel was to show the extent to which Communist use of radio names for its purposes already had gone and to discourage misguided liberals from naively lending their names to Communist causes in the future. This objective already has been largely realized, he said, noting that since the publication of Red Channels scores of radio actors and artists have rushed to have their names removed from membership and committee lists of organizations described in the book as Communist or subversive. Almost as important, he stated, is the effect of the book in awakening the American people as a whole and the radio and television industry in particular to the threat of communism and the need for taking positive steps to combat it. Kirkpatrick's Stand I "We don't say that no one listed in Red Chayinels should be employed," he stated, "bat we do say ! that anyone with a continued record of association with Communist organizations, particularly anyone who has continued such activity after June 25 of this year, should be eliminated from employment on the air." RajTnond Swing, noted commentator, now on WOR New York, opened his attack on Red Channels by noting that the problem is not solely how the "American public is to be protected from insidious, concealed Communist infiltration in the radio industry," although that "is an undeniable necessity of the greatest urgency and importance." "There is also a need," he declared, "of protecting American standards and American freedom, both in ra dio as an employer and through radio as an instrument of democratic survival. There must not be Communist influence in American radio. But there also must not be the slightest weakening of genuine Americanism in keeping out the Communist influence." Termed 'Un-American' Describing the approach of Red Channels as "utterly un-American," Mr. Swing stated: It lists names of persons for no other reason than to suggest them as having Communist connections of sufiScient bearing to render them unacceptable to American radio. The list has been drawn up from reports, newspaper statements and letterheads, without checking and without testing the evidence and without giving a hearing to anyone whose name is listed. The only real danger in Red Channels, Mr. Swing declared, is "that the men who do control American radio should allow it to deflect them from a rigorous, rugged maintenance of true Americanism in the radio industry." While it is difficult to tell who is a Communist, because he will lie about it, he said, it is not so difficult to determine whether "anyone dealing with news or comment about news or writing tales and plays is commenting freely as an American or represents a clear and present danger to his country. ... It may be mighty easy to practice communism in secret but it is pretty hard to keep the secret by practicing it over the air." As to performing artists, Mr. Swing recommended leaving it to the law of the land to decide whether "someone obviously an outright Communist should be allowed to earn his living in radio in a capacity where he has no editorial influence on public opinion ... to decide whether radio is on a par with the State Dept. or the defense ministry, where an employe has access to state and military secrets, or on a par with a labor union, whose officer may not be a Communist." Other Dangers More potentially dangerous than the radio performers, Mr. Swing stated, are the radio technicians, as "the wrong man at the master controls in a radio station in a time of civil conflict might do irreparable damage," and radio's executives, as "it would be quite sinister if Communists were finding their way into the administrative and operating end of radio." Mr. Swing concluded: Let the danger of Communism be met, not by resorting to stealthy weapons, not by black lists, not by unventilated and often inaccurate charges, but openly and with courageous faith in the due process of law, faith in a civilization which fully protects the free rights of the individual. If, by some bleak and dreadful tragedy, American radio should come under the control of persons intent on producing a single conformity of thinking in America, it will not be the pressure groups or the blacklisters who will be to blame, but those now in charge of radio. They have it in their keeping and what happens to it will be their doing and only their doing. TIME DISPUTE Lewis Says Senator Erred CHARGE by Sen. Millard Tydings (D-Md.) that he had to appeal to FCC and MBS to get time on Fulton Lewis jr.'s program to answer the commentator's alleged attack on him was branded by Mr. Lewis last week as a "cheap, deliberate and contemptible lie." At the same time, MBS in New York issued a statement in which it said that the commentator, "on his own volition and with the approval of Mutual, offered to turn over his program to Sen. Tydings on Thursday (last) or any night thereafter." Mr. Lewis, MBS stated, read the request and the Senator's statements Tuesday and "voluntarily" offered him equal time. Appeal by Sen. Tydings, who spoke on MBS-WCBM Baltimore last Thursday, was directed by the FCC to MBS in New York as a customary routine matter, a Commission spokesman said. Sen. Tydings also sent the network two telegrams and called by telephone, requesting air time, according to MBS. When his talk was delayed four minutes on MBS because of transmission failure, he was offered Mr. Lewis' Friday period. RADIO rating; Comparative Test Under Study GROWING interest in the movement to conduct a test survey designed to measure relative accuracy of Hooper, Pulse and other audience ratings has developed as a special committee proceeds with its study of the whole situation. The idea developed out of a proposal by Stanley G. Breyer, commercial manager of KJBS San Francisco, who voiced industrywide concern over the difference in survey results. Dr. Kenneth H. Baker, NAB research director and operating head of BMB, is chairman of a committee formed by Mr. Breyer to investigate the situation [Broadcasting, Sept. 4]. This committee is writing a final report to be ready in mid-November. The report will propose experimental tests that must be conducted before questions on differences in research data can be answered. Data Requested The task of outlining specificaproper local tions for a proper test of audience-size measurement services involves careful study and planning. Organizations now work ing in the field have been asked to supply data on their operations. Frank E. Pellegrin, vice president of Transit Radio Inc. and former NAB broadcast advertising director, observed last week that Mr. Breyer's question is "clear-cut and deserves a clear-cut answer." Others have taken the same view. Two typical letters follow: EDITOR, Broadcasting: It has been two months since Stanley Breyer of KJBS San Francisco proposed a test to determine the relative accuracy of Hooper and Pulse ratings. . . . What has happened to it? Is the test going to be made, or not? It is easy for good ideas like this to cool off. They can get relegated to a committee and die there. . . . . . . Station owners and others continue to pay heavy monthly research bills to a variety of research companies, and still do not know the answer to Mr. Breyer's question. It is a clear-cut question and deserves a clear-cut answer. As he put it, different researchers purporting to measure approxi mately the same thing (radio listenership) cannot come up with widely divergent answers and all claim to be right. Somebody must be right and somebody wrong. If the fault lies in the method, well and good, but then the question becomes : Which method is best suited to give the correct answer? . . . Frank E. Pellegrin Vice President Transit Radio Inc. New York EDITOR, Broadcasting: Just two simple questions but they have heavy overtone: The first, what has happened to the rating controversy begun by Stan Breyer at KJBS which had so much favorable publicity? The second, now that the industry-wide committee has met several times, will some conclusive result be issued soon? Herbert L. Bachman Dir., Promotion-Research Headley-Reed Co. New York BROADCASTING • Telecasting October 23, 1950 • Page 27