Broadcasting Telecasting (Jan-Mar 1955)

MIAMI CH. 7 RULING ATTACKED monopolized or attempted to be monopolized." The two applicable paragraphs in the current Communications Act read as follows: Refusal of Licenses and Permits in Certain Cases Sec. 311. The Commission is hereby directed to refuse a station license and/or the permit hereinafter required for the construction of a station to any person (or to any person directly or indierctly controlled by such person) whose license has been revoked by a court under Sec. 313. Application of Anti-Trust LawsSec. 313. All laws of the United States relating to unlawful restraints and monopolies and to combinations, contracts, or agreements in restraint of trade are hereby declared to be applicable to the manufacture and sale of and to trade in radio apparatus and devices entering into or affecting interstate or foreign commerce and to interstate or foreign radio communication. Whenever in any suit, action, or proceeding, civil or criminal, brought under the provisions of any of said laws or in any proceedings brought to enforce or to review findings and orders of the Federal Trade Commission or other government agency in respect of matters as to which said Commission or other government agency is by law authorized to act, any licensee shall be found guilty of the violation of the provisions of such laws or any of them, the court, in addition to the penalties imposed by said laws, may adjudge, order and/or decree that the license of such licensee shall, as of the date the decree or judgment becomes finally effective or as such other date as the said degree shall fix, be revoked and that all rights under such license shall thereupon cease: Provided, however, that such licensee shall have the same right of appeal or review, as is provided by law in respect of other decrees and judgments of said court. While language in the first sentence of Sec. 313 mentions apparatus, some informal interpretations take the position that it applies to every form of communication as well, including radio and tv broadcasting. Sec. 311 gives FCC absolutely no discretion, should a court revoke a license. Should a court order separation of radio-tv operations from a newspaper, then it is noted the FCC would have discretionary power over such factors as time limit for sale of stations and qualifications of purchasers. Larus-Thalhimer Tv Grant Proposed INITIAL DECISION, proposing to grant a new tv station on vhf ch. 12 at Richmond, Va., to Richmond Television Corp., and denying a competing application of WRNL-AM-FM there, was issued last week by FCC Examiner H. Gifford Irion. The examiner concluded that Richmond Tv must be preferred because of the close integration between the officers and its daily operations, past programming, tv proposals and superior staff. There was no margin of difference between the applicants as to the criteria of diversification of mass media of communications. WRNL is owned by Richmond Newspapers Inc., publisher of the Richmond morning and Sunday Times-Dispatch and of the evening News Leader. Richmond Tv is the product of ,a merger occuring in November 1953 between Morton G. Thalhimer and associates and Larus & Brothers Co., operator of WRVA at Richmond. Larus & Brothers hold a 60% interest in Richmond Tv and the Thalhimer group 40%. Examiner Irion concluded that WRVA has shown a superior record in presentation of news and that WRNL has been a "satellite" to the newspaper operations and has "not been a competitor with the newspapers." The decision also concluded that WRVA must be preferred on the basis of integration and ownership because of "the degree to which the owners and officers of [WRNL] have divorced themselves from the radio operation reveals an almost lack of rapport between owners and officers on the one hand and daily operations on the other." Examiner's initial decision favoring Biscayne Tv Corp. is protested on diversification. FROM all quarters last week the Miami ch. 7 initial decision of FCC Chief Hearing Examiner James D. Cunningham — proposing to grant Biscayne Television Corp. — came under attack in exceptions which chiefly protested his interpretation of the Commission's policy of diversification of mass media of communication [B«T, Jan. 24]. Biscayne represents a joint venture by the Cox and Knight newspaper-radio interests with Niles Trammell, ex-NBC president, holding minor interest and the role of managing executive. The examiner ruled in favor of Biscayne on the basis of the public service record of the Knight WQAM and Cox WIOD, both Miami. The initial ruling, conditioned upon the Knight interests dropping WQAM, proposed to deny competing bids by East Coast Television Corp., South Florida Television Corp. and Sunbeam Television Corp. FCC's Broadcast Bureau and the losing applicants in the ch. 7 fight took the examiner to task for what they considered was a great deviation from the Commission's long established policy on mass media diversification. Biscayne felt the examiner's conclusions were correct "both as to matters of law and policy" and "in accord with the overwhelming evidence of record," but filed exceptions on his findings with respect to qualifications of the competing applicants. It did so, the Biscayne brief said, "in view of the possibility of appellate review and the probable contents of exceptions to be filed by others." Charging that the examiner failed to find the Cox and Knight interests dominate the daily newspaper field at Miami and operate two of the three "dominate" radio stations, the Broadcast Bureau noted East Coast, South Florida and Sunbeam "do not have any television, radio or newspaper connections. Each has a higher degree of local representation in ownership and management than Biscayne. In somewhat varying degrees, the ownership of each includes persons representing diversified local businesses and occupations." The Broadcast Bureau held that the examiner "has failed to give proper weight to the overwhelming evidence in this record tending to show that an award to Biscayne will seriously restrict the principle of diversification of the control of mass media in the Miami area and, further, that such an award would have a tendency generally to lessen competition in the broadcast field." Citing Mr. Trammell's consultant contract with NBC, South Florida charged that "with great dominance over mass media already theirs [Biscayne principals], in Miami and elsewhere, and with built-in NBC influence through Trammell, the combine comes to the Commission and asks for still another vital pipeline into the Miami market place of ideas." South Florida contended the examiner improperly "diluted" this factor by "only an aside to the effect that no 'unlawful practices' or 'evils' had been revealed!" The brief observed that the law "frowns upon monopoly generally even in the less sensitive business areas. It is indeed a unique 'justice' that winkingly nods approval to one monopoly while snarling at another." In its attack on the examiner's conclusions^ East Coast noted FCC's long established dll versification policy and pointed out that tr|j "granting of broadcast applications in conn parative cases to non-newspaper owners i| preference to newspaper owners, has bee 11 upheld by the courts." Sunbeam claimed the examiner erred in coil sidering the past records of WQAM and WIO; ! since Biscayne is not the licensee of either an| its stockholders do not include the licensees S the outlets. Rather, it was noted, the controj ling stockholders of the stations are minorii; stockholders in Biscayne and Commission preo | dent forbids credit for past radio performance under such circumstances. Uhf's WBUF-TV, WJPB-TV Suspend, Retain Permits TWO MORE operating uhf stations— WBUl! TV Buffalo, N. Y., and WJPB-TV Fairmoni W. Va. — fiotified the FCC last week that thel were suspending operations. This raises ttl total of post-thaw tv stations to go off-the-aij but who still retain their authorizations, to 31 uhf and 7 vhf. WBUF-TV Buffalo went off the air Wedne'jj day night after operating a year-and-a-half o.J ch. 17. The uhf outlet has been competinl against two vhf stations, WBEN-TV and WGFij TV. In a message to the FCC, Sherwin Gros ! man, president, said the action "is necessary dv. to the heavy losses WBUF-TV has been su taining in its operations." He said the static "is exploring methods of securing addition; revenue that will enable it to return to the air A six-month silence period was asked b Mr. Grossman. He told B»T the station ha been doing "better than anticipated" for sorr months after it went on the air, with uhf S( conversions averaging 1,500 a day. After th four-ply ch. 2 merger in Buffalo more than year ago, he said, the station began to loa clients rapidly as conversions slowed down. ' For a six-month period, he said, WBUF-T' quickly lost 138 accounts and dropped $1,00 a week, with recent losses running as high < $25,000 and $30,000 a month. WBUF-TV Im has 28 stockholders with Mr. Grossman hole ing 26%. The station operated with 229 k1 power. WBUF-TV has pending at the FCC a dt. intermixture petition filed last Oct. 29. Unda this petition it would move to ch. 8 in the \a band. Three applications are pending for ch. | in Buffalo. WBES-TV Buffalo, a uhf outlet o ch. 59, went off the air in December 1953. Meanwhile, ch. 35 WJPB-TV Fairmont not' fied the FCC that it would discontinue t service at sign-off today (Monday). In a lette to the FCC, Donn D. Baer, president, said th< after almost a year of telecasting the action wa necessary because "a combination of factors ha made it possible for vhf stations in Pittsburgl Wheeling and Steubenville to beam serviceabl signals into our coverage area" and "due t the lack of local, regional and national interes in uhf." Mr. Baer made note of continuin monthly financial losses and informed the Co mission of the intention to retain the ch. 3 permit "until such time as the Commission take action on reallocation of a vhf channel t Fairmont, or to offer some form of concessio: or relief to uhf stations who are in a simila position as WJPB-TV." Page 74 • February 28, 1955 Broadcasting • Telecasting