Broadcasting Telecasting (Jan-Mar 1963)

Is the FCC a pawn in local political battles? The FCC is becoming a tactical weapon in editorial battles between broadcasters and interests involved in local controversial public issues. The latest occurrence took place just before and over the Christmas holidays. The scene was Corpus Christi, Tex., and before the battle was over the commission had become involved to the extent that Corpus Christi Mayor Ben F. McDonald actually was in telephonic communication with Edward J. Brown, chief of the FCC's renewal branch, on Dec. 24 (a government holiday in Washington). It all started on Dec. 22 when T. Frank Smith, president and general manager of KRIS-TV Corpus Christi, editorialized against the alleged haste with which the city council was planning to acquire a gas distribution firm and to hold an election to authorize a 27-year franchise to a second gas distribution company. One of Mr. Smith's purposes, he maintains, was to redress the imbalance in the city's news media on the subject. Neither of the local newspapers nor the other broadcast stations had presented the other side of the proposed actions, Mr. Smith contends, and his feeling was that the proposals were being rushed through without enough consideration by local citizens. The day after the initial 9lA minute editorial, Mr. Smith was confronted with a demand by the mayor and spokesmen for the two gas firms for "equal time" under the FCC's fairness doctrine. That same day Mr. Smith received a telegram from the FCC reciting the complaint and asking for his side of the issue. This sequence continued for the whole week. Mr. Smith's first response to the demand for equal time was a fiat no, on the ground he had not taken sides in the controversy. On the second go-round, he offered the three other parties participation in a 30-minute panel show to discuss the issues. This was refused. As he found himself at the receiving end of a one-two punch (demands for equal time plus telegrams from the FCC), Mr. Smith liberalized his offers: a fifteen-minute program to be shared by the three objectors, and when that was refused, 15 minutes each to the three principals. This was accepted. The 45 minutes rebuttal time almost equaled by then the time used by Mr. Smith in editorializing on the gas issue. By this time he had added three 10-minute statements to his original 9 Vi -minute editorial. On Dec. 29, the city council approved its proposal to acquire the gas distributing company (cost, $4.6 million), and in the election the citizenry voted to approve the 27year franchise. The only comfort Mr. Smith now draws from his campaign is that almost three times the number of voters participated in the election than normally would have turned out. He expressed one other thought after his experience: "A few years ago this sort of battle would have been fought out between the station and its opponents in the local arena. Today, everyone goes immediately to the FCC." San Francisco and ch. 52 in Corona, both California. Still pending before the commission are applications for new stations on ch. 38 in Chicago and ch. 41 in Burlington, N. J. In making the grant the commission said it did so "without prejudice to such further action as the commission may deem appropriate as a result of the pending criminal anti-trust suit of U.S. vs. Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Sales Inc." Kaiser Industries is a substantial principal of the aluminum and chemical company. This same decision also applies to the San Francisco and Corona grants. In addition to its three uhf construction permits Kaiser owns KHVHAM-TV Honolulu and KHIK(TV) Hilo, both Hawaii. Both of the Hawaiian tv stations are vhf. FCC extends deadline for daytime comment The FCC last week extended the deadline for comments in its proposed daytimer rulemaking from Jan. 28 to March 15. The new date for reply comments is April 1. The commission acted at the request of the Assn. of Broadcasting Standards. The association is a new group of fulltime regional and Class II stations, organized, among other reasons, to present the commission with comments and engineering data on the operation of standard stations with daytime facilities before sunrise. The initial directors are E. K. Hartenbower, KCMO Kansas City, Mo.; George Comte, WTMJ Milwaukee; A. Louis Read, WDSU New Orleans; W. B. Quarton, WMT Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Allan M. Woodall, WDAK Columbus, Ga.; Harold Krelstein, WMPS Memphis; Herbert E. Evans, WRFD Columbus, Ohio; Richard M. Fairbanks, WIBC Indianapolis. The proposed rulemaking would permit daytime-only stations to go on the air at 6 a.m. or sunrise, whichever is earlier, in areas without an unlimited time station. In broadcasting pre-sunrise, however, daytimers would be limited to 500 w in power and the use of a non-directional antenna. Broadcasting, Dec. 3, 1962). In requesting extension of the deadline, ABS said the proposal is of great significance to the broadcast industry, and that additional time is needed to prepare engineering studies on it. BROADCASTING, January 7, 1963 THE ANATOMY OF PRIMACY PART ONE NEXT WEEK "The Kine is Dead!" A SERIES OF VITAL MESSAGES FROM MGM TELESTUDIOS, INC. 54 (GOVERNMENT)