Broadcasting Telecasting (Oct-Dec 1963)

WFBC-TV begins expansion project The three executives above have before them the blueprints of an expansion and modernization program planned by wfbc-tv Greenville, S. C. (L-r): W. E. Garrison, the station's chief engineer; R. A. Jolley, president of Southeastern Broadcasting Corp., licensee of the station, and Wilson C. Wearn, Southeastern's executive vice president. The construction, just started and to be completed early in 1964, will cost approximately $250,000. Included are a new studio, a modern news room, additional tape recording facilities and more prop storage space. New transistorized equipment will also be installed. Daniel Construction Co., Greenville, is the contractor. Daniel also built the present wfbc-am-fm-tv plant, which was occupied in 1955. GAB wants NAB aid in license renewals It's time for the "national leadership" of broadcasting to stop ignoring the FCC's harassment of broadcast stations' programing when they seek a license renewal, the Georgia Association of Broadcasters told its big brother, the National Association of Broadcasters, last week. The GAB board of directors adopted a resolution calling on the NAB to give top priority to helping 600 deferred licensees get their renewals. "It appears that a majority of these renewals are being held up for reasons about which there is considerable dispute as to jurisdiction of the FCC," GAB told the NAB. "GAB is ready to cooperate with NAB in any way to assist in this urgent project," the resolution stated. "The national leadership of broadcasting can no longer ignore these 600 stations hanging on the limb." Licenses of Georgia stations expire April 1, 1964, and the GAB pointed out that it has been praised by the FCC for its help to members in meeting FCC requirements. The NAB should do the same thing on a national basis, GAB said. LeRoy Collins, NAB president, expressed "grave concern" over the FCC backlog of renewal applications at the association's fall conference in Miami 10 days ago (Broadcasting, Oct. 28). He did not mention the controversy over the commission's extensive questioning of applicants' local programing and policies (Broadcasting, Oct. 21). The FCC moved on its own last week to reduce the renewal backlog (see paae 76). From Senate to House Legislation to set up a permanent administrative conference to help federal agencies improve their procedures was passed by the Senate and sent to the House last week. S 1664 had wide support of government agencies and was believed to have had unanimous support of the regulatory agencies. Cost of operating and staffing an administrative conference was estimated at between $250,000 and $500,000 annually by the committee. Similar legislation has been before the House Judiciary Committee for several months. McClenning affirms initial ch. 6 choice FCC Hearing Examiner Forest L. McClenning last week again recommended granting South Florida Amusement Co. a new station on channel 6 in Perrine, Fla. (channel 6 is allocated to Miami) . In September 1960 Mr. McClenning issued an initial decision that would have awarded the channel to South Florida, but this decision was vacated by the FCC in January 1962 and the case was reopened to determine if South Florida had concealed logs and faked letters. The charges concerned the program logs of wbuf(tv) Buffalo, at one time owned by Sherwin Grossman, president of South Florida, and associates. Also involved were allegations that letters by Buffalo organizations sent to the FCC in behalf of the deintermixture case involving that city were actually typed and signed by wbuf personnel, without the permission of the organizations. These questions had been raised by Coral Television Corp., applicant along with Publix Television Corp., for channel 6. The hearing examiner concluded last week that no evidence was introduced at the further hearing that would alter his original initial decision, and that Mr. Grossman possesses the necessary character qualifications to be a licensee. FCC's fiscal picture is still day-to-day Congress last week authorized the FCC and other federal agencies that haven't received their fiscal 1964 appropriations to continue spending money at the 1963 rate. But neither the Senate nor House appropriations committee chairman was able to predict when Congress would get around to passing appropriations for fiscal 1964 which began July 1. Heading toward the longest legislative session on record, the Congress had by the end of last week failed to act on appropriations for the regulatory agencies, the USIA, the Department of Justice— all the agencies that deal with broadcasting in any way. Lacking that action, the agencies would have gone out of business Oct. 31 except for passage of a continuing resolution, a device used twice before in this legislative session that permits agencies to keep op 80 (THE MEDIA) BROADCASTING, November 4, 1963