Education by Radio (1933)

Advantages of State Radio The state of Wisconsin is most fortunate in having its own radio facilities capable of reaching practically every citizen in the state. No other state in the Union is so wellequipped as Wisconsin is now 10 serve us people thru the medium of radio communica¬ tion. It is quite fitting that Wisconsin, the birthplace of WHA, the world’s oldest educational broadcasting station, should take this position of leadership in the development of state-owned radio facilities. Properly used, the two radio stations owned and operated by the state can serve the people effectively and efficiently: [ 1 ] By extending free to the people the educational advan¬ tages of the normal schools, colleges, and university. [2] By reporting daily the findings of agricultural workers for the improvement of farm conditions. [3] By extending the work of service agencies such as the State Board of Health. [4] By keeping open the lines of direct communication be¬ tween the people and the government officials in whom they have placed their trust. Other states are watching with interest the development of Wisconsin’s pioneering projects in radio. I am told that just this week the educational director for the midwest division of the NBC was here to observe the workings of the Wisconsin School of the Air. This great leader had high praise for the work done here and declared it far superior to other similar educational projects. Wisconsin has pioneered also by being the first state to make use of its own broadcasting facilities in an election campaign — and this fact was reported by the New York Times, the U . S. Daily, and numerous other newspapers and magazines thruout the country. Time on the air over both stations WHA and WLBL was given free of charge to all parties and candidates. This time, if purchased at commercial rates, would have cost more than $10,000. I understand that thousands of dollars of the taxpayers’ money have been saved by utilizing without cost the services of university electrical engineers in the construction of equip¬ ment. In one instance, by especially designing and building the new WHA transmitter instead of purchasing it from the Radio Corporation or Western Electric Company, the committee in charge saved $13,250. It is, of course, our purpose to keep alert to the possibilities for further economies in view of the distressing times. On the whole, however, radio provides a very efficient and economical means for serving vast numbers of people where, before, comparatively few could be reached at one time. — Albert G. Schmedeman, governor, State of Wis¬ consin. British Approve Present Radio The House of Commons made it clear, after a three-hour debate tonight, that it would allow neither advertising nor political interference in British radio programs. Proposals to place the British Broadcasting Corporation under Parliamentary control were decisively rejected, and a motion by Laborites that a committee recommend changes in the existing system met a similar fate. The House registered the emphatic belief that Britain’s noncommercial, state-owned broadcasting system was functioning well and should be left alone. The debate, the first of its kind since 1926, was precipitated by an incident on New Year’s Eve, when an announcer criti¬ cized Poland and involved the broadcasting corporation in in¬ ternational difficulties. Criticisms of favoritism also have been coming from Left-Wing Laborites, Right-Wing Tories, and other political groups, which allege they are not getting a fair share of the programs. The postmaster-general assured the complainers that controversial opinions were welcomed in the British programs, except opinions which were blasphemous or openly seditious. David Lloyd George charged that British newspapers were growing so biased and unfair in their news columns that inde¬ pendent radio programs were the last refuge of healthy political thought in England. “Very few speeches are reported in Britain nowadays,” he said, “and we have a condition of things where headlines are creating opinion. I don’t say there is suppression of news, but there is emphasis of the particular kind of news which favors the opinion of the particular newspaper. “Opinions are thus created not by editorials but by the way the news is arranged and displayed. Certain news is elaborated, while other news is put somewhere in the backyard. I don’t know any other agency whereby we can, under the present con¬ ditions, present the vast issues upon which the country’s life depends except the British Broadcasting Corporation.” — Dis¬ patch from London in The New York Times, February 23, 1933. Education by radio is published by the National Committee on Education by Radio at 1201 Sixteenth Street, Northwest, Washington, D. C. The members of this Committee and the national groups with which they are associated are as follows: Charles T. Corcoran, S. J., director, radio station WEW, St. Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri, The Jesuit Educational Association. Arthur G. Crane, president, the University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming, National Association of State Universities. J. O. Keller, head of engineering extension, Pennsylvania State College, State College, Pa., National University Extension Association. Charles N. Lischka, 1312 Massachusetts Avenue, Washington, D. C., National Catholic Educational Association. John Henry MacCracken, vicechairman, 744 Jackson Place, Washington, D. C., American Council on Education. Joy Elmer Morgan, chairman, 1201 Sixteenth Street, Northwest, Washington, D. C., National Education Association. James N. Rule, state superintendent of public instruction, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, National Council of State Superintendents. H. Umberger, Kansas State College of Agriculture, Manhattan, Kansas, Association of Land-Grant Colleges and Universities. Jos. F. Wright, director, radio station WILL, Univ. of Illinois, Urbana, Ill., Association of College and Univ. Broadcasting Stations. Everyone who receives a copy of this bulletin is invited to send in suggestions and comments. Save the bulletins for reference or pass them on to your local library or to a friend. Education by radio is a pioneering movement. These bulletins are, therefore, valuable. Earlier numbers will be supplied free on request while the supply lasts. Radio is an extension of the home. Let’s keep it clean and free. [20]