NAEB Newsletter (Nov 1931)

- 6 .* (NOTE? May I call to your attention the second paragraph of Mr.. Wright’s letter in whioh he asks how we can work up worth while enthusiasm on the part of listeners o^her than through the broadcast of athletic events. I am sure this question has confronted the manager and director of eaeh of our stations* Five or six years ago it was a Common "habit” of the radio listener to write the station when he found a program that appealed to his fancy. Today we find that the best of programs will rarely,,, if ever, stimulate the radio listener to write the station, I personally feel that this is one reason why so many of us wonder if our programs are worth while and if they are being received in a satisfactory manner on the part of our constituents. I am of the persona! opinion that we must offer a varied series of programs over the eudcational stations in order to appeal to the fancies of all classes. Please do not misinterpret this statement,, as I am also of the personal opinion that so-called jazz and similar pro¬ grams have no place on an educational station program. A few months ago I was pri¬ vileged to hear one of the outstanding educators of the country make this statement, "In your educational radio work on the part of the universities and colleges you should not be discouraged. If you are giving a course in the appreciation of any of the arts or stimulating thought among any of the sciences, you are filling your mis¬ sion by use of this ’infant’ of education. So often we hear the question, "is the amount of effort expended on the part of educational institutions in presenting their edu¬ cational programs worth while?’ My answer to the question would be that if you are holding the attention of an audience of only ten patrons and stimulating a greater appreciation of the fine arts for this select group your effort has not been in vain." Of course none of us like to think that in most of our programs the audience is only ten persons. But at the present time we are unable to determine the extent of our audience participation. L^ter in this bulletin you will find the communication from the office of the Commissioner of Education Washington, D. C., relative to the pre¬ paration of a publication on the methods of instruction by radio. Note that we may all help to scientifically produce a study to make available to the educational pro¬ fession the best that is known about the technique of effective broadcasting. When we have once determined the most effective technique of presenting our materials over college and university stations one of the greatest if not the greatest problem con¬ fronting the program director*will have been solved.) FROM MR. R. C. HIGGY, DIRECTOR, STATION WEAO, AND PRESIDENT OF THE ASSOCIATION OF COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY BROADCASTING STATIONS, OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY, COLUMBUS* (We are quoting from two letters from Mr. Higgy, written by him on October IE and October 13.) "I have intended writing to you well before this time to give you the informa¬ tion you have requested in letters which arrived during my absence last summer. We have spent the past two weeks in getting started on our regular yearly schedule and there has been absolutely no time for additional duties until now, "Your first bulletin is very interesting and exactly the type of thing that ^ would personally like to see continued at as frequent intervals ns possible. I appreciate how difficult it is to secure information from the various stations, but I have al¬ ways believed that if tho thing is once well under way it will become much easier to secure the cooperation of our stations in supplying the information. "I am trying to persuade Miss Jenkins of our staff to prepare copies of four or five radio plays suitable for use at stations of our Association. I had in mind that the Association might do a very fine piece of work in making these available to all of its stations for use without royalty. That is., you could mimeograph these and send copies to all stations. These plays will be of different types, and the idea in our releasing these plays will be to secure interest of other stations, in order that eventually an exchange of radio plays could be effected. I believe that we will be able to get these plays to you, if you believe it well to carry out this plan, with¬ in the next week or so. We have had requests from eight or ten association stations and have been unable to fulfill their requests for these programs. Apparently, there is considerable interest in radio plays at educational stations, "The work of the National Committee is progressing very nicely. The meeting of October 2 laid plans for the coming year which include the introduction of the Fess Bill or a new similar bill into both the House and.the Senate, publication of the printed bulletin weekly, in order to further the interests of our cause, and the