NAEB Newsletter (May 1948)

SENATOR JOHNSON ASKS FCC TO HOLD UP CLEAR. CK..NNEL DECISION Senator Edwin Johnson (D.Colorado) who introduced S.2231. a bill t o lj.mj.t^_tho power of clear channel stations to 50.000 watts"and to reduce present standards of pro- tection to permit more stations on the air at night, has now requested the FCC to hold up its decision u ntil ratification of the new North Amer ic an Broadcasting Agreement has been concluded (NARBA) P resent NARBA expires in March. 1949, but is now slated for a full-year 1 s_extengi on. Senator Johnson^ resolution introduced last week would have the effect of holding up any clear channel decision until at least 1950 under these circumstances* Some Washington D.C. observers believe clear channel group strategy is to delay activity on the bill (S.2231) and if possible to kill the measure in committee. (The Johnson bill hearings in April before the Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee have not yet been reported out) rather than see the bill hit Senate and House floors. Other observers feel the clear channel station group, in asking for super-power wa .s__ t o some extent en g aging in a bargaining process (group asked for 7 50 >000 wattsjhogijag to so agitate the public and the legislators that a "mark-down" to the original 5 0,000 yjatts and present status would actually leave them where they started or in full possession of present facilities. Other observers feel the super-power "pitch", at least on the part of many of the clear channel stations was quite genuine. From this sprang "monopoly" objections. The nine NAEB stations in Minnesota. Michigan. Oklahoma. Iowa, find /liew York ^ntj^g. to follow developm on ts in this more than 3-year old issue, still s eeking alle viat ion of the' present FCC"rules and permission" to apply for permission to broadcast , at night to serve local audiences . Many farm groups still reiterate their belief that claims of clear channel broadcas t¬ ers unique ability to serve rural groups are "strategy" c laims only, and poin t, out that service to agriculture must be localized in term s of "cotton" or "peaches^ or "corn and hogs." and can o n ly be done by local stations, not by "big" stations_ which provide general service to large areas. FCC WARNS BROADCASTERS INTERFERENCE CHECKSLMUST BE HANDLED "OFFICIALLY " Prompted by the action of a WAGA (Atlanta, Georgia) engineer, who went to Havanna with instruments for measuring broadcast signals to attempt an independent check on the CMCV signal, the FCC pointed out that all interference questions should be pur¬ sued through the North American Regional Broadcasting Engineering Committee. The WAGA engineer was allegedly picked up by Havanna police,and Cuban radio authori¬ ties reportedly filed a complaint through the U. S. State Department. OREGON STATE BROADCASTERS PRESENT SCHOLARSHIPS AT KOAG T he three scholarships presented annually by the Oregon State Broadcasters Associ ¬ ation • ill bo a wa rded Oregon State College and University of Oregon stude.nts ,_qn„g. b roadcast Wednesday. June 2, at S p.m, from studios of NAEB KOAC,._ J^hq._stat^_s^tj : on A at OSC and the U of 0. The scholarship committee of the OSBA, of which II. Q. Cox, KGW manager, is chairman, will present the awards to James K. Fulton, Eugene, attend¬ ing the U of 0. for work in radio and music; Richard R. Pooley, Corvallis, engineer¬ ing at OSC, for radio and engineering; and Virginia Robertson, school of education at OSC, for radio writing and production. The awards will be made annually__ by„tho association to st u dents of the two schools f or work in the fields of music ^eng^n- eering, and writing and production, as they are allied to radio, ...Th e»..^cholarghj : R§ are for a 100 each, and are awarded junior students to apply on,s o rdor-jr ea^i^ »