NAEB Newsletter (May 1958)

tell us we shouldn’t do. We must not get caught in saying—“you shouldn’t do this, but if you do, here’s how to do it better.” In other cases the commitment is less firm. We may not have to take sides for or against reciprocal trade, as Mr. Powell puts it, but we must be for having it discussed intelligently, and decided about. The same goes for atomic tests and conservation of natural resources and all the rest. The “veto” influences which so generally and fre¬ quently keep certain types of discussion or programs off A-time on commercial stations (and I recognize the sponsorship and other business-like considerations which justify this) should not be effective in our case. If we are to have the courage and the freedom to discuss all the things that need discussing, of course, we must each carry on constant educational programs for our governing boards and other supervisors. For many of the problems we should be discussing are “controversial.” And heaven help us if we avoid con¬ troversy only because controversy gives us prob¬ lems—even though obviously all of us make certain compromises in order to survive. But we must quite frequently have the courage to challenge the status quo, or the directions our society seems to be taking. We must take issue with “the others” when we have something to contribute. If we, with the perspectives and resources which our educational parent institu¬ tions contain, do not do this, who will? Therefore, I believe that once an “educational” broadcaster enters the field, he has sobering and al¬ most terrible responsibilities for the exercise of cour¬ age, tact and imagination. How well we live up to these responsibilities will largely determine how im¬ portant and indispensable a force we become in our nation and the’world—how much we really deserve to survive as a separate service. For, important as classroom television and radio for children and schools now are, we can’t wait for the younger generation to grow up, to solve many of our most pressing problems nor must we leave them with such intolerable condi¬ tions that they can no longer correct them. General programs, and adult education programs, are all also an important part of what we, as a group, should be thinking most seriously about. NETWORK NEWS —Bob Underwood The new network offering, that for the third quarter of 1958, is now in distribution to the network stations and copies of it are available to others upon request. (A number of offerings will be available at the NAEB exhibit at the IERT.) We feel this offering contains series particularly appropriate for summertime listen¬ ing, and we expect wide acceptance from those sta¬ tions remaining on the air during the summer. Our plans for network programming during the next academic year are in formation, and we honestly feel this coming “season” will be one of the finest in the history of the network. This optimism is based partly on the availability of numerous grant-in-aid series which will be offered during the period from October 1958 through June 1959. In addition to these grant-in-aid series we have two new music series: a new season of Little Orchestra Society Children's Concerts, a series from UN Radio, another Carnival of Books series, and Cooper Union lectures. These series, plus others now tentatively scheduled, promise excellent programming for network stations in the months ahead. In addition to these regularly scheduled programs, the network has been fortunate enough to acquire a number of special programs which we have been distributing regularly and will continue to distribute as additional special programs come to our attention. In past weeks we have distributed a reading of Dr. Schweitzer’s “Declaration of Conscience,” a special documentary on “The Maidens of Hiroshima,” in- views with, among others, a young American who toured Communist China and an important Japanese politician; not yet distributed at this writing is the Linus Pauling-Edward Teller debate on “Fallout and Disarmament.” Thus, it is evident that the network is providing its members with the type of program¬ ming one would expect to find on noncommercial stations. We have some plans to improve the flow of in¬ formation on programs from the network office to the stations. The bulk of this information will be contained in the weekly cue sheets, according to present plans, and this new use of the cue sheets will begin with Issue 27. Naturally, addenda to the in¬ dividual offerings will continue to give what advance information we have on series; the use of this system, too, will be stepped up beginning with the third quarter offering. All network stations should examine each week’s cue sheets carefully from now on. I hope that I have the opportunity of seeing many MAY, 1958