Radio Broadcast (May-Oct 1922)

RADIO BROADCAST 17 field of broadcasting. Under the direction of Mr. J. C. McQuiston it inaugurated its first radio-phone concert through its Pittsburgh experimental station on Nov. 5, 1920. Only a small number of persons heard the musical numbers then sent out by KDKA, as the Westinghouse station is known. These letters, by the way, are the call letters of that station. All stations, whether radio telegraph or radio telephone, have call letters assigned to them by the Department of Commerce which grants licenses for transmitters, just as automobile licenses are granted to autoists and are indicated by the license plates on their cars. The phonograph was the first source of music, and the operator's announcements sufficed for lectures and talks. The novelty of the feat was sufficient, of course, for the public had not yet been accustomed to the present high-grade programmes. Problems arose over the manner and method of broadcasting, which had to be solved by experiment. There were many times during the first few weeks of broadcasting when the concerts were anything but pleasant to hear. Then, as time passed and, through experience, the operators found out for themselves the kind of phonograph records which transmitted clearly and those which did not, what to avoid in the way of speech, what pleased the public and what did not, and the various other little details which made or marred a radio performance, the concerts became more and more popular. During the experimental stage, letters began to trickle in from various parts of the country, telling of the reception of music and talks from KDKA. At first, returns were small, and mostly in the way of letters and post cards from established stations, which are always on the lookout for new developments. Virtually all the broadcasting done by KDKA was pioneering work. For instance, take the case of the radio chapel services, now an established part of every Sunday programme. When the station was first operated, there was no programme developed for Sunday evening. Someone suggested that church services be tried, but there was no precedent for this method of broadcasting church services and it was not known whether the churches would consent to such practice. After some persuasion, however, permission was received from Calvary Episcopal Church of Pittsburgh, to broadcast its services. A district telephone line was installed between the church and the radio station for the purpose Four microphones were installed in the church to catch the voice of Edwin J. Van Etten, rector, as well as the choir, the chimes, and the organ. The entire services were first sent out January 2, 1921. No one thing ever broadcasted by the radio station has been so popularly received. Letters poured in by the score to the Westinghouse organization telling of the pleasure and the benefit of this new departure in radio. PREACHING A SERMON AT A DISTANCE OF FOURTEEN MILES AFTER a time, when the church services were well known to all radio enthusiasts because of the clearness of transmission, the Westinghouse organization was requested by members of the Herron Avenue Presbyterian Church of Pittsburgh to install a receiving set and loud-speaker to take the place of a long absent pastor. This was done, and the church assembled for an Episcopal service. But it listened to a sermon preached about fourteen miles away. This service was a record, a milestone, an epoch-marking event. It was the first time that a metallic horn took the place of a flesh-and-blood minister. In the meantime phonograph records comprised most of the evening musical programmes. It was decided to do away as much as possible with the "canned" music and substitute real singers and .musicians. Talent was not hard to secure for this work, in most cases volunteering its services gladly. Human voices began to come over the radio telephone instead of phonographic music. Again an improvement was scored in radio-phone broadcasting — another milestone. Not satisfied with having merely local talent, the Radio Division of the Westinghouse organization entered into an agreement with the managers of the local operatic concerts with the result that when stars of the first magnitude came to Pittsburgh, their efforts, vocal or instrumental, were and are being broadcasted over a territory of many hundreds of miles. Not only in opera, but in the world of sport, the radio-phone service has been introduced. Seeking for features that would enliven the evening programmes, it was decided to broadcast, as an experiment, blow-by-blow returns of a boxing match held in Pittsburgh. A private wire was installed from a boxing club to the