Sponsor (Oct-Dec 1960)

FARM NEWS gets special coverage — -y stations. Above, Frank Arney, WOW, many stations. Above, Frank Arney, WOW, Omaha, interviews a farmer for news items ; In general, the news pattern which is evolving at hundreds of stations is two-fold : 1 ) more frequent newscasts of accurate, authoritative national, and international news supplied by the networks or other prestige sources, and 2) greatly expanded I coverage of local news events. ABC, CBS, NBC, and Mutual are j now all furnishing their affiliates with news on the average of once or I more per hour. Radio Press Inter j national, the largest of the independent services has 52 station subscribera to whom it supplies 180-200 international and national taped news j items per week. Westinghouse Broadcasting is bringing foreign and national news ! to its stations from its own Washington and London News bureaus, with correspondents in various parts of the world (the London Bureau alone has a reportorial complement of 30 men). Such services, plus the tremendously increased attention which stations are giving to local news, mean that Americans in Kokomo and Kankakee, Elgin, and El Paso are being better served and better informed about both world and community affairs than ever before in history. And radio is spearheading this news expansion. As a matter of fact, sponsor be(Please turn to page 52) Rocks, posies aimed at station drummers ^ Oklahoma City advertisers, agencies, and merchants sound off on local station salesmanship and policies ^ Admen pros and cons on presentations, personalities, practices, production, programs, are revealed in study ^■ocal time salesmen are the butt of fairly sharp criticism and are the recipients of posies too, from advertisers, agencies, and merchants, in a survey of Oklahoma City admen. Here are some highlights of local advertiser beefs against station salesmen: • They don't provide enough specific information regarding the success of our broadcast advertising campaigns. • They don't have enough good sales ideas, and promotional gimmicks. • They do not understand the businesses to which they are trying to sell time. • They are not sufficiently sensitive to the personalities of the people to whom they are trying to sell. STUDY WAS conducted by Sherman P. Lawton, author of 'Modern Broadcaster' due in fall A 61 -page summary of the study, titled "Posies & Rocks," has been published by Sherman P. Lawton, coordinator of broadcasting instruction, University of Oklahoma. Basically, "Posies & Rocks" is a summary of attitudes of agencies, advertisers, and potential advertisers in Oklahoma City toward the salesmen of radio and tv stations who call on them to sell advertising. The report is composed mainly of advertiseragency quotes on specific topics relating to station salesmanship. Pros and cons on station service, facilities, production, programs, results, presentations, are printed verbatim. Not all points in the study were critical. In the main advertisers and agencies made suggestions and offered their opinions and conceptions of how stations operate and what the salesman's job, influence and responsibility is and ought to be. Among local admen's attitudes toward station salesmen: Generally, advertisers understand that a salesman has little to do with service. "Remember we don't get the real service from the salesman ... he sells us, and then the account is turned over to someone else . . . the salesman is the front-line man but he does not always stand alone . . . his presentation has little to do with his sales success." It is interesting to note that attention to commercials is expected of each station, but when special attention is given, it is recognized as a good service. Whether from the salesman, the station writers, or the talent, it is appreciated. Advertisers also seemed flattered when given special attention from station managers. 38 SPONSOR • 3 OCTOBER 1960