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Weekly department store sales in N. Y., Cleveland, and U. S. during strikes
Percentage changes below are based on retail dollar amount of sales during corresponding periods a year ago, according to statistics issued by the Federal Reserve System. Dates given represent last day of weekly tabulation.
AVERAGE*
NEW YORK DISTRICT N. Y.-N.E. New Jersey
Newark
New York
CLEVELAND DISTRICT
Cleveland
Downtown Cleveland
UNITED STATES
DECEMBEF 15 22
29
5
JANUARY 12 19 26
4
7
37
4
1
3 — 2
5
8
35
3
— 4
5 — 1
0
6
36
1
— 1
3 — 3
— 1
1
21
— 5
—11
-5 — 9
6
8
27
4
4
1 -15
—13
15
23
3
0
0 —15
—17
15
8
5
3
6 -21
3
5
34
10
9
4-2
FEBRUARY 2 9 16
23
1 — 1
3
9
— 1 — 2
2
7
— 9 3
2
9
— 6 —10
7
0
6 2
8
2
3 — 3
-13
9
— 2 —10
-19
-21
1 5
1
3
2
MARCH 9 16
23
30
5
2
7
1
3
— 5
2
7
0
1
— 9
7
2
3
4
— 8
5
2
7
7
-15
5
0
0
8
-14
1
2
6
3
-18
9
-11
-14
2
-4
7
4
5
5
6
1
-11
+4
Average for period 1 January lo 30 March only, weighted by FKS for dollar volutin
ad revenue dining the newspaper blackout well over $300,000 in extra billings by various estimates. Much of this dollar bonanza came WNBC-TVs way by "increasing the number of announcements" while stretching 10s and 20s into higher-priced minutes. The other New York tv stations, two more flagships (WCBS-TV, WABC-TV) anil three independents (VVNEWTV, WOR-TV, WPIX) averaged more than SI 00,000 in extra revenue.
Radio stations, lor once, matched many of the tv stations in New York on extra, strike-produced income. For one thing, music-andnews stations could adjust their hour-after-hour disk jockey schedules io absorb announcements more readily than could tv stations, particularly those (allying locked-up network commercial programing. For another, radio commercial copy could be (and wa-,) prepared more (|iii<kl\ than live, tape or (dm commercials— with their added visual dimension — in tv.
New York radio also benefited from the in-again, out-again mi( ci taint) whi< h sui rounded the end of the strike. When the stiikc dragged on, several advertisers who had canceled emergency air campaigns rushed back into spot radio bins: on some stations no availa
bilities could be found.
On a percentage-increase basis, some New York radio stations found the strike a real bonanza, scoring gains of up to 75%. Commented a radio sales manager: "Retail accounts especially realized that radio is effective, and could work well with print advertising in the future." Added the sales chief of another New York radio outlet: "Advertisers like Rambler and Castro Convertibles which had been using some, but not much radio are now beginning to wonder how much more radio had been doing lor them all along than they had believed possible."
Expensive newscasts. News coverage on radio/tv stations in Cleveland and New York was greatly expanded during the strikes, and the
< ost often came high. Sometimes, the cost of newscasting did a lot to cancel new revenue gains, particularly in New York.
WABC-TV calculates that it spent an extra 820,000 weekly for added news coverage, which itsell only brought in about $7,000 a week more money. At WCBS-TV, extra news <osts amounted to $50,000 a week, not all of it recovered in revenue. Ironically, WOR-TV lost $24,000 in New York Times ad spending, in addition to extra news
< osts. dining the strike.
Radio stations in Cleveland and New York reportedly outspent some tv stations on news, although many stations in both media are now continuing with extended coverage. A Cleveland study made during the strike indicates that at least seven radio and one tv station planned to continue expanded (overage.
Contradictory studies. Some studies indicate department store sales during the newspaper strike were up, others down, depending on whose figures one cares to look at. New York City treasurer Hilda G. Schwartz claims that the city's revenue from sales tax was higher during the first three months of the strike than it was a year earlier. Sales tax collections, a principal business barometer, were S77,210,98(i for December. January, and February, compared with $761 884,201 the year before.
An RAB "Tale of Two Cities'* study pointed out that 8]",', of female New Yorkers and 79% of Cleveland women reported spending as much or more dining the st tike period measured than dining the same period last year. RAB stated. "Based on these figures, the strike impact is minor."
On the other side of the-sttikedidn't-luu t-sales argument are the Publishers, Commerce X: Industry,
40
SPONSOR/15 aprii. 1961