Sponsor (Nov 1947-Oct 1948)

listening in general is not his problem). It was called Morning Radio Habits of New Yorkers. Recently the Katz Agency, station rep resent at Ives who have an iinusiiall>' keen sense of industry responsibility, commissioned Audience Surveys, Inc.,t to study the listening habits of the 5 to 9 a.m. audience. This, after pilot studies in Nassau County (Long Island, N. Y.) and New York Cit>', resulted in a more extensive project in Boston. The result of these thrt^^ studies has been to rouse the National Association of Broadcasters to think in terms of making non-listening its major research project in 1948. They have not, unfortunately, aroused even the keenest of sponsors to any unusual activity. Despite general recognition that all three parts of broadcast advertising, sponsor, agency, and broadcaster, have a tripartite responsibility for the health of the medium, both agencies and sponsors generally feel that getting the people to turn their sets on is entirely the job of the broadcasters. What has caused most advertisers to avoid the audience-building routine is the cost on the way up. The daytime Fred Waring program on NBC is one attempt to increase the sets in use in the morning. It is a direct result of the Lazarsfeld-Schneider study. Dr. Lazarsfeld divided women (a.m. audience) into three groups (excluding employed women, women unavailable due to deafness or inability to understand English, or due to illness in the family). These three groups reported their radio habits in the following manner: Serial listeners 29 % Other listeners 34% A.M. non-listeners 37%* *Tftese women listened in the nflernoon or evening, sf^ent an average of 1.9 hours daily at their radios. While 63 per cent of all women at home ^(iene Katz is a major finanritil factor in Audience Surveys. Inc. listenened in the mornings, naturally not all this number listened all the time. The importance of turning the third group into listeners is therefore apparent. Lazarsfeld's research uncovers the (act that the largest portion of the nonlisteners (58 per cent, or 21 per cent of all available women) was composed of women who were unable to listen while doing something else. His contention is that these women can be made part of the listening audience IF part of radio is programed for them — with shows that do not require continuous listening. They enjoy broadcasting but they can't do two things at the same time. Lazarsfeld admits that it is not easy to plan programs for this group. In Lazarsfeld's study it is concluded that the greatest area in which listening can be increased is among the 34 per cent of the women who are not serial listeners. These women, to quote the doctor, are "the kind of women who want to be cheered up or soothed, comforted; they want radio to divert them from their own problems." They are also women who are interested in self-improvement. Lazarsfeld is careful to stress that these women are not yearning for public service programs. They want programs which give them useful tidbits of information— not theoretical or academic discussions. Mary Margaret McBride, Kate Smith, Professor Quiz, and Margaret Arlen have the types of programs which appeal to these "other listeners." Lazarsfeld's study reveals that radio audiences are built up of people who are psychologically akin and cut across conventional income, educational, and occupational classifications which are familiar in market research. There are one-track minds in all income and educational groups. They are, pointed out Dr. L., a very important part of the listening audi ence. The very same factor that makes them concentrate on their work makes them concentrate on their listening — when they listen. It is the psychological kinship of groups of listeners, as pointed out by Lazarsfeld, that has made block programing such a successful device for both independent stations and networks. It was this kinship that militated against vaudeville's ever achieving permanence as part of the entertainment world — ^and the same variety formula of presenting unrelated acts failing to attract great audiences on the air. Independent stations that block-program have discovered that variety loses listeners. Retaining the same mood of music or program is essential to continuing successful servicing of an audience. Lazarsfeld, in endeavoring to establish a psychological bias for women listeners, determined that the types of programs which are furthest apart are daytime serials and music. The program type closest to all other types of entertainment, as his research uncovered it, is audience participation, which is no doubt the reason for the continued success of Breakfast Club and Breakfast in Hollywood as well as Queen for a Day and Heart's Desire, to mention four daytime audience participation shows. Nearest to daytime serial audiences in listening groups are women commentators and the closest to music is news. Independent stations' marriage of music and news, according to the LazarsfeldSchneider reports, stands upon a good psychological foundation. That is why many stations programed in the WNEW (N. Y.) manner throughout the country are first during certain daytime hours. One of Lazarsfeld's conclusions on combating non-listening is the promotion of non-serial daytime programs. Be(Please turn to page 66) I.4»«*aii4>ii 4»f »i*livilv 11114I 4*oiii*iir r«>iif railio lisl oiiiii;^ Location Time Spent in Room Radio Listening % of Time Awake % of Time in Room KITCHEN 62 0% 29.756 BEDROOM 21 1 24 7 LIVING ROOM 3 5 46 3 DINING ROOM 2 1 42 9 OTHER ROOMS 6 6 17 5 AWAY FROM HOME 5 3 5 7 l*4^r«*oiit tinio ill r«K»iii!>i %%Jlli aiic< \vifli«»iil radios location ROOM WITH RADIO ROOM WITHOUT RADIO NOT INDICATED TOTAL Listening ^5 A% 11 5 26 9% Xon-Listening 65 4"^ Total 23.3% 38 7% 42 1 53 6 I 7 7 100 0% i 60 SPONSOR