Sponsor (1956)

REVOLUTION continued HIGH COSTS: Network television's rising costs ni years were symbolized b) $1] million ear deal in 1955 between Cleason and Buick SPECTACULARS: New excitement was injected into network tv during 1954-55 season by NBC T\ spectacular*. I!ett> llultoii -lane. I in di-lmt. "Satin & Spurs." As exciting as spectaculars is debate among admen as to their value to tv clients lO years of usefulness ^^povsoii was bom with the issue of November, 1946. The first issue ua> a 76-page book containing a credo setting down publisher Norman R. Glenn's aim to promote good advertising and serve the advertiser. The credo also declared the intention to cover four "broadcast advertising" media: am, fm, tv and fax (or facsimile, the broadcasting of signals to produce printed matter in the home) . Articles in thai first issue foreshadowed the kind of approach used throughout sponsor's history. There was an experience story on Bab-O, then spending 90% of its budget on network radio. There was also a story on a programing problem: Would Reynolds Tobacco Gram/ Ole Opry show keep its audience after the star. Ro\ Acuff, was replaced by Red Foley? The magazine moved quickly into the pattern which established its success. Its annual I ill Facts publication made its debut during the first summer. Its feature articles were slanted to point up the use aspect to the advertiser and agency. Earl) in its career, SPONSOR recognized the important role of the timebuyer and turned out article after article calculated to keep the timebiner's interest and attention. Probabl) SPONSOR'S most important land most expensive) projecl was its All-Media Evaluation Study, containing 26 articles. which ran from 20 April 1953 to 2!i June 1954; the study was later printed in book form. The two-year project was widel) hailed as an original and useful effort to solve some of the problems in\ olved in media selection. Specialized market studies have long been an important pan of sponsor's editorial content. Imong the annual sections on specialized markets are those on the \r'jm. farm and Canadian markets. Vlso run annuall) i a Summer Selling Section. Starting with the L954 issue, SPONSOR has published an annual Buyers' Guide ol radio-h station programing. sponsor has been given a special George I'olk Vward from Long Island University's Journalism Department for outstanding industrj service, the onl) trade papei in its held so honored. and plans were made for a gradual changeover. As the year 1946 began, about 20 stations were operating in the new band. Some manufacturers (among them Zenith and GE) wanted to retain the old band, holding it was necessary to give proper service to the U. S. audience, especially those in rural areas, which the old band could reach better. But alread) the shadow of tv was falling on fm since one of the reasons the FCC was abandoning the old fm band was because it expected to use the 44-50 cm. strip for Channel 1. The color tv battle was hot. CBS, which had urged a policy of by-passing black-and-white tv and getting commercial video off the ground via color, was asking an immediate FCC oka) for its field sequential color svstem in the 480-920 inc. uhf band (most of which was later set aside for uhf commercial tv). Most of the appliance people were on the side of H( \. which was pushing for an all-electronic, rather than a mechanical system. Later, as t\ home ownership grew the factor of compatibility (ability to receive l>\w without converters or adaptors) in the all-electronic color system became a potent argument in its favor. In 1946, however, while engineers spoke of the theoretically greater perfection possible in the allelectronic system, the CBS color-wheel set w ,i~ fa i ihei aloii" the i oad to home use. In Decembei of 1946. the FCC called on CBS to demonstrate its system official!) . In November, the month sponsor started, the Following radio shows were in Nielsen' lop 10 according to average audience rating figures: In order, the) were Fibber McGee & Molly, Lux Radio Theatre. Fred Wen. Screen |0(, SPONSOR 27 OCTOBER 1956