Television digest and FM reports (Feb-Dec 1947)

PROOF 0? THE FM PUDDING: Several significant points about FM the 450-odd delegates from 70 countries will certainly carry home with them when International Telecommunications Conference concludes its Atlantic City sessions Sept. 28 — all auguring well for future FM export trade: \ ( 1 ) That FM offers best system for countries with underdeveloped broadcasting services, better system than AM for poor propagation areas, virtually perfect system so far as freedom from tropical static is concerned; (2) that FM's range is not necessarily limited to line-of-sight horizon, as so long believed. Consulting engineer C. M. Jansky Jr. reports keen interest in FM among foreign technicians inspecting current Atlantic City demonstrations, v/hich v/ill continue. Points are proved rather potently, particularly second point, in radio relay setup (Vol. 3, No. 31) in which signals from Maj. Armstrong's Alpine transmitters (one high band, one low) are picked up 110 miles away and 7,340 ft below line-ofsight at special 120-ft receiving antenna, then carried 7 miles on special high fidelity (16,000 cps) lines to WBAB-FM transmitter. Quality is consistently tops. Delighted, Maj. Armstrong presented heads of each delegation v/lth Zenith AM-FM table model set. Word of warning from Prof. Jansky: Properly engineered, high quality radio relay systems for FM networks will require more than §200 capital cost mentioned at Albany FMA meeting last April (Vol. 3, No. 16). SHOT m ABM FOB MB’S FM DEPT.: Is NAB really going to shake a leg, do something about promoting FM? Its avowed policy is not to promote any special phase of radio — but question naturally arises whether old FMBI's stepchild, NAB's FM Dept., will be adopted into NAB's departmental family as a full-fledged member if and when Arthur Stringer is named chief. Mr. Stringer is now director of special services, but primarily he's a promotion man — and a good one. Almost anything NAB would do in FM field would be regarded as promotion, despite FMA ' s creation for just that purpose. Only this week FM, TV and FX stations were made eligible for representation * on NAB board by mail vote of membership, provided each has 25 member stations — so you can look for four new directors-at-large (FM gets one each for Class A, Class B). NAB's long moribund FM Dept, was left virtually dead when Bob Bartley quit. NAB hierarchy has been too busy with other things to bother about it, though did show mild interest in FM in naming independent FMer Leonard Asch (WBCA, Schenectady) chairman of FM Executive Committee to succeed Walter Damm. Asch is also one of topkicks of FMA, has called his NAB committee for meeting Aug. 25. That NAB doesn't like existence of "periphery" associations like FMA and TBA, is an open secret. Long-range plans are to absorb them. But it can't get FMA, v/hich now has 195 members. As for TBA. even though networks belong, and networks are partial to NAB, they don't carry enough weight in TBA councils yet to put over merger. Incidentally, NAB has no special session on FM, like last year's, scheduled for its Atlantic City convention, Sept. 15-18, though FCC Chairman Denny may be counted upon to discuss FM again in his convention address. Nor is TV on agenda, except as it may come up in technical session or be demonstrated in exhibits. HEWSPAPEBS TO TALK OVER TV: Of the 11 TV stations operating commercially ( Supp . 18-C) , two are newspaper-owned — by Detroit News, St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Of 54 CP holders, 20 are newspapers, including rich, live-wire Philadelphia Inquirer, v/hose WFIL-TV right now is air testing, readying for September debut. Inquirer's TV director, Ken Stowman, is convinced newspaper-TV stations have many problems in common: planning, engineering, construction, management, programs, newsreel exchanges (he has already made film swap deal with Don Lee's W6XA0, Hollywood). So, to talk all these things over, but "absolutely not" to set up any sort of organization, Stowman has invited all newspaper TV executives iq confab in Chicago's Palmer House Aug. 27-29. About half the newspaper TVers quickly accepted, replies from others are awaited. Not invited were mere applicants, of whom there are 15, three identified with nev/spapers — Chicago Daily News, Philadelphia News, Lancaster (Pa.) New Era, latter interests seeking TV in Wilmington, Dela. (Vol. 3, No. 32).