Television digest with electronic reports (Jan-Dec 1953)

3 World Series ever seen." It's Mississippi's first vhf, only other station in state being Jackson's WJTV (Ch. 25), some 85 miles away; Meridian's second, WCOC-TV on Ch. 30, is due for debut very soon (Vol.9:38). Staff under Wright, who is principal owner, includes v. p. -commercial mgr. Wm. B. Crooks, program director Cecil Germany, chief engineer Joe H. Saxon. Base rate is $200. Rep is Headley-Reed. 4 CPs, MINNESOTA-WISCONSIN CHANNEL FIGHT: Four CPs, one an educational, and 3 initial decisions constituted FCC's action this week. Commission also set dates for more hearings while postponing start of 3 others in big-city markets. The week's grants: Salem, Ore., KSLM, Ch. 3; Chapel Hill , N. C. , U of North Carolina, Ch. 4 (educational); Goldsboro, N.C., Goldsboro TV Corp. , Ch. 34; Anderson, S.C., WAIM, Ch. 40. Initial decisions gave nod to WS GW, Saginaw, Mich. (Ch. 51) ; WIBG, Philadelphia (Ch. 23) ; WCAX, Montpelier, Vt. (Ch. 3) — all of them made possible by dropouts of competing applications. Salem grant followed dropout of Willamette-Land TV Inc. U of North Carolina grant is first educational CP in months. Goldsboro CP went to New York investment group with numerous grants and applications (Vol.9:38), is contingent on disposition of holdings by attorney George Becker — to hold his interests to 5 stations. * * * * Commission revised its hearing priorities slightly this week, deciding that contestants in cities with fewer than 4 operating stations should have higher priority than those with 4 or more. Only New York, Los Angeles and Washington are affected, and their hearings are postponed indefinitely. Hearings in those cities were imminent, but FCC said it "appears manifestly unfair to applicants and the listening public in communities such as St. Louis, Milwaukee , Houston and many others" to have to wait until better-served cities are heard. FCC set dates for following hearings, meanwhile: Hartford, Ch. 3; Springfield, 111., Ch. 2; Amarillo, Tex., Ch. 7 — all Oct. 30. FCC's grant of WPRO-TV, Providence (Ch. 12) to combination of 3 applicants, involving $205,500 and other payments (Vol. 9:36), was challenged this week by uhf grantee Channel 16 of Rhode Island Inc., Providence. Through counsel Benedict Cottone, former gen. counsel of FCC, grantee worked frantically in attempt to persuade Commission to keep WPRO-TV from going on air with STA. Commission didn't take back its STA, gave WPRO-TV until Oct. 5 to answer complaint. Channel 16, meanwhile, filed formal protest, challenging legality and fairness of grant. In Milwaukee, amid long FCC-court litigation over educational Ch. 10, Hearst Radio this week "found" another vhf channel for area. In surprise petition, it asked Commission to switch channels 6 & 5 in Marquette, Mich. & Green Bay, Wis., permitting addition of Ch. 6 to Whitefish Bay, Wis., just north of Milwaukee. Northern Minnesota channel situation is really stirred up. WEBC has asked for reallocation permitting either Ch. 10 or 12 to be added to Duluth. Opposing reallocation: WFTV, Duluth (Ch. 38) ; Minnesota Gov. C. Elmer Anderson; U of Minn. North Star Televising Co., filing application for Ch. 10 in Hibbing this week, opposes move of Ch. 10 to Virginia, Minn. HOW NEW STATIONS AFFECT COVERAGE: Though it should come as surprise to no one, some industry people seem to be shocked by the fact that the more stations there are the smaller coverage each can have. FCC has a phrase for it: "Implementation of the allocation plan." For the present, and probably for some time to come, the situation will be confined largely to vhf. To state matter in simplest terms, the 108 pre-freeze stations were lucky beneficiaries of an artificial situation — the freeze. When freeze was clamped on, many a station found itself with no other station on its channel or an adjacent channel within hundreds of miles. Remote viewers were then free to pick up very feeble signals and amplify them into useable pictures without interference from other stations. Situation spawned highly sensitive receivers, boosters, great antenna arrays, rotors, etc. Though some of the 108 pioneers are shocked to find j ohnny-come-lately stations in their fringes paring their coverage, they're far better off than they would