Variety radio directory (1939)

FEDERAL RADIO REGULATION— Continued The Montana broadcasters petitioned their Congressional delegations to intercede. The Commission's conduct was denounced on the floor of the House. At the same time it was pointed out by critics that the Commission's power to keep the returns on the questionnaire secret was more than doubtful under the statute, although the Commission was taking pains to assure everyone that the resulting information would be treated as confidential. As a result of the protest, the Commission indicated its willingness to alleviate the requirements, particularly for the smaller stations. A series of conferences have taken place between an Association committee and the Commission's accounting staff. As matters now appear, the questionnaires for 1939 will probably not be sent to stations until early next fall. There will be three grades, one for stations (about 125) having annual time sales less than $25,000, a second for stations (about 250) having time sales from $25,000 to $50,000, and a third for the remaining stations having time sales over $50,000. The questionnaires will probably be divided into two separate schedules, the financial schedule to fill about 20 pages, and the program-employment schedule about two pages. The Commission's aim is said to be the establishment of a progressive system of bookkeeping whereby a station's accountants can at any time, without undue difficulty, supply information requested by the Commission. Notwithstanding the unquestioned good faith and laudable intentions which led to the questionnaires, no illusion may be entertained as to the outcome if the tendency is not kept within bounds.* The search for information by government agencies has, as its usual sequel, the paternalistic conviction that there are evils to be remedied and help to be given the industry (particularly the weaker units in the industry), by rules and decisions based on the information acquired, and that the agency's powers and jurisdiction should be enlarged for such purposes. The present momentum of events, when considered together with the preponderating role now being played at the Commission by economic and program factors over technical factors, is heading surely and directly toward economic regulation of broadcasting by the usual route of uniform cost accounting, inquisition of books and records, and eventually rate-regulation and perhaps also taxation of a regulatory character. Until recently it was also heading just as surely to * Directory Editor's Note: Aside from their legal and similar implications, the statistics on revenue, etc., issued by the FCC are undoubtedly of considerable value to the radio industry. Without them, the radio industry would have only meager indices on its revenue as an advertising medium, especially since the National Association of Broadcasters no longer issues time-sale dollar -volume figures. The editors of the Directory, however, believe that the FCC's compilations — laudable and accurate as they are— can be improved in several respects, as follows: (1) the reports from year to year should follow the same formula, and employ the same categories or -"breakdowns," so that comparisons may be made; (2) inasmuch as all media employ "gross revenue11 as yardstick, the FCC (which issues "net" revenue figures) should provide a yardstick for converting the "net" into "gross"; (3) the industry balance sheet now issued by the FCC is strictly an accounting tool, and should be accompanied by a simplified breakdown useful to radio as an advertising medium; (4) some of the items included in the balance sheet are, without benefit of footnote, apt to be highly misleading when made public. For instance, a radio station owned directly by another firm— such as an insurance company or newspaper — must report that parent firm's revenue to the FCC, which makes the information public. However, if the station is owned by an insurance company or newspaper through an intervening subsidiary corporation, the information is not issued by the FCC. On the whole, however, the figures have many day-to-day industry uses, and are of utmost reliability. 907