Evening star., 1924-04-23
URGES SUPERPOWER
BROADCAST SYSTEM
Radio Corporation Official Holds
This Will Solve Economic
Problem.
WOULD REDUCE COSTS
Stations Then Could Afford to Hire
REDUCE
COSTS
Stations Then Could Afford to Hire
Great Artists.
special pisnatch to The Star,

Special Dispatch to The Star.
CHICAGO. April 23.-"The air will
be the battle ground of the next
presidential campaign, and radio
Will play an unprecedented role in
the coming election" declared David
Sarnoff, vice president and general
manager of the Radio Corporation of
America, in an address here today
before a distinguished gathering of
Chicago business men at the Chicago
Association of Commerce.
For the first time in the history
of an American presidential cleo
tlon rival presidential candidates
will appeal through the forum or
the air to the American electorate.
For the first time in the history OF
national conventions Americas mil
lions will be able to follow word
by word every dramatic phase in the
battle of favoritt. sons for the dis
tinction to be nominated for the pres
idency of the United states. The
enthusiasm and the tumult of Il
great political convention Will no
longer be 4 show for the fortunate
few; for radio has made it possible
for millions TO follow every move in
the convention hall.
NO other event would so serve
to focus in the minds OF the Ameri-
can people the great destiny and
power of radio.
Due to Confuse Picture.
1.-THE impatience evident in some
quarters a the failure. thus far, to
evolve Il cut and dried solution of
the broadcasting problem which re-
solves itself in some minds into the
single question of Who Will pay
the cost of broadcasting? and the
panaCeaS offered daily as an answer
all mo ~
ing persons, follow. | am convinced.
from a confused and distorted pic
ture of the problem.
THE fact OF the matter is that we
cannot hope to solve the economical
problem presented by bToadcaSting Z
until its technical problems are in
the way of solution. 1t is useless to
consider how broadcaSting might be
made to pay for the services of a
premier artist before 4 method has
been evolved of broadcaSting the
artists program to the greatest eco
nomic advantage. Should famous
operatic troupe or instrum entalist, hired
for broadcasting purposes, make the
circuit of hundreds of broadcasting sta
tons in the United States to deliver its
program tC the public, or must the So
luton of the problem await the de-
velopment of national. not merely
local, broadcasting facilities? From
Il technical standpoint | believe the
answer TO the problem lies in super
broadcasting-a system of super
power stations broadca sting with a
force that could be distinctly heard
in every home in the United States. ]
mean d national program on a ma
tlonal scale, TO be transmitted
through the vast conduits of the air
from the great SuperpOwer stations.
In addition, there will be the smaller
stations which will provide home
town programs of local interest to
all in their vicinity and who may
also be provided with facilities for
the automatic rebroadc sting of the
national programs coming from dis
tant. points. In this way the local
stations will also meet d social need,
particularly for those listeners hay
ing receivers of limited range.
SuPcrpower Broadcasting.
In seeking for an economic solu-
tion of the broadcasting problem.
broadcasting on national scale is
found to be "A very convincing an
Swer. How obvious is the hopeless
ness Of attempting to pay for the
services of five hundred groups of
high grade artists broadcasting
nightly from five hundred or more
widely scattered stations. each serv-
ing only a limited audience! How
could the small audience of such a
station afford to pay for the sort OF
programs it really desires? Con-
slider, on the other hand. the sim
plicity and feasibility of having six
or dozen groups of artists, each
group broadcasting from a super
power station, to a national audi
ence, representing the purchasing
power of the radio industry. Super
power broadcasting is the technical
development which IS needed for the
success of broadcasting: and with a
satisfactory technical solution of the
broadcasting problem / am convinced
there Will come sound economic
solution. This solution will make un-
necessary the imposition of a spe-
cial tax on the radio listener by the
government or any one else or the
exaction of a system of tollgate pay
ments for the things which are
broadcast through the air.