Evening star., 1924-08-17

will generally speak direct from a
broadcastins studio.
You see, there is an entirely new
situation and condition surrounding
radio campaigning. For example. the
old trick or talent of a veteran cam
paigner to sway his audience by his
eloquence" is lacking. for there is
no mob to sway and no throng to in
spire him to outdo himself as throngs
have previously and often done by
creating an atmosphere"
Now. back again 20 the broadcast
Ing problem; Radio campaigning being
an innovation, there are no rules to go
by and the whole mechanics and rules
and regula tions must be worked from
the ground up, and subject to change
at any time as conditions arise that
cannot be met in advance
The people behind the great new
radio Industry are just as inter-
ested as the politicians in seeing
what can be done during the cam
paign, and they want, to make it
available to the greatest possible ex-
tent. But if only d fraction of the
radio campaigning" that has been
announced should be attempted the
broadcaSting facilities would be
swamped and deluged.
The demand must be adjusted to
the capacity of existing facilities.
Limits to Radio.
In broadcasting on a national scale
the wires of the American Telephone
and Telegraph Company will picl: up
the spoken voice from the micro
phone wherever it may be placed and
carry the speech to the cities, where
the local broadcasting stations will
throw it off into the air. to be picked
Up By the individual radio receiving
sets. SO it is basic and fundamental
that the radio campaigning will have
to be limited to what this main chan
nel-the American Telephone and
Telegraph wire system-can accom-
modate. And the telephone company
will maintain it's regular service first.
1t is not thought practical to broad
cast a presidential speech by the
newly developed short retrans-
mission system, because all atmo-
spheric disturbances would be trans
uitted with the sound wave, while the
land wires deliver the candidates
voice exactly as it went into the
microphone.
The telephone company worked
out what was considered previously
to be an impossibility IN handling
the Republican and Democratic ma
tional conventions. and by so doing
extended the facilities to just about
the absolute limit But the national
.arnpaign will be far more compli-
Gated, as the various parties ana
candidates will want the air at the
same time.
Must Zone Campaigns.
Already the radio experts have ad-
vised the national campaign manage
mentS that it will be necessary for
them to zone their campaigns as
much as possible-that is, to break 1t
UP so as to cover only certain sec
tion at time instead OF endeavoring
TO cover the whole country simulta-
neously. And this is good political
policy, too, for speech written for
It's effect in the industrial section of
the Northeast would fall fat and tire
some on the listening ears in the
AGRICULTURAL sections OF the West,
and therefore, must be confined to
local stations in the Northeast. Simi-
lar arguments on farm issues would
cause the majority of listeners-in to
tune out in the East. SO they must
be broadcast from local stations In
the West. This would be more efn-
cient campaigning and would ire
mendously relieve the overload of
general, nation wide broadcasting.
There will be, of course, a certain
--restricted-numbe of speeches by
Calvin Coolidge, John w. Davis,
Robert NJ. La Toilette and perhaps
Dawes, Bryan. Wheeler and other
outstanding spellbinders broadcast
from the Atlantic to the Pacific and
from the Canadian border to the Gulf.
This will require extremely fair divi-
sion of the time as between the great
political parties.
Expense Is Big Item.
Then there is the question of ex-
pense. The profiting public did not
realize 1t, but the cost Of broadcast
ing the great national conventions.
which amounted to something more
than $4,000 a week, was borne by
the broadcasting companies and was
not charged to the national commit
teea The broadcasters felt that this
was Interesting matter that the pub
lilo wanted to hear, and so they de-
cided to carry it as part Of their reg.