Evening star., 1925-03-15
HOOVER HELPLESS
TO CLEAR UP ETHER
Only Possible Pressure OF
Public Can Curb lrreSponsI-
BILE Broadcasters, He Says.
BY CARL II. BUTMAN.


There is now a need for radio
referendum in which every recelNlnS
set owner shall have a voice, accord
iny to MANY radio experts and fans
Secretary of Commerce hoover
chAckmated on the great chesSo0dru
NJ ether where wave lengths p'
kings and pawn's broadcastlhs s'a
tions are interfering with each othe'
regardless of the value of their pro-
grams to the radio public
Officially the Department OF Conl-
merce can do nothing In resaIu W
two yerr important developments III
the growing broadcastne sa
cannot refuse to license new stdtlohs
which qualify under the 1917 law anu
neither can IL censor programs. Inc
ether is free, Just like the press ur
thermore, the radio ofhcials Oh INC
Commerce Department feel, aue 70 q
lack of more wave channels, that II 10
necessary to require stations III tllo
same district to divide single wave
length perhaps three ways,
though one station may be lar IN
ferior to another. Authority
would enable Mr.. Hoover anu nls
aides to differentiate between stations
as To efficiency or value of their pro-
grams is lacking, so all are trealeo
alike. .o,,
DAsnite Hoover's recent statement
49,, tbn ether was literally filed and
that no wave lengths Tor proao|a' 10
transmission were available, ne" app,i-
cations continue to come In eacn "eeh'
even from the most congested ols'l @ loI'
Procedure has been to call a local cum
ference of broadcasters ana u! 10
further split the available ETHEREAL chan-
nels and the hours of operation. Ihe re-
iiv decrease
programs from a station or known
worth and add another voice TO the
saturated ether. an untried voice ana
one of questionable value.
In districts where there are already
several broadcast transmitters on the
air, seemingly serving the needs OF the
radio public satisfactorily, and others
have sought entry. local organizations
of broadcasters or fans have endeavoreo
70 hold limited plebiscites to get the re-
action from the immediate radio public
In these efforts the press has also aided,
but so far no potential broadcaster has
been intimidated or discouraged from
coming on the air
National Vote Needed.
Apparently a nationwide radio vote
Is needed. All interests admit that
broadcasting is essentially for the fan;
consequently it Is up to the fan to say
what he wants. The Government cannot
take a hand, and so Secretary Hoover
has put the question to the public. He
says that II any one can work out a plan
which will establish radio control in the
interest of the greatest number Of radio
users 1t would prove a most valuable
contribution to efforts Of both the Gov
ernment and the industry.
II some organization or combination
Of organizations composed primarily Of
fans can secure an unmistakable express
sion Of opinion as to the value OF sta
tions on the air, the necessity of new
stations, If any, and in general which
stations should be given preference, then
the Commerce Department could prob
ably move definitely toward clearing up
interference between broadcasters. 1t
could, perhaps, improve reception
throughout the country from 90 to 20
per cent.
Mr. Hoover admits that it is be-
yond him to say by what means the
opinion of the radio public can be
used to induce inferior stations to
cease broadcasting or to discourage
new ones from. starting in. But he
says 1t Is the chief problem before
the department and country. It is
rapidly taking the place Of the prob
lem who will pay for broadcasting?"
so frequently discussed.
That some sort of censorship is
necessary is evident, for the depart
Eent Is in receipt of letters advising
OF salacious matter broadcast, but to
date no official action has been taken
Letters and comments have been
forwarded in each case to the owners
of the broadcasting stations men
toned, so that they might know how
the public was reacting. This is
far too serious problem to remain
unsettled. Secretary Hoover has
passed 1t on to the radio public, since
he is without authority to go any
farther under the existing laws
Most of the better broadcasters act
as their own censors, the department
points out, or leave 1t to the fans to
determine what shall be put out
Those stations try to please their
listeners, but so many fail to respond
that the method is not ideal. Ap-
parentiy many fans complain when
they do not like a number or a series
of features but few of them signify
in any way what meets their ap-
proval, which does not give the pro-
gram managers a definite knowledge
OF how they are pleasing their
audiences.
Here is an opportunity for every
set owner to aid the public at large;
Secretary Hoover Is asking for aid
to find out what the fans want both
as to stations preferred and as to
programs desired. National and local
organizations can cooperate in
answering this new and battling