Evening star., 1925-11-09

are available-cannot be made to
serve innumerable stations. If we
impose more division of time than at
present we shall drive the best sta
tions out of action and the public will
be poorly served.
Cannot Widen Band.
1T has been suggested that the
remedy lies in widening the broadcast
ing band. The vast ma ajority of re-
ceiving sets in the country will not
cover a wider band. Nor could we
extend it without invading the field
assigned to the amateurs. Radio in
this branch has found a part in the
fine development Of the American boy,
and l do not believe any one will wish
to minimize his part in American life.
I'VE hear a great deal about the
freedom of the air. But there are two
parties to freedom of the air, and to
freedom of speech. for that matter.
There is the speechmaker and the
listener. Certainly in radio / believe
in freedom for the listener. He has
much less option upon which he can
reject, for the other fellow is occupy
ing his receiving set. The listeners
only option is to abandon his right to
use his receiver. The ether is a pub
lie medium. and its use must be for
the public benefit.
What are we to do? We simply
must say that conditions absolutely
preclude increasing the total number
of stations in congested areas But
this implies a determination of who
shall occupy these channels. in what
manner and under what test.
1T seems to me we have in this
development of governmental rela-
tions two distinct problems. First,
TI-.x
must he a Federal responsibility.
From an interference point of view.
every word broadcast is an interstate
word Therefore, radio Is 100 per
cent interstate question. And there
is not an individual who has the most
rudimentary knowledge of the art.
who does not realize that there must
be a traffic policeman in the other
or all service will be lost in com.
plete chaos of interference. This is
an administrative Job and for good
administration must lie in a single
responsibility.
Asks Communities Act.
THE second questaion is the determi
nation of who shall use the traffic
channels, and under what conditions
! This is a very large discretionary or
semi judicial function which should
not devolve entirely upon any single
official, and is, 1 believe, a matter in
which each local community should
have a large voice-should in some
fashion participate in a determine
ton of who should use the channels
available for broadcasting in that 10.
caIity
Il am seeking your views as to
how far this can be made practi
l. r;e ~
found for handling the problem.
have no frozen views on radio-eX
cept that the public interest must
dominate. AS many of you know
am not one of those who seek to ex
tend any sort of Government regula
| ton into any quarter that is not vital
and in this suggestion l am even en-
deavoring to create enlarged local
responsibility"
Committees Named.
The personnel of nine committees
which will endeavor to work out a
solution to a number of the perplex
| ing problems before the conference
was announced by Secretary Hoover
at the close of his opening address
! The initial meetings of these com
! mittees have been scheduled for 4
O'Clock this afternoon.
| The topics with which the commit
| tees will deal include advertising, re
adjustment of present frequency
bands, operators licenses, class re
| quirements, construction permits
| listening for distress. license fees
power, time division, rebroadcasting
! duplication of wave lengths, remova
| of broadcasting stations from con
gested centers, extension of the plar
of Individual assignments of wave
| lengths to shore stations, radiatine
receiving sets, elimination of sparks
station interference, miscellaneous in
| references, the necessity for legisla
ton, suggestions to be embodied ir
| legislation and the use of copyright
material.