Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-06-20
ADDITIONAL RADIO
HEARINGS LIKELY
Only 2 Legal Cases Confront
Commission as Test of
RealIocation Begins.

| Federal Radio Commission as IT enters
the period of actual test under its re-
ALLEGATION of broadcast channels. The
appeal of the International Broadcast
| ing Corporation of New York regard
ing the assignment of ] ,020 kilocycles
to Station VIGIL, and the injunction
sought by the Madison Square Garden
Broadcasting Corporation. regarding
a better channel than 1870 kilocycles
! for its station WINGS.
| More hearings are Anticipated, how
ever Several New York station own
crs. understood TO be members of the
Broadcast Station owners Associa-
ton, have requested them. and seven
have been decided upon. 1t was at the
request of the above organization of
dissatisfied New York broadcasters
that the effective date of the new al
location was postponed until June Is.
Both these pending legal proceed
| ingS will be handled by the attorneys
of the Department of Justice for the
commission. but it is assumed that
Judge T.. .. Sykes. vice chairman of
the commission and formerly justice
| of the Supreme Court of Mississippi,
will probably taken an active part in
| court. since he has made a special
| study of the radio law since his APP
! pointment last February.
| L iic INST case Involves Il formal APP
peal of the International Broadcastng
| Corporation, whose Station VIGIL is
| located on the Hotel Majestic in New
York. VIGIL has been refused the use
| of two channels it sought. in two
| hearings, but was allocated 1920 kilo-
| cycles by the commission recently
| and ordered to share time with sta
| ton WODA of Paterson, y. j. This
| it has refused to do, and an appeal
| over the decision of the Radio Com
mission has been filed in the Court Of
| Appeals of the District of Columbia
| Within a short time representatives
| of the commission will file the records
and the reasons for its decisions and
await further action.
The second case. that of the owners
| of Station WMSG of New York, in
| wolves the question of whether the
radio act of 1927 is constitutional, but
| incidentally is request that the com
mission be stopped from forcing this
station to operate on it's official as
signment. sharing time with other
| New York stations. The commission
after holding an informal hearing re-
Gently, refused to grant this station
another channel. The Supreme Court
of the District of Columbia will hear
this case Friday, a postponement hav-
ing been agreed to. In the meantime
it is understood that WMSG will
switch to it's assigned channel, 1870
kilocycles.
The commission actually welcomes
these legal proceedings, since they
will tend to clear the ether, by estab-
fishing whether the radio law is eff
fective, and if authorized to carry on
under il. A test case is really most
desirable for everybody; the broad
casters. the commission and above
all the radio public.
If the commission loses its cases
and the law is declared unconstitu-
tional it will be most unfortunate for
everybody concerned and yet may
make for more definite or remedial
legislation this Fall when Congress
assemblies.
If the law is broken down again,
which few believe is likely, then there
will be a return to another state of
| chaos in the broadcasting band. 1t is
difficult to see what could be gained
by winning suit which resulted in
disrupting the radio regulation sys-
tenn again, as the resulting confusion
would affect every station.
Pending the outcome of the chaos
in court, the commission is planning
to stand pat for a month, making no
more shifts or changes that the re.
ALLEGATIONS may be tested out salts
factorily through actual use. After
July Is station owners having cause
to complain due to interference set
other stations may file affidavits set
ting forth their specific charges. and
the owners and operators of stations
concerned will be called to Washings
ton for a special hearing. Following
hearing, the commission may shift
one or both stations, increase or de-
| crease the power or rearrange the
| time divisions. This is the remedy
| the commissioners count on to adjust
any interference discovered by the
station owners, the Department of
Commerce field radio inspectors or the
public listeners.
Now that the Washington base ball
team has taken to the road again,
WRC this afternoon resumed its
broadcast of the play-by-play accounts
of the game from the studio of The
Star. Both games of the double
header with Philadelphia, which start.
ed at o'clock, are being carried this
afternoon, with Thornton Fisher CIV
ing the description of the contests.
WRC's principal feature tonight
will be the first of the series of Sum
mer concerts by the Navy Band on
the Capi:S. plaza. The concert will
be given from to 8 o'clock.
Roxy" and Ibis gang" tabloid
version of Donizetti's opera Lucia di
Lammermoor," and a talk by Frank
Ferguson, New York dramatist, or
acting VS.. Personality" are some OF
WRC's other leading attractions
Roxy" will feature Marion Keller
soprano, while Mr.. Ferguson, in his
talk, plans to outline some of the
problems that confront theatrica
managers, producers, actors and au
thors.
While the wave lengths We're quite
willing last night to give up theii
signals. the strength with which they
responded was too weak in most in
stances to produce satisfactory re
suits in the loud speaker. Only a few
of the stations came through witt
sufficient volume for loud-speaker re
| productiOn and thew were the SuDer