Evening star., 1929-12-08


a red" to the blue" network
of the National Broadcasting Co.,
which removed it from the pro-
gram schedule of WRC, served to
emphasize the urgent need Of re-
construction of some of the major
chain attractions which have lost
their appeal through constant
repetition.
The opinion is growing in Wash
ington and elsewhere, too, that the
so-called big time" chain features
are too standardized. This OBJ
viouSly has tendency toward mo-
notony and will eventually, in the
opinion of some radio critics, re-
suit in the ultimate breakdown of
listener interest.
Week after week, month after
month, and in a few instances
year after year there come over
the networks the same features,
provided by the same artists, and
often with only little diversity in
the program structure. A radio
listener no longer needs to consult
the radio programs published iE
the newspapers to find out what's
on the air. He merely looks at the
clock instead. If it be 7 o'clock
on certain day of the week he
knows the Norway SardineS, for
instance, are broadcaSting over
one of his favorite stations and
the Broadway Singers are on an
other. He knows. too, that the
SardineS, according to past per-
formanceS, are playing Snappy
Jazz tunes, while the Singers are
turning out some overworked
tunes.
If interest in radio is to be
maintained to its utmost it seems
that certain types of the stand
ardized radio programs must be
reVamped. How this should be
done is problem for the special
lied radio program makers. One
suggestion which appears logical.
however, is that the program
sponsors change the type of their
offerings from week to week, shift
ing from jazz to symphonic music,
and interSperSing, perhaps for the
sake of diversity, a dramatic
sketch or a tabloid version of some
popular opera.
One prominent program sponsor
already has adopted such a plan
on a modified scale, presenting a
musical program one week and a
dramatic sketch the next. 1t ap-
pears to be working out Satisfac-
torily.
There are some outstanding
radio attractions, of course, the
very nature of which preclude
shifting from week to week. One
of these is the Hank Simmons
Show Boat" melodramaS broad
cast by WMAL and other Colum-
bia BroadcaSting System stations.
Another is the humorous "AmoS
n Andy sketches, distributed by
WRC and associated National
BroadcaSting Co. stations. In
these two instances the programs
are entirely different with each
SentS new melodrama each week
and the dialogue of amos m
Andy" changes each night.
Advocates of readjuStment of
the sponsored programs have not
urged change in a spirit of criti-
eism. It is certainly we'll known
by this time that the radio pro-
gram of today is far superior to
that of a year ago. The program
sponsors have Wed with one an
other to procure the best talent
available, and the broadcaSting
companies tn ms selves have
secured the operate and dramatic
fields for new ideas and new ma
terial in a concerted effort to bet
ter the programs and make them
more appealing to vast and
critical audience with an enter
tainment taste so varied that it is
humanity impossible to satisfy
them all at the same time.
The loud speaker nuisance is
subject which has been
brought to the fore in recent
weeks in connection with cam
paignS throughout the country for
a reduction in unnecessary noise.
Washington, apparently, suffers in
this respect along with other cities
where apartment house living is
the vogue.
There is no more reason why a
speaker should be turned on to
its maximum volume, especially in
a small apartment, than there is
for other unnecessary disturbance
of the peace and quiet of all
apartment house or residential
neighborhood. 1t is inconceivable
that any radio listener would de-
liberately turn a loud speaker tn
full volume for the purpose OF
creating a disturbance, for that is
exactly what it does. Most radio
speakers turned on full blast viii
diStort any broadcast program.
An educational campaign on the
part of radio dealers probably
would have more of a beneficial
effect to remedy this condition
than a special ordinance which
has been proposed by some suffer-
ers from the loud speaker annoy
ance.
For the first time since the erec-
ton of the broadcasting towers
and equipment of WIZ, in Novem-
ber, 1925, the station will cancel
scheduled programs and be silent
from 8 to 10 o'clock this morning,
while engineers replace the inSula-
ton units of the antenna to pro-
Nc2Nl9A