Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-04-21
Graham
Wv YHEN started kroadcasting In
Y n the two-room studio Of the
NM American Telephone and
Telegraph Co.. about seven

a / the two-room studio Of the
NV American Telephone and
v Telegraph Co. about seven
years ago, there was but one
station, no "hook-ups," no coverage of
special events, and handful Of artists
giving a three-hour evening program.
That was the start Of radio broadcast
ing.
Now take look at today's program
of the National Broadcasting Co, In
Guiding the New York, Washington and
Chicago divisions. Here are "a num-
bers for a single day, classified as fol-
lows:
Health and educational, 9: orchestras,,
&c; string trios and uuartets, g. vocal,
g. bands, 8; children's numbers. 8;
sports, q; organ recital, /; markets, q
grerl starts with health exercises at
Gas Il the morning and finishes with
Slumbor music at midnight. Hundreds
of artists are recruited for this daily
l7-hour drive; sensitive and elaborate
set-up of broadcasting apparatus is, for
every second of this entertainment cy-
Gle, under the vigilant scrutiny of
scores of alert technicians. Day after
day. this increasingly complex and
crowded program must 60 out TO mil
lions Of waiting listeners. To me this
epoch, beginning with that modest lit
tie studio of seven years ago, marks one
of the great triumphS of modern en-
terprise
The Saturday programs are in some
what tighten vein, as experience has
shown that, with the week end relaxa-
| ton, dance music and offerings more
suitable to a playful mood are In de-
mand. While radio broadcasterS have
an association which maintains rigid
ethical standards, the building of pro-
! grams has been patterned in accord
ance with the wants of the public as
disclosed by the thousands of letters,
| kilograms and telephone calls which
| pour into the broadcasting studios.
| keep the microphone senSitively attuned
to public reference, within the limits
| imposed by good taste and fair play.
Responding to these demands, radio
| broadcasting constantly strives to meet
| the inceSsant pressure toward increaS-
| ing diversity. The radio public not only
| demands that 1t be amused, entertained
| informed, educated, inspired and in
| structed. but 1t discloses shadings of
| taste and preference in these fields
| which impose upon program director
| CURED of chefs, impresarios. clothes de-
signers or politicians. The program di-
rector, above all others, must be all
| things to all men.
/ On top of all this is the requirement
that the seasonal drama of great sport
/ ing political and other public events
must be dished out In large, highly sea-
Soned portions. Unlike State Legisla-
! lures, the program directors cannot set
back the hands of the clock and they
must crowd their varied offerings into
| l.. Il xrsf&t
| failing alertneSS to these endleSSly va
ried demands The early broadcasting.
| compared to this, was like feeding boa
constructor a chunk of meat compared
| to serving brilliant Savarin dinner to
0,000,0 900 epicures.
The brunt of all this, in our studio,
falls en- George Engles, program director
and vice president, and head of the Ma
tional Broadcasting and Concert Blu
reau. With our planning board, he has
the daily task of piecing together this
tight mosaic of song, instrumental nlu-
SIC bedtime stories and the thousand
ular interest which. day after day and
week after week. must meet the in
| satiable public demand. While it can
| not be said that 1t has been definitely
| learned what the public wants, these
| desires have been formulated to great
degree and there is rarely serious dis
agreement between Mr.. Engles and his
confreres on any number.
There are. of course, certain least
| denominators of interest which, obtain
able, are suitable for any program. One
of these is humor. First-class humor Is
| always sure of a big hand in the flood
of mail which guides the program max
ers In its higher levels, thoroughly
high-grade humor is a rare commodity
and America is tremendously sophis-
ticated Nation in the field Of music
Fine artistry of any kind, vocal or or
chestral, also is sure-shot material.
Timely reports on sports and markets
are never open to question.
Beyond these standard demands there
is zone of uncertainty in which there
probably always will be innovation and
experiment Broadcasting studios are
| always on the lookout for good novel;
ties In this field, the response of the
public is less practicable. A number
which appears sure winner may re-
ceive a cold response and some casual
little filler may get tremendous cheer.
1t is this borderland of doubt which
makes program building an necessarily
tantalizing and, at the same time, ex-