The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1930-06-14
by S. B.

TELEVISION is now fact. Like
all great inventions born amidst
the chaos and isolation of scientific
research N capitalist society, it
came like bolt from the sky, with
all the padded atmosphere of
"magic" and "wizardry" that ush
cred in the telephone, the phone
graph and the radio.
To the working masses these in
ventions come indeed like miracles
born of wizards brains. The wide
gap which divides them from the
monopolized realms Of science and
a t is glaringly obvious here
and is the result of an ever more
defined lewiston of labor in So
ciety with a class stop" and "bot-
TOM"
The Sunday magazine sections OF
every capitalist paper carry loud
and boisterous articles on the "bleas-
lngs of our modern life" with all the
marvels of science at the reach Of
the humblest of Ameri Think
of it, television in yolr own home!
In the United States, too, the
"means of mental production" are
the monopoly of the ruling class.
Anarchy in the sphere of science
is an extension of the disorganiza-
ton and chaos inherent in capitalist
economy.
The sound film came along one
'ay, coached and fed by the late
am Warner. Thus a whole indus
iy was thrown cut Of joint. TO-DAY
fere are some ninety-lour different
yatented sound systems. The same
8 true of the color film and also
of a much simpler innovation, wide
film.
And so with t4levision. Holly
wood is already hysterical. Soon its
big bosses the former haber-
dashers, Wholesale cloth-cporgers
and storeke 2peT5-will be tearing
at each others throats. Already
they have put their feet in the new
field. But the air has long ago
been monopolized by the giants: A.
T. T., R. C. A., Western Electric
and Genera, Electric. In the next
two years we will witness the COM
plete merging Of these engineering
trusts with the financial powers of
the screen. By the very nature Of
television the motion picture barons
will be at a disadvantage in all this.
And just as today you are able
to lister to viii Rogers under the
auspices Of Squibbs Dental Cream,
so tomorrow you will have the pos
sibility Of both seeing and hearing
Greta Carlo or Rowdie Vallup I'M
der the auspices of the Kwiktie
Shoelace Corporation.
The glorious wedding of art,
science and advertising.
A Wall Street synthesis.
But what is the more serious
aspect in the coming of this mighty
photo-electric eye?
Not an invention is made--even
a minor one-but that it's adapta-
bility to war is Immediately con-
sidered and perfected. This is espe-
cially true in this period of frantic
preparation for the impending eX-
plosion. In previous article we
have shown how the sound film is
exploited to perfect the war ma
chine. In the case of television this
is even more the case.
The same day that the enlarged
television protector was demon
strated in the laboratories of the
General Electric Co. at Science
tady, DR.. E. F. W. Alexanderson, its
! inventor, said to the assembled
newspapermen:
What will this mean in the war
of the future, when a staff Off
Ger can see the enemy through the
television eyes of his scouting
planes, or when they can send a
bombing plane without man on
board, which can see the target
and be steered by radio up to the
moment when it hits?"
DR.. Alexanderson. with all the
perspicacity of his specialized