Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-04-27
BAN ON LOTTERIES
OVER RADIO ASKED
Newspaper Publishers Seek
Federal General Order to
Curb Broadcasts.

The American Newspaper Publishers
Association today requested the Federal
Radio Commission to promulgate gen.
eral order forbidding the broadcaSting
Of Advertising programs or other pro-
grams which involve the advertising
Of lotteries or other schemes Of chance
in which the prizes depend, in whole
or in part, upon chance. The request
was filed by Elisha Hanson, attorney for
the association, pursuant to action
taken last week at the annual meeting
of the publishers in New York.
The commissions attention was called
to the fact that lotteries are illegal in
the United States, not only under the
Federal laws, but under State laws In
all the 40 States, but that
because of the absence Of any specific
provision of the radio law preventing
the broadcasting Of lotteries, during the
last few months the practice Of broad
casting lottery programs has grown to
such proportions that the commission
should take immediate cognizance Of 1t.
It was further pointed out that sec
ton 213 in the Criminal Code makes 1t
illegal for newspaper to print any
lottery advertising or scheme Of chance
advertising Of any kind or description,
and that, in view Of the Federal sta
tutes, as well as the State laws, the
commission, under the broad terms Of
the act which created 1t, not only has
authority, but should exercise such au-
thority to prevent the further broad
casting of lottery and scheme Of chance
advertising.
Asks General Order.
Mr.. Hanson's letter to the commits
sion follows:
In behalf Of the American Newspa-
per Publishers Association, whose men,
bership includes the publishers Of ap-
proximately 500 daily newspapers in
the United States, and for which I am
attorney, desire to request that the
commission give serious consideration
to the immediate PRONUNCIATION of
general order for the purpose Of pre-
venting the broadcasting of programs
involving lottery or schemes Of chance
advertising.
has been given over more
and more to advertising programs, and,
in sense, broadcasting station today
is a competitor with all other forms Of
media for the dissemination of adver-
Using. With the single exception Of
radio, all Of these media are prevented
by law from the publication or trans
mission through the mails Of any
scheme concerning any lottery, gift en-
terprise or similar plan offering prizes
dependent in whole or in part upon lot
or chance.
Cites Criminal Code.
Section 2l3 Of the Criminal Code OF
the United States reads as follows:
emo letter, package, postal card or
circular concerning any lottery, gift en-
terprise, or. similar scheme Offering
prizes dependent in whole or in part
upon lot or chance; and no lottery
ticket or part thereof, or paper, certih-
cate, or instrument purporting to be or
to represent a ticket, chance, share or
interest in or dependent upon the event
of a lottery, gift enterprise, or similar
scheme offering prizes dependent in
whole or in part upon lot or chance;
and no check draft, bill, money, postal
note, or money order, for the purchase
of any ticket or part thereof, or OF any
share or chance in any such lottery,
gift enterprise, or scheme; and no news
paper, circular, pamphlet, or publica-
ton Of any kind containing any adver-
tisement Of any lottery, gift enterprise,
or scheme of any kind offering prizes
dependent in whole or in part upon lot
or chance or containing any list Of the
prizes drawn orsawarded by means Of
any such lottery, gift enterprise, or
scheme, whether said list contains any
part or all of such prizes, shall be de-
posted in or carried by the mails Of the
United States, or be delivered by any
postmaster or letter carrier.
Whoever shall knowingly deposit or
cause to be deposited, or shall know
ingly send or cause to be sent, anything
to be conveyed or delivered by mail In
violation Of the provisions Of this sec
ton, or shall knowingly deliver or cause
to be delivered by mail anything herein
be fined not more than $1,000, or inn
prisoned not more than two years, or
both; and for any subsequent offense
shall be imprisoned not more than five
years. Any person violating any pro-
vision of this section may be tried and
punished either in the district in which
the unlawful matter or publication was
mailed, or to which 1t was carried by
mail for delivery according to the de
rection thereon, or in which it was
caused to be delivered by mail to the
person to whom 1t was addressed.
(R. s. 1894; July IL, 1876, C. 1856, q,
10 Stat. 90; September 10, 1890, C. 908,
/, 26 Stat. 465; March 2, 1895. C. 1911,
% Stat. 963; March 4, 1909, c. 321, 213,
IS Stat. 1920.
Holds Prize Schemes Increase.
such is the Federal law prohibiting
the transmission through the mails Of
anything which has to do with lottery
or schemes of chance in which the
prizes depend in part or in whole upon
chance. On top Of this, practically all