Evening star., 1933-06-04
Behind the Microphone
BY THE RADIO EDITOR.

ing System, Judge Ira Z. Robin
son, former commissioner, and
Arthur F. Mullen, Democratic ma
tional committeeman from Ne
braska, both practicing law in
Washington, have appeared be-
fore the commission to ask 1t to
amend its transcription regula-
tion. The commission this week
is expected to give consideration
to their request.
Judge Robinson asks for
change in rule 176 so that "a tram
Scription made expressly for
broadcasting purposes need not be
announced as such just before IL
is broadcast" He would prefer
to have the identification of tran
scriptionS eliminated entirely, but
If the commission insists on such
an Identification he says it should
be at the end of the program.
The reason for the request Is
that transcription companies are
said to be meeting difficulties in
persuading sponsors to use the
recorded medium. Judge Robin
son AYERS that there is no more
sense in announcing transcript
tlonS as such than in having net
work announcers repeat that their
programs are being transmitted
"by wire" from the key studios to
the point Of broadcast.
"The operation of the rule as 1t
now stands" declares Judge Rob-
lnSOn in his petition to the CON-
mission, "stigmatizeS transcript
tions by putting them in the cate
CORY OF phonograph records and
player piano records, when, in
fact, they have come to be a most
useful and popular method of
program transmission. If any an
nouncement is to be made, it
should be after the broadcast;
though there seems to be no more
use for that than an announce
ment that a program from one of
the chain studios came to the
station by wire"
Deepening its plea for longer
N licenses for broadcasting sta
tions, the National Association Of
Broadcasters is again asking the
Federal Radio Commission to issue
licenses for three-year instead Of
Six-month periods. Longer IL
censes, James w. Baldwin, Spe-
cial N. A. B. representative, as
SertS in a letter to the lcommis-
sion, will make for stability. pro-
tect bona f1de investments in sta
tions and strengthen station
management, which is now under
the constant test of seeking re-
newalS twice a year.
Mr.. Baldwin, who will represent
American broadcasters at the
North American wave length con-
ference in Mexico City, July 10,
insists that the issuance of three
year licenses, which is permissible
under the radio law, will
strengthen the position Of Ameri-
can broadcaSterS at that confer
ence, protecting the stations
against the expected demands Of
Mexico, Cuba and other smaller
North American countries that
some of the United States Cana
dian wave lengths be cleared to
make room for new stations in
those countries.
Commissioner II. A. Lafount
has frequently expressed himself
as favorable to the longer license
period, pointing out that it will
afford economy in clerical work
before the commission and at the
same time does not prevent the
commission from calling stations
TO task, or even eliminating them.
II they violate regulations or
otherwise do not comport them
selves properly. The commission
itself. however, has never evinced
a Willingness to act in the matter.
Because of the economic situa-
tlon, which the commission is
now for the first time beginning
to take into consideration In con-
nectlon with the operation of
stations, the commission has lust
extended to November its order
relaxing the hours-of-operation
regulations. Regulations now di-
rect all stations to operate a
minimum of two-thirds of their
assigned hours on the air, fixing
the broadcast day" as 16 hours
and requiring full-time stations
to be on the air at least II hours
a day. The new order allows sta
tons to operate for shorter pc
RODS providing they apply to the
commission for consent and
specify the exact time they wish
to remain silent.
This order was PROMULGATED
three months ago when many
small local stations entered the
plea that they could not afford
TO broadcast on full schedules be-
cause of business conditions. The
commission is also beginning to
issue the annual authority to COL
lege and university stations to
ssuspeno s operations during the
summer vacation season.