Evening star., 1947-08-31
T or Radio Listeners
By Harry Macarthur

HaQlO, IOr the mOSG part, seems CC
be following those familiar old paths
as the new season gets under way
There is one development, however
that might be viewed with some ap-
proval by such a stern cricic o1
broadcasting practices as Llewellyr
White. Mr.. White is the man who
helped the Commission on Freedom
of the Press look at radio earlier ir
the year. The development is the
sudden increase this season in the
number of so-called coop" shows
available for local sponsorship.
The rise in the number of "co-
ops" has been viewed with alarm
in some radio circles, but all the net
works are embracing them. Mutual
probably is in the lead right now,
with Information, Please" Meet
Me at Parky's," Kate Smith
Speaks" and Meet the Press" on its
coop" list. Mutual has a number
of news broadcasters and commen-
tators, too, who are or hope to be
sponsored in the same fashion.
Abbott and Costello also will be
doing coop" show this year, they
over ABC. American also would like
to have Joan Davis, but so would
CHS, and at the moment of writing
neither has won her hand. NBC
should be operating in the cooper
ative field. too, this season. since it
has set up a special department to
handle shows in this category.
X X X
All this ACTIVITY is a move-even
though it may be an unintended one
in the direction Mr.. White men,
tions in his report, THE American
Radio" 1t was Mr.. Whites argu-
a most sound one-that
one of radios great ills was adver-
tiser control over program mat
ter. Advertising and entertainment
should be divorced, he said. Let the
sponsor have space on the air for
his sales message where the show
has won him an audience, but don't
let him tell the orchestra to play
loud and on the beat.
This is exactly what happens in
the case of the "co-ops" Lou Co.'S
tello finally learns who's on first,
ABC afflliates cut out of the net
work at a prearranged time. local
read sales messages for
the local merchants paying the
freight in each city, then the net
work takes over again for the body
of the show. Not one of the sponsors
can call his advertising agency the
next morning to demand that the
lyric soprano sing numbers like
Some of These Days" from now on
and sing them loud.
The coop system works out
we'll as a partial cure for
Whites disease" in the case of
lews broadcasters. There has been
;ome argument that news broadcasts
should not be sponsored, though it
S highly doubtful that nationally
sponsored neWscaster of any stand
ng would slant his news to please
he sponsor. There is no chance for
t to happen if the news show is
cooperative.
X X X X
All of this, of course, probably has
not had too much to do with network
thinking on "co-ops." The networks
are merely showing themselves will
ing to let separated local shoe stores
support a show If large shoe manu-
facturer shows no inclination to do
It. One buck apiece from 10 people
is as good as a $40 bill.
Then there is a matter of self
preservation, for which the radio
chains have an instinct even as you.
BY arranging coop" shows for
name radio stars for whom other
sponsorship cannot be found at the
moment, the network keeps those
stars on its roster. 1t does no good
for CHS, say, to. dangle a wealthy
national sponsor before a comedian
oeing kept rich and happy by an
ABC coop" show.
Another reason-and undoubtedly
! big one-Why the networks will
turn willingly to "co-ops" is that
they are a partial answer to tran