News By Radio

News by Radio

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY

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MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED

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JIADBAS MELDOUaNE

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
OF CANADA, LIMITED

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News by Radio

Mitchell V. Chamley

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA

1948 THE MACMILLAN COMPANY NEW YORK

Table of Contents

Foreword

v

1 News Takes the Air 1

The "Press-Radio War" 1 5

Radio Gets the News 22

After Munich 26

2 Who Listens? And How? 40

What Do They Want? 46

Who Are the Listeners? 49

Methods of Audience Study 51

3 Is Radio News "Different"? 55

The "Living Room Audience" 57

Facts Are Facts or Are They? 61

"Control** of the News 63

4 The Radio Newsroom 72

Newsroom Personnel 76

Newsroom Organization, Operation, and Cost 79

5 How Is It Written? 84

The Conversational Style 84

Simplicity 93

Vitality 100

Do ... Don't 103

Putting the Story Together 105

The Radio Feature Story 110

The Mechanics of Radio News Copy 113

Accuracy 116
vii

viii Table of Contents

6 How Does It Go Together? 119

The Format of the News Program 119

Where Does the News Come From? 1 24

Putting the Rewrite Show Together 133

The Newscast 137

Putting the Radio Wire Show Together 162

Moving from Story to Story 177

Typical Radio Station News-Days 181

7 Multivoice News Shows 184

The Simple Multivoice Show 185

The Radio News Interview 100

Dramatizing the News 202

8 Radio's Local News Service 235

What Is "Local" Radio News? ' 241

How Docs Radio Cover Local News? 242

What About Recording Devices? 244

The Public and Radio News 247

Broadening the Coverage 249

WHAT Does the Newsroom Cover? 2 50

Weather News 254

The Feature Angle 255

Local News and Promotion 258

A Miscellany of Local News 260

9 Special Events 265

Arranging a Special Event 267

"Man-on-the-Street" Broadcasts 278

A Miscellany of Special Events 279

10 News of Special Fields 283

Agricultural News 285

Sports News 290

Women's News 294

Political News 295

News in Other Special Fields 296

Table of Contents ix

11 Making the News Meaningful 301

Backgrounding the Straight News Show 303

What Is "Commentary"? 308

"Commentary" or "Analysis"? 309

Commentary and the Station 315

How the Commentary Grows 318

The Professionals at "Work 324

The Discussion Program 348

12 The Law Says . . . 352

Libel or Slander? 352

Liability 359

Watch Out for Lotteries 360

As for Censorship . . . 362

What Is "Privacy"? 364

The Right to Report 365

Who Owns the News? 366

The Last Word 368

Appendix

A Codes for Self-Regulation by News Broadcasters 37?

B Standards for Education for Radio Journalism 384

C A Radio News Style Book 3&&

D A Check List for Radio Newsroom Self-Analysis 393

Index 397

1

News Takes the Air

On August 31, 1920, Michigan held primary elections. Nothing un-
usual about that.

That evening, in some hundreds of living rooms, bedrooms, base-
ments, and garrets in the Detroit area, amateur wireless enthusiasts
sat before their homemade receiving sets. Headphones pinched their
ears. Their fingers fiddled with tuning coils as they picked up the
Arlington time signal or the "eep! eep!" of Morse code whistling
among "ham" senders or between lake ships and shore stations.

Suddenly into their headphones came a static-ridden human voice.
It said something like this:

"This is Station 8MK. The Detroit News brings you early returns
from today's Michigan voting. . . ."

That "was unusual. Regular broadcasting of news was born that
ni S ht - _ o

The fact was that this station first to put a regular daily schedule
of programs on the air had been broadcasting experimentally since
August 20. But it was not until August 31 that the News carried the
headline "NEWS RADIOPHONE TO GIVE VOTE RESULTS"
and invited the public to listen in.

The "studio" was hardly pretentious. Up among the bound files in
the News library, on a table crowded into a corner, rested a "de Forest
Radiophone/' It consisted of a rectangular panel about fourteen by
sixteen inches in size, with several control switches and dials, a pair of
voltmeters, and, at its top center, what looked like a, telephone mouth-
piece its primitive microphone. There was no acoustically-treated
chamber, no well-gadgeted control room, no chrome furniture. Into
the mouthpiece a young man was talking broadcasting election
returns as they came up to him from the newsroom, a floor below.

From that day forward, without a break, Station 8MK put daily

1

2 News by Radio

programs on the air recorded music, speakers, vocalists, cornet players,
a "live" orchestra now and then. And news local and regional news
from the paper's staff, national and international news from the press
services.

It was the inauguration of regular daily broadcasting, rather than
the fact of broadcasting, that made those August dates notable. Dr.
Lee de Forest had successfully broadcast the human voice some thirteen
years earlier. On an evening in 1907 he had taken two young women
to his cluttered experimental laboratory atop a building in midtown
New York a young Swedish concert soprano and a newspaper reporter.
Faced by the confusion of wires, batteries, and other queer apparatus
in the laboratory, the guests of the "father of radio broadcasting" were
skeptical. At length Dr. de Forest persuaded the soprano, Eugenia
Farrar, to sing two songs into the old-fashioned phonograph horn that
served as a microphone "I Love You Truly" and "Just A-wearyin'
for You." But the reporter remained unconvinced. She was scooped.

For the next day, in the rival New York Herald, Dr. de Forest found
a doubting little story to the effect that a Brooklyn Navy Yard wireless
operator said he had heard "the voice of an angel" coming out of the
air the night before.

The public was unimpressed, but de Forest continued his experi-
ments. His excitement, and that communicated to David Sarnoff and
other radio pioneers, were enough. In 1908 de Forest broadcast songs
by Enrico Caruso; in 1910 he offered his handful of amateur followers
Caruso, Madame Emmy Destinn, and others singing opera from the
stage of the Metropolitan. On November 7, 1916, the New Yorfe
American ran a wire to his experimental station at High Bridge, New
York, and de Forest broadcast returns from the Wilson-Hughes elec-
tion. They concluded with the statement that "Charles Evans Hughes
will be the next president of the United States"!

But World War I threw the emphasis of wireless experimentation
on message communication point-to-point wireless rather than on
broadcasting. Private operations were forbidden for the duration. It
was not until 1919 that the prohibition was lifted. In that year Dr.
Frank Conrad, assistant chief engineer of the Westinghouse Electric
and Manufacturing Company, who had begun broadcasting experi-

Ne\vs Takes the Air 3

ments in 1915, resumed his work and soon built up an astonishing
audience for his twice-weekly recorded music broadcasts from 8XK in
Pittsburgh. But it was only in 1920 that 8MK, later WWJ, made its
appeal for a regular popular audience.

Those first regular broadcasts from Detroit, however, were quickly
followed by a second series. Westinghouse, taking its cue from Con-
rad's success, set up a broadcasting station in Pittsburgh, and on:
November 2 opened it with news of that day's Harding-Cox presidential!
elections, obtained from the Pittsburgh Post. KDKA maintained a-
semiweekly schedule of broadcasts until December 1, when it went on.

a daily schedule.

j o

Each of these broadcasting pioneers had chosen a news event, one
sure of public interest, as the occasion for the station's initiation. But
there is no reason to think that either, in 1920, envisioned radio as a
medium capable of serious challenge to the newspaper as a purveyor
of news, much less as an advertising vehicle. Rather, each saw it as
a means of promotion of another enterprise. The backers of 8MK
pioneers in the use of the airplane and other devices in newspaper

WWJ and KDKA have long disputed the distinction of being the first
commercial station on the air with regular daily programs. The facts: 8MK
was licensed to the Radio News and Music Company, a de Forest sales
organization. The broadcasts beginning August 20, 1920, went out from
8MK 7 but they went out from the Detroit News plant, under News opera-
tion and declared sponsorship, using a "radiophone" owned by the Neivs.
On October 1 2, 1921, the News was issued a full commercial rather than an
experimental license, and its call letters became WBL; on March 3, 1922,
they became WWJ. Regular daily programs were maintained throughout
this period, and since.

KDKA was issued its full commercial license on October 27, 1920, and
opened broadcasting operations six days later, on November 2. The claims
of KDKA appear to be based on the facts that it always operated under the
call letters KDKA, and that its commercial license predated that of WWJ.

On August 20, 1936, Dr. de Forest said during an anniversary broadcast
from WWJ, "On the night of August 20, 1920, the first commercial radio
broadcast station in all the world was opened. . . . Not until eleven weeks
after its founding did WWJ share the channels of the air with a rival broad-
casting station. The honor of being second . . . fell to KDKA."

4 News by Radio

promotion thought of radio as a means of winning goodwill for the
News. The men behind KDKA were the men of Westingliouse Elec-
tric, which had a receiving set almost ready for the market and which
already saw ahead the radio wars with the newly-formed Radio Cor-
poration of America. Westingliouse realized that if American families
were to be persuaded to lay $125 on the line for the new machine,
regular and attractive programs had to be provided.

Entertainment that was the thing. And entertainment of a sort-
was the fare those two early stations offered.

Recognition of its promotional value was one of the two character-
istics of the usual newspaper attitude toward radio as the early 1920's
ran along. In the two years following the first broadcasts some hundred
dailies set up their own stations, according to an estimate by the
American Newspaper Publishers Association. Most of them followed
the standard pattern: 'Tut on good shows, advertise the paper." One
discordant, if prophetic, note came from the Kansas City Star's WD AF,
established in 1921. The Star's advertising department offered a com-
bination radio-time and newspaper-linage rate. The "commercialization
of radio" was rearing its horned head. But few advertisers took advan-
tage of the Star's offer, and few stations followed WDAF's lead.

The second characteristic was the marked friendliness of the press
to radio. Marconi's wireless telegraphy, de Forest's audion, Alexander-
son^ alternator, Jack Binns' famous distress call from the sinking
steamer Republic in 1909, communication by radio in World War I
all had been news. And the development of a great new industry was
news. Newspapers published radio logs; they devoted many columns
of general news space to the new entertainment medium. They even
furnished driblets of news for broadcast. The Philadelphia Public
Ledger, which didn't own a station, went to the length of recording
news bulletins for a Philadelphia station.

Whatever the validity of KDKA's claim as first regular broadcasting
station, there is no doubt that it has many radio news "firsts" to its
credit. On March 4, 1921, it read on the air a copy of President Har-
ding's inaugural address while the President was speaking in Washing-
ton. Through the spring it broadcast a number of notable speeches
given in Pittsburgh; Herbert Hoover, Colonel Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. T

News Takes the Air 5

Secretary of War Weeks were among the speakers.

On April 11 it invented a new kind of broadcast: on-the-spot sports
coverage. Johnny Ray and Johnny Dundee fought in Pittsburgh, and
Florent Gibson, of the Pittsburgh Post sports staff, described the event
before a microphone. On July 2 came the first of a long string of battles
of the century the fight between Jack Dempsey and Georges Car-
pentier at Boyle's Thirty Acres in Jersey City. Few heavyweight
matches have had the ballyhoo that built up the meeting of Dempsey
and the handsome Frenchman, and Westinghouse saw a chance to
capitalize. It planned to open a new station, WJZ, in the New York
area in a few months, and its engineers borrowed a transmitter from
the bitterly competitive General Electric Company and set it up in
railroad yards near the stadium. Major J. Andrew White, editor of an
early radio magazine, put the fight on the air. Westinghouse estimated
that some 200,000 listeners heard White's blow-by-blow account.

Soon after, KDKA began broadcasting big league baseball from
Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. It had already begun to include Department
of Agriculture market reports in its daily service, and this soon expanded
into a regular farm service hour. When WJZ opened on September
30, it made World Series baseball bulletins its inaugural feature.

All of which is to say that the news broadcasting of those early days
was largely built around special events, or aimed at specialized audi-
ences. By a few stations routine news was put on the air a news story
read out of the newspaper could fill a gap between Victor records as
well as anything else. But regular news programs to pull mass audi-
ences were hardly dreamed of.

Nevertheless, the first timid blows in what was to become a knock-
down conflict came as early as 1922. On February 20 the Associated
Press asked its 1,200 member newspapers not to permit the broadcast
of news that, according to its bylaws, was AP property. Apparently the
impulse behind this request was not a desire to hamper the develop-
ment of a competing agency for news dissemination, but rather an
attempt to protect what was, in effect, commercially valuable mer-
chandise. The AP was then, as now, a cooperative association of
newspapers; its news property consisted not only of news gathered by
its special correspondents, but also of all that the member newspapers

6 News by Radio

gathered. The AP, because of its direct control by the newspapers
themselves, has traditionally been close to the wishes of newspaper
owners and editors. And these men did not propose that their property
be used for gain by nonmembers.

The influence of the request was such that Westinghouse stations
(there were now four) agreed to discontinue their "news flashes/' But
the action of the AP did nothing to prevent radio use of news from
United Press, International News Service, or other sources. And the
request, though it may have thrown a temporary roadblock before
the expansion of newscasting, certainly did not prevent a good many
stations from lifting news telegraphic or local, AP or other from the
papers and putting it on the air.

The AP had, in fact, to backtrack in 1924. Its newspaperman
directorate decided that broadcasting baseball scores was no violation
of bylaws. It made an effort to keep returns of the 1924 national
election a newspaper secret, and it fined one member newspaper, the
Portland Oregonian, $100 on the paper's frank admission that AP
reports had been used by radio. But no action was taken against other
papers, many of which had unquestionably sinned (some, when the

NUMBER OF STANDARD BROADCASTING STATIONS IN THE UNITED STATES
(Federal Communications Commission statistics)

January 1, 1922

30

January 1, 1935 605

March 1, 1923

556

January 1,1936 632

October 1,1924

530

January 1, 1937 685

June 30, 192 5

571

January 1, 1938 721

June 30, 1926

528

January 1, 1939 764

February 2 3, 1927

733

January 1, 1940 814

July 1, 1928

677

January 1, 1941 882

November 9, 1929

618

January 1, 1942 923

July 1, 1930

612

January 1, 1943 917

July 1,1931

612

January 1, 1944 912

January 1, 1932

608

January 1, 1945 919*

( 943)

January 1, 1933

610

January 1, 1946 940*

(1,004)

January 1, 1934

591

January 1, 1947 1,062*

(1,524)

January 1, 1948 1,522*

(1,962)

* Stations licensed to broadcast. Fij

gures in parentheses include also construction

permits issued. Before 1945, the two fi

gures were nearly the same.

News Takes the Air 7

question was raised, said they had permitted radio use only of returns
from other than AP sources) . It was estimated that ten million radio
listeners had learned through the air of Calvin Coolidge's victory
before their newspapers reached them.

The AP lowered the bars further in 1925 when it voted to permit
broadcast of brief bulletins of news of "transcendent" importance.

Meantime, the newspapers were becoming aware of radio's growing
competition for the advertising dollar. At its 1925 convention the
American Newspaper Publishers Association, whose membership
represented most leading dailies, gave to the radio industry the un-
solicited (and unheeded) advice that it was likely to wring the neck
of its golden goose by larding its offerings with direct advertising.
Advertising, admonished the ANPA, might destroy the entertainment,
educational, and goodwill values of broadcasting. It voted that its
members refuse to give "free publicity" to programs involving direct
advertising.

Radio's response was a program of gigantic expansion.

This was signalized in 1926 by organization of the National Broad-
casting Company, and the next year by that of the Columbia Broad-
casting System. Network development had no immediate significance
as far as the broadcast of news was concerned. But it did provide a
formidable competitor in entertainment and advertising. Networks
could produce more costly and successful "shows" for their outlets
than could the individual stations; they could sell advertising on a
national basis. They could, and did.

In 1927 Congress recognized by adopting the Federal Radio Act
that broadcasting was going into long pants. High time, said the
industry. Regulation of radio had been under the antiquated Com-
munications Act of 1912, designed to govern primitive commercial
wireless traffic. Under this Act the assignment of wave lengths had
been in the hands of the Department of Commerce. The system had
fallen to pieces. It permitted stations to alter wave lengths almost at
will; jamming by conflicting broadcasts had become more the rule
than the exception, especially as the number of broadcasters mush-
roomed (more than 200 new stations had appeared in the eight months
preceding the Acts passage) . The new Act established the Federal

8 News by Radio

Radio Commission to assign frequencies and otherwise to administer
broadcasting. And it first introduced to radio the phrase 44 in the public
interest, convenience, and necessity" a phrase common to most public
utility legislation.

What, in radio terms, was "the public interest, convenience, and
necessity"?

As interpreted by the FRC and translated (sometimes freely) by the
broadcasting industry, it meant that radio schedules must include
offerings of social value. They were certain to include advertising, for
advertising, in the American system of broadcasting, paid the bills.
They were certain to include entertainment, for entertainment insured
that the advertising would be heard. But they had also to include
public service features features of educational value, features to edify
and instruct, to serve the public welfare. Features such as lectures,
"classical" music, programs designed to illuminate matters of public
concern.

Features such as news.

In the late 1920's news was of small importance to the commercial
purposes of broadcasting. Advertisers were little interested in news
programs in terms of sponsorship, for the very good reason that other
types of programs held greater audience appeal. From the broadcaster's
point of view, however, news programs had two appreciable advantages :
they helped to build up a station's, or a network's, hours of public
service programming; and they were easy and inexpensive to put on
the air. But the news problem was not yet one of radio's major concerns.
Newspapers, on the other hand, were becoming increasingly alarmed.
News was the prime commodity they had to sell to the public; advertis-
ing was the breath of life. Radio was trespassing in both fields. The
newspapers' fear of the trespasser led them into a false position a
position of meeting an irresistible force, not with an immovable
object, but with illogic and halfway concessions. Railroads had tried
to hamper the development of bus and truck transportation, and had
failed because bus and truck transportation had been a useful advance
in human intercourse. Newspapers, too, were to try to hamstring a
useful social advance; they, too, were to fail.
In the fall of 1928, the three great press services AP, UP, and INS

News Takes the Air 9

yielded to the extent of furnishing returns of the bitter Smith-Hoover
election to radio stations. Local newspapers in many cases cooperated
similarly with local broadcasters. But if they hoped thus to establish
a pattern of control of the amount of news that went into the nation's
microphones, they were disappointed. For the radio news of that
election served both to whet the appetite of many millions of listeners,
and to increase radio's interest in making news a regular part of its
daily menu. In December, for example, KFAB-Lincoln, Nebraska,
inaugurated two "editions" of a radio "newspaper" two daily broad-
casts of news. It hired George Kline away from his city editorship of
the Lincoln Star to direct them. Other stations developed similar
programs.

And late in 1930 KMPC-Beverly Hills, California, not only opened
a schedule of three fifteen-minute news shows daily, but organized its
own news-gathering service to implement them, Its Radio News Serv-
ice of America put ten reporters on the news runs regularly covered
by the Los Angeles newspapers, developed a string of out-of-town
correspondents, and went into what it described as "friendly competi-
tion" with all neighboring newspapers.

Such developments showed the direction of the wind. It was a wind
that newspaper publishers could hardly ignore. In their plants, their
staffs, and the news services that worked for them, they had invest-
ments of millions of dollars. Comparatively, radio investment was
small. Yet the newspapers saw the newcomer using their chief com-
modityoften "pirating" it at no expense, and putting it before an
audience minutes or hours before the newsboys could hawk it.

More important than that: October, 1929, had come and gone.
Newspaper "depression linage" in 1930 was 14 per cent below that
of 1929. There was every reason to think the decline in newspapers'
major income item would continue. In the face of that, radio adver-
tising income was booming.

Newspapers now had no doubt that they faced serious competition.
In 1929, the AP had again tried appeasement a relaxation of pro-
hibitions against members' broadcast of news to prevent members
from getting news for broadcast from other sources. But this was only
a halfway measure. It had effect only on radio stations with direct

10 News by Radio

connection with AP papers, a relatively small number. And the AP had
no effective policing method. The policy had little force.

So there was a rush by newspapers to get into the radio business.
Already about a hundred newspapers had radio connections. Others
began establishing stations, buying stations or setting up participating
or cooperative relationships with stations (the increase in number of
licensed stations from 1930 to 1938612 to 721 was somewhat
smaller than the increase in number of newspaper-radio affilia-
tions).

It is ironic that, when publishers became broadcasters, most of them
followed exactly the programming and advertising sales patterns
developed by radio. Some attempted to control sale of radio time so
as to favor their newspapers. Many thought of the broadcasting of
radio news as a means of promoting newspaper circulation "for
further details, read your Evening Bugle 1 ' and dependable observa-
tion suggests that they thought soundly. Newspaper sales have often
reached astonishing peaks just after radio has taken the cream off the
news (though radio got the break on the news of the Normandy in-
vasion in 1944, newspaper sales for the day were reported at 20 to 50
per cent above normal. The same kind of thing was true on V-E Day,
at President Roosevelt's death, and on many other occasions). Total
daily newspaper circulations reached new highs annually during the

ADVERTISING EXPENDITURES IN RADIO AND NEWSPAPERS, 1927 TO 1946
(in millions of dollars)

Radio Newspapers Radio Newspapers

1927 5 775 1937 145 600

1928 20 760 1938 145 520

1929 40 800 1939 170 525

1930 60 700 1940 175 535

1931 80 620 1941 225 610

1932 80 490 1942 245 580

1933 65 450 1943 325 665

1934 90 500 1944 400 645

1935 105 530 1945 470 770

1936 120 580 1946 490 965

Statistics from Printers' Ink annual summaries.

News Takes the Air 11

1940's, when radio news broadcasting was also on a mounting curve.
But in 1930 the only successful broadcasting pattern was that developed
by broadcasters, and no newspaper going into radio invented anything
new, or added anything to existing forms.

Moreover, the inroads of newspapers into the radio industry had
direct relation only to a minority of radio stations, and to a smaller
proportion of newspapers. The number of newspaper-radio station
affiliations has never reached more than about a third of the number
of all licensed stations, at the most liberal interpretation of newspaper-
radio association (that is, including situations with newspapers in
minority ownership ) . It has never reached above a sixth of all American
dailies, and only to about 3 per cent of the weeklies.

Nevertheless, in 1931 the panic was on. In Portland, Oregon, the
newspapers served notice on the radio stations that they would no
longer publish radio logs unless stations paid for them at regular
advertising rates (the stations refused; the newspapers withdrew the
logs and five days later put them back, unpaid, because reader de-
mand for them was so great). In Kansas City the Star, an unusually
powerful paper, succeeded in a like effort. In Minnesota the state
Editorial Association passed a futile resolution. The Pennsylvania
Newspaper Publishers Association approved a resolution with three
resounding "whereases" and four "be it resolveds" speaking of the
"jealous eye" of the broadcasting industry as it destroyed "the surprise
value of the news," and not only threatening to "use their best efforts
to outlaw any station or chain that seeks to usurp the newspaper
function" but also calling on members and the news services to cease
furnishing news to stations. California Newspaper Publishers Associa-
tion took similar action in 1932. And the American Newspaper Pub-
lishers Association was told by its counsel, Elisha Hanson, that any
"deal" with other organizations such as the AP to curtail radio's
use of news would violate restraint-of-trade laws.

Another influence that doubtless added to newspaper jitters was the
fact that a small Washington news service the Consolidated Press,
headed by David Lawrence of the United States Daily offered news
to stations. It procured four customers not enough to alter circum-
stances substantially, but a foreshadowing of later developments.

12 News by Radio

Much of the burden of the fight, through 1932, fell on the unhappy
shoulders of the AP. The UP and the INS, being private, profit-making
enterprises in the business of selling news, were somewhat less subject
to newspaper influence. But the AP's job was to "furnish" rather than
sell news to its newspaper-owners, and it was in the middle. A ques-
tionnaire circulated among members showed heavy opposition to use
of AP news for broadcast. The AP's concession on news of "trans-
cendent" importance still held, however, and when the infant son of
Colonel Charles A. Lindbergh was kidnaped in March of 1932, AP
joined with other services in helping radio to do a notable job of
spreading the story and appealing to the kidnapers to return the child.
Radio reporters themselves worked on this story, alongside the news-
paper and press service men; and such later notables as Boake Carter
and Gabriel Heatter, among others, first began attracting sizable radio
audiences by their Lindbergh-case broadcasts.

But the AP directorate decided against radio use of its 1932 election
returns. The surprise of member publishers, then, was great when on
election night they heard both CBS and NBC broadcasting AP bul-
letins on the election of Franklin D. Roosevelt. What had happened
was this: Kent Cooper, AP's general manager, had learned at the last
minute that UP had offered to sell election news to CBS for $1,000.
To forestall such "subsidy of a competitor," Cooper decided to release
the news free to the networks. Meantime, though Cooper didn't know
it, UP had withdrawn its offer, after "consultation" with newspaper
clients had convinced Karl Bickel, UP president, that the income
received would not give UP papers "a very considerable reduction"
in the cost of election returns. The result was that AP news went on
the air. But so did UP and INS news; UP printers already installed in
network headquarters were "mysteriously" turned on, and CBS had
made a protective arrangement for coverage with the New York Times
and the New York Journal, whose service included INS wire reports*
Incidentally, two Hearst writers, Frederic William Wile and Edwin

Of 1,197 AP members in the winter of 1932-1933, 1,103 answered the
questionnaire. Majorities, usually heavy, favored denial of AP news to radio
chains, and even denial of the right of members to broadcast AP news.
Only 223 did any news broadcasting.

News Takes the Air 13

C. Hill, announced the bulk of the returns for CBS; NBC had as its
stars Arthur Brisbane, Walter Lippmann, and George B. Parker.

While the newspapers and the press services had thus been fumbling,
radio went smoothly on its way. Baseball, football, and other sports
broadcasts had long since become accepted radio features in fact, as
far back as 1926 and 1927, when the Tunney-Dempsey fights had gone
on the air, the Scripps-Howard newspapers had sponsored the broad-
casts. Commander Byrd had broadcast from the South Pole under
New York Times auspices. The Republican and Democratic conven-
tions of 1932 went on coast-to-coast hook-ups. On September 22, radio
listeners heard William Beebe talking from his bathysphere as he was
lowered 2,200 feet into the Atlantic off Bermuda. Microphones were
set up in courtrooms until judicial and public disapproval frowned
them out to pick up play-by-play accounts of sensational trials.

Most such broadcasts were in the nature of what came to be called
"special events/' rather than the simpler straight news programs to
which the newspapers especially objected. But they all aided in es-
tablishing radio in the public mind as a purveyor of news. And they
fortified the radio industry in its determination to do as it liked. If
the public asked news of the broadcasters, news the public should
have.

As 1933 came in, then, radio listeners heard full accounts of the
attempt to assassinate Franklin Roosevelt at Miami. The new Presi-
dent's inaugural on March 4 went out on a record-breaking interna-
tional hookup. Eight days later Roosevelt initiated the "fireside chat"
an event that was periodically to combine the President's striking
"radio personality" and exceedingly skillful scripts with whatever news
he chose to present, all in a manner to build bigger and bigger radio
audiences among a people desperate for relief from the depression.

Moreover, the number of regular news programs was increasing.
Though AP remained intransigent, UP and INS were selling news to
stations willing to pay the tolls. A few newspapers owning radio
stations the Milwaukee Journal, the Chicago Tribune, the Hearst
chain among them were frankly insisting that radio news was a legiti-
mate part of their business. And many stations with neither newspaper
tie-ups nor regular news services were coolly lifting news "pirating"

14 News by Radio

it, the newspapers said from the press and putting it into America's

living rooms before the newspapers reached them.

A new factor in the struggle that was shaping up grew out of the
energetic efforts of E. H. Harris, editor of the Indiana Richmond
Palladium and chairman of the ANPA's radio committee. The ANPA
for the most part represented the larger dailies; Harris wanted broader
representation, especially to include the smaller papers that felt them-
selves the worst sufferers from radio competition. He formed a Pub-
lishers National Radio Committee, drew up a statement of the
newspapers' grievances, and with it went to the AP and ANPA con-
ventions in April.

ANPA at once responded by approving several "recommendations'*
offered by Harris "recommendations" because the Association wished
to avoid the danger of a charge of conspiracy in restraint of trade.
Among them:

That the Association should protest against the selling or giving away of
news in advance of newspaper publication, and should take legal action in
cases of piracy.

"That all news bulletins broadcast, in fairness to newspapers, should be
in the briefest possible form and prepared to whet the appetite of the
listener for more news to be obtained through newspapers; and that credit
for broadcasting all national and international news be given to all news-
papers of the United States"

That newspaper-owned stations be asked to limit local news broadcasts to
brief bulletins, in order not to injure papers not affiliated with stations.

That free insertion of radio programs in newspapers be condemned.

Extreme as some of these proposals appear, they indicated the
temper of the newspaper owners. When the AP convention met, it
made another attempt to dam the flow of news to radio. It voted to bar

One day in the spring of 1933 Harry Fairley, editor of the Minnesota
Fairmont Sentinel, went to a restaurant for lunch. From the restaurant's
radio, tuned to a South Dakota station, he heard word for word the AP news
report on which he had been working for the last hour. This station had not
bought the news its announcer was reading from an early edition of a
local paper. Fairley's Sentinel would not reach its subscribers for another
three hours. . . . Fairley's experience, and his rage, found counterparts all
over the country.

News Takes the Air 15

AP news from network use, to limit AP members with radio affiliations
to brief bulletins on matters of major importance, to set for such
bulletins prescribed broadcast hours that would give newspapers a
time advantage, and to make special assessments against members
using AP news for broadcast. It was hoped that the mild concessions
in this arrangement would obviate attempts by radio interests at news-
gathering. It is dimly possible that the hope might have been justified
had AP gone unsupported. But publishers put pressure on the other
two big news services, and shortly UP and INS announced not only
similar regulations for their clients' use of news but also cessation of
sale of news direct to radio stations.
That was the back-breaking straw. The battle was joined.

The "Press-Radio War"

The Columbia Broadcasting System responded vigorously. Under the
energetic direction of Paul White, former UP man and CBS public-
ity director, it set up Columbia News Service, Inc. White established
a main office in New York, with bureaus in Washington, Chicago,
Los Angeles, and London. He gathered staffs of competent newspaper-
men for the bureaus, and supplemented them with some eight hundred
string correspondentsmen and women, mostly newspaper reporters,
paid good rates for each bulletin they sent to a bureau. He made
arrangements for procuring foreign news from the British Exchange
Telegraph news agency, and financial news from the Dow-Jones serv-
ice. By late September he had his pretentious organization ready for
full-strength operation, and it provided news for two daily fifteen-
minute newscasts by Boake Carter and H. V. Kaltenborn on the net-
work.

NBC did not go to such lengths. Its "radio city room" in New York
continued the scissors-and-paste brand of news-gathering it had been
employing for some time; Abe Schechter, news director, made arrange-
ments with the Consolidated Press for supplementary service. Its news,
like that of CBS, was available for sponsorship.

Powerful as they were, the networks in 1934 served only a few more
than a third of American broadcasting stations. But this did not confine
newscasting to their affiliates. The "independent" stations continued

16 News by Radio

their news broadcasts, evidently using early editions of newspapers just
as they had before the press services' edict came out, Editor & Publisher,
the newspaper trade journal, reported in May that New York City
newscasts were "as voluminous and complete" as usual. News com-
mentators such as Thomas and Carter, to whose use of up-to-the-
minute news as basis for their "patter" the newspapers also objected,
continued on their way.

In Sioux Falls, South Dakota, the AP brought suit against Station
KSOO, charging piracy of news. A Federal court issued an injunction
denying the station the right to use news gathered at others' "labor
and expense" during the period in which the news retained commercial
value. The injunction fixed this period at not less than twenty-four
hours, thus differing from decisions in analogous cases, which usually
set the commercial life of news at no longer than the period between
publication of a morning and a succeeding evening paper. Today the
period is usually considered to be about four to six hours.

Late in 1934 the AP instituted another suit against a radio station
which, after long litigation that took it to the United States Supreme
Court, resulted in a draw. In October the Washington Bellingham
Herald obtained an injunction forbidding Station KVOS-Bellingham
to use news from the Herald and two other AP papers, the Seattle Times
and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. On December 18 a Federal district
court judge in Seattle dissolved the injunction on the ground that
publication of the news in the papers threw it into the public domain.
A year later the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco re*
instated the injunction, upholding the principle that a news-gatherer

NUMBER OF STATIONS AFFILIATED WITH MAJOR NETWORKS

NBC Red*

NBC Blue*

CBS

Mutual t

Total

1927

23

18

13

54

1934

65

62

97

4

228

1944

142

195

142

223

702

1947

160

240

166

384

950

* NBC Red dropped the "Red" from its title in 1942, when NBC Blue
became the independent Blue Network Company. Blue become the Amer-
ican Broadcasting Company in 1945.

t Mutual commenced operations in 1934.

News Takes the Air 17

(in this case, the AP) retains a protectable property right in news
during its commercial life. But on December 14, 1936, the Supreme
Court dodged the issue by a decision that the case was not within the
jurisdiction of Federal courts, since the AP had failed to prove pro-
spective damage of $3,000, the minimum sum necessary to establish
it as a Federal case.

The KSOO case was almost the newspapers' only solace in 1933.
Broadcast of news continued to expand. And the newspapers continued
to exert pressure on radio to limit its news programs. One weapon was
the threat of omission of radio logs a threat that had little effect.
Another was a hint that publishers would attempt to bring pressure on
the Federal Radio Commission to prevent the renewal of licenses of
stations that did not see the light. Moreover, the fact that NBC was
greatly handicapped in newscasting since it had not developed an
extensive news-gathering organization caused something of a split in
radio's front. CBS was not eager to carry the torch alone. Late in 1933
publishers were able to announce that the two networks had appealed
to the Harris committee for a meeting to discuss "the long-standing
dispute between the broadcasters and the newspapers." Harris and the
committee, at the same time, were ready to make some concessions.

On December 11 Harris convened his committee with representa-
tives of radio and the press services a meeting attended by enough
notables so that it might lead to a showdown. Present were President
William S. Paley of CBS and President M. H. Aylesworth of NBC;
Roy Howard of Scripps-Howard Newspapers; Harry Bitner of Hearst
Newspapers; J. H. Gortatowsky of INS, President Karl Bickel of UP,
and Lloyd Stratton, executive assistant to General Manager Kent
Cooper of AP; Alfred J. McCosker, president of NAB; General Mana-
ger L. B. Palmer of ANPA; and four ranking members of the Harris
committee.

The group conferred for two days. When it adjourned, it had drawn
up a "Press-Radio Plan" which it hoped would satisfy broadcasters
and at the same time protect the press. It decreed that:

It would be administered by a seven-man committee one each from
ANPA, AP, INS, UP, NAB, CBS, NBC under chairmanship of the ANPA
representative and subject to review by the Harris committee.

r<

18 News by Radio

Each of the three press associations would provide full daily reports, on
which the Press-Radio Bureau could base two daily broadcasts of five
minutes each, composed of bulletins of not more than thirty words on any
one news event.

The five-minute broadcasts should be put on the air no earlier than 9:30
A.M. or 9 P.M.

The broadcasts should not be sold for commercial purposes.

CBS and NBC would undertake no news-gathering efforts on their own.

The broadcasters would pay the costs of the Press-Radio service.

Occasional news bulletins of transcendent importance would be pro-
vided to broadcasters, to be used "in such manner as to stimulate public
interest in the reading of newspapers."

Radio news commentators would be limited to "generalization and back-
ground of general news situations," eschewing spot news.

Here were concessions on both sides. The networks would agree to
abide by the news schedule as outlined, would use only the news
furnished by the Bureau, would use it without sponsorship, and would
retire from the news-gathering business. The newspaper industry and
the press services would not attempt to prevent newscasting would,
in fact, "cooperate" to the extent of making highlight coverage avail-
able to any broadcaster who wished to pay for it.

The plan was ratified, with slight modifications, by all parties in
January, 1934. But it had four serious deficiencies:

It did not bind UP and INS to refrain from selling news to radio. In fact,
both agencies repeated their reservation of the previous April, when they
had withdrawn such service that they would abandon their position
should the necessities of competition demand it.

It did nothing to forestall the organization of new news services.

It did not represent the views of a majority of the radio stations the in-
dependent, unaffiliated stations which had consistently, and not always
silently, held to a belief in their rights to broadcast news as often as they
wished, and under sponsorship if they wished; nor of a number of news-
paper-owned stations which considered the plan an invasion of their private
affairs (the Chicago Tribune, owning WGN, had already stated that "the
people are entitled to the service for which the Tribune is equipped") .

Most important of all, it flouted "the public interest, convenience, and
necessity." The public had given abundant evidence that it wanted radio
news. This all-powerful influence the newspapers proposed, and the radio
signers of the plan agreed, to by-pass. This in spite of the fact that broad-

News Takes ike Air 19

casters had come to depend heavily on news programs, often unsponsored,
as one of the means of demonstrating their public service.

All of which meant that the plan had two strikes on it before it came
to bat. _ o

The Press-Radio Bureau made its appearance on March 1, 1934.
Under the direction of James W. Barrett, city editor of the New York
World at the time of its death in 1931, a New York headquarters and
a Los Angeles branch were set up. The Bureau opened business with
125 subscribers to the New York service and 48 to the Los Angeles;
these figures climbed to 160 and 65 within six months.

Press-Radio was not, however, greeted with unrestrained cheers.
Senator Clarence C. Dill of Washington, co-author of the new com-
munications bill then in Congress, called it "news suppression." Her-
bert Moore, the truculent and aggressive news editor of the disbanded
Columbia News Service, said it was a conspiracy to restrict news. H. V.
Kaltenborn, already known as an ace CBS commentator, declared that
"the only saving grace of this agreement is that it will not work." And
Harris, now chairman of the Press-Radio Committee, warned radio
stations pompously that the Committee "would not vacillate" in its
attitude toward stations refusing to cooperate.

The most striking immediate development, however one apparently
foreseen by no signers of the agreement came even before March 1 .
WNAC-Boston, with the discontinuance of Columbia's news service,
engaged a former State House reporter of the Boston Transcript,
Richard Grant, to build a news-gathering organization to cover New
England for the regional Yankee Network. Grant put on a battle in the
capitol itself that resulted in a bill giving him space in the pressroom,
in spite of newspaper dissent. He hired telephone reporters in forty-
five New England centers, and within a year had spent $90,000 gather-
ing news for the eight Yankee stations.

On the Pacific coast, Radio News Service of America organized
four years before by KMPC at Beverly Hills announced a program
of expansion. The American Newscasting Association and, a year
later, the American Broadcasters News Association made their ap-
pearance. Individual stations here and there set up tentative news-
gathering operations. And, most important, Herbert Moore's new

20 News by Radio

"cooperative service" started on the night of February 28 to distribute
news to twenty stations throughout the country.

Two impulses appear to have led Moore into the new venture. One
was the obvious opportunity to build a successful business. The other
was that he was outraged at what he considered the selfishness and
shortsightedness of the newspaper interests. As early as December, 1933,
when plans to disband Columbia News Service were announced, he
started to plan a cooperative radio news organization. Working fast,
he managed to open his service a few hours ahead of the beginning of
Press-Radio operations.

The cooperative plan soon developed faults something Moore said
later he had expected. Western stations dominated its structure, and
eastern stations protested the preponderance of western news. On
March 21, therefore, Moore announced the formation of Transradio
Press Service, Inc., a commercial news-gathering and news-selling
organization. As key clients it had the Yankee Network in New Eng-
land, WLS-Chicago (one of the stations which had set up its own news
agency) , KWK-St. Louis, KSTP-St. Paul, and KNX-Hollywood. With-
in a few months, Moore described Transradio as having bureaus in till
the principal cities of the United States, special correspondents in
several hundred cities and towns abroad, and a total organization of
7,000 workers. On April 23 he had arranged with the French news
service, Havas, for 12,000 cablese words daily of foreign news (he
shifted to Reuters on January 5, 1935).

By Moore's account, he quickly accumulated long-term contracts to
assure a revenue of $100,000 a year enough to pay operating costs.
His original clientele of twenty stations grew to "nearly 100" in the
summer, and 1 50 by December. Transradio's fees followed the ' Vhat-
the-traffic-will-bear" pattern established by UP and INS; Moore
reported that his subscribers were paying variously from $5.00 to $500
a week, according to their "rating/'

The service furnished by Transradio ranged, according to the indi-
vidual contract, from 5,000 to 30,000 words a day, with an average of
10,000 enough for four fifteen-minute broadcasts plus flashes on
important news breaks. It was couched in telegraphic form, to save
wire tolls a form that required rewriting in the radio station, or the

News Takes the Air 21

most skillful kind of ad libbing by the announcer. This service was
supplemented in August by the organization of Radio News Associa-
tion, Inc., a subsidiary to transmit news to subscribers by short wave
(a service less expensive than that using telegraph wires) . A significant
feature of the new service was that its news was written for radio, not
for newspaper use (more about this in Chapter 5).

In short, though none of the other radio news services made much of
a dent, Transradio appeared a thumping success. It immediately drew
the cordial and united enmity of the newspapers and the press services.
They ridiculed its service; they disputed Moore's claims about the
extent of its organization, saying that many of its "bureaus" consisted
of nothing more than reporters or radio announcers who turned to
Transradio duties after their regular day's work was done; they accused
it of being none too careful as to where it got its news. They railed
at the fact that Transradio had no objection to news sponsorship.
Their annoyance was increased when, in June, 1935, Moore added a
newspaper to his clientele the Georgia Athens Times. The Times
was followed before the end of 1935 by the Pennsylvania Harrisburg
Telegraph.

In May of 1935, Moore struck back. He filed a suit against all mem-
bers of the Press-Radio Committee, including some 1,400 newspaper
members of AP and ANPA, asking of a New York Federal court not
only a judgment of $1,170,000 in damages but also a permanent in-
junction restraining them from interfering with his business. Here
Transradio was to run up against bitter legal opposition, and the suit
was to languish for years without decision. It was finally settled out of
court.

Two other 1934 events, of importance in the history of American broad-
casting, had relatively little immediate effect on newscasting. One was the
organization, on July 11, of the Federal Communications Commission,
succeeding the Federal Radio Commission, to administer the greatly
broadened provisions of the Federal Communications Act of 1934. The
other was the appearance on September 30 of a new "cooperative" network,
the Mutual Broadcasting System, with four key stations headed by WGN
of the Chicago Tribune and WOR of Bamberger's Department Store,
Newark. Two years later Mutual expanded country-wide with the addition
of the Don Lee Network in California, and other stations.

22 News by Radio

Press-Radio, meantime, was not doing so well. On March 1, 1935
at the end of its first year of operation the two branches of the Bureau
reported 245 subscribers. This meant that E. H. Harris's policy of non-
vacillation had failed to influence some 360 stations, most of which
presumably were broadcasting news gained from Transradio, from
one of the competing services, or from some "illegitimate 7 ' source. At
its April meeting, the Press-Radio Committee decided to continue
operations. But it acknowledged that news broadcasting competition
had become a reality; and it also approved the UP-INS reservation of
the right to sell news for broadcasting if competition should force them
to it. Further, it authorized its sixteen newspaper-owned subscribers
to use AP news to make up four fifteen-minute Press-Radio broadcasts
daily. At the ANPA meeting late in the month the revised plan, with
its concessions, was approved, and the newspaper industry sat back
with the hope that the problem was properly pigeon-holed for another

year.

Radio Gets the News

Within a month the pigeon-hole exploded. INS and UP announced
their decision to offer news for broadcasting to any newspaper client
owning or affiliated with a radio station, with no limitation on sponsor-
ship. Shortly thereafter they extended this halfway measure to offer
their services to any radio station, without strings. By July, UP's leased
wire was serving eighteen points.

The UP-INS decision was the measure of Transradio's success. The
agency by this time reported 185 subscribers. Moreover, of 114 news-
paper-affiliated stations, 27 were buying, experimenting with, or nego-
tiating for, Transradio service. The UP and the INS could not look
with equanimity on a situation that forced into other hands contracts
they might as well have had.

To meet competition which its operations had been expected to circum-
vent, the Press-Radio Bureau issued in its first year the astonishing number
of 4,670 special bulletins "flashes" on news of "transcendent" importance
in addition to its two regular broadcasts each day. Twenty-three hundred
of these dealt with the Hauptmann trial; hundreds of the others with the
1934 elections, the World Series, and such "transcendent" events.

News Takes the Air 23

Other factors, of course, underlay the competitive situation. A prime
reason for the attractiveness of Transradio news rather than that of
Press-Radio was that it could be sold to advertisers. News sponsorship
continued to be the whipping boy of the publishers; in its April, 1935, .
statement the ANPA's radio committee had expressed the fear that
sponsorship would let advertisers censor and edit news not alone for
their own advertising purposes but also in accord with their social
prejudices. Thus, said the statement, the "news would degenerate into
propaganda for the advertiser." There was also the newspapers 7 under-
standable opposition to permitting radio to take the cream off the
news, especially if the news were to be furnished to radio by press serv-
ices of which they, through membership or subscription, were the chief
supports. Such a practice, as they pointed out, would mean that radio
would in effect be getting news at their expense.

Underlying all the objections was the fact that radio advertising
appropriations and radio's annual advertising income, after a brief
recession at the pit of the depression in 1933, were steadily climbing.
Newspaper advertising income, on the other hand, had declined
steadily from 1929 to 1933, and the mild increase in 1934 was too small
to be very encouraging.

If the newspaper position in the dispute was essentially actuated by
self-interest rather than concern for the public, radio's was hardly
different. The radio networks had, according to a writer in Harper's,
"run up the white flag" in concurring in the Press-Radio plan. Though
they paid lip service to the principle that news dissemination was as
much radio's province as the newspapers', they did little to implement
it. The stations that ignored Press-Radio did so for a very good reason:
that the public wanted news, and that advertisers therefore wanted to
sponsor it. But no overwhelming passion for the public was discernible
in their attitude.

In brief, the controlling factors on both sides of the dispute were
economic. Herbert Moore, commenting acidly on the defection of UP
and INS, said that broadcasters were not interested in a free news
service, no matter how good, unless they could sell it to advertisers.
And he added, "The broadcasters who are actuated by a spirit of public

24 News by Radio

service are about as rare as that kind of newspaper publisher/'

The effect on Press-Radio was immediate. Haakon H. Hammer,
former Pacific coast field representative of the Bureau, proposed an
elaborate plan for extending the amount of news it furnished, making
the service attractive enough to enlist all radio stations, and permitting
sponsorship of news under certain conditions. The plan went by the
board. On August 1, 1935, the Los Angeles branch of the Bureau gave
up the ghost. The New York office, under Barrett, was continued annu-
ally by the ANPA through 1938 and until the spring meeting of 1939.
Then, with no word of explanation or regret, it was allowed to vanish.

Meantime, the response to UP and INS offers was equally immedi-
ate. UP, taking a leaf from Transradio's book, announced that it
would set up a special staff to edit news for the ear rather than the eye.
By November 1, UP showed a list of some fifty radio clients, and INS's
numbered nearly seventy. AP further relaxed its regulations so that
newspaper members owning stations could use its news on the air, but
maintained its restrictions against sponsorship. Transradio, having won
a victory and, with it, dangerous competition, continued as the leading
purveyor of news to the stations.

After 1935, the heat of battle subsided. The next three years were

Newspaper fears that sponsorship of news might lead to advertisers'
censorship, editing, and distortion have not been borne out by experience.
One deterrent is unquestionably the fact that news service contracts with
radio clients contain clauses giving the services the right of cancellation if,
in their judgment, their news is being broadcast in distorted form. No
cases of this kind of action have been reported. Moreover, the FCC would
look with narrowed eye on cases of distortion.

A third factor, especially in the latter years of newscasting, as radio
newsrooms become manned by more and more competent editors, is that
few radio stations are willing to put themselves in the position of yielding
to advertiser requests for withholding or alteration of news. Unquestionably
such requests have been made, and will be made. But the number of
refusals is not far from the number of requests. Most broadcasters sell news
on the basis of complete and inviolate control of the news content of broad-
casts; most newsrooms themselves, indeed, operate on the principle of
independence even of station management, as far as news content and
emphasis are concerned. Innumerable cases could be quoted to support these
generalizations.

News Takes the Air 25

marked only by the gradual increase in the number of radio stations
buying news service, by improvement in the quality of service (on July
27, 1936, UP put into operation an eighteen-hour, forty-word-a-minute
teleprinter system with news specially edited for radio), and more and
more sale of news for sponsorship.

Not that newspaper circles gave up overnight their objections to
radio dissemination of news. In 1935 the California Newspaper Pub-
lishers Association and the Inland Daily Press Association vainly in-
voked Federal aid, one to "return to the people the air channels now
used by commercial interests," the other to "preserve the true news
value by requiring all subject matter under the title of news to be broad-
cast only as unsponsored editorial service. . . ." In 1936, when its radio
committee approved continuation of Press-Radio for another year, the
ANPA asked careful government supervision of radio to guard against
its monopolistic features. A year later it suggested that Congress enact
a law requiring the FCC to designate "an appropriate time each day
for radio stations to broadcast newspaper and press association news

RADIO STATIONS SUBSCRIBING TO MAJOR NEWS

SERVICES, 1936-1948

Year

Associated

International

Transradio

United

Press

News Service

Press

Press

Total

1936

72

188*

65

325

1937

92

230*

121

443

1938

117

212

212

541

1939

141

177

293

611

1940

65

172

175

331

743

1941

121

155

163

404

843

1942

238

178

79

461

956

1943

301

136

49

497

983

1944

344

134

42

504

1,024

1945

428

121

20

536

1,105

1946

488

99

15

544

1,146

1947

698

116

12

663

1,389

1948

842

128

7

796

1,783

* TP totals for 1935 and 1936 include 25 and 18 Radio News Associa-
tion clients (RNA was a TP subsidiary) .

The AP first made its news available for sponsored broadcasts in 1939.
It inaugurated Press Association, as its radio-news branch, in March, 1941 .

Figures (from Broadcasting Yearbooks, 1936 to 1948) are as of January
1 of each year, except the 1947 figures, which are as of February 15. (In
April of 1948 AP reported that it served 966 radio stations, and UP that
it served "more than 900.")

2<5 News by Radio

reports as furnished by the Press-Radio Bureau without exploitation by
the advertisers/' None of these resolutions and suggestions got much
farther than the minute books.

For news broadcasting was firmly established, and neither the FCC
nor any other government agency showed disposition to restrict it. In-
deed, events were conspiring to increase rather than lessen public in-
terest in radio news. On December 11, 1936, King Edward VIII made a
world-wide broadcast of his famous "woman I love" abdication a news
event that drew what was described as the largest audience ever to
listen to a speech. On October 1, 1937, Senator Hugo L. Black chose
radio broadcast as the medium for replying to critics of his Ku Klux
Klan affiliation: by use of radio, he said, he could prevent "editing or
interpretation" of his remarks. Late in 1938, Fulton Lewis, Jr., opened
a campaign for the admission of radio reporters to Senate and House
press galleries. He won his fight in April, 1939, when Congress passed
the necessary lawan event that was followed immediately by inclu-
sion of radio men in White House press conferences. (But it was not
until 1948 that radio newsmen won the right to active membership in
Washington's famous National Press Club.)

Just before these last events had come Munich.

After Munich

The networks had been experimenting for some years with broad-
casts from radio reporters abroad. In 1932, CBS had brought to its
affiliates ninety-three programs from seventeen foreign sources eleven
of them from the Geneva Disarmament Conference. NBC celebrated
its tenth anniversary, in 1936, by offering a conversation between Gugli-
elino Marconi, cruising on his yacht off Genoa, and three radio notables
in this country. In the same year an NBC reporter brought America
first news of the death of King George V. H. V. Kaltenborn, hidden in
a haystack between Loyalist and Rebel lines in Spain, with a portable
transmitter on his back, brought to CBS listeners a startling account of
civil war in action, complete with live sound effects.

Both networks, though they had given up domestic news-gathering,
had envisioned the possibilities of foreign news broadcasting. NBC's
Abe Schechter and CBS's Paul White had been building up foreign

News Takes the Air 27

staffs. NBC had foreign staff men in London, Paris, Geneva, Shanghai;
CBS in London, Paris, Berlin, other centers. The public had responded
favorably to the foreign broadcasts actually rebroadcasts, for they
came to network headquarters via short wave and were converted to
standard wave lengths. But until September of 1938 they were essen-
tially novelties: descriptions of colorful events, human interest shows.
They had not established themselves as integral parts of the news
picture.

Then came the Sudeten crisis in Czechoslovakia. Suddenly Europe
was on the verge of war. America was distant, but it remembered 1917.
The networks saw an opportunity, and what they did with their half-
built foreign structures firmly established foreign news broadcasting
among America's listeners.

During those days in September, when Chamberlain was commuting
between London and southern Germany and Hitler was flaunting the
specter of war, CBS and NBC put into American homes more than a
thousand foreign broadcasts, from more than two hundred radio re-
porters. Edward Murrow from London, William L. Shirer from Prague,
John T. Whitaker from Paris, Max Jordan from Munich these men
and many others gave radio listeners on-the-spot news of world-shaking
events more rapidly and more colorfully than they had ever had it be-
fore. And in CBS's New York studio Kaltenborn sat before a micro
phone virtually for twenty solid days and analyzed, coordinated,
interpreted. He went on the air many times a day. And he built up,
during the Munich crisis, perhaps the largest radio news audience any
man had ever boasted.

It appears that CBS and NBC undertook, and carried off, this note-
worthy effort without precisely foreseeing its results. They were think-
ing, at least in part, promotionally neither was willing for the other
to get a commanding lead in the new field. They had employed top-
ranking newsmen for the work, and the newsmen perhaps more than
their employers realized that they were engaged in a gigantic public
service enterprise.

But it quickly developed that the enterprise could be turned into dol-
lars. The radio audience ate up the foreign broadcasts. It built up a
new interest in radio news, one that showed 19 per cent of the listeners

28 News by Radio

to evening network broadcasts during September tuned to news shows.
This meant two things: That newscasting had to become more im-
portant than ever in radio programming; and that advertisers were go-
ing to be more eager than ever to make news the bait to draw listeners
to their commercials,

After Munich the tempo of foreign news broadcasting slowed down,
But the networks, not wishing to be caught short, and not too im-
pressed by Chamberlain's "peace in our time/' went immediately about
the business of building up elaborate foreign organizations. At home,
both the radio chains and the individual stations took steps to increase
their news facilities.

And newspaper objections to radio news subsided from piercing
shrieks to a grumble, then a mutter. Publishers were recognizing the
validity of a statement by Mark Ethridge, general manager of the
Louisville Courier-Journal and, for an interim period in 1938, president
of NAB, that (in May, 1939) "the newspaper business has been fight-
ing a rear-guard action for ten years and a losing action, at that/' At
the April, 1939, ANPA radio committee meeting, which among other
things signalized the demise of the Press-Radio Bureau, the publishers
satisfied themselves with speaking mildly of "new and impressive
records of cooperation between press and radio in public service enter-
prises" such as the Munich coverage, and describing the news-sponsor-
ship problem only as a "questionable practice adverse to the prestige
and larger interests of the medium indulging in it ... a question yet
to be answered."

Further acceptance of the inevitable came in May, when the AP
lifted its ban on sponsorship of news furnished to members. Certain
restrictions to protect newspapers without radio affiliations were set up.

An ANPA questionnaire showed that the number of papers that pub-
lished radio listings as paid matter only had increased from 14 per cent of
dailies in 1938 to 37 per cent in 1939; and that the number that published
trade names of sponsors in such listings had decreased from 9 per cent in
1938 to 3 per cent in 1939. But an ANPA estimate of the number of
dailies using radio logs as paid matter in 1948 put the figure at "probably
less than 5 per cent"; a Broadcasting Magazine survey in mid-1948 put it
at 19 per cent.

News Takes tlic Air 29

Direct sale of AP news to radio stations was not yet permitted that
was to come later.

Meantime, as this problem shook itself down and the networks built
their foreign staffs, the next logical step was developing: the installation
of newsrooms in scores of stations throughout the country. The net-
works had started operations of this kind in their key stations New
York, Washington, Chicago, Hollywood before Munich. A number
of the larger independent or chain-affiliated stations, and a few of the
smaller ones in cities where keen newspaper-radio competition existed,
had also done so. But after Munich, as the necessity for radio news be-
came imperative, newsrooms began to spring up everywhere.

When German troops marched into Poland in September of 1939,
all these preparations, domestic and foreign, justified themselves. There
occurred the inevitable surge in the number of newscasts and in public
interest in them, together with an immediate sprint among advertisers
to sponsor the news. As in 1938, the upswing leveled off after the first
shock of the news had cooled. But the new plateau of interest was
higher than before.

The next six years were marked by a series of remarkable news broad-
casts from abroad not only the regularly-scheduled news shows but a
number of striking "special events." On December 17, 1939, James
Bowen of NBC thrilled the world when, from Montevideo, he de-
scribed what he saw as the Germans scuttled the battered "Graf Spee"
just outside the Buenos Aires harbor. When Hitler received the con-
quered French in the historic wagon lit in Compiegne Forest to accept
their surrender, CBS's Shirer and William C. Kerker of NBC broadcast
the sadly stirring tale and gave the news to America more than two
hours before Germany and France got it. Ed Murrow, Eric Sevareid,
Vincent Sheean, and J. B. Priestley put on a gripping picture of London
under the Nazi blitz on August 24, 1940.

Later, radio gave America its first news of the Japanese attack on
Pearl Harbor; Cecil Brown made history with his stories of the fall of

In the first days of September, 1939, radio offered more news than
some of its fans wanted. A university coed in one Midwestern city said
heatedly, "I hope the war ends before Thursday. If it doesn't, they may
cancel The Adventures of Lulubelle* again."

30 News by Radio

Singapore. Sevareid, turning a hand-crank to generate transmitter
power, sent out (for rebroadcast) the story of his parachute hop from
a falling plane into the Indo-Burmese jungle in August, 1943. Murrow
put into American living rooms one of the most stirring of all broad-
casts when, on December 3, he described the great Berlin air raid of the
night before a raid on which he had ridden as an observer. The two
invasions of France brought scores of notable broadcasts outstanding
among them the play-by-play account given by Blue correspondent
George Hicks from the deck of a warship off the Norman coast. Hicks
did not actually broadcast the account, but rather made a recording of
it at 12:10 A.M. on June 7, just as JU88 bombers plunged at the ship.
The recording was sent to London and "processed for security''; then it
went on short wave to all network headquarters in New York, there to
be re-recorded. That night all four networks broadcast it.

Not only from radio's regular foreign correspondents but also from
the men who made the news did America's radio audience keep abreast
of the war's progress. Chamberlain's reply to Hitler and the British
Empire's declaration of war went into microphones on September 3,
1939, hooked to world-wide radio circuits. On September 8, 1943, Gen-
eral D wight D. Eisenhower used radio to announce the unconditional
surrender of Italy. Roosevelt, Churchill, and many other leaders broad-
cast news to the world.

Meantime, radio news facilities at home continued to expand. And
advertisers grew increasingly eager for a share in the profits to be de-
rived from radio news sponsorship.

The AP at last concluded that it could no longer ignore the income'
that sale of radio news would bring. Its bylaws made no provision for
radio station membership in the AP; consequently, in 1940, it set up a

Sevareid experienced heartbreaks on the first day of World War II. Great
Britain had gone to war at 11 A.M. Sevareid had a broadcast from Paris
scheduled at noon. Just before airtime he learned that France would
officially be "in" at 5 P.M. Though other reporters had the story, censors
had refused to clear it; Sevareid's script, However, was passed by a censor
without comment. It would be a world-wide scoop. Just as the minute
hand approached 12, the studio engineer stuck his head out of his booth
and announced that New York had decided to cancel the broadcast.

News Takes tlie Air 3J

subsidiary organization, Press Association, Inc. PA put into operation
in March of the following year a teleprinter service earning AP news
rewritten for radio, and offered it for outright sale to radio stations. The
prohibition on sponsorship was removed.

Many of the stalwarts of the Associated Press were unhappy about
the departure. They pointed out that radio stations were buying PA
and AP service at prices much lower than the cost of membership to
newspapers in direct geographical competition. Nevertheless, the di-
rectors of AP were forced to the conclusion that, if income from the
sale of news to radio could be used to decrease newspaper membership
assessments, they must not turn it down. Moreover, they could not
remain deaf to pleas from some newspaper members that owned
stations; nor to the credits they heard daylong from their radios:
"This news from the United Press" or "International News Service
says . . ." Promotionally and competitively, AP had to get into the
picture.

By the close of 1941, then, four full-time news services were available
to radio newsrooms. Transradio, the veteran, had been in the field since
1934; UP and INS since 1935. Transradio provided a radio news service
only; INS, a newspaper report only; UP and PA, both radio and news-
paper wires. UP and PA delivered forty words a minute until July of

COMMERCIAL EVENING NETWORK TIME DEVOTED TO
"COMMENTATORS, NEWS AND TALKS"

Winter, 1938-1939 6.7%

Summer, 1939

7.5%

Winter, 1939-1940 10.0

Summer, 1940

11.9

Winter, 1940-1941 12.3

Summer, 1941

12.8

Winter, 1941-1942 10.9

Summer, 1942

15.5

Winter, 1942-1943 16.4

Summer, 1943

186

Winter, 1943-1944 18.0

Summer, 1944

17.5

Winter-Spring, 1945 17.9

Summer, 1945

19.3

Figures from Broadcasting Yearbooks,

1940-1946.

Radio news on the four major networks increased by more than 300 per
cent during the war years. A study made in 1945 by the Duane Jones Com-
pany, a radio advertising agency, showed 1,251 hours of news on the nets
in 1939, 5,522 hours in 1944. Sponsored news shows accounted for 40 per
cent of the time (497) in 1939, for 48 per cent (2,651) in 1944.

32 News by Radio

1943, when both sped up their radio printers to sixty words a minute,
the speed of their newspaper wires.

The growth of radio news to big-time operation brought forth more
than once the suggestion that the radio industry should organize its
own worldwide newsgathering service. Don M. Taylor, news editor of
WLAC-Nashville, pointed out in 1945 that broadcasting already had,
in its newsrooms and its widely-spread correspondents, the nucleus of
such an organization; and many radio men agreed with him. But the
proposal never arrived at the action stage, largely because thorough-
going competition with the existing news services would be a gigantic,
and a costly, undertaking. Moreover, it is said by many editors, the
existing agencies are serving satisfactorily. Why seek a new responsi-
bility?

During this period the number of newspaper-affiliated radio stations
had increased only slightly (partly because construction and expan-
sion in the number of radio stations was halted by wartime restrictions) .
But the FCC had looked with misgivings at what it considered the
growing danger of monopolistic ownership of the two major channels
of mass communication, and in March of 1941, under the leadership of
soft-spoken but hard-driving Chairman James Lawrence Fly (Wendell
Willkie once called him "the most dangerous man in the United States
to have on the other side"), the Commission ordered an investiga-
tion. Senator Dill, a sponsor of the Radio Act of 1927, had defined the
problem, but had not argued it. It had appeared again in 1934, when
the Communications Act passed Congress; Representative Otha D,
Wearin of Iowa had introduced a bill in 1937 "to prohibit unified and
monopolistic control of broadcasting facilities and printed publica-
tions" (the bill never reached a vote) ; in various actions between 1937
and 1941 the FCC had indicated that it believed the problem would

A thorough analysis of the relationship between press and radio from
1920 to 1941 is contained in a long manuscript prepared by Ralph D,
Casey, director of the University of Minnesota School of Journalism, for
the Newspaper-Radio Committee. It puts special emphasis on the attitudes
of the ANPA, the news services, and the Press-Radio Bureau. It is available
only in the files of the Newspaper-Radio Committee and in Dr. Casey's
personal files.

News Takes the Air 33

some day demand a hearing. Fly became chairman in July, 1939, and
evidence suggests that he considered the dangers in communications
monopoly one of the major questions for FCC solution.

Hearings began in July of 1941 and continued spasmodically until
January of 1942. Arrayed on the FCC side was a battery of attorneys,
researchers, and expert witnesses; on the other the Newspaper-Radio
Committee, organized by radio station-owning newspapers, under the
chairmanship of Harold Hough of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and
stations WBAP and KGKO. The FCC argued that unified ownership
of a newspaper and a radio station, especially in cities without news-
paper or radio competition, concentrated control of the fare that was
offered the public in a manner that was at best threatening to the public
interest. Hough's witnesses newspaper and radio men, constitutional
lawyers, researchers in communications presented the opinion that
licenses should be granted to radio stations solely on the merits of their
capacity to operate "in the public interest, convenience, and necessity/'
without reference to their ownership or affiliations; and that the experi-
ence of newspapers in serving news to the public meant that they would
be better equipped to serve up radio news (in which the FCC was
especially interested) than would stations without command of such
background and experience.

For two years after the last public hearing, the case remained un-
settled. Meantime the injunction set up by the FCC when the hearings
opened, withholding new licenses for broadcasting stations from news-
paper applicants pending the decision, remained in force. At length,
in January, 1944, when it was sharply indicated that the FCC proposed
to make the injunction permanent, the Commission suddenly an-
nounced that the investigation had been dropped, that no further ac-
tion would be taken, and that licenses would be granted in the future
strictly on the merits of individual applications.

FCC policy in the year and a half following the close of the 1 war, when the
number of standard (AM) licenses granted rose by nearly 60 per cent,
seemed to favor non-newspaper applicants in contested situations. A storm
arose over FCC hesitation to grant an FM license to the New York Daily
News. The FCC based its hesitation on a questioning of News editorial

(continued on next page)

34 News by Radio

An FCC antimonopoly move of a different nature, however, was
more effective. In 1941 the Commission ordered that no organization
should own more than one network (the Supreme Court approved the
order in 1943), and that no two major stations in the same area, or in
overlapping areas, should be under one ownership. The first order was
directed at NBC's great Red and Blue networks; it resulted in the sale
of the Blue to Edward J. Noble in 1943 for $8,000,000 (it had opened
on January 5, 1942, as the Blue Network Company, and changed in
the summer of 1945 to the American Broadcasting Company), and
in NBC's dropping the designation "Red" for its remaining network.
The other caused the sale of a number of radio stations to new owners
and among the new owners were a considerable percentage of news-
papers. In 1944, for example, the New York Times, the New York
Post, the Washington Post, and the Chicago Sun were among news-
papers that became radio station owners. Many of the sales were made
at prices fantastically high.

Radio newsmen found that one wartime headache did not require
as much aspirin as they feared. The voluntary censorship code for war-
time broadcasting banned weather reports, stories of military and

policy toward racial and religious minorities. After spectacular hearings
during which the Commission was charged with left-wing zealotry and the
attempt to censor, a preliminary decision to grant the license to the News
favoring this applicant over WLTB-The New York Post on the ground
that to do so would promote radio competition between the two news-
papers was announced. But late in 1947 the FCC changed its mind and
gave the frequency to a Methodist church applicant, saying that such a
grant to a non-newspaper applicant would promote diversity in the owner-
ship of media and competition in the dissemination of news and informa-
tion.

In spite of the apparent policy, the Commission approved a great many
newspaper applications in this period, In a Florida case it accepted a local
newspaper's application over that of a competitor who owned another
station. It granted an FM license to the Providence Journal (by a 4 to 3
decision) in spite of vigorous protests by state and municipal officials and
official bodies. On October 1, 1946, 204 of the 540 FM licenses granted
(37.8 percent) had gone to newspapers. The 1948 Broadcasting Yearbook
showed 445 standard and 288 FM stations affiliated with newspaper in-
terests.

News Takes the Air 35

naval activity that were not properly released by authorities, some
types of on-the-spot broadcasts, and a few other classifications of news.
But it did not seriously interfere with most news broadcasting. Byron
Price, director of the Office of Censorship, was an ardent devotee of
the principle of giving both press and radio the maximum freedom
consistent with national security, and successive versions of the code
(first issued January 16, 1942; revised June 15, 1942, February 10, 1943,
and December 10, 1943) became successively less restrictive. One week
after the war in Europe ended on May 15, 1945 a final revision
eliminated entirely restrictions on weather news, types of programs
and foreign language broadcasts, and lightened most other provisions.
The Office of Censorship, high in its praise of American broadcasting
for its voluntary cooperation, said that violations of the code had been
few, unimportant, and mostly unintentional All networks and most
individual newsrooms adopted their own codes for safe wartime broad-
casting; the NAB on December 19, 1941, had issued a detailed guide
with whose suggestions broadcasters were in accord both in principle
and practice.

The wartime manpower shortage hampered development of radio
newsrooms in many stations. Aware of the increasing shortage, the
NAB, the National Association of State Universities, and the American
Association of Schools and Departments of Journalism in 1944 under-
took to increase the flow of university-trained workers into radio news-
rooms, and to heighten their competence. This move led to formation
of the Council on Radio Journalism, a body of ten representatives
chosen by the NAB and the AASDJ; among immediate Council
actions were a statement of standards for education for radio newsroom
workers and the erection of a system of "internships" in strong news-
rooms for teachers of radio news work (see Appendix B). This, how-
ever, was a long-range program, not one to produce overnight results.

Meanwhile, radio news editors unable to employ men more and
more frequently employed women. The fact that women in many
cases turned out work equal in every way to that of men amazed some
of their employers, and opened the door at least by a crack to their
postwar employment. But not many of them remained on their jobs
two years after V-J Day.

36 News by Radio

The firm and accepted status of radio news after the war was shown
by a number of signposts. Among them:

More than 40 per cent of radio stations said, in response to a Broadcasting
Magazine survey late in 1946, that they had added or planned to add more
news shows to their schedules.

Radio listeners declared in a number of postwar surveys that their general
preference among all types of radio programs was the news program. This
was usually brought out by some such question as, "If you could have only
one of all the types of programs now on the air, which one would you
choose?" Without an important dissent, the largest percentages chose news.

The NAB Research Department reported late in 1946 that program
listings were carried by newspapers for 96 per cent of all stations 81 per
cent of them without charge to stations.

Newspapers throughout the country began to institute regular columns
of comment and criticism on radio offerings. Prominent among such col-
umns were those by John Crosby in the New York Herald Tribune and John
T. McManus in PM. More than a hundred dailies and some weeklies carry
such columns, among them the Chicago Sun, the Detroit Ne\vs, the In-
dianapolis Star, the San Francisco Chronicle. . . . Perhaps stimulated by
newspaper criticism was the weekly "CBS Views the Press" show inaugu-
rated at WCBS-New York in the summer of 1947 a sharply critical pro-
gram prepared and broadcast by Don Hollcnbeck, CBS commentator,
which immediately drew newspaper fire, but also newspaper praise.

The Associated Press in 1947 rewrote its bylaws to permit radio stations
to become "associate members" of the AP a type of membership that
gives all the rights enjoyed by newspapers except voting privileges. (This
move was in part an outgrowth of the Supreme Court decision enjoining the
AP against * 'monopolistic" practices.) By the end of the year 456 stations
had applied for, and been admitted to, associate membership. But E. R.
Vadeboncoeur of WSYR-Syracusc and WINR-Binghamton, who was at
the time chairman of the NAB News Committee, rejected such "unfair and
one-sided" membership on the ground that, without voting privilege, it
subjected the associate member to regulation in which he had no voice. A
scattering of stations supported this view.

o

Technically, commercial radio was forced to a standstill during the
war. Though experimental work in electronics made astonishing strides
in the war years, much of it was "war-related," and almost none of it
reached the commercial broadcasting stations. New construction was
halted by priorities and FCC dicta.

News Takes the Air 37

In the postwar years, the industry worked full-tilt to recoup lost
time. In four fields facsimile broadcasting, news transmission, tele-
vision, frequency modulation of direct importance to news operations r
developments began to appear.

Facsimile broadcasting the process of using radio waves to actuate
a receiving set that reproduces graphically, for the eye rather than the
ear, printed matter, pictures, and the like has been heralded as a
direct competitor to the newspaper. On February 15, 1938, Broad-
casting Magazine "published" the first "facsimile newspaper" at the
NAB convention in Washington, as an experimental demonstration.
A few s-tations were licensed by the FCC for experimentation. In its
early stages facsimile reproduction did not worry newspapers much, for
the "printing" it produced was hard to read, hard to handle, and
extremely slow in contrast to oral broadcasting. Postwar developments,
however, have met many of these deficiencies. In 1946 a group of
Eastern radio station-owning newspapers banded together for experi-
ment, and their laboratories succeeded in producing by FM broad-
casting four typewriter-paper-sized sheets reproducing pages of a news-
paper; the process took fifteen minutes, and the reading quality was
"little impaired from the original." FM station WGHF-New York
broadcast UP news to facsimile receiving sets in airliners, and one air
line planned installation of receivers in all its big planes. In 1947 the
Miami Herald announced plans for experimental facsimile reproduc-
tion of the paper. Early in 1948 WFIL-Philadelphia began regular
facsimile news broadcasting.

Though these developments are all in the experimental stage, they
suggest future possibilities. Meantime the Bankers Trust Company in
New York is using facsimile for interbranch communication. Facsimile
is certain to come into general use for specialized reporting such as
market news and stock quotations; it may develop much wider im-
portance.

Two new high-speed methods of news transmission appeared within
two years after the war. Globe Wireless, Ltd., introduced equipment
for sending 6,000 words an hour (in contrast to the usual teletype
speed of 3,600 words) by radio. And RCA announced its amazing
Ultrafax, which can, "by application of television principles to message

38 News by Radio

transmission," reproduce a million words of copy a minute. Still in the

laboratory, Ultrafax's use in news communication remains to be

developed.

Television, after years of experiment, made its first public splash in
April of 1939, when NBC and RCA put on the first "video" programs
coincident with the opening of the New York World's Fair. The war
soon put television behind scientists' doors. And television's immediate
postwar years were beclouded by disputes over the development of
color television, the FCC's allocations of frequencies, and other prob-
lems. But by mid-1948 the number of television receiving sets in use
was approaching half a million three-quarters of them in homes.
About thirty stations were actually telecasting, and seventy more
promised to be on the air by the end of the year.

Dispute in these postwar years as to whether television would become
generally effective for newscasting gave way to broad optimism regard-
ing its possibilities. It had already established itself as a prime tool
in on-the-spot newscasts football games, prize fights, parades, inaugu-
rations, horse races (a London newspaper for some years before the
war used a television image of important races as a source of racing
news) . Television carried the Republican and Democratic conventions
of 1948, on video's first elaborate network, from Richmond to Boston
along the Atlantic coast. Production costs and technical and production
difficulties offered unsolved problems in its use in general reporting;
but its enthusiastic prophets had no doubt that these would be met.

The news services and the networks both contributed, early in 1948,
to meeting them. UP, linked with Acme Newspictures, offered two
five-minute spot news-film shows daily, together with additional special
features a combination of newsreels and spot "stills." INS and Inter-
national News Photos provided newsreel and other pictorial copy for
the first daily ten-minute sponsored telenews show. (AP had dabbled
briefly with a similar service, but early in 1948 gave it up. ) The networks
extended their own news-film activities, made contracts with television
affiliates, and paid elaborate attention to special events.

The individual station located off the limited television network
lines faced the most difficult problem, because of production prob-
lems and costs. Telenews offerings made up largely of "still" pictures

News Takes the Air 39

with dubbed-in voice won few converts. But this was telenews in its
infancy. Its development is certain to be rapid; exactly what form it
may take not even the television men themselves know.

Frequency modulation FM offers vast possibilities for expansion
of radio news broadcasting. FM provides better reception than does
"standard" broadcasting; with its relatively low area coverage (an FM
beam does not often range more than fifty miles) and its high selec-
tivity, it opens the door for thousands of new stations (563 on the air
on July 1, 1948, nearly as many more under FCC authorization); its
installation and operation costs are usually lower than those of stand-
ard broadcasting. Where there are today some hundreds of radio
newsrooms, depending heavily on wire services, there may tomorrow
be thousands, each in direct "trade area" competition with newspapers.
It is significant that the high proportion of newspaper applications for
FM licenses in 1941 was one of the impulses behind the FCC investiga-
tion of newspaper-radio ownership.

FM operations will not attain full strength until litigation regarding
FM patents and licenses to use them is settled, and until radio manu-
facturers make receiving sets plentiful and inexpensive. But some day,
according to many radio men, FM broadcasting may take the lead
from AM.

2

Who Listens? And How?

Forty million families maintain homes in the United States. Nearly
thirty-eight million of them, about 94 per cent, have radios in their
living rooms, and about half of the 94 per cent have "second sets" in
bedrooms, rumpus rooms, or somewhere else. Nearly a tenth of the
families own portable radios. Nearly a fifth of them have receiving
sets in their automobiles.

In other words, there are more than sixty million radio receiving
sets in the United States. With an average of two-plus listeners to
each set, every man, woman, and child might be listening to the radio
at one time.

How many of them do listen? What determines whether they
listen? How do they listen? What do they want from their radios?
And what are they given? What effect on listening have such factors
as the bulk of the family pay envelope, the geographical areas in which
they live, the season of the year, the hour of the day, the environment,
their educational background, their sex?

And, especially, what are their attitudes toward radio news?

o

Paint yourself a mental picture of an "average" radio listening
group. You are certain to put it in a living room. Perhaps you'll see in
the picture a man a grocer, a lawyer, a welder his wife, and one or
two others. It will be evening. Likely not all the "listeners" are listening
only one or more of them may be reading, or darning socks, or play-
ing gin rummy. From time to time one of them may get up and twist
the dial, or even shut off the current.

If that's your picture, you've hit it about right. Most radio listening
is in the living room. Most of it occurs within the broad reaches of the
"middle class" home. More radios are turned on in evenings than in
daytime. The average radio audience is about two and a half persons.

40

Who Listens? And How? 41

Few radios remain tuned to one station for long periods.

The living room picture doesn't, of course, tell the whole story.
Radios are also blaring, daylong and often nightlong, in restaurants,
barber shops, pool rooms, club lounges, streamlined trains, university
Unions. They are turned on in automobiles and even in football
stadia where their owners are watching the very touchdown runs being
described by announcers sitting a few rows above them. But broadcast-
ing men have learned, from experience and statistics, to think of the
living room audience as their prime group of listeners.

That means a number of things. It means, first of all, that the
audience is a mass audience the living rooms for a given program
may be on Park Avenue, on a ranch in Arizona, and every place in
between. The groups sitting in them include every kind of people.
And the essential aim of the radio program, in most cases, must be

This discussion summarizes, rather than exhausts, the surveys that have
told the radio industry what it knows, statistically and with considerable
precision, about the radio audience. Reports of such surveys appear in books,
in the trade press, in broadcasters' and advertisers' files, in university li-
braries, and elsewhere. Every worker with radio programming including
the radio news worker will profit by acquainting himself with some of
them. Among significant books:

Cantril, Hadlcy, The Invasion From Mars. Princeton, N. J., Princeton Uni-
versity Press, 1940.

, and Allport, Gordon, The Psychology of Radio. New York, Harper

and Brothers, 1935.

Chappcll, M. N., and Hooper, C. E., Radio Audience Measurement. New
York, Stephen Daye, 1944.

Lazarsfeld, Paul F., Radio and the Printed Page. New York, Duell, Sloan
and Pcarce, 1940.

, and Stanton, Frank, Radio Research, 1941. New York, Duell,

Sloan and Pearce, 1941.

9 an( i 7 Radio Research, 1942-1943. New York, Duell, Sloan

and Pcarce, 1944.
-, and Field, Harry, The People Look at Radio. Chapel Hill, N. C.,

University of North Carolina Press, 1946.

Lumley, F. H., Measurement in Radio. Columbus, O., Ohio State Uni-
versity, 1934.

NAB, Radio Audience Measurement (pamphlet). Washington, D. C.,
Association of Broadcasters, 1946.

42 News by Radio

to achieve a common denominator not necessarily the lowest that
will hold appeal for everybody.

And it means that the program must not only hold positive appeal
but that, on the negative side, it must avoid offense. More of this, as
it applies to news, in Chapter 3.

Not all those living room radios, of course, are turned on. In the
evening hours, 6 to 10:30, from January, 1941, to December, 1946, the
high monthly averages of sets in use, a little more than 30 per cent,
came in December, January, and February; the lows, just under 20
per cent, in July and August. In daytime during the same years, the
highs of about 17 per cent came in winter, the lows of about 13 per
cent in summer.

The twin peaks of radio listening to given programs occurred on
December 9, 1941, just after Pearl Harbor, and on February 23, 1942.
On each occasion, each at 10 P.M. EWT, the program was a speech
by President Roosevelt. The Hooper rating for each speech was nearly
80 (eight of every ten sets tuned to it). The daytime record is also
held by FDR a 65 rating for his appeal for declaration of war on
Japan at noon of December 8, 1941. These percentages are far out of
line with ordinary experience. Even Mr. Roosevelt, the most powerful
attraction American radio has known, more commonly drew ratings
in the 40's and 50's. President Truman's highest rating was 47.4 (April
17, 1945, at 8:30 P.M., just after Mr. Roosevelt's death); Winston
Churchill's best was 45. The most successful sponsored network pro-
grams in the evenings, on the same basis, rarely surpass 40; fewer than
a fifth of such programs average above 20.

Translating ratings into terms of total audience is a difficult business.
It involves not only the percentage of respondents, but also the sizes
of individual audiences. The Hooper organization figures that Mr.
Roosevelt's two peak audiences were in the neighborhood of sixty
million adults, with an undetermined number of younger listeners-
The Hooper rating is "the percentage of total calls in which the re-
spondents report that they are listening to a given program being broadcast
at that time." If 1,000 calls are made during a fifteen-minute period, and
150 respondents report themselves listening to a single program on the air
in the period, the rating of the program is 1 5.

Who Listens? And How? 43

perhaps half the population of the nation.

These were national audiences, as are those of the network shows.
Moreover, they were without competition all networks were broad-
casting them. An audience for a one-network program is almost certain
to be smaller. That for a non-network, local program is relatively tiny.

Nevertheless, such a program rarely attracts an audience numbered
in less than thousands. If it does, it is jerked in a hurry. An essential
fact about radio broadcasting is that it is broadcasting that it is aimed
at a mass audience.

The ratings point up two other facts: That radio audiences are larger
in the evening than in the daytime; and that they are larger in winter
than in summer.

Both facts relate to the hours at which the living room is likely to
be best populated. In summers, the world gets out of doors. In winters,
it stays home. Listeners are more likely to be at home in the evenings
than in the daytime. Sunday evenings have the largest living room
groups. Advertisers know this, and they also know which other evenings
are "best." They buy radio time accordingly.

Many factors cause temporary variations in audience size. During the
war gasoline rationing increased living room populations. But heavy em-
ployment on a round-the-clock basis, bulging incomes, growth of the armed
forces, and obsolescence, disrepair, or unavailability of receiving sets de-
creased them.

Spectacular news events always build audiences. On the evening of De-
cember 7, 1941, between 7 and 10:30 o'clock, the average of sets in use was
47.2; on D-Day, June 6, 1944, it was 40.7. On the evening of November 7,
1944 day of the Roosevclt-Dewey election it was 50, with a peak be-
tween 9 and 10 o'clock of 56.6. Morning listening on August 10, 1945
V-J Day was double that of a normal morning; evening of the same day
was 65 per cent above normal.

At the end of 1943 the curves of sets in use and of ''available audience/'
which had risen fairly steadily since Pearl Harbor, with seasonable varia-
tions, began to level off, and through 1944 radio audiences were somewhat
smaller than in 1943. In 1945, thanks largely to such events as the death
of Mr. Roosevelt, V-E Day, and V-J Day, they rose slightly. In 1946, the
war over, another mild decline in sets in use appeared. (Hooper experts said
that disruption in radio-listening habits growing out of return of daylight-
saving time was in some degree responsible for the decline.)

44 News by Radio

The manner of living room listening is something for radio writers
to think about. Often a program is tuned into a living room by one
member of a family over the protest of other members. This means
that some ears may be glued to the radio while others within its reach
may be sealed against it, or at best listening casually. Many housewives
keep radios going all day, as they work at household tasks, but actually
hear little of what is broadcast. Some listening is purposeful and aware,
but much is aimless.

Listening to radio news is likely to be purposeful and concentrated.
Many thousands of listeners tune to news programs only, and listen
carefully. That any listener must listen carefully if he is to hear a pro-
gram is a matter to be discussed more fully later.

Several other factors are of importance in determining the size of
the audience for any given program: What the audience measurement
men call "economic level," what they call "cultural level," sex, age,
and geographical situation.

On the whole, homes at the higher economic levels those of high
rental values, those whose pay envelopes are fattest are least likely to
listen to their radios (though they are the homes most likely to have
second and third receiving sets) . These are the homes whose occupants
can most easily indulge in other forms of recreation. The listening
pattern follows the economic pattern faithfully, but in inverse order
the lower the living standard, the higher the amount of radio listening.
Studies indicate that this holds true down to the lowest income level,
at which listening decreases slightly in contrast to the level just above-
perhaps because homes at this level are most likely to be among the
small percentage not equipped with radios.

The cultural level pattern follows the same outline. In general, men
and women with college degrees listen less frequently, and for shorter
periods, than those without them; those who have been through high
school listen less than those who haven't; those with less than high
school education are at the top of the listening scale. It is likely that
these generalizations apply also to those who, without extensive formal
education, have substituted "cultural" experience and personal learning
for schooling; but no usable scale for identifying such individuals has-
been devised.

Who Listens? And How? 45

It has also been found as would be expected that the better
educated (which is the minority) constitute the most likely audience
for "serious" programs: Symphony music, sophisticated shows like
"Information Please," discussion programs like "Town Meeting of
the Air" and the "Chicago Round Table," erudite news commentators
like Raymond Swing. But it does not follow that they constitute the
largest portion of audiences for such shows. Their total number is
smaller than that of those down the cultural ladder, and a higher
percentage of listenership among them may amount to a smaller total
than a lower percentage of a larger group.

The factor of -where the listener lives is significant in two major
directions: his section of the country, and his placement according to
the urban-rural classification. Stations broadcasting for their own
regions only attempt to suit programs to the particular tastes and needs
of their listeners; nationally-broadcast shows must run the chance that
some areas will be more receptive than others. Added to this is the
element of time-differential. The program put on a national hook-up
at 9 P.M. in New York goes into Pacific coast homes at 6 P.M.; that
from Hollywood at 9 P.M. finds Atlantic seaboard listeners in bed at
midnight. (Often programs facing this problem are not used by sections
of a network where the time-differential is unfavorable, but are re-
broadcast at more opportune times. One network, ABC, has an elab-
orate rebroadcast schedule to meet the difficulty.)

There is marked difference in the program preferences of urban and
rural listeners. NBC's Farm and Home Hour, designed especially for
farm families, is an obvious recognition of this variable; but the differ-
ences in taste affect response to many other types of programs. More-
over, rural audiences have been shown to run proportionately larger
in the daytime than those in the cities, and proportionately smaller
in the evening.

Sex produces another variable: women listen more than men, and
to different programs. Age, too: those under 40, on the whole, listen
more than those over 40.

46 News by Radio

What Do They Want?

What do listeners want to listen to?

A guide from which general conclusions can be drawn is the amount
of sponsored evening network time devoted to various categories of
programs. These are the shows offered when the radio audience is
largest; they are the shows that advertisers are willing to gamble
millions on. The advertisers* offerings undoubtedly lag somewhat
behind audience tastes; they are subject to the whim of sponsors, and
to sponsors' occasional inability to develop the types of offerings they
might prefer. But on the whole they represent a considered judgment
as to what the living room audiences will take a judgment backed
in many cases by highly intricate, expensive, and reliable audience
measurement.

Evening network advertisers, as shown in the accompanying table,
have put a good half of their money down on plays and variety shows:
plays as presented by the Lux Radio Theatre (the most consistently
successful of all such programs), the Screen Guild Players, Mercury
Theatre (melodrama, comedy, serial drama, serious "unit-drama");
and variety shows such as Fibber McGee and Molly, Bergen and
McCarthy, Jack Benny, Bob Hope.

TYPES OF PROGRAMS FOR WHICH SPONSORS PAY NETWORK RATES

These figures show the percentages of sponsored evening network time
devoted to seven broad classifications of programs. Each column represents
the period from October of one year through September of the next. The
figures are approximations drawn from Cooperative Analysis of Broad-
casting charts published in Broadcasting Yearbooks, 1939 to 1945.

1937- 1938- 1939- 1940- 1941- 1942- 1943-
ProgramType 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 Z944

Dramatic shows

27.0

29.0

26.5

28.2

304

29.0

27.8

Variety shows

26.6

-25.8

23.4

17.6

20.6

18.8

19.1

Audience participation

8.6

14.6

18.0

21.1

16.0

15.5

11.1

News, commentators,

talks

12.0

7.0

11.0

12.6

13.2

17.5

17.8

Popular music

17.9

18.2

10.9

12.0

11.5

11.5

12,8

Familiar music

*

#

6.9

5.0

5.6

5.6

49

Serious music

7.9

5.4

3.3

3.5

2.7

2.1

3.2

* Familiar music included under popular music.

Who Listens? And How? 47

Third in the list for the seven-year period is the audience participa-
tion show -'Take It or Leave It," Kay Kyser, Dr. Quiz. Fourth comes
the "news, commentator, talks" category Winchell, Elmer Davis,
Fulton Lewis, Heatter, Lowell Thomas. Lowest in the list are the
music categories: popular music as represented "by the Hit Parade,
Kraft Music Hall, Fitch Bandwagon; familiar or oldtime music and
classical and semiclassical music at the bottom.

Analysis of the table shows that the percentage of dramatic shows
remains astonishingly constant over the years; that variety shows and
all types of music show a gradual decline; that audience participation
shows started low, climbed to a peak, and slipped badly; and that
shows relating to news, with one departure from pattern, increased
steadily until, in the final two years, they held a healthy third place.
(Figures computed on a somewhat different basis showed substantially
the same relationships for succeeding years.)

The rise of audience-interest during the war years is suggested by a
system of indexing news-listening developed by C. E. Hooper. Hooper
arrives at his index by multiplying the average rating of news programs
by the number of sponsored broadcast hours. Taking the 1940 index
as a base of 100 per cent, Hooper finds the indices rising to 433 in
1943, then falling to 412 in 144, 380 in 1945, 258 in 1946, and 261 in
1947. Though there are fallacies in this "rating" it does not give
weight, for example, to the fact that unsponsored news shows are not
included it indicates that opportunity for news-listening as well as
the amount of news-listening are far higher after the war than before.

Another type of rating is that made by various surveys of listenership
to individual shows. The CAB ratings, made annually for two decades,
consistently showed variety programs as attracting the largest audiences.
Jack Benny and the Fibber McGee and Molly show have ranked
highest over the years, with Bob Hope, Charlie McCarthy, and Fred
Allen near them. The remainder of the first ten among sponsored
evening network shows, by this rating, is usually made up of dramatic
and popular music programs. But in the summer of 1943, when the
top variety shows were on vacation, an audience participation show
ranked fourth, and Walter Winchell's news broadcast sneaked into
tenth position; it held this place through the 1943-1944 winter months,

48 News by Radio

and in the summers of 1944 and 1945 went to first place. Three other
news shows made the summer lists of leaders in 1944 and 1945
Lowell Thomas, 4 'March of Time/ 7 and Gabriel Heatter.

Differing forms of audience measurement show differing results.
An early survey reported by Cantril and Allport showed familiar music
to be most popular with the average audience, popular music second,
and news third. And, as already reported in Chapter 1, a number of
surveys during the war years or just after the war conducted by the
National Opinion Research Center at Denver, by the Department of
Agriculture, by CBS, and by a number of other agencies which may
be considered both disinterested and accurate showed news programs
as the type of fare most in demand among radio audiences.

What all these varying data appear to show is that entertainment
preferably light entertainment remains the ranking attraction to the
average radio listener. But there is no doubt that, as Radio Audience
Measurement cautiously puts it, "the growth of the news program
since the beginning of 1940 is one of the more remarkable phenomena
in radio broadcasting." The rise of the news or news-related program
in sponsored evening network time (and a like rise in the daily sched-
ules of virtually every individual station in America) show radio- and
advertiser-knowledge that news attracts mass audiences. Indeed, radio
time salesmen have complained that prospective buyers clamor for
more news shows than could possibly be put on the air.

This underlines an important factor: that there is a very definite
ceiling on the number of news shows any one station, or network, can
present. An entire evening might be devoted to variety shows, or
musical shows, or drama, without danger of repetition in anything
more than general pattern. Details would vary widely. But there is
only so much news available; all newsrooms get it from the same
sources; even in a time of fast-breaking war news the change from one
hour to the next is usually minor. Though radio newsrooms are learn-
ing to vary presentation patterns, they cannot vary substance much if
news shows follow closely one upon the other.

In 1937 NBC devoted 2.8 per cent of its total program hours to news. In
1944 the percentage was 26.4. In 1945 CBS devoted 26.9 per cent of its
more than 28,000 network shows to news and sports.

Who Listens? And How? 49

In spite of this limitation, however, radio news presentation has
become a big business. And this is a direct reflection of the vital interest
of listeners in what's going on in the world. Whether the interest will
always remain at wartime and postwar heights is a matter for specula-
tion. That radio programming must consider news heavily in its plans
is not speculative at all.

Who Are the Listeners?

Who listens to radio news?

An easy answer is "everybody/' It's an answer that, in broad terms,
is decently accurate. That storied trio, the butcher, the baker, and the
candle-stick maker, all turn on the morning news on the way to put
out the cat, listen to it casually as they gulp their noon pork and beans,
hurry home in the late afternoon to catch it along with rhapsodies
over vitamin tablets, and delay going to bed until the night newscast
has come in. So, within the variations of their orbits, do the banker,
the farmer, the professor, and the minister. So do their wives, sons,
daughters, and maiden aunts. Some, it is true, skip this broadcast or
that; some flee from Winchell but hang on Davis's every word (or
vice versa) . But just about everybody is likely to pi'ck up some radio
news every day.

Within the frame of this broad generalization, there are ascertainable
differences. Many of them have been pinned down by reliable audience-
measu-rement methods; others are being studied as fast as researchers
can gather data and analyze them. In general, they follow the patterns
suggested in this chapter.

Many studies of these questions have used a comparison of news-
papers with radio as a source of news. Qualitatively, the radio news-
cast has often come out second best. The lower an individual's
economic or cultural level, or the younger he is (and probably, there-
fore, the less informed), the 'more likely he is to depend on radio for
his news. The evidence shows that those who have a sound orientation
in current affairs those who do more than the average amount of
reading, who have more than high school education, whose occupa-
tions or environments throw them into physical or intellectual contact
with the streams of major affairs rely less on radio than do the less

50 News by Radio

sophisticated. Seventh and eighth-grade students, just beginning an
acquaintance with news, depend heavily on radio; by the time they
become high school seniors, they have started to turn to other news
media.

A corollary of this fact is that the upper and older levels on these
scales are more likely to provide the audiences for the more "serious"
news programs.

Quantitatively, the picture is not so clear. In 1939 a Fortune survey
showed 63.8 per cent of the national population claiming newspapers
as the source of most of its news, 25.4 per cent claiming radio. But a
study by the National Opinion Research Center in 1945 (conducted
for the NAB), showed 61 per cent getting most of its news by radio,
35 per cent getting most news from newspapers. A second NORC-
NAB survey in 1947 showed a third set of figures: 48 per cent favoring
the newspaper, 44 per cent the radio. No one can say precisely how
these varying findings should be interpreted. It seems likely, however,
that the peak of interest in radio as a news purveyor in 1945 may be at-
tributed to broadcasting's dramatic development as a war news medium.

The surveys justify another inference. The Fortune survey shows
those at the upper economic levels depending more heavily on news-
papers than on radio news for their current information; the NORC
surveys show a tendency among the better-educated to depend more
on newspaper than on radio. That is to say, the more fortunate among
radio listenersthose well-fortified with the world's goods, those who
are relatively well-educated and well-informed are likely to turn with
comparative infrequency to radio news. On the other hand, radio is
more likely to be preferred as a purveyor of news among those who for
whatever reason age, economic or cultural opportunity, home environ-
menthave been less exposed to stimulative influences or to the labor
of thinking.

The surveys present evidence on another score evidence that lias
given the newspapers severe cervical pains. Respondents in each survey
showed a marked lack of confidence in newspaper responsibility, in
contrast to that of radio. Heavy majorities realized that radio has a
time advantage in delivering news speedily to the consumer, and two-
thirds to four-fifths that the newspaper gives the news more fully. But

Who Listens? And How? 51

on the question of prejudice in the news, 17.1 per cent of the Fortune
respondents and 16 per cent of the first NORC believe the newspaper
"freer from prejudice" (Fortune) or "fairest, most unbiased" (NORC);
49.7 per cent of Fortune respondents and 57 per cent of NORC give
the palm to radio news. Putting the question another way, the second
NORC survey found 79 per cent calling radio "generally fair/' 55
per cent applying the term to the press.

In what it called the "showdown," Fortune asked, "If you had heard
conflicting versions of the same story from these sources, which would
you be most likely to believe?' 7 Radio drew a 40.3 per cent vote (radio
press bulletin, 22.7; radio commentator, 17.6). Newspapers held the
prime confidence of 26.9 per cent (editorial, 12.4; news story, 11.1;
columnist, 3.4) . "An authority you heard speak" was the choice of
13 per cent; 11.6 per cent said that it "depends on paper, writer, or
speaker"; and 8.2 per cent offered no opinion. . . . The NORC survey
offers no data on this point.

On these showings, and within the limitations suggested, radio news
appears to have an amazingly strong hold on public confidence.
Whether it deserves this confidence, in contrast to that placed in its
chief rival in the news field, is a matter to be discussed in Chapter 3.

Methods of Audience Study

Radio broadcasting in the United States is only a little more than
a quarter of a century old. But it has advanced more rapidly than most
of the other major media of mass communication in seeking and find-
ing information about the appeal of its offerings and the composition
and attitudes of its audiences. This is partly due to the fact that radio
is still young and aggressive, bound by few traditional practices or

The "news-environment" the nature and importance of current news
has a marked impact on listener-attitudes toward radio news and news-
paper news. Surveys by the Office of Radio Research in 1937 and 1938
showed that, in 1937 a time of "normal" news fewer than half the popu-
lation preferred radio to newspapers as news media. But in October, 1938
just after Munich more than two-thirds expressed a preference for radio
news.

52 News by Radio

fettering rules-of-thumb, as public opinion researchers and statisticians
were developing techniques of sampling and other methods of gather-
ing such data. It is partly due to the challenging novelty and impor-
tance of radio as a social influence a factor that turned the special
attention of social scientists to it. It grows partly from the violent
competitive battle into which broadcasting was plunged, both within
the industry and with other media a battle which forced radio as a
whole, as well as its component elements, to assemble batteries of
fact as weapons for the fray.

The statistical and "scientific" knowledge about radio comes from
three principal sources: the commercial agencies set up to provide
data; the networks and smaller elements within the industry; and a
number of disinterested agencies which have studied, or are studying,
broadcasting as a social phenomenon.

The commercial agencies, whose function is to furnish to those who
buy or sell time factual information to aid them in making their eEorts
more effective, use five principal methods of investigation:

1 The "coincidental method/' in which telephone interviewers seek in-
formation about responses to particular programs while they are on the air.
Limited by the fact that it reaches only telephone homes in cities, it is
nevertheless widely relied on as a means of gathering many types of informa-
tion. Chief agent in developing this method has been C. E. Hooper, Inc.
(formerly Clark-Hooper, Inc.), whose "Hoopcratings" are generally used
by radio stations as well as by advertisers.

2 The personal interview survey, which sends interviewers to a selected
sample of listeners. This method, usually employed by such agencies as
Roper and Gallup as well as by many others, permits a thoroughly accurate
sampling of audience by the cross-section method; it also makes it possible
to ask more questions than can usually be asked by the telephone method.
It is, however, more expensive and more difficult to conduct than the tele-
phone method; and it usually entails "recall" questioning (questions about
programs off the air by the time the survey is taken) rather than coinci-
dental questioning.

3 The mail survey, which seeks information from an audience sample
by the use of mail questionnaires. The mail survey is more difficult to "con-
trol" than the personal interview survey; often elaborate follow-up cam-
paigns are necessary to insure that the sampling is accurately representative.

4 The mechanical recorder, which is a device attached to a radio re-
ceiver to make a permanent record of the hours and minutes during which

Who Listens? And How? 53

the receiver is turned on and the wave lengths to which it is tuned. Several
firms, principal among them the A. C. Nielsen Company, have used such
recorders placed in a large number of radio homes a "fixed sample" to
gather information.

5 The "panel" or "listener diary" method, by which a fixed sample of
radio listeners keeps formalized records of its radio listening and submits
them at stated intervals to the agency employing it.

The telephone-recall method, employed for a number of years by
the Cooperative Analysis of Broadcasting (an organization formed
by the Association of National Advertisers and the American Associa-
tion of Advertising Agencies), has been displaced by the coincidental
and other methods.

A new device announced late in 1947 by CBS, however, may super-
sede all earlier methods: the "instantaneous audience measurement
service," an application of radar which CBS says will "measure and
report the audience to a broadcast instantaneously on a minute-to-
minute basis at the very moment of listening." This electronic device
will provide, for each radio home in a selected sample, information on
when the set is in use, what program is being listened to, the income
level of the listening home, and the city-town-or-farm location of the
home.

Leader among the "disinterested agencies" is the Bureau of Applied
Social Research (formerly the Office of Radio Research), under Paul
F. Lazarsfeld at Columbia University. The Bureau has, in addition to
using many of the methods described above and comparing their
results with those of studies made for other purposes and by other
methods studies of reading at different levels, for instance developed
a "program analyzer" by which groups of listeners can record electri-
cally their likes and dislikes in specific programs, second by second.
The Bureau has contributed enormously valuable information to the
knowledge of broadcasting.

o

Few radio stations, and even fewer radio newsrooms, are in position
to undertake elaborate or costly audience research projects. Yet they
have questions that must be answered if they are to render satisfactory
service: How wide are their audiences? What types of news hold partic-

54 News by Radio

ular appeal for their particular listeners? Which of their news an
nouncers are most effective? Should they extend, or reduce, theii
regional coverage? And so on. Fortunately, answers to most such
problems can be gained by methods of audience investigation that
are neither too expensive nor too difficult.

Most likely to yield dependable results is the personal interview
study, using a carefully-built cross-section sample. This method
demands skillful selection and training of interviewers, skillful ques-
tionnaire construction (as do all methods), and rather more time and
more money than most of the other methods. Personal interviews of a
random sample at every third or fourth house, for instanc'e will yield
"reliable results for most situations/' according to audience research
experts, and the method eliminates the need for building a cross-section
sample.

Random or saturation mail surveys usually the least expensive
type may also bring useful information, accurate enough to serve at
least as general guides. It is possible, too, for most stations to set up
listener panels at higher cost, but with less effort after the panel is
established, and with generally sound findings. Note that any survey
may be broad in its purposes it need not be limited to questions
dealing with news programming, but may cover other matters as well.

Finally, day-to-day operations provide considerable information of
value. "Questions often come up that the staff tries to answer/* says
one expert. "In answering them, the staff is doing an elementary job
of research." Telephone calls and mail tell a newsroom a good deal
about audience tastes and reactions. And the perceptive newsman will
be able to turn most personal contacts, on duty and off, to his purposes.
Laymen know all about how news should be handled, and sometimes
what they know is stimulating or even accurate.

3

Is Radio News "Different"?

Consider Citizen N and Citizen R, two everyday Americans. Both
profess an interest in the news both want to know who's leading the
American League, what the mayor's commission is doing about juve-
nile delinquency, what's happening in Paris, Moscow, and Timbuktu.
Both have opinions, and both express them vociferously on occasion.

Citizen N is a confirmed follower of the press. At breakfast in the
morning, in his living room in the evening, he sits and pages through
his paper, skipping here and reading thoroughly there. The radio?
"Waste of time," snorts Citizen N. "It's all in the paper. Anyway,
I want my news when I want it not when they decide to give it to
me. . . ."

Next door Citizen R depends on the radio (as N, on summer eve-
nings, all too well knows) . Morning, noon, and night he tunes to news
broadcasts perhaps adds his favorite commentator most evenings.
"Gives me all I need to know/' he tells N. "Gives it to me boiled down,
hotter than newspaper news. And I usually fix my kids' toys, or some-
thing, while I'm listening. . . ."

Both N and R have talking points. Each medium can do things the
other can't. The advantages, or utilities, of one can best be considered
alongside those of the other. What are the comparable and contrasting
characteristics of the two?

The Radio The Newspaper

Has much greater speed. Can put Is slower minutes slower, if a dead-
"hot" news into homes seconds after line is near; hours slower, if delivery
it becomes available. time is long. But often has extra

time for checking facts, developing

"angles."

Presents most news in .condensed Presents most news more fully, and
style, and in relatively broad strokes, with far more specific detail.

55

56 News by Radio

Can present some news as it hap-

pens sports events, catastrophes,
speeches, and so on. (This means
fuller coverage, in some cases, than
the press offers.)

Offers limited selectivity of news
the listener takes what radio pre-
sents, when it presents it.

Operates under "taboos" which cut

down or eliminate certain types of

news.

Delivers its news to a family or

small-group audience, usually in the

living room.

Offers only about 2,000 words

of news at a time. Offers only

broad departmentalization within

one news period. (Offers women's

programs, sports programs, and so

on at different periods.)

Can dramatize news, thereby adding

"to its effectiveness, both through

production devices and use of the

human voice.

Can do nothing of the kind. But ha
the function radio lacks of servinj
as contemporary historian, provid
ing a permanent record of curren
affairs.

Offers the reader wide choice as t(
which news he shall read, how mud
news he shall read and when h<
shall read it.

Offers a wider variety of news, in

eluding some types usually nol

broadcast.

Delivers its news to but one readei

at a time.

Offers ten to thirty times as many
words, with wide departmentaliza-
tion (including entertainment and
opinion as well as news), in one
issue, open to instant reader selec-
tion.

Has only the relatively static device
of printed words and pictures to
achieve dramatic effect.

(Both radio and the newspaper can, and on occasion do, over-drama-
tize or "sensationalize" news. But radio, because of the emotional
power of the human voice and of its dramatic devices, may be more
stimulative and so must be more careful than the newspaper.)

Cannot be readily "checked back." Is available for reading, re-reading,.
Radio news is evanescent it van-
ishes the instant it is broadcast.
Can be heard with little effort. Does

and reference at any time.

not require the listener's undivided
attention.

Is ordinarily directed at a mass au-
dience. Radio news usually avoids
specialized appeal or terminology.
Is readily subject to misunderstand-
ing or misinterpretation.

Requires concentration by the
reader, and the mental effort of se-
lection.

Can be directed to special groups
within the mass audience (women,
businessmen, sports fans, etc.).

Is less readily subject to misunder-
standing.

Is Radio News "Different"? 57

Citizen N, recognizing certain advantages of radio over the press,
nevertheless thinks the press serves him better than radio can. He
wants detail of the news. He's the kind of reader who, when a war is
on, likes to keep a map, complete with colored flags, to show changes
on the battle line. He thinks it important to study carefully the
language of the Republicans' taxation plank a twenty-five-word con-
densation isn't enough. And he reserves time to find out how Joe
diMaggio is hitting, what his favorite movie critic thinks of Bette
Davis's latest anguish, where General Motors stands on the market.

Citizen R, on the other hand, finds it satisfactory to get the news
in broad strokes, in general sweep. Detail annoys and perhaps confuses
him. There's a death-dealing flood on some Chinese river with a funny
name what difference how you spell it, when you can't even pro-
nounce it? There's another Cabinet row on in Washington, between
agriculture and commerce this time or is it agriculture and labor?
And so on.

In short, each news medium performs its peculiar service. News-
paper publishers have grown well beyond the fear that radio news will
supplant their own. It is now clear that both, like airplanes and Pull-
man cars, are here to stay, each serving its own millions. Not mutually
exclusive millions they overlap and intermingle.

And if the cynical be inclined to argue that Citizen R, depending
primarily on radio, cannot hope to be fully informed, that his radio
simply is not adequate to keep him an courant, let it be pointed out
that radio brings at least an overview of the news to thousands of
thousands who might otherwise go quite uninformed; that all the
evidence shows the tendency for the comparatively unsophisticated
Citizen R to learn to supplement his radio-gained information by
turning to his newspaper, Time, Newsweek, and other more detailed
sources; and that the rise of newspaper circulations to new peaks has
followed closely, if not causally, upon the rise of radio news as a
national phenomenon.

The "Living Room Audience"

All of which is to say that Citizen R and his millions of kin con-
stitute a special kind of audience. Radio news editors have learned to

58 News by Radio

take into account a number of particular characteristics of this audi-
ence, and to edit news to accommodate them.

Of prime importance is the fact that the audience sits in its living
room. This means, in the eyes of most radio news editors, that the
newscast must bring into the living room only what its occupants
would like to have there. Citizen R is no prude. He may exchange
whispered stories with the boys at the office. But he doesn't repeat
them in the family circle. And he's especially careful about his lan-
guage, and the topics he and Mrs. R discuss, when Junior is in the
room.

Consequently many radio newsrooms have put a severe limitation
on news that involves sex acts or sex crimes. "Rape" and like words
are often blacked out of the radio vocabulary; sometimes newspaper
circumlocutions such as "statutory crime" are thought permissible.
(Fortunately, the trend both in the press and on the air is in the
direction of more honest, more exact, and less suggestive language
largely because the American public is becoming more sophisticated.)

This does not mean that sex news is omitted entirely, but rather
that it is handled with restraint. For example: In 1943 the press
devoted many columns to intimate detail of the trial of Charlie
Chaplin on a charge of violation of the Mann Act. WCCO-Minncapo-
lis and KMBC-Kansas City, both of which conduct extensive news-
room operations, handled the story under a policy that is fairly typical
of the radio approach to this kind of news. Paraphrased, it says: "Put
on the air a brief, unemotional story saying that such-and-such a sen-
sational event has occurred; give it little or no attention during the
course of investigation or trial unless there are strikingly important
developments; use a brief story when the case is closed."

News of social maladjustment sometimes gets from radio what some
critics consider unduly short shrift under the policies here described. Juve-
nile delinquency, divorce, news of violence are often "played down" by radio
under such policies' guidance. There are critics ranging from competent
social psychologists to well-meaning if not always well-informed laymen
who praise both radio and the press for following this pattern, on the as-
sumption that concealing such news will remove a stimulus to the weak-
willed. On the opposite side are those who say that social cankers rarely
receive therapy until the public becomes abundantly aware of them.

Is Radio News "Different"? 59

Growing from a similar notion that it is not a matter for family-
group consumption is a limitation on radio news that might be con-
sidered offensive because of bloody detail. Gory specifications of
accidents are usually barred. Indeed, the words "gore" and "blood"
are sometimes on the proscribed list.

Radio editors also eliminate a good deal of news on a different
ground that it is not of general interest. The living room audience
is, to repeat, a mass audience. The news selected for it must be that
within limitations such as those already suggested of widest appeal.
And that means that, on the whole, it must be news of considerable
importance, or news of high intrinsic human interest.

Another factor of importance is the geographic distribution of the
audience. Radio stations as a rule cover more area than do newspapers.
The average smaller daily newspaper has a rather tightly-limited trade
area usually a few counties; its news selection is conditioned by this
consideration, A radio station in the same city has a signal reaching
perhaps half a state. The newspaper serves its area by devoting many
columns to local or regional news; the radio station, because its area
is larger and its news "space" smaller, cannot do as much with such
news. It depends heavily, therefore, on national and international
news from its wire service, and devotes relatively less attention to local
and regional matters.

Not that radio newsmen ignore the local and regional. Chapter 8
describes the growing interest in news of this type, following World
War I L It is an interest that will receive an immense stimulus as FM
stations spread over the country, with coverage-areas much more
nearly the dimensions of newspaper trade areas (in some cases they
will be smaller) . A fact which, it may be noted, will serve to increase
newspaper-radio news competition.

The Office of Radio Research, in 1938, made a study comparing the
coverage of different types of news by Cincinnati newspapers and radio
stations. In only one field did radio, during a five-day period, offer more
individual "items" than the newspapers: the field of foreign news and
comments. Here the ratio was 54 newspaper stories to 100 radio stories.
In government and political news, the ratio was 157 newspaper stories
to 100 radio; in natural events and disasters, 220 to 100; in crime and

60 News by Radio

corruption, 233 to 100; and on down the list through economic news
(including stock markets), news of "social aspects/' science and educa-
tion news to those that received least attention from radio: religious
news, art and education news, and "family" news. Newspapers offered
more than three times as many stories as did radio in the five days. No
comparison of the local and regional sources of stories was made.

Looking at these figures in another way, radio's coverage of foreign
news and comments becomes even more significant. Radio presented
almost six times as large a proportion of stories of this type as the news-
papersnearly 25 per cent of its total of 1,799 stories. It devoted a 40
per cent larger proportion of its space to natural events and disasters,
and to crime and corruption, than did newspapers.

This study exploratory rather than final shows the trend of radio
news emphasis before Munich. Had it been repeated or extended dur-
ing the war, it seems certain that the percentage of radio news devoted
to the foreign scene would have risen. And the percentage would proba-
bly rise if the figures were based on radio time a more difficult sta-
tistic to pin down in contrast to newspaper space.

But the trend would just as certainly have been in the other direction
if the study had been made two years after the war. It seems unlikely,
however, that the relationship would have been reversed.

Another characteristic of the radio audience that conditions selec-
tion of news for it is that it is an "ear-audience" rather than an "eye-
audience." News that is inherently "heavy," news that involves sums of
money, statistics, elaborate geographical detail, is difficult to present
intelligibly for the ear. Some stories, even important ones, that depend
on material of this kind are kept off the air for no other reason.

Allied to this is the fact that the ear is often an exceedingly inaccurate
reporter. A radio station in an area with heavy Scandinavian- American
population once proved this when it broadcast a story telling of the
death of, let us say, a certain Elmer Peterson. Within minutes after the
broadcast it received no less than fifteen telephone calls, wires, or per-
sonal visits from individuals shocked to learn of the death of "John
Peterson," or "William Peterson," or "Elmer Johnson," or an "Elmer
Peterson" who wasn't the right one this in spite of the fact that the
dead man had been thoroughly identified. Ears don't always hear the

Is Radio News "Different"? 61

words the announcer says. For this reason, many radio stations during
the war decided not to broadcast casualty lists.

That this ear-characteristic affects even more importantly the manner
of radio news presentation is discussed in Chapter 5.

Finally, radio newsmen have learned to avoid the ever-present temp-
tation to "hop up" their stories to overemphasize the sensational
angle, even to take advantage of the genuinely lurid that sometimes
appears in the news. The reasons: Overemphasis, sensationalizing (as
distinguished from calm, factual presentation) is dishonest reporting;
the listener with his inaccurate ear is likely to add his own vivid imagi-
nation to sensational fact and come out with a vastly distorted view of
the news; and overcolored news, by newspaper as well as radio, is almost
certain to boomerang when the listener who knows the true facts com-
pares them to the too-dramatic story he has just heard.

Facts Are Facts or Are They?

It is important to remember, in considering the differences between
newspaper and radio news, that at base it all conies from the same
sources, by the same or similar channels. News itself is unequivocal.
It is a precise and unalterable set of facts. When a fire occurs, it breaks
out at one spot, from one (perhaps complex) cause; it starts at a
given second, grows to a given magnitude, engulfs a definite number
of combustibles, is "brought under control" at a given time by the
measurable efforts of a certain number of identifiable fire companies.
The same thing is true of a wedding, a wake, or a war. The facts them-
selves do not vary.

What may almost always does vary is the competence, the ac-
curacy, the energy, the passion with which any set of facts is reported.
This is a matter of human frailty. Let two men walk in conversation
through a room in which ten observers are sitting, and ask the ten
immediately afterward to write precise reports of the event. You will
get ten reports that differ at the very least in minor detail, and more
likely on major points. You may be told that both men were smoking,
that neither was smoking, that one was smoking. You will get differing
descriptions of their clothing, their remarks, their heights, the order in
which they went through the doorway.

62 News by Radio

If one of your ten were a trained observer say a newspaper or radio
reporter, or a detective the chances are good that his report would
most nearly hit all the nails on the head, though even he may have
struck some glancing blows. And if there were two reporters present,
their accounts would likely most nearly resemble each other.

Yet you know that the facts were unchanging, that all observers had
the same chance to observe.

The factsthe news that newspapers and radio alike present to
their audiences, subject to these human failings, are to large degree
the same. As Chapter 1 shows, radio and newspapers receive most of
their nonlocal news through the same channels chiefly the UP, the
AP, and INS. With few exceptions, all these channels offer accounts
based on the same sets of facts: They operate on like principles, like
backgrounds of experience, and like bases for news judgments; and all
these combine to guide them to cover the same news events. When
Congress convenes, a streamliner piles up, a tornado sweeps a town-
ship, or a movie star gets a divorce (oddly enough, this still comes
under the head of news), reporters from all the press services gather
information from the same sources and report it to both radio and
newspapers.

To repeat: Newspapers and radio have the same grist for their re-
spective mills. More than that: Radio stations often have identical
grist.

The grist is not, of course, always ground up into the same sort of
flour, nor does it often come out of the ovens in identical cakes. What
the competent AP reporter sees at the opening of Congress, what he
hears and what he thinks important are likely to differ at least mildly
in form and emphasis from what his equally competent UP rival grinds
out of his typewriter. One man's very skill with words may be enough

Until about 1945, it was common to hear radio newsmen speak of
"processing" news for radio, and to call themselves "news processors." The
NAB radio news committee decided that the term "process" drawn from
manufacturing and appropriated widely by the armed forces was spurious
in the newsroom, which had its own traditional terminology. On the com-
mittee's urging, radio learned quickly to return to "news editing," "news
editors," and so on.

Is Radio News "Different"? 63

greater, or smaller, than another's to affect the comparative fidelity and
authority of his reporting. And when the story gets to the newspaper, it
is subjected to additional human variables: The judgment and crafts-
manship of the paper's editors, the type and style selected for head-
lines, the position the piece is given in the paper.

For radio, the story is subject to two additional variables before it
reaches its audience. Written originally by the reporter for newspaper
use, it is then rewritten by a radio wire editor for radio purpose and
perhaps in the process subjected to subtle and unintentional mutations.
When it is taken off the printer in the radio station, it is subjected to a
process of selection, cutting, and emphasis analogous to the editing in
a newspaper office. And then it is given over to the tender mercies of
the announcer, whose voice, inflections, skill, and understanding have
much to do with the form in which it finally goes on the air. (One of
these steps is omitted in news transmitted by Transradio Press, which
does not first prepare news for newspaper publication.)

AH of these handlings, as well as the capacity of the individual reader
or listener to grasp the news and fit it into major news patterns, affect
the meaning of the news as it finally appears. Yet all of them taken
together do not mean that radio and newspaper presentations are
necessarily far apart. The news at the base is the same; and as the skill
and competence of editors heighten, it will more nearly remain the

same.

"Control" of the News

Another question inevitably arises: To what extent is radio news
"controlled"? How much does radio ownership, the radio advertiser,
or the economic philosophy and practice on which American broadcast-
ing is based affect radio news offerings? What of "the public interest,
convenience, and necessity"? What of freedom of the air?

In many ways the ownership, advertising, and general economic
points of view of the broadcasting industry are similar to those of the
press. The fact that newspapering has become big business is an ac-
cepted twentieth-century phenomenon. The day when a printer with a
hatful of type and a three-figure bank account could found a newspaper
is half a century past. The only great dailies started from scratch in a
decade PM in New York, the Sun in Chicago demanded millions of

64 News by Radio

dollars at the beginning, plus Marshall Field's willingness to lose
money on them for a matter of years (and neither was a success!).
Moreover, the number of newspapers has declined; ownership has
tended to concentrate in fewer and fewer hands. This trend a good
many critics have viewed with alarm. Their plaint is that newspaper*
tend to represent only the point of view of a tight little group the
point of view of corporate ownership. Usually such critics generalize
too broadly, on too little evidence. It is obviously unsound to lump the
Christian Science Monitor, the New York Daily News, the Milwaukee
Journal, the Detroit Times, the Indiana Goshen News-Democrat, and
the Virginia Richmond News-Leader under one set of descriptive ad-
jectives; it is even more unsound to draw the adjectives from only one
of the papers. So well-informed a student of the American press as
William Allen White expressed the belief that "we . . . editors and
owners, because of our large property investment, have taken the side
of property unconsciously in many cases/' White's implication seems a
fair one. But he gives the newspaper owners credit for desire to operate
their papers in the best interests of the communities they serve. He
offers no suggestion of dishonesty in thinking or intent, of malice, or of
unalloyed self-interest.

Radio can claim no special distinction on this score. Radio broad-
casting has never been anything but big business. Its first backers were
the big newspapers, the big department stores, and the great electrical
industries. In its quarter century of history it has known no other type
of internal control. When NBC sold the Blue network, its price was
$8,000,000. A single station was sold in 1944 for $1,000,000; another in
1945 for $1,700,000. Broadcasting, with a few more than a thousand
broadcasters, is a billion-dollar industry. The estimated cost of install-
ing a 1,000-watt FM station and operating it for a year is more than
$50,000 lower than comparable costs in AM broadcasting, but no
shoestring.

Moreover, radio lacks one possibly stimulating influence: The cen-
turies-old newspaper tradition of devotion to a cause, the traditional
newspaper man's sense of social responsibility (which, though often
misunderstood, abused, or aborted, and though sometimes honored
more in lip service than in action, remains a vigorous influence) . Radio

Is Radio News "Different"? 65

has been told by legislative and administrative fiat that it must operate
in "the public interest, convenience, and necessity"; the networks and
many stations have their public service directors, their educational de-
partments, and so on. Most of the men and women who activate these
services are deeply genuine about their jobs. But it is questionable
whether radio's impulse to "public service" would be more than the
too-often dormant desire of decent citizens to play some part in social
progress, were it not for Communications Act and FCC dicta and for
increasingly articulate lay criticism. This impulse is something less than
a vigorous, competently-implemented zeal growing out of recognition
of broad social responsibility. (This is not to point an accusing finger at
radio more than at any other arm of big or little business. The elaborate
"service programs" of many corporations are all too often undertaken
because they increase profits, or improve public relations, or may be
charged against taxes.)

Only a few of broadcasting's ventures into public service have re-
vealed a willingness to stick out the radio neck in the public welfare, at
least in controversial areas. Radio has yet to produce a John Peter
Zenger, a Horace Greeley, or a Joseph Pulitzer, who once said that he
hoped the time would never come when there were no libel suits against
his New York Worlda, colorful statement of his belief that courage,
vigor, and daring in the public weal are part of the newspaper business.
Radio programs have done a good deal to illuminate such social prob-

Radio's contribution to the war effort was, in the wartime term, all-out.
An NAB tabulation shows, for example, that American broadcasting sta-
tions put on the air more than 1,100,000 war-related programs in the first
three months of 1944 900,000 of them spot announcements, 100,000
fifteen-minute shows, the remainder varying from two minutes to daylong
bond-sales drives. They devoted many hours not infrequently at the cost
of canceling revenue-producing programs to important spot news shows.
They gave time to hundreds of propaganda broadcasts, and in many cases
paid all costs of production. Twice in the spring of 1945 at the time of
President Roosevelt's death, and in celebration of V-E Day they canceled
scores of commercial shows in favor of patriotic efforts. During 1944 sta-
tions and networks contributed $74,000.000 in time on the air for war
messages; advertisers contributed $64,000,000; performers gave $20,000,000
worth of talent.

66 News by Radio

lems as juvenile delinquency and such vastly important agricultural
questions as soil erosion. But these are noncontroversial everybody
agrees that juveniles shouldn't be delinquent. There have been few
offerings in more delicate areasfew programs, for example, like CBS's
courageous "Open Letter to the American People" on the Negro-white
problem, or WCCO's hard-hitting "Neither Free Nor Equal" series
attacking prejudice and bigotry in the Northwest.

In fairness, it must be said that certain FCC policies have served as
a deterrent to vigorous public service programming. Until 1944 the
Commission asked re-application for station licenses every six months
a policy that kept stations continually in fear of offending (in 1944
the license period was changed to three years). The so-called "May-
flower decision" of the FCC (of which more in Chapter 11), under-
scoring the Commission's demand for impartiality among licensees,
also worked in this direction.

These and other influences have led radio to make a god of lack of
bias. Networks and individual stations whose air-waves have borne
speeches on one side of a controversial matter make time available to
responses from the other side; when they sell time to one political
party, they open for purchase equal time to the others. In 1943, CBS
went so far as to establish a rule that its commentators must inject no
personal or editorial comment into their offerings they must limit
themselves to factual explanation and background. (This led to the
resignation of Cecil Brown and H. V. Kaltenborn from the CBS staff,
and to spirited disagreements by Drew Pearson, Walter Winchcll, and
other radio commentators and newsmen.) The middle ground the
ground of an objectivity that some call sterile and colorless has been
the ground on which radio has chosen to stand.

What effect all this has on news offerings either of press or radio-
is something of an imponderable. The charge that newspapers favor
their own side is one of the favorite whipping boys of Upton Sinclair,
Harold Ickes, George Seldes, and others among the noisier critics of the
press. Most such critics, in their charges that newspapers omit (the
favorite Seldes word is "suppress") news at the behest of their friends
and supporters, are inclined to generalize far too broadly on far too
little evidence.

Is Radio News "Different"? 67

Regardless of the extent of this kind of control of newspaper news,
it appears to be an influence operating above and behind the radio
newsroom, but at a greater distance. A like attitude of ownership, and
like power, are there. But the radio newsroom is more widely separated
from ownership than is the newspaper city room. News is the news-
paper's prime commodity, and the wise publisher's first interest. It is
merely one of a number of elements in what radio has to sell, and
some of the other elements overshadow it. The newsroom is not one
of the radio station's major subdivisions, and it does not often come
under the intimate supervision or even constitute a major interest
of the man in the office with the chromium furniture. Moreover, the
requirement that the station operate in "the public interest, conven-
ience, and necessity" is an influence against mishandling of news. It is
not good, when a station is applying for renewal of license, to have it
said that its management had suppressed such-and-such a story.

Radio has had some headaches of this kind. The charge has been
made before the FCC that stations have altered, censored, or withheld
broadcasts friendly to this or unfriendly to that element in society. In
1943, several Midwestern stations for a time refused, after once agree-
ing, to permit a farmers' cooperative association to broadcast its answer
to a radio speech against it. In 1944 the United Automobile Workers
told the FCC that WHKC-Columbus, Ohio, had yielded to the de-
mand by the National Association of Manufacturers that it present a
program designed to portray "industry as solely responsible for the
nation's war production record," without giving labor an opportunity
to respond. In reply, a representative of the station said that WHKC,
"instead of throttling labor, is liberal in its policies and is one of the
few stations in the country to sell time to labor unions" a statement
that, if accurate, is in itself revealing.

The fact that newspapers and radio both get so much of their news from
the standard news services adds to the oneness of point of view. The AP is
owned by the daily newspapers themselves; UP by the Scripps-Howard in-
terests; INS by the Hearst interests. All are dedicated, in greater or less
degree, to "objective," impartial, full coverage of the news. But the owner-
ship attitude behind them is exactly that behind the newspapers, and closely
akin to that behind the broadcasting industry.

68 News by Radio

The FCC was also asked to investigate, in 1948, charges that the
ownership of KMPC-Hollywood had ordered three members of
the newsroom's staff to "slant" news in accordance with the views
of the station's president. The only case of this kind ever brought before
the FCC, it had not been brought to a conclusion six months after the
Commission agreed, in March, to investigate the charges.

But most of the charges of this type have been directed chiefly
against programs emanating not from the newsrooms, but from other
agencies in the stations. Such programs may be as much news as the
material from the news printers. But this book is primarily devoted
to the handling of news as news, and to go further in discussion of
matters of this kind could easily become irrelevant.

o

What about the influence of advertisers on radio news presentation?

Back in the 1930's the newspapers, trying to deny news to radio,
talked about the insidious power of sponsors on news programs as one
of the chief arguments against news broadcasting. This was a smoke
screen. Publishers knew then, as they do now, that individual adver-
tisers have little potency against the firmly-entrenched newspaper with
the courage to stand its ground. They have always been as quick to
deny the Seldes-Sinclair charges of advertiser-influence as they were to
forecast its menace to radio news. It is undeniable that on occasion
newspapers have bowed before demands or courteously acceded to
wise suggestions, whichever way you want to put it of advertisers;
that newspaper policies have sometimes been shaped to favor the point
of view of big space-buyers, or of national advertising associations. But
most newspaper publishers especially those whose financial feet are
on solid ground can more than match the critic with tales of adver-
tisers whose importunities have been rejected. The fact is, as somebody
has said, that it is advertising, not advertisers, that influences the press.
It is a fundamental point of view, not the individual retail grocer, that
may put an imprint on the news.

And the "may" in the last sentence should be emphasized. The news-
paper record, from John Peter Zenger to the Joseph Pulitzers, is full of
cases of the high integrity and courage of individual papers. Honest,

Is Radio News "Different"? 69

hard-hitting publishers, reporters, editorial writers men subject to no
discernible extraneous influencealso make their impress on the news-
paper scene.

The point has already been made that on this score the broadcasting
industry differs little from the press. But, you say, there is a difference:
The newspaper presents its news itself, but radio sells news to a sponsor
who takes responsibility for it. Yesif this were an accurate statement.
Fortunately, it isn't. The radio station, or the network, does not sell to
an advertiser a time-period in which he may present anything he desires
in the guise of news. That isn't the way it works. Rather, radio sells a
time-period in which the sponsor may present his own commercials
(their length and even their form usually rigidly controlled by network
or station rules) ; but the news itself is selected, edited, and often read
into the microphone by the station's own news staff.

There are cases of direct advertiser-influence. Usually they are de-
scribed in general rather than specific terms. A writer in the Saturday
Evening Post in 1937 cited sponsor-restrictions such as no mention of
Hawaiian insularity, no derogatory remarks about California climate.
He made the remark that "dollar considerations often ghost-write the
sponsor's news program"; but he gave virtually no specific evidence to
support his charge.

Since the advent of the professional radio newsroom, there have been
fewer such complaints. Justifications for them nowadays are rare. In
one station advertisers occasionally let the newsroom know that they
thought it would be "nice" (they rarely put it more strongly than that)
if such-and-such news were put into, or kept out of, their sponsored
periods. In each case the news editor responded that he would consider
the news on its merits (usually his decision was that it wasn't worth

The sponsor's influence may be more direct in the case of sponsored com-
mentaries than in those of sponsored news shows. Usually a sponsor will
not pay the heavy cost of broadcasting a commentator with whose views he
does not agree. But Dixon Wecter, writing in the Atlantic for June, 1945,
points out that three of the four networks offer rosters of commentators
"with diverse personalities and points of view, from whom sponsors may
choose" men selected primarily for their competence rather than their
views.

70 Newa by Radio

using) ; in the two cases in which advertisers attempted to wield a big
stick via the front office, the news editor and not the advertiser was sup-
ported. One manager of an important radio station formally instructed
his newsroom director: "I don't know anything about news. You're
hired because you do. Your judgment is law. If I ever come in here with
a request that you do this or that with the news cither on my own
behalf or anybody else's be so good as to kick me back upstairs, where
I belong."

In a Chicago station with similar news policy, a case arose in which
the advertising agency for nn important news sponsor decided that it
didn't like the manner not the content or emphasis, but the manner
in which the newsroom edited the news. The station acceded to the re-
quest that an agency man be put into the newsroom to do the editing.
After three days of listening to the shows that its man put together, the '
agency pulled him out and gladly returned the shows to newsroom
editing.

In one situation, the amount of news offered by a station may be
affected by the sponsorship system. An example: A Midwest station for
years carried a 5: 30 P.M. newscast. A sponsor offered the station for the
5:30 period a comic-dialog show, on a much more lucrative contract.
The news show went out; and since the station had no place else to put
it, the daily news offerings were cut by fifteen minutes. . . . But this
situation in no way affected the quality of the news.

o

The personnel of the average newsroom is a factor in its performance.
Radio is still a "y un g man's game." Most of radio's top executives arc
under fifty (the average age of the presidents of the four major net-

A number of radio stations an increasing number have a law that the
man who edits a news show must also broadcast it. The principle is that the
editor is a trained newsman, and that he alone can put his copy on the air
with ultimate effectiveness with proper emphasis, with entire understand-
ing. This means that, in these stations, the news is not always read into the
microphone by voices as golden as most professional announcers'. "But/'
says the director of a key network station in Washington, "voice isn't as im-
portant in newscasting as authority, understanding, an informed sense of
proportion/'

Is Radio News "Different"? 71

works on January 1, 1948, was forty-eight) . The age level in the news-
rooms runs closer to thirty, and hundreds of radio newsmen are just out
of college.

This means that the newsrooms are in the hands of men (and a few
women) of energy, ambition, and youthful point of view. There are
few gray-haired old-timers in radio news, at least in point of experience
radio news hasn't lived long enough. And there are few gray-bearded
Tules-of-thumb. Radio news workers are subject to few of the restricting
limitations of long practice.

Moreover, they are young enough not to have settled irrevocably in
ruts, either of editing or of thinking. Though plenty of them have
adopted some of the superficial exemplifications of "young intellectual"
cynicism (young men and women often do, whatever their occupation,
as a shield against greater experience and as protective coloration for
their very youthfuhiess), not many have become truly hard-shelled.
They still believe in themselves and in their jobs; they have not had
time for disillusion or for the evaporation of their passion for a pro-
fession they think important.

They are, on the whole, an exceptionally able group. The fact that
the rate of pay in radio is somewhat above that of newspapers gives
radio news a considerable vantage in selection, and radio news directors
have used it. _ __

A final word. Radio news has to date not proved startlingly imagina-
tive or inventive. In the foreign field, where it has developed a brilliant
news corps (its members usually chosen from among the ablest of the
younger newspaper correspondents), it has an outstanding record. But
in the domestic newsroom, its one distinctive contribution is the de-
velopment of an effective style for radio news writing. Little has been
done with patterns for radio news programs. The development of local
news-gathering and broadcasting, in spite of recent advances, is still in
swaddling clothes. Few steps toward making radio news a vigorous
champion of the public weal have been taken.

In channels like these lies the opportunity of radio as a disseminator
of news. In their avoidance lie stagnation and futility.

4

The Radio Newsroom

On January I, 1948, the FCC had licensed 1,522 AM stations to
operate in the United States, and had granted construction permits to
440 more.

On the same date, exactly 1,500 AM stations were served by one or
more press association news wires.

This docs not mean that all except twenty-two licensed stations had
press wires, for a number of wires were assigned to construction-permit
stations not yet on the air. One hundred thirty-two commercial li-
censees and seventeen noncommercial stations assigned to educa-
tional, religious, or municipal agencies had no wire service. Eighty-
three of the 132, however, had network affiliation presumably providing
regular news programs. And a number of them were operating local
news services of their own (some of them, as is shown in Chapter 8,
vigorous and effective).

A good 95 per cent of American AM broadcasters, in other words,
were providing service from newsrooms of greater or less pretension.

Wliat is a radio newsroom?

In its simplest form, it is nothing more than a news printer set up
in a closet off somebody's office, delivering its sixty words of news
a minute. A few moments before each scheduled newscast an an-
nouncer rips off its long strip of copy paper, reads hurriedly through
the stories selecting, arranging, perhaps editing a little here or in-

RADIO STATIONS AND
One Two

WIRE NEWS SERVICES
Three Four Five

Service

Services

Services

Services

Services Total

Jan. 1, 1944

685

134

21

3

1

844

Jan. 1, 1945

642

174

38

2

856

Jan. 1, 1946

632

182

42

6

862

Feb. 15, 1947

885

177

42

6

1,110

Jan. 1, 1948

1,262

198

36

3

1

1.500 .

Statistics from listings in Broadcasting Yearbooks.

72

The Radio Newsroom 73

setting a "transition" there and dashes into a studio to put the news
into a microphone.

In its most elaborate form, the radio newsroom is the pretentious
establishment maintained by network key stations in Washington,
New York, and Los Angeles. It boasts a whole battery of teleprinters
UP, AP, and INS newspaper wires, UP and AP radio wires, perhaps
Reuters, Transradio, or other supplementary services, spare printers for
emergencies. It occupies a big room, its wall acoustically treated, with
desk space for its fifteen or twenty workers editors, reporters, com-
mentators, specialists, secretaries. On its oversized bulletin boards are
maps and a score of notices and memoranda. Through soundproofed
triple plate-glass windows in one wall is a broadcasting booth; in the
booth, not only the microphone into which regular newscasts and spot
flashes are read, but also the complicated system of switches, dials, .
warning lights, and other apparatus for picking up short-wave broad-
casts from the other side of the world. Somewhere not far away is a mon-
itoring service, where trained linguists listen to foreign radio stations.

The atmosphere of this newsroom is the ordered disorder of the news-
paper city room not the chaotic parody of a city room as Hollywood
pictures it, but the tight, restrained haste of meeting deadlines and
keeping constant vigil for the news-break. Neither the big network
newsroom nor the printer-in-a-corner is typical, however any more
than the New York Times or the South Side Shopper is typical of
newspapers.

Let's look in more detail at a newsroom somewhere in the middle-
one, say, in an aggressive station in a medium-sized city. The room itself
is perhaps twelve feet by twenty. Its walls and ceilings are paved with
perforated acoustical board. It is lighted by the gray-blue of a battery
of fluorescent tubes overhead.

Why should a radio newsroom, with teleprinters bringing it each day
more news than it can possibly broadcast, pay out good money for its own
editors, writers, reporters?

For a number of excellent reasons:

1 Competent news evaluation and judgment grow out of the background,
experience, and training of men thoroughly versed in news handling.

(continued on next page)

74 News by Radio

Dominating the room is a big copydesk, At its head sits the director
of newsroom operations . . . copy spread on the desktop beside him,
a typewriter clattering under his fingers as he hammers out lead stories
for a news show coming up. Around the rim of the desk sit one or two
assistants, typing fast on other sections of the same show, or more
leisurely turning out copy for later shows. Against a nearby wall are the
printers a newspaper and a radio wire are the usual minimum in such
a newsroom, and there may be more. On a shelf on the wall is an A. T.
& T. sports ticker under a glass dome, its staccato chatter rising inter-
mittently above the steady pounding of the printers as it grinds out its
narrow yellow tape.

Another wall is covered with a reference library. Here are files of all
local papers, the New York Times, perhaps other dailies. There are an
Encyclopedia Britannica and an unabridged dictionary. Shelves hold
the National or World Almanac, a good biographical dictionary, Who's
Who in America, state, national, and international legislative manuals
and directories, city directories, the United States Postal Guide, the
New York Times Index, pronunciation manuals, specialized guides in
sports, agriculture, and other fields, local reference books. A pile of well-
thumbed maps and an atlas overflow a table.

Walls near the copydesk have maps on them maps of the world, the
United States, the state, the city, the county. Perhaps, also, new maps

2 However skillfully written for broadcasting may be the copy brought in
by news printers, the job of selecting stories and knitting them into
effective newscasts is one for a news specialist.

3 Much news that comes, say, to an Iowa station by printer from Wash-
ington can be made more meaningful for the Iowa audience if it is
rewritten and edited with a view to the special needs of the particular
audience.

4 Frequently it is desirable that a given news program be written especially
to suit the personality and "air-characteristics" of the man who is to
broadcast it.

5 A station in a competitive situation, desiring that its shows "sound differ-
ent" from those offered by other stations, must write its own copy to
make sure that its news will not be broadcast word for word like that
from rival stations' printers.

6 A station cannot get credit from the FCC for "local live" news shows if
it merely broadcasts unedited printer copy (see Chapter 8) .

The Radio Newsroom 75

of "hot spot" areas current in the news. Bulletin boards carry pieces of
yellow and white copy paper from the printers: schedules of the day's
routine, notices of changes in service, "confidential to editors" memo-
randa, occasional stories that for one reason or another aren't to be
broadcast but that somebody thinks too good for his co-workers to
miss. Here are the daily log of the station, typed instructions as to what
to do when an important news flash justifies breaking into a non-news
program, perhaps the week's schedule of staff assignments.

A corner is crowded with desks for "specialists'' sports newscasters,
agricultural and other experts, commentators and the office secretary.
A big plate-glass window looks into a broadcasting booth which may
double as the director's private office.

From time to time one of the editors rises from his typewriter to look
at a printer, to rip off a strip of fresh copy. When five bells on one of the
machines announce a "bulletin," somebody leaves his work to check on
it. At the rarer ten bells heralding a "flash" news of extraordinary im-
portance everybody jumps, and there is a quick consultation to decide
whether to put it on the air at once. Copy continues to flow out of the
typewriters.

The newsroom door swings continually. An announcer comes in to
pick up his copy for a forthcoming newscast, settles himself at a desk
in a corner to read carefully through it. From time to time he calls to
an editor to check on a sentence, or takes a look at a pronunciation
guide. A commentator comes in to verify a fact in a reference book, or
to glance at the printers to make sure he has the latest word on the sub-
ject he plans to discuss. A girl from the outer office brings in the "com-
mercials" for a sponsored newscast and throws them into a wire basket;
she leaves latest editions of the local papers. An office boy changes a
ribbon on a printer, puts a new roll of paper on another, files in a cabinet
the copy for shows already broadcast. The attention of the director is
demanded by a telephone call, or by the entrance of somebody who,
having wormed his way past the reception desk out front, offers his
reasons why news of his church sociable should go on every show that
day.

A deadline nears, and tension heightens. Typewriters punch closing
periods and stop. The announcer and an editor talk about a moot point

76 News by Radio

in the copy. The announcer leaves for the broadcasting booth with a
minute or two to spare. The workers stretch; somebody goes out for a
cup of coffee; an editor remains on deck to check on late-breaking news.
He sweeps used copy into waste baskets and "clears" the printers, taking
off the new copy and separating it into neat piles.
Shortly work starts on the next newscast.

Newsroom Personnel

Such a newsroom staff consists of six or seven workers. One is the
boss, one his assistant; they direct the newsroom operation, say, from
7 in the morning until 3 in the afternoon, and from 3 to 1 1 . A third man
has the "lobster trick," from 11 at night to 7 in the morning he is in-
surance against the news break that comes in the middle of the night,
and he's charged with getting up the early-morning newscasts. The
other members of the staff work in staggered shifts through the day
perhaps only as writers and editors, perhaps doubling as local reporters,
covering local stories in direct competition with the local newspapers.

Who are these workers? What is their equipment? How did they get
into the newsroom?

When a Lincoln, Nebraska, station decided in 1928 to give America
one of its first "newspapers of the air," it hired a newspaper man to
direct the operation. CBS, in 1933, put a former UP man in charge of
developing its news service. The pattern thus outlined has remained
pretty well fixed. News, say the radio stations, is news; those best quali-
fied to handle it are newsmen. A large percentage of radio newsroom
personnel has been drawn from newspaper staffs, or from the ranks of
those trained for journalistic work graduates of the schools of jour-
nalism.

The logic of this is clear. If a man is to be charged with evaluating
news for a mass audience, he must possess a sound understanding of
what news is. Not merely what it is in the outmoded "man-bites-dog"
sense, but what it is in origin, development, and social relationships.
He must know how and where news is gathered; he must be able to
assess the validity of news sources; he must be competent to pass on the
comparative authority of two stories, perhaps conflicting, coming from
two reporters on the other side of the world. He must be able to read

The Radio Newsroom 77

between the lines of dispatches. He needs to understand the functions
and operations of news channels, of national and international com-
munication systems, of overt and implicit censorships. He must apply
critical judgment to the work of individual reporters he must know
the Wallace Deuels, the Karl von Wiegands, the Bert Andrews',
"Scotty" Restons, Hightowers, and all the rest. He must be equipped to
judge quickly the values in a local story, and to gather quickly the facts
f or it or to tell somebody else where and how to gather them.

All this he can do competently only if he knows news inside and out.

This is not to say that he can acquire this background only by being
a newspaper man (Edward R. Murrow, one of the greatest of radio re-
porters, had little news experience before he became CBS European
news director); nor that two years' experience as a police reporter, by
itself, will give it to him. But it is more likely that a thorough grounding
in news work will orient and inform him soundly than would experi-
ence as a doctor, a time salesman, an announcer, or a radio engineer.

No more will any wise man assert that journalistic experience alone
is enough. The competent newsman radio, newspaper, Time, or Life
must have also an orientation in society. He must have a thorough,
finger-tip knowledge of history, government, geography; he must have
some insight into psychology, some awareness of sociological conforma-
tions, and divergences; he must have a scientific skepticism, and a
knowledge of the fundamentals of scientific thinking. He must be a
man whose perspective is as broad as the sweep of the news itself. In
short, he must be an educated man whether by diploma or otherwise
is immaterial.

Where do radio stations (or any other employers) find this paragon?
They don't, of course, find him very often. But they look for him among
the young and competent newspapermen more frequently than any
place else. Most radio newsroom directors will tell you that newspaper
experience, backed by sound education, is the prime requisite for mem-
bership on their staffs.

The statistics at the head of this chapter suggest the increasing
dimensions of the newsroom personnel problem after World War II.
The growing number of broadcasting stations and the expanding in-
terest in local news coverage combined to create a heavy demand for

78 News by Radio

qualified men. This demand of course existed throughout the radio in-
dustrya fact doubtless contributory to the finding of a mid-1947 NAB
survey that the average weekly wage of full-time broadcast station em-
ployes was $74, called by NAB "the highest average per employe in any
American industry."

It also showed its special effect on newsroom personnel in the FCC's
1947 Employe and Compensation Report. The report showed that
seven American networks and 924 AM stations employed, in February,
1947, 890 "news personnel" at an average weekly wage of $69.31
higher than the average for program personnel of all kinds, higher than
that for announcers, singers, writers, and "other staff program em-
ployes"; lower than the average for sound effects and production men,
musicians, and actors. "Nonstaff news personnel/' however including
high-salaried commentators and the like averaged $136.24 a week,
higher than any other nonstaff personnel.

This meant that the qualified man could expect to enter a radio
newsroom, at the beginning of 1948, at a wage perhaps slightly higher
than the going rate in competitive fields (stations in less-than-metro-
politan communities were paying competent school of journalism
graduates $50 or $55 a week to start; those in big cities sometimes paid
more, those in small towns often paid less) .

Radio newsmen predict that demand for competent personnel will
be active for several years. The anticipated development of FM broad-
casting and the prospects of vigorous television news programming
help to support such a prediction. None of this, however, suggests that
radio news is an easy El Dorado. Definitions of adequate qualification
are likely to grow more rigorous; one evidence of this is increasing
emphasis on the desirability of having newsmen do their own broad-
casting. Nobody knows just where the saturation level may lie, but it is
an existing ceiling. And unfortunately for radio newsmen, the news-
room is perhaps more vulnerable to business recession than some of
broadcasting's other departments. It is often easier to cut one news
writer or reporter from the station staff than one engineer.

The radio industry's recognition of the need for development of a
pool of properly prepared newsroom workers has been noted in Chapter
L The formation of the Council on Radio Journalism by joint action

The Radio Newsroom 79

of the NAB and the schools of journalism is one answer. The Council's
statement of standards for university-level preparation of newsroom
workers (see Appendix B) details the technical courses recommended
for such preparation training in news gathering, news writing, news
editing, news evaluation and emphasis, plus fundamental work in
microphone technique, station operation, and elementary electronics.
But it puts its major emphasis on general education, on background,
on orientation in society. This, say both the industry and the uni-
versities, is the first requirement.

Newsroom Organization, Operation, and Cost

How does the newsroom fit into the station organization?

Practice has built up no universal pattern. Fairly common and cer-
tainly most logical and desirable is the news department independent
of all station tie-ins except its responsibility to management. Not un-
usual, however, is the establishment of the news department as a sub-
division of programming. In either case, the newsroom can operate
effectively and self-respectingly only if its actual news functioning is
autonomous if its reporting, writing, editing, and news judgments are
strictly and solely the responsibility of its director.

There is similarly no set pattern for the newsroom's internal organiza-
tion, beyond the normal line of responsibility from reporter to writer-
editor to director. "Informal" is the word for most radio news opera-
tionsfew follow ironclad lines of organization or make the director,
in practice, a dictator. The spread of responsibility among newsroom
workers naturally relates directly to their degrees of competence. A
rule in most newsrooms is that announcers bear responsibility only for
reading the news that they have no authority to edit or revise, except
with newsroom approval.

This is generalization. Characteristic operative patterns may perhaps
be described best by specific examples. Here are three the first in de-
tail, the others less detailed. The information they offer has come
from their news directors or their station managers.

Station A is a 10,000-watt CBS affiliate in a small city in a Southern
state. Its news operations, like those of the other two examples, are
aggressive and thorough. Its organizational chart looks like this:

BO

The Radio Newsroom 81

Overall Organization and Policy The news director is supreme in
news, but is under the program department (headed by the general
manager) in overall programming. The program department allocates
newscasts to the station schedule, and the news department prepares
the shows. The news director may substitute "flash" or other important
news for any commercial programming on his own responsibility. He
has entire authority for news selection, evaluation, and "play," subject
only to the station's code of good taste. The station does no editorializ-
ing or commenting. It permits no sponsorship of local news shows.

Personnel and Salaries The news editor is paid $77.50 a week (top
for the position is $90) ; four reporters (two of them women) are paid
$54.60, $46.80, $46.40, and $40.56 (top for these positions, $60) ; college,
high school, and other correspondents, about $40 a week at 50 cents a
story. "Our outlying town news comes largely from mortuaries whose
names are mentioned in funeral stories; in return they tip us to other
news not involving death."

Daily Newscast and Staff Assignment Schedule One reporter goes
on at 6 A.M., checks local stories, and with wire copy assembles a fifteen-
minute newscast for 7:45 A.M. He then prepares a five-minute show for
8:55 A.M.

The news editor and a second reporter go on at 9 A.M., and the three
concentrate on local news for a five-minute local show at 10:10 A.M.
They then prepare a ten-minute show for 1 : 30 P.M.

The early man leaves at 3 P.M., and two night reporters go on. This
four-man staff works toward the "big night edition" at 7:15 P.M. The
two night men (the senior taking editorial responsibility) get up a
five- to eight-minute show for 11:10 P.M. They stay on duty until sign-
off at 12:05 A.M., watching for news-breaks and rewriting late news
for use at 7:45 the next morning.

The staff also gets up a weekly half-hour "Feature Story 7 ' program,
and a woman reporter prepares a fifteen-minute "society column" for
Sunday use. All local newscasts "lean against" wire or network news-
casts. The station uses several network shows in addition to locally-
prepared programs.

One man in the news department broadcasts a fifteen-minute show
daily, and one a five-minute. Most of the newscasts, however, are

82 News by Radio

assigned to announcers. The station would like to have newsmen do
all their own broadcasting, but "reporters with voices are rare animals.
News sounds more authoritative if a genuine newsman puts it on the
air; and the man who has to broadcast learns more about writing for
the air."

Costs The annual salary budget runs to about $16,000. Two news
services, UP and INS, cost $3,400 a year. Other expenses, including
telephone and telegraph tolls, recording costs, travel, and supplies,
bring the total annual newsroom cost to about $25,000.

o

Station B is a 250-watt NBC affiliate in a small city in New York
state. Its news staff consists of one man, a former local newspaper man
who is paid $55 a week. He has sole responsibility for gathering and
writing local news, for editing news shows, and for a five-day-a-week
fifteen-minute local commentary (which he also broadcasts) . The sta-
tion schedules two five-minute and five fifteen-minute news shows
daily, in addition to network shows, and includes local news on all
seven. It uses tape-recorded news frequently. An arrangement with a
local morning newspaper provides local news for use on the late evening
show, after the news editor has gone off duty.

One announcer is assigned exclusively to news shows, and broad-
casts all but the five-minute shows, which are put on by the program
manager. The news announcer is paid $50 a week, only part of it
charged to the news budget. All three of these men draw talent fees
for sponsored shows, in addition to salary; this is not charged to the
newsroom. The total newsroom salary item comes to $4,000 to $4,500
a year; the cost of AP wire service to $600 a year; travel, telephone tolls,
and other expenses to about $1,500 a year. The total approaches $7,000

a Y ear - _ o

Station C is a 50,000-watt outlet in one of the nation's biggest cities,
one carrying heavy network responsibilities. Its newsroom director,
who has full authority over the news operation, is also director of news
and special events for the network in his section of the country. It pays
six news writers about $100 each a week, a wire-recorder specialist $150

The Radio Newsroom 83

a week, and three commentators about $1 50 each a week (but these
are not charged against the newsroom, since the commentators are
network performers ) . It offers eleven news shows daily, all fifteen-
minute except one five-minute spot and a ten-minute recorded show.
It also carries several network news shows.

The station's annual salary budget, exclusive of director and com-
mentators, runs to about $35,000 or more. Its cost for AP, UP, and INS
trunk newspaper wires, the AP state wire, and AP and UP radio wires
is about $38,500 a year. Other costs run its annual expense well above
$80,000. But it gets most of this back in the $75,000 a year paid by
local news clients as a service fee for news-gathering, writing, and
editing. Annual time charges for the newsroom's shows amount to
about $250,000 a year.

5

How Is It Written?

In every radio newsroom an invisible precept hangs over the type-
writers:

Write for the ear!

The radio audience is an aural audience. The man speaking into
the microphone can reach his listener through no other sense. He
cannot thump his lectern, wave his fist, or pace the stage. If he indulges
in the dramatic pause so effective on the lecture platform, his radio
audience thinks a tube has burned out. He has neither the listener's
eye nor the psychological effect of mass response to aid him in putting
over what he has to say. He must rely on words alone, plus whatever
adornment inflection and tone may give them.

This "ear-characteristic" means that the radio news writer must
give his copy the maximum of car-appeal. And radio newsmen agree
that the effective manner by which to make copy easy to listen to is
to make it sound like the kind of verbalism to which cars are most
accustomed:

Conversation,

The "conversational style" is the goal at which the radio news
editor aims. He seeks to adapt the informality, the simplicity, the easy
flow of ordinary conversation to his need to present a great many facts,
some of them complex, in very brief time. This does not mean that
he thinks of himself as a dialog writer, one attempting to reproduce
realistically, with all its elisions, vulgarisms, slang, and grammatical
idiosyncrasies, an actual conversational manner. But it does mean that
his finished newscast must have the flavor of a man's unaffected talk.

How does he achieve this flavor?

The Conversational Style

It is not difficult to name the salient characteristics of everyday
conversation* First of all, conversation is informal, without pomp or

84

How Is It Written? 85

affectation. It is simple it uses common, readily-understood words,
it is colloquial, it says what it has to say in broad strokes rather than
finely-etched detail. Its rhetoric is straight-forward; it employs short
sentences, sometimes half-sentences.

All of these characteristics are to be found in good radio news writing.

There are, of course, other characteristics of the conversational
manner: loose diction, vulgarisms, solecisms, faulty grammar, and the
like. Inaccuracy, too the ease with which the human tongue wonders
from fact is proverbial. Radio news avoids these characteristics; it does
not need them in order to attain the flavor it seeks. The effect can be
achieved by suggestion rather than realism.

Soon after the United Press offered to its radio clients news written
for broadcast, it issued a set of mimeographed instructions on han-
dling radio news. The first sentence in the several revisions 'oi this
informal manual as well as the theme of the first chapter of the book
which the manual finally became, United Press Radio News Style
Book by Phil Newsom (1943) was, "Writing news for radio really
is telling a story orally."

"Telling a story orally" what does it mean?

Suppose an automobile skids and ends up against a telephone pole
at a corner as you are walking by. The driver is seriously injured, a
passenger is cut by a broken windshield. You describe the event to
your family at dinner: ,

"A sweet accident at the corner this afternoon right down at Maple and
Fourth. The driver was smashed up took him to the hospital. Yeah I was
just walking past. This car skidded, and first thing I knew there it was, slid-
ing right into the telephone pole. Fellow driving was jammed agadnst the
steering wheel guess it crushed his chest. His face was cut, too blood all
over the place. The man with him? He got cut up some too, but not so
badly. . . . No the car didn't seem to be hurt so much, except the radi-

Wells Church, CBS director of news broadcasts, is quoted by an Editor &
Publisher interviewer as saying that "in the newspaper it's readability that
the editors strive for; on the air, it's listenability. . . . The newscast writer
must consider the mental image he is creating; how to keep it clear for the
listeners; and how to keep down those 'phone calls which used to plague
every radio newsroom when long-winded sentences written for reading and
not hearing were read on the air."

86 News by Radio

ator grill and the windshield, I stayed until the City Hospital ambulance
came and took 'em away. . . ."

You pick up your evening paper. In it you find something like this
to report the event:

Two men were injured, one seriously, when an automobile skidded and
crashed into a telephone pole at Maple avenue and Fourth street at 2:15
P.M. this afternoon.

One, Arthur Williams, 45, 2719 Hawthorne road, the car's driver, is in
City Hospital with multiple contusions and possible chest injuries. The
other, John Payson, 51, Metropole hotel, was sent home from the hospital
after his wounds were dressed.

The car skidded as it approached the corner, and hit the telephone pole,
witnesses said, at about thirty miles an hour. Williams 7 chest was crushed
against the steering wheel. The car damage was slight.

Try reading the newspaper version aloud; compare it to the conver-
sational version. You note at once that the newspaper story makes
'"bad listening" though its condensation of essential facts is skillful
printed chronicling of the event because of its very compactness, be-
cause of the large number of details compressed into small space,
because its manner is not that to which the ear is accustomed.

Now listen to your favorite newscast as it presents the story:

Another Midland auto accident this afternoon . . . and a driver badly
injured. He is 45-year-old Arthur Williams, who lives at 2719 Hawthorne
Road. His companion, John Payson of the Metropole Hotel, got off with
minor cuts.

Williams' car skidded at the corner of Maple avenue and Fourth street,
and smashed into a telephone pole. The steering wheel crushed Williams'
chest. He is in City Hospital.

There are differences between this story and the conversational
version. But the differences between it and the newspaper story are
more marked. Like the dinner-table version, the radio story opens with
a general statement rather than the detail-packed lead of the newspaper
story. It offers many fewer details than the newspaper story; and it is
told in relatively simple, straightforward sentences. It has no "credit
lines" such as the "witnesses said" of the newspaper story.

How Is It Written? 87

The news services providing both newspaper and radio versions of the
same stories make like distinctions. Note the differences among stories
taken verbatim from news printers operating in a radio newsroom:

From the United Press newspaper -wire:

BULLETIN

Washington, Aug. 16 (UP) Gen. D wight D. Eisenhower said today he

would order a full-scale investigation of alleged "intolerable" conditions

reported in the Army's Mediterranean command by Robert C. Ruark,

Scripps-Howard columnist.

The Army chief of- staff told newsmen at National Airport here that a
top War Department official, probably Army Inspector General Maj. Gen.
William Wyche, would leave for Italy early next week to conduct a first-
hand investigation.

Eisenhower said the Army's investigation would take "from ten days to
two weeks/' He said the investigator would make a formal report to him.

In a series of columns from Italy, Ruark has accused Lt. Gen. John C.
Lee, U. S. Mediterranean commander, of making life "intolerable" for en-
listed men but correspondingly easy for officers.

Eisenhower said Lee has asked the War Department to investigate the
charges. The investigation will be made, Eisenhower said.

Eisenhower landed at the airport shortly before 6 P.M. EDT., returning
from a two-week tour of Army installations in Alaska. He told reporters he
knew "little" of the charges against Lee. But, he added, when he was in
Italy last year he found morale "surprisingly good."

"Conditions may have changed since then/' Eisenhower said.

The chief of staff reported that Army forces in Alaska are "doing a good
job and their morale is high." But he said that additional facilities, particu-
larly living quarters, are needed. He added that the Army will have to begin
"to get construction going up there."

From the United Press radio -wire:

Our commander in the Mediterranean theater, Lieutenant General John
Lee, has invited all American correspondents in Italy to visit any Army
installations and make any investigations they want to. The general's in-
vitation was accompanied by mimeographed copies of articles in Scripps-
Howard newspapers criticizing his administration.

In Washington meanwhile, General Dwight Eisenhower says he will
order a full-scale investigation into allegations of intolerable conditions in
the Mediterranean command. A top War Department official will leave
for Italy early next week to conduct a first-hand inquiry into the charges
made by Scripps-Howard columnist Robert Ruark.

88 News by Radio

From the Associated Press newspaper wire:

Washington, Aug. 16 (AP) Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, Army chief
of staff, said today an investigator probably the inspector-general himself
will go to Italy to check on the administration of Gen. John C. H. Lee,
commander of the Mediterranean theater.

Eisenhower, who arrived at the Washington National Airport at 4:50
P.M. (EST) from a tour of Alaskan defense bases, told reporters that Lee
himself had wired the War Department asking that an investigation be
made.

"Lee has asked the inspector-general to look into conditions and that's
exactly what we'd do anyway/' the chief of staff said.

"We'd do it if for nothing else than to defend the officer himself/'

Eisenhower said that Maj. Gen. Ira T. Wyche, the inspector-general,
probably will make the trip. He said that Wyche likely will leave Washing-
ton Monday and it will take "approximately ten days or two weeks" to com-
plete the inquiry.

Eisenhower said he did not "know much about" published reports con-
cerning Lee's administration and the morale of American troops and that
"about all I know is what I saw in the papers."

A series of articles in the past week by Robert C. Ruark, an American cor-
respondent, alleged low morale among troops in Italy.

The chief of staff said that when he was in Italy in October of last year he
found the 88th Division in "surprisingly high morale." However, he said
he did not go down into the southern part of Italy where General Lee has
his headquarters.

The investigation in Italy, Eisenhower said, will be "almost like a grand
jury hearing." After the investigation the inspector-general will return to
Washington to make a report to the War Department.

"As far as the 88th Division is concerned," Eisenhower continued, "as
long ago as ten months ago, I found no conditions such as have been re-
ported. What has happened since, I wouldn't know, but I wouldn't imagine
there has been much change."

Eisenhower said Gen. Omar Bradley, Veterans Administration chief,
probably will visit Italy during his tour of American bases in Europe, but
that Bradley has not been asked to investigate the reports involving Gen-
eral Lee.

Sun-tanned and appearing in excellent spirits, Eisenhower and his party
arrived here in his DC-4, the Sunflower II. He flew non-stop from Denver,
where he had spent last night.

Asked whether he plans to retire as chief of staff to begin his duties as the
President of Columbia University in New York, Eisenhower replied that the
date still is "indefinite it depends on when the President says I can go/'

How Is It Written? #9

He said he found the troops in Alaska have high morale and are "doing the
best they can with what they have to work with." He added that many fa-
cilities are in "poor" condition and "we've got to get some construction in
that region."

From the Associated Press radio wire:

Washington Army Chief of Staff General Eisenhower says an on-the-spot
investigation will be made of the administration of General John C. II. Lee 7
the Mediterranean theater commander.

A series of articles by American correspondent Robert Ruark (of Scripps-
Howard) have been published in the past week, claiming the morale of
troops under Lee's command is low.

The chief of staff made this statement "Lee has asked the inspector-
general to look into conditions and that's exactly what we'd do anyway.
We'd do it for nothing else than to defend the officer himself.' 7

Eisenhower made his announcement upon arrival at Washington airport
from a tour of Alaskan defense bases. He said he did not know much about
the published reports concerning Lee's administration and the morale of
American troops. In Eisenhower's own words "About all I know is what I
saw in the papers."

The chief of staff said that the inspector-general Major General Ira
Wyche likely will leave Washington Monday. He said the investigation in
Italy will be almost like a grand jury hearing.

Eisenhower said General Omar Bradley probably will visit Italy during
his tour of American bases in Europe. But Bradley has not been asked to in-
vestigate the report involving General Lee.

From the United Press newspaper wire:

Batavia, Java, Aug. 16 (UP) U. S. Consul General Walter A. Foote
tonight asked the Indonesian Republican government to say flatly whether
it would or would not renew peace negotiations with the Dutch.

Foote visited Indonesian Vice Premier A. K. Gani in Batavia upon
instructions from the State Department in Washington, according to a
reliable informant. He told Gani that war, or something very like it, still
went on, despite the cease-fire orders issued by the United Nations Security
Council and the American offer of good offices.

Therefore, Gani was told, the United States wants to know if the Indo-
nesian Republic is not willing to accept the American offer, which presumes
a renewal of negotiations with the Dutch. If Indonesia does not, Foote told
Gani, the United States wants to report it to the Dutch and the Security
Council.

90 News by Radio

Foote also expressed his government's disappointment at the Republic's
failure to answer the American offer directly. The Indonesian reply sug-
gested that the United States use its influence to get the Security Council to
send an international commission to investigate the dispute.

Foote told Gani that if the Republic was willing to renew negotiations
with the Dutch, the United States would do its best to bring both sides
together.

From the United Press radio "Wire:

American Consul-General Walter Foote has put a direct question to the
Indonesian Republican government.

He asked the Republicans tonight to say flatly whether they will renew
peace negotiations with the Dutch.

Foote is understood to have visited the Indonesian vice-premier in Ba-
tavia upon instructions from the State Department in Washington. And he
reportedly told him that war, or something very like it, still went on despite
the cease-fire orders issued by the U-N Security Council.

The United States wants to know whether the Indonesian Republic is
willing to accept the American offer to mediate the dispute. Our offer pre-
sumes that the Republicans would negotiate with the Dutch.

_0

From the Associated Press newspaper -wire:

Jackson, N. C., Aug. 18 (AP) Sheriff }. C. Stcphenson of Northampton
County today re-arrested seven white men on charges growing out of an at-
tempted lynching of a young Negro here last May 23.

The sheriff served a bench warrant issued by Superior Court Judge J. Paul
Frizzellc charging each of the seven with conspiring to break and enter a
jail and with breaking and entering a jail with intent to kill and injure a
prisoner.

The defendants, each of whom was immediately released on $2,500 bond,
are: Robert Vann, pickle factory worker, Russell Bryant, filling station oper-
ator; Linwood and Gilbert Bryant, brothers, carpenters; Glenn Collier,
barber; Joe Cunningham, assistant theater manager; and W. C. Cooper,
lunch stand operator, all of Rich Square.

The same seven men originally were arrested on the same two charges plus
a charge of kidnaping. They were released Aug. 5 when a grand jury failed
to indict them.

The grand jury also failed to indict the Negro, Godwin "Buddy" Bush,
who had been charged with attempted assault with intent to rape a young
white woman.

The defendants have been ordered to appear before Judge Frizzelle Sept.
2 when he will sit as a committing magistrate in the case.

How Is It Written? 91

The new legal move was ordered by Gov. R. Gregg Cherry who termed
the action of the grand jury "a miscarriage of justice."

A group of white men took Bush from the county jail in what Sheriff
Stephenson said was an obvious attempt at lynching. But Bush escaped and
hid in the woods for two days before surrendering to the protective custody
of the FBI and Solicitor Ernest Tyler.

From the Associated Press radio -wire:

Jackson, North Carolina The Northampton County sheriff has re-arrested
seven white men in connection with an attempted lynching of a young
Negro last May 23rd.

Sheriff J. C. Stephenson served a bench warrant issued by Superior Court
Judge J. Paul Frizzelle. It charges each of the seven with conspiring to break
and enter a jail and with breaking and entering a jail with intent to kill
and injure a prisoner.

The same seven men originally were arrested on the same two charges plus
a kidnaping charge. They were released August fifth when a grand jury failed
to indict them.

At that time, Governor R. Gregg Cherry called the grand jury action a
miscarriage of justice. The governor ordered the new legal move which led
to the re-arrest of the seven men.

From the United Press newspaper wire:

Detroit, Aug. 16 (UP) Chrysler Corporation, the world's third largest

auto producer, hiked its entire line of car prices today as the auto industry

was attacked by the CIO Auto Workers union for "pure and simple profit-

eering."

As Chrysler announced boosts of $75 to $130, leaving Ford Motor Com-
pany the only major producer still holding the price line, R. J. Thomas,
UAW vice president, demanded a federal investigation of "profiteering"'
and high prices.

Chrysler, announcing it was forced to join the trend toward higher
prices because of "increased material and labor costs," said the new prices
would be effective Monday and applied to Plymouth, Dodge, DeSoto and
Chrysler cars and some Dodge trucks.

Chrysler was the sixth producer in five weeks to announce new postwar
boosts, the virtually industry-wide hikes affecting about 75 per cent of all
car production.

Thomas charged that six major producers (General Motors, Chrysler,
Hudson, Mack, Nash and Studcbaker) had earned a total of $374,000,000
before income taxes in the first six months of 1947.

Asserting that the auto industry should be "giving price cuts to the Amer-

92 News by Radio

ican people, not raising prices," Thomas asked Attorney Gen. Tom Clark to
investigate the auto monopoly, steel distribution and auto prices.

From the United Press radio wire:

Vice President R. J. Thomas of the C-I-O Auto Workers Union has de-
manded a federal probe of what he calls the auto industry's profiteering and
high prices.

His demand came as Chrysler corporation boosted its prices on its passen-
ger cars and trucks. General Motors, Nash, Packard, Hudson and Kaiser-
Frazer also have hiked price tags in the last two weeks.

The union chief charged that six major auto companies have earned a
total of 374-million dollars in the first six months of this year before income
taxes. Thomas listed them as General Motors which reported earnings of
1 47-million Chrysler, Hudson, Mack, Nash, and Studcbaker.

Thomas said that instead of price increases the auto industry should be
giving price cuts to the American people. He asked Attorney General Tom
Clark to investigate what he called the ''auto monopoly/' steel distribution,
and auto prices.

He said the earnings amounted to a profit of 222 dollars per car and that
G-M 7 s unit profit was 300 dollars. He said that before the war 50 dollars was
considered a good return.

o

From the Associated Press newspaper wire:

Rochester, N. Y., Aug. 16 (AP) Mary Jane di Rosa rode to the altar in a
wheelchair today, determined that an ankle fracture sustained in a fall while
preparing her trousseau should not delay her wedding.

She draped her white satin gown and bridal veil over the wheelchair and,
right leg in a cast, rode down the aisle of St. Anthony's Catholic church to
become the bride of Ralph Gentile.

"No postponing the wedding for me," she said. "I just didn't want to put
it off."

From the Associated Press radio wire:

FEATURE

Rochester, New York This was going to be shoes and rice day for Mary

Jane di Rosa, and nothing was going to hold up the wedding not even an

ankle fracture,

Mary Jane suffered the injury in a fall while preparing for her wedding.

But the guests who came to the ceremony at Rochester's St. Anthony's
Catholic church were not disappointed.

How Is It Written? 93

They saw Mary Jane ride to the altar in a wheelchair to become the bride
of Ralph Gentile.

As the bride explained: "No postponing the wedding for me. I just didn't
want to put it off."

Simplicity

These contrasting stories point up a cardinal principle in radio news
writing: simplicity. Simplicity in diction, simplicity in sentence struc-
ture, simplicity in manner.

The ear is a fuzzy observer. It does not always hear truly the words
that are spoken it may carry to the brain something quite different
from the meaning of the words themselves. Moreover, it cannot go
back and rehear, as the eye can reread. All of which means that the
radio news writer must fashion his copy so that it will have the per-
centages with it so that it will offer the highest probability of accurate
reception. And that, in turn, means that everything about it must be
as simple as he can make it.

The first rule in simplicity which, in this context, is synonymous
with clarity is, "Use simple words." Words that are in common use.

In the second week of August, 1945, when the world was waiting tensely
for news of Japanese capitulation, a station in Washington broadcast a
statement that "Charles G. Ross, secretary to the President, will go on the
air about 1 1 tonight," Shortly after 1 1 the station was bombarded by tele-
phone callers who demanded that the speech by President Truman be pre-
sented as promised. They had heard only that ". . . the President will go
on the air/'

In a Midwestern city during a polio epidemic, a local station reported,
^In the last three days, sixty-three new cases have been identified." In one
home in the city, a mother started frantically to make plans to get her three
small children out of town. What she had heard was that "sixty-three new
polio cases have been identified." She knew that this was several times the
daily rate of the preceding week; had she heard the entire sentence, her
fright would have been averted. Incidentally, the script writer would have
1 been surer she would hear it properly if he had not written an inverted
sentence if he had put the phrase "in the last three days" at the end
rather than the beginning of the sentence.

94 News by Radio

Words that are widely meaningful, that are generally accepted and
understood. When Elmer Davis was broadcasting his masterful five-
minute news summary each evening before World War II, he won
a huge popular audience; Raymond Swing was on the air each day
with a commentary that attracted few but highly literate and highly
educated listeners. A word-analysis of the two men's scripts showed
that Davis almost never used words beyond the first 2,500 in point of
general usage (according to the Thorn dyke analysis); Swing used a
high percentage of words as far along the scale as the third and fourth
2,500, and sprinkled in a few beyond the eighth.

More concretely: It is bad radio to say that King George was
"ensconced on the regal dais" at formal reception. It is effective, and
accurate, to say that he was "seated on the throne." "Freedom from
slavery" is better than "liberation from servitude." Millions of radio
listeners wouldn't know what a holocaust is, but they'd recognize at
once a disastrous fire. "Danger" is better than "peril," and "boy" or
"young man" than "youth." The newscast that tells you the British
police in Haifa have "cordoned off" a section of the city achieves not
only a solecism but also an obscurity.

Words that have specialized or technical meanings are, under this
same principle, to be avoided. Some thousands of readers of Broad-
casting, Billboard, Variety, and the rest of the entertainment and radio
press know the meaning of "video," but for the millions who don't
you have to say "television." Say "record," not "platter." It's a good
deal clearer to call him the "weather man" than the "United States
meteorological observer."

But remember that the American language is fluid. It is constantly
changing, constantly enriching. H. L. Mencken and a lot of others

Max Wylie, in his book Radio Writing, repeatedly makes the point that
good writing is good writing, whether for radio or for any other medium.
True, up to a point. "Ensconced on the regal dais" is not only bad radio
(though it appeared in a newscast) but also writing to which a prison
sentence should be attached. But not all good (that is, effective) writing is
good radio writing. Few critics would say that the writing of Keats, or
Shakespeare, or President Conant of Harvard, or Dr. Morris Fishbein
each for its own use and audience isn't good writing. But little of it would
be effective radio.

How Is It Written? 95

have shown that words technical or esoteric yesterday "jive,"
"bazooka/' "gland/' "polio," "nuclear fission" are colorful and mean-
ingful today. Watch for words that are coming into general use.

Another caution on words or groups of words: Avoid expressions
with ideas that are hard to grasp quickly. Statistics, for instance they're
almost always difficult. Your radio listener won't get it, most of the
time, if you write:

The city lost 9 thousand 875 dollars on its electric light plant last year.
But he will understand this:

The city lost nearly 10 thousands dollars on ....

Though there are cases in which exact figures must be cited, round
numbers are usually to be preferred. It may be necessary once in a while
to write:

Mayor John D. Winship has 11 thousand, 909 votes and his opponent,
Elmer Clark, has 6 thousand 927, with 89 out of 97 precincts reported.

But in most cases this is better:

Mayor Winship has nearly 1 2 thousand votes and his opponent, Elmer
Clark, just under 7 thousand, with almost all precincts reported.

Note that the mayor's first name and initial are omitted, since they're
not needed for identification.

Occasionally, a name may best be omitted entirely. If it's a name
that is little known, and one that in itself adds nothing to the meaning
of the news, it may be most effective to use title or identification
without the name:

The director of social welfare in the county says that 200 families have
been driven from their home by the flood.

Often, when statistics are part of the news, they can be made mean-
ingful by apt illustration:

The Japanese report that 125 thousand residents of Hiroshima were
killed by the atomic bomb. That's as many people as there are in Spokane,
Washington.

OR:

The two cities are 240 miles apart about the distance of New York
from Boston.

96 News by Radio

This illustration, good for a broadcast in the New York or New England
area, should be altered if it were to cover the state of Minnesota:

The two cities are 240 miles apart about the distance of Minneapolis
from Fargo.

What about bromidic words and phrases? ''Avoid them like poison,"
say all the manuals on English composition and news writing. Avoid
them because, however good they may have been when first used, they
have lost their color (a bromide becomes a bromide usually for no
other reason than that it is a sharp, or easy, or colorful means of ex-
pressing a fact or an idea. But by the time it has attained bromidic
status it has lost its pristine and often imaginative flavor and usually
become a lazy and dull substitute for eEective diction). Avoid speak-
ing of Sinatra as "The Voice" and Bacall as "The Look"; avoid "high-
powered motor cars," "blunt instruments," and "gala occasions/'

But there is this to be said: Now and then a bromidic word or phrase,
however much overused, may be the quickest and most readily under-
standable means of saying what the writer wants to say. Perhaps the
best rule is something like this: If what is gained in easy understanding
and in time is greater than what is lost in imaginativeness and color,
use the stereotype. The writer's judgment is the best guide to usage.

A final word on diction: Hyperbole is a dangerous tool.

Webster says that hyperbole is "exaggeration for effect"; and ex-
aggeration in radio copy may produce a disastrously wrong effect. The
ear being as inaccurate a recorder as it is, overstatement is likely to
mean overemphasis; or the exaggeration is likely to be taken as sober
fact. Don't say that "the downpour has flooded every basement in
town" or that "Midland is being overrun by a plague of Japanese
beetles" unless you mean exactly what you say.

o

Rule two in radio news-style simplicity concerns the sentence. Just
as words and phrases must be chosen for their broad understand-
ability, sentences must be constructed for the same purpose. A first
precept: The simple declarative sentence is the prime sentence tool
of the radio news writer. It is, of course, the prime tool of any writer of

Ho\v Is It Written? 97

effective prose. Its importance is greater for the writer-for-the-ear than
for most other writers.

The reasons for this are obvious. First, the simple sentence is logical;
its subject-verb-predicate order is the order most readily grasped.
Second, it is the most common sentence in ordinary conversation.
Third, it is likely to be a decently short sentence one that the hearer
can take in at a gulp. Fourth, chances are that it will be easiest for the
announcer to voice effectively.

Some illustrations of the point:

BAD: The new bridge across the Hudson, which will shorten the automo-
bile route from central New York to New England points by 50 miles,
will be opened today at a ceremony participated in by governors of
seven states.

BETTER: The new Hudson River bridge will be opened today. The bridge
will cut 50 miles from the automobile route between central New
York and New England. Governors of seven states are to take part in
the opening ceremony.

BAD: Seven ocean liners brought into New York Harbor today the largest
influx of returning European visitors since the late summer of 1939,
and tomorrow another seven, including the Queen Elizabeth, will
bring an equally large number.

BETTER: The largest number of travelers returning from Europe on any
one day since 1939 arrived in New York Harbor today. Seven ocean
liners brought them.

Tomorrow seven more liners, led by the Queen Elizabeth, arrive.

One of the more heinous sins of the radio news writer is to indulge
in the newspaper practice of putting danglers on sentences:

Fourth of July celebrations in Midland will be carried out by 29 civic
organizations, it was announced today by John T. Hillary, chairman of the
Civic and Commerce association holiday committee.

The dangler is both long-winded and puzzling. In radio copy, it's a
millstone. Much better would be:

Twenty-nine of Midland's civic organizations will take part in this year's
Fourth of July celebrations. This announcement was made today by the
chairman of the city's holiday committee John T. Hillary.

For radio purposes, it would probably be best to leave out the second
sentence altogether. Newspaper practice is to present every fact in

98 News by Radio

detail. Radio news must often be telescoped cut down to the essen-
tial facts. (Note that among the examples of AP and UP copy earlier
in this chapter, radio stones are shorter than newspaper in all except
the final example. In this example, a feature story, the radio copy is a
few words longer.)

Akin to the problem of danglers is that of credit lines with quota-
tions. In most cases they should precede the quotations:

BAD : " We shouldn't assume that sulfa and other wartime drugs will cure all
the world's ills," Dr. Emmons said.

BETTER: Dr. Emmons said, " Sulfa and other wartime drugs won't neces-
sarily cure all the world's ills."

There are- as to almost every other suggestion in this book excep-
tions. In some cases context will establish adequately for the listener
the identity of the speaker, or the fact that a quotation is being pre-
sented. But usually both of these facts must be made clear ahead of
the quotation.

Usually a form of the simple verb "say" is most effective in radio
copy. "Dr. Emmons said" (or "says") is commonly to be preferred
to such labored substitutes as "stated" or "asserted" or any of the
scores of variants some teachers like to insert in "themes." But now
and then, especially when a quotation is running to several sentences,
phrases such as "Dr. Emmons went on to say," or "he explained," are
effective. Radio news writers don't often permit direct quotations to
run to more than three or four consecutive sentences unless they are
presenting complete statements President Truman's brief V-J Day
proclamation, for example. That went on the air hundreds of times,

Use of a direct quotation to open a radio news story, without preceding
identification of the speaker, is especially perilous to ready understanding.
Experienced radio news writers avoid this usage except in the rare cases in
which the quotation is short and pointed, in which it establishes the subject
of the story clearly and sharply, in which it at least suggests the authority
behind it, and in which it can be followed quickly by a credit line. In which,
in short, it might just as well have been used without the quotation marks.
One such rare case:

"The Munich agreement means peace in our time."

That was the statement of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain. . . .

How Is It Written ? 99

usually with only an introductory remark such as: "Here is the Presi-
dent's proclamation."

Inverted credit lines in the so-called Time-styleare anathema to
radio newsmen. "Said Dr. Emmons" is about as artificial and uncon-
versational as anybody could make a phrase.

Such phrases as "and I quote" and "end quote" are likewise shunned
by skillful writers. The need for them can be avoided in most cases by
careful use of the more conversational devices.

How long should a radio news sentence be?

A good deal of nonsense has been spread on the books in answer
to this question. Frequently an "average length" of fifteen words has
been set up as a desirable norm. Actually, there is no pat answer. Good
sentences readable, understandable sentences may be of any length
from a few words up to twenty-five or thirty. The shorter sentence is
most common; if you look at a page of professional radio news copy,
you will find few that run to more than a line and a half of typewriting.
There will be a few longer, and a few shorter. The longer sentences will
be relatively simple, rarely of more than two clauses. The shorter will
be direct and often especially forceful because of their brevity. Some-
times, indeed, they'll be no sentences at all, in the grammar-book sense;
they'll be instead mere phrases. For example:

State University won another football game this afternoon. Its ninth in a
row a real record. . . .

Another veto at the United Nations session today again a Russian
veto. . . .

OR:

Even a New Yorker would hardly have recognized the Yankee Stadium
today. Not a soul in the stands . . . not a player on the field . . . not a
sign of life anywhere.

The reason? Well, you'd never guess. It was. . . .

Such verbless phrases often add vigor and life to a newscast where
carefully-complete sentences would deaden it. They're direct, they're
brief, they're colorful. Most of all, they're conversational.
Don't overdo them!

100 News by Radio

More important for the radio news writer than thoughts of sentence
length is an appreciation of rhythm. This is a subtle thing. Poets have
a skill with rhythm, as have competent prose writers. An intangible
quality, it has to do with sound and pacing rather than grammar. A
piece of radio prose of sentences all of the same length, or the same
unvarying structure, is bumpy as monotonous as the click of Pullman
wheels on a railroad track. A piece with too painfully varied sentences
is likely to sound artificial. Rhythm in radio writing whether it's a
talent or a laboriously-acquired craft is achieved through an aware-
ness of the auditory effect of successions of words. A beginner may
have to read his own product aloud endlessly in order to arrive at this
awareness. But he must arrive at it if he is to write successfully for the
microphone, if he is to write in spcakable phrases and clauses, word-
groups that let the announcer talk in normal cadences.

Vitality

Let us say, once and for all, that the vitality with which a radio news
program reaches its listeners depends heavily on the microphone-
personality of the man reading it.

Then let us add quickly that a program's life, color, and vigor will
be greater, on the lips of either a "good" or a "bad" announcer, if the
copy he reads is lively, colorful, and vigorous.

How are these qualities attained?

In high degree, by practice of the principles already offered in this
chapter. Copy that is smoothly conversational, that is simple and
direct, that has readable rhythm is decently easy to present in lively
manner.

But the skillful radio news writer knows that he can add to the life
of his copy by judicious use of verbal tricks that are as old as the
earliest class in English composition. He knows that what are called
"color words" are important; that well-selected verbs and nouns are
strong, meaningful words, that specific words are more vigorous than
general words. He knows that the active verb has more drive than the
passive. He knows that colloquialisms, even slang, are often valuable.
He uses conversational contractions "he'll/' "can't/ 7 "they're" to
replace some of their stiff er equivalents.

How Is It Written? 101

Since he's skillful, however, he avoids overuse of any of these devices.
Too much reaching for colorful words, too frequent use of adjectives
and adverbs, is likely to lead to bombast or absurdity. William Saroyan
points out, in the preface to his Daring Young Man on the Flying
Trapeze, that "some writers will go so far as to help an innocent word
with as many as four and five other words" and kill it "by charity." To
say in radio copy that a fire "utterly destroyed" a building is not likely
to be as effective as merely to say "destroyed." "Destroyed" is a strong
word, carrying the whole meaning.

On the other hand, to say that "a large crowd" attended the football
game is not nearly so vivid as to call it "a hilarious throng"; and to say
that it "filled the stadium" doesn't do as effective a job as to report
that it "packed every seat in the bowl."

Another forceful device is use of the second person. The news writer
can frequently gain interest by this direct appeal to his listener.
Examples:

You'll be interested in this story from Washington. It reports that a re-
duction in taxes. . . .

President Truman is going to take another trip this week. Only last
month, you'll recall, he went to Missouri for a long weekend. . . .

A debilitating stylistic habit of some writers is probably the result
of grammar school insistence that word repetition is a literary sin. An
example of bungling avoidance of repetition:

President Truman says we ought to have a larger army. The Chief Execu-
tive told a press and radio conference today that national security demands
it. The nation's commander-in-chicf went on to sav. . . .

Colorful writing needs to be kept in tune with its subject-matter. Here is
a lead provided by one of the news services on a winter weather story:

"Old Man Winter still is kicking his heels like a new-born colt throughout
most of the nation. The Atlantic coast is "being put to bed under a blanket
of snow a blanket that is expected to turn into a comforter of some 10 to
12 inches in depth."

There's color here, and a light touch. But that same cold spell had
caused a dozen deaths, and widespread suffering. The color was out of key
with the somber nature of the total story.

102 News by Radio

All of which is not to deny that repetition may become clumsy. The
point is that it is much to be preferred to cumbersome, labored attempts
to sidestep it.

Not only that: In many situations repetition not of words, but of
facts or statements may be the heart of effective radio news writing.
If the fact or statement is hard to understand, or if it demands emphasis,
repeating it may be the best method of underlining it:

There'll be no school today in Midland, Blankton and Millville. Heavy
snows have closed all the roads. Let me repeat that no school today in
Midland, Blankton and Millville.

Again

Here's something of personal importance to nearly 10 thousand residents
of Midland today is the last day to register for voting in November. Elec-
tion officials say that almost 10 thousand eligible voters in Midland haven't
yet got their names on the books. If you're in that 10 thousand, and want to
vote, get down to the county court house today before 9 o'clock this
evening.

o

One of the most thrilling broadcasts of World War II was that made
by Edward R. Murrow of CBS from London on December 3, 1943.
Murrow had just returned from a heavy RAF bombardment of Berlin;
his radio description of his experience in the plane "D for Dog" is a
model of restrained but powerfully revealing radio news copy. Two
paragraphs* from the broadcast will illustrate its effectiveness:

Jock was wearing woolen gloves with the fingers cut off. I could see his
fingernails turn white as he gripped the wheel. And then I was on my knees,
flat on the deck, for he had whipped the "Dog" back into a climbing turn.
The knees should have been strong enough to support me, but they weren't.
And the stomach seemed in some danger of letting me down, too. I picked
myself up and looked out again. It seemed that one big searchlight, instead
of being 20 thousand feet below, was mounted right on our wing tip.
"D-Dog" was cork-screwing. As we rolled down on the other side, I began
to see what was happening to Berlin.

* From an uncopyrighted pamphlet, "orchestrated hell . . ." published by the
Columbia Broadcasting System, 1944.

How Is It Written? 103

The clouds were gone, and the sticks of incendiaries from the preceding
waves made the place look like a badly laid out city with the street lights on.
The small incendiaries were going down like a fistful of white rice thrown on
a piece of black velvet. As Jock hauled the "Dog" up again, I was thrown to
the other side of the cockpit and there below were more incendiaries, glow-
ing white and then turning red. The cookies the four thousand pound high
explosives were bursting below like great sunflowers gone mad. And then,
as we started down again, still held in the lights, I remembered that the
"Dog" still had one of those cookies and a whole basket of incendiaries in
his belly . . . and the lights still held us. And I was very frightened.

Analysis of this passage may be gratuitous. But its merits should not
be overlooked: The dependence on nouns and verbs rather than on
descriptive modifiers; the simplicity both in word-choice and structure;
the attention to highly specific detail; the use of colorful similes, and
of colloquial language; the use of "and" to introduce four sentences
a strictly oral mannerism.

The Murrow show was not, of course, a straight news program it
was a "special event," and a highly personal narrative. But the script
holds suggestions for any radio news writer.

Do ... Don't

Radio news because of its advantage in speed over the newspaper-
has come to place heavy emphasis on use of the present tense. Most
newspaper news is in either past or future tense. To speak in strict
accuracy, radio news is most of the time in exactly the same boat; but
because the newscast so often is able to report an event within minutes
of its occurrence indeed, often while it is still occurring radio editors
have developed the use of the present or the present progressive
("Lawyers of the state are meeting in Indianapolis . . .") to give
flavor to the sense of timeliness. Obviously this is a usage that may be
abused; the scrupulous editor won't employ it unless accuracy justifies
it. Here are some examples:

The leader of the striking electricians in Tulsa says his men won't go back
to work unless. . . .

President Roosevelt is dead.

Thousands of baseball fans are pouring into New York for the World
Series opener. . . .

104 News by Radio

A corollary of this usage is that the word "today" should be used
m moderation. Often the verb-tense obviates the necessity for a
specific time-word. __ _

Pronouns may get a radio writer into a lot of trouble. When they
appear in a printed news story, their antecedent relationship is usually
clear. But in news for the ear, pronouns should not be used unless
their reference is lucidity itself. This usually means that they should
be separated from their antecedents by no more than two or three
words. For instance:

BAD: Governor Albright is to appoint a new secretary of state. He will make
the appointment after. . . .

BETTER: Governor Albright is to appoint a new secretary of state. The gov-
ernor will make. . . .

PERMISSIBLE: Henry Moody is the new secretary of state. He took of-
fice. . . .

BETTER: Henry Moody is the new secretary of state. Moody took of-
fice. . . .

Related to this chance of misunderstanding is the careless use of
the internal qualifying phrase. Suppose a listener were to tune in to a
broadcast in the middle of this sentence:

Alice B. Toklas, for many years secretary to Gertrude Stein, has pub-
lished a book written in straightforward English. . . .

The listener, if he came in on the words "Gertrude Stein," would be
puzzled no end.

The letter "S" no longer whistles every time it goes on the air.
Nevertheless, careful writers guard against processions of sibilants
(such as "processions of sibilants") in their copy. A row of S-sounds
is difficult for the announcer, and it grates on listening ears. It can
usually be avoided by rephrasing.

Alliterations of any kind, as a matter of good sense, should be
examined twice. "Tennessee tempests are turning tables on tropical
temperatures today" is not only a tongue twister, but also an ear
offender.

How Is It Written? 105

Like alliteration and its danger, juxtaposition of similar sounds
should be avoided. "Swedish ships" is hard to say; "Chinese zeal" hard

to say and to understand.

* o

One of the means of attaining simplicity, directness, and concision
in radio news copy is the omission of unnecessary facts. Certain classi-
fications of facts are habitually excluded:

Given names of well-known public figures. You may effectively write
General Eisenhower, Premier Stalin, Governor or Senator So-and-so. But
Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek is better than General Chiang, since not
many listeners would readily identify the shorter title,

Ages. Ages are inconsequential unless they make the news in an eight-
een-and-eighty-five marriage, for instance, or a Carnegie Hall performance
by a nine-year-old violinist.

Street addresses. If they're not vital to understanding the news ("A
million-dollar fire has been brought under control in the heart of Chicago
at the corner of State and Madison") , they're commonly omitted, except in
local news shows aimed directly at concentrated local audiences.

Texts of formal announcements, communiques, and the like. Usually
summaries in stories are enough.

In any writing it's wise to avoid leaning on words that are already
overworked. Journalese is rarely effective usage. Criminals may better
be "arrested" than "taken into custody"; when three are "apprehended"
in the same week, it's not necessarily a "crime wave." "Solons" may
"probe" a "crisis" in headlines. Not, if you please, on the air. Don't
keep calling it a "full-dress peace conference" (as did one of the news
services, ad nauseam, in June, 1946) unless "full-dress" is literally what
you mean. Don't write "claims" unless you mean "claims," nor
"bandit" unless you mean "bandit."

This chapter has already warned against overwriting. And Chapter 3
has described taboos on certain types of words and news-situations.

Putting the Story Together

How do all these precepts add up to produce the effective radio news
story?
First, the lead.

106 News by Radio

The term "lead" comes from newspaper news writing. But early in
the development of a specialized style for radio news soon after Trans-
radio Press began, in 1934, to offer its service to any buyer for radio use
it became clear that newspaper style wouldn't do for the ear. The
newspaper lead, characterized by inclusion of a string of major facts in
a sometimes cumbersome, long-winded sentence, especially wouldn't
do.

Before long, radio news editors were talking about the "soft" lead for
radio stories, as opposed to the "hard" newspaper variety. These terms
aren't in use today; but the principle of the "soft" lead remains.

The principle is that the radio news lead should ease the listener
gently into the storytell him in general terms enough about the story
so that he may more readily understand the details when they are pre-
sented. It sets the framework for the story; sometimes it merely tells

When the Chicago stockyards burned in May, 1934, two radio news
services were operating: The Press-Radio Bureau and Transradio Press. The
Bureau furnished to its clients a special 43-word bulletin on the fire:

"A disastrous fire was raging in Chicago's stockyards tonight. All avail-
able apparatus was summoned by a general alarm. Three firemen are
reported killed. Two bank buildings, the Drovers National Bank and the
Live Stock National, with large funds in their vaults, are destroyed."

Transradio's story:

"Lurid tongues of flame visible for hundreds of miles stabbed the night
here as a raging inferno sweeps southwestward through Chicago's stock-
yards, greatest in the world.

'Thousands of persons are streaming from the old tenement houses of
Chicago's South Side carrying their belongings with them in a frantic
exodus from the fire area as a southwest wind sweeps the flames on through
miles of the stockyards toward the center of Chicago.

"Thousands of firemen from every section of the city, reinforced by other
companies from Chicago's suburbs and nearby Illinois towns, arc fighting
desperately to check the blaze that threatens the entire city.

"The odor of burning meat permeates the atmosphere. Smoke hangs
like a black fog over the city."

The Press-Radio story is brief, factual, told in short sentences and
colorless. The Transradio story, striving for color, is overwritten, told in
ovedong sentences, and apparently a newswriter's attempt to compensate
with verbiage for lack of specific facts.

How Is It Written? 107

him that he is about to be told a story. It rarely offers all the major facts.
Some examples will illustrate:

Newspaper

DANBURY, Wis. A woman,
thought to be about 20 years old,
was shot to death in a lonely rural
farmhouse 16 miles from here late
Friday night and the house became
her funeral pyre as the slayers set
fire to the dwelling before leaving.

Last minute efforts to prevent a
strike of St. Paul milk drivers failed
at a conference this morning but a
concession will be presented to the
workers at a meeting tonight for
final decision as to whether all milk
deliveries will be halted at midnight.

PORTLAND, Ind. Five service-
men were killed today and thirteen
others were injured, when a C-47
Army transport plane from Wright
Field, Dayton, Ohio, crashed on a
river bank near Pennville, Ind.

Radio

A young woman was shot to death
late last evening in a lonely Wiscon-
sin farm house.

OR:

The body of a young woman, shot
to death and burned beyond recog-
nition, was found in a lonely Wis-
consin farm house last night.

We still don't know whether St.
Paul milk deliveries will stop at mid-
night tonight.

OR:

St. Paul families won't know until a
milk drivers' meeting this evening
whether they'll have milk tomorrow.

OR:

Here's the latest on the milk situa-
tion.

An Army transport plane crashed on
an Indiana river bank today, and
five servicemen were killed.

OR:

Five servicemen were killed today
when an Army transport plane
crashed in Indiana.

This is simplification. The radio lead must not lose its listener, kill
his interest, in a welter of detail. It must, on the other hand, orient him
toward the facts which are to follow.

And it must do the job interestingly. Radio as has been said before
in this book faces stiff competition. The radio news lead that does not
capture its listener at once may lose him to his bridge game, his novel,
or his stamp collection. The opening words of the lead, ideally, should
promise him something worth his attention. Analysis of the radio leads
above will show some more successful on this score than others.

Radio news writers, because of this need for initial attention, have

108 News by Radio

learned to avoid opening stories with unfamiliar names, with over-
ordinary word-combinations, with long-winded explanatory phrases.
Examples:

Weak Better

Arthur Brownstein of Midland is to Mayor Brownstein of Midland is to
talk before .... talk before ....

The President says .... President Truman says ....

Congressmen seeking re-election Kissing babies all the babies in

may have to kiss all the babies in Sangamon County may be a chore

Sangamon County if .... facing Congressmen seeking re-
election.

Arthur Jones, director of the regional A War Manpower Commission

subdivision of the state War Man- official is to ... He is Arthur

power Commission, is to .... Jones ....

At a meeting of the Izaak Walton Midland fishermen will get together

Society in Midland Community tomorrow evening. They'll meet at

House tomorrow night, local fisher- the Midland Community House

men will .... to ....

But some words gain "lead-strength" by their very familiarity or in-
trinsic interest: "The weather today . . . ," "the World Series
"Hollywood . . . ," "Christmas . . ."

In summary: The lead should be brief, simple, interesting, "easy";
it should introduce the listener smoothly to the details he is next to
be given. _ _

Everything that has been said in this chapter both about leads and
about radio style in general applies to the organization and manner of
the rest of the story. Its job is to give the listener the detail into which
the lead has led him, and to do it as compactly, directly, and simply as
may be. Since a radio news story rarely runs to more than 400 words
most contain fewer than 200 words it must be selective. With due re*
gard for the maintenance of balance and accurate over-all impression,
it eliminates the petty detail considered a part of the usual newspaper
story much of the less significant detail making up the latter half of
a newspaper story organized in the standard "order of decreasing in>

How Is It Written? 109

portance" will find no place in a radio story. Its purpose, rather than to
give the listener all the facts, is to give him the meaningful facts those
that paint in broad strokes the event from which the story grows, those
that may be readily grasped and remembered.

There exists no arbitrary pattern for organization of the radio news
story. It usually follows a plan similar to that of the newspaper story:
lead first, then development of the principal facts. But chronological
order of facts is more frequently used by the radio news writer than by
the newspaper man, for two reasons. It is easy to understand, and it is
closer to the conversational pattern.

The examples of radio copy earlier in this chapter illustrate these
suggestions. For full measure, however, look at five more radio news
stories all taken from AP and UP radio wires on August 16, 1947 (the
radio wires must repeat stories, rewritten, so as to make them available
for successive newscasts) .

From the Associated Press radio wire:

Top political leaders discussed the pros and cons of the accomplishments
of the Eightieth Congress today, G-O-P National Chairman Carroll Reece
defended his party's efforts, and took occasion to criticize a C-I-O review
and voting guide as "a piece of impudence." The Democratic view was
given by Senator Alben Barkley of Kentucky. Barkley said the Republicans
ignored the people while they piled up ammunition for the 1948 election
campaign. o

Washington Republican National Chairman Carroll Reece has taken
'notice of the C-I-O's 1947 voting guide and he evidently doesn't like it.

The voting guide is a listing of the voting records of Congressmen pub-
lished last week-end by the C-I-O News as a guide to union members. Be-
side each legislator's name the labor organization placed the symbol "R" or
"W" to denote a right or wrong vote on selected measures from what the
C-l-O calls its progressive point of view.

Reece says the voting guide is a new attempt at dictatorship which will
meet with the same degree of success attained by the 1946 model. The
G-O-P leader claims it is part of a campaign to misrepresent the record of
the Republican Congress.

Senate Democratic Leader Alben Barkley has had something to say about
that Republican record. He says that in domestic affairs the Republican-
controlled Congress painted a sorry picture of partisanship and subser-
vience to special interests, ignoring tie needs of the mass of the people.

110 News by Radio

From the United Press radio -wire:

Republican National Chairman Carroll Reece says the C-I-O and the
Democrats are spreading confusion among workers as to what he terms
"the true intent and meaning of the Taft-Hartley labor law." The G-O-P
chairman says the confusion has been created by some union leaders, who
hope to continue their dictatorial control of workers.

A Republican leader charges the C-I-O and the Democratic party with
spreading propaganda to confuse the real meaning and purpose of the Taft-
Hartley labor law.

Republican National Chairman Carroll Reece says that union leaders
have deliberately created confusion in their efforts to continue their control
over the workers. And Reece charges that the same campaign is being carried
on by what he terms "the politically-motivated antagonism of the Demo-
cratic administration, from the President on down.'* The Reece statement
was issued tonight by the G-O-P National Committee in his absence. He
is traveling in South America.

o

Republican National Chairman Carroll Reece spoke up tonight in de-
fense of the Taft-Hartley labor law. He asserted in a statement that the
C-I-O and the Democrats are spreading confusion among workers as to the
true intent and meaning of the law.

He said some labor leaders are propagandizing workers in the hope of
continuing what he described as their "unbridled dictatorial control of
workers." Confusion among workers also is being caused, Recce said, by
the Democratic administration's "antagonism" toward the labor law.

Reece said a recent poll conducted by Opinion Research Corporation
showed that although a majority of workers were opposed to the act as a
whole, they overwhelmingly approved of specific provisions of the law.

The Radio Feature Story

Radio news programs carry "feature" storiesthat is, human interest
stories, stories dealing in pathos, humor, adventure, and the likeas do-
the newspapers, in about the same proportions and for the same pur-
pose. The feature story is the frosting on the cake, the leavening of the
serious news.

In the construction of this kind of story the two media come more
nearly together than in their handling of straight news. Both are likely
to lead such stories with "suspended interest" openings:

How Is It Written? Ill

Newspaper Radio

John Jones, laborer at the Midland This is the story of a man who didn't
Iron works, didn't want his pay want his pay check,
check.

John Jones, 1917 Hunt street, at Well, here's a Midland man who
least gets credit for trying. certainly gets credit for trying.

His 8-ycar-old sister told Bobby Little Bobby Parker he was only
Parker, 5, never to go near the 5 was told many times not to go
brook. . . . near the brook.

Ever wonder what a polar bear does Ever wonder what a polar bear does
in 100 -degree weather? in hundred-degree weather?

There are other similarities. The chronological arrangement of facts
is likely to furnish the pattern for many such feature stories. There is
greater latitude for imaginative writing and for the use of color. Most
such stories are short.

The contrast between newspaper and radio treatment of a common
type of longer feature is well shown here:

From the United Press newspaper wire:

New York (UP) The wartime pinup girl soon will be as outdated as
the flapper of the roaring twenties unless she washes off the excess makeup,
puts on a good girdle and dons some chic clothes, Miss Brownie of the Fox-
Brownie fashion house said Saturday.

Miss Brownie, one of New York's top designers, naturally is in favor of
women with clothes. But she sincerely believes that men like the Hollywood
type of siren only for display on barracks walls and warship lockers. They
don't intend to corrie home and marry them.

"The pinup girl is a caricature of a woman," Miss Brownie said. "She
exaggerates her features and her figure and leaves nothing to the imagina-
tion. The only type of beauty which will last is that of the feminine,
stylish woman."

She illustrated her point by describing a fashion show she gave recently
for wounded veterans. The show featured girls clad in scanty night-club
costumes and models wearing clothes Miss Brownie had designed.

"The boys whooped and hollered when the chorus girls appeared, but they
reserved their long low whistles for a girl who wore a demure black velvet
dress with a high white lace collar and white cuffs/' she said. "The chorus
girls were startling and glamorous, but the well-dressed girl was the one they
would like to come home to."

112 News by Radio

To convert "pinup glamor" into much-to-be-desired chic, Miss Brownie
prescribed these steps: A stiff dose of soap and water to scrub off all
mascara, eye shadow and rouge, a good girdle, an upswept hairdo, a ward-
robe of dressmaker suits, evening clothes and platform shoes.

From the United Press radio wire:

New York Here's a word of warning to the nation's wartime pin-up girls.

And it comes from one of New York's top fashion designers.

Miss Brownie of the Fox-Brownie fashion house predicts that unless
the pin-up girl reconverts she will soon find herself as outdated as' the
flapper of the roaring twenties.

Miss Brownie sincerely believes that the only type of beauty that will
last is that of the feminine, stylish woman. The men she says like the
Hollywood siren type only for display on barracks walls and warship lockers.
They don't she adds intend to come home and marry them. Miss
Brownie's definition of a pin-up girl is in her words "a caricature of a
woman."

And to illustrate her point the top-flight designer describes a fashion
show she gave recently for wounded veterans. The show featured pin-up
girls clad in scanty night-club costumes and models wearing clothes that
Miss Brownie had designed.

The veterans she reports whooped and yelled when the chorus girls
appeared. But they reserved their long, low whistles for the girl who wore
a demure, black velvet dress with a high white lace collar and white cuffs.

Miss Brownie prescribes three steps to convert pin-up glamour into
feminine charm. First, a stiff dose of soap and water to scrub off all excess
make-up. Then a good girdle to tone down the curves . . . combined with
an upswept hairdo for high style. And finally with a plug for her pro-
fession Miss Brownie prescribes a wardrobe of dressmaker suits, evening
clothes and platform shoes.

And before this new stylish American woman goes out for the evening,
Miss Brownie warns her not to leave her dressing table unless her make-up
is subtle and her clothes discreet. Then says Miss Brownie she will be
feminine, poised, natural, and terrific.

The term "feature" again as in newspaper usage is also applied to
longer, more exhaustive "time-copy" articles. These are not news stories,
but background explanations or human interest treatments of timely
or seasonable ( in contrast to spot-news ) subjects. Each of the two radio
news services offers a number of these features, in the form of five-, ten-,
or fifteen-minute daily or weekly broadcasts; since they are intended for
sponsorship, however, the copy is written for three-and-one-quarter-,

How Is It Written? 113

seven-and-one-half-, or eleven-and-one-half-minute periods (at a rate of
about ten words a minute). AP offers, for example, "Washington
Today/* a daily commentary on the national capital's activities; UP
matches it with "Under the Capitol Dome." AP has its "Farm Fair/'
background and commentary on current agricultural developments;
UP has "On the Farm Front." Both sendees offer sports features,
women's features, and others of the same general nature about a
dozen each.

These features are characterized by currency and authority of in-
formation, informality of manner, and breadth of appeal.

The Mechanics of Radio News Copy

Rule 1 in the preparation of radio news copy is: Make it legible.

Copy that is not instantly and unmistakably legible perhaps by an
announcer who has had little chance to go over it in advance is obvi-
ously loaded with booby traps. The announcer must never be led into
error; he must never be hung up by having to puzzle out something he
can't read at a glance. This does not mean that the editor who types
the copy must make it letter-perfectthere probably never lived the
newsman who could type that well. It does mean that errors must be
clearly and unmistakably corrected.

Copy from the news service printers comes typed in capital letters,
double-spaced (some AP copy is triple-spaced). A few announcers,
taking their cue from this copy, prefer their locally-written copy in caps.
But most copy turned out in radio newsrooms is in capital and small
letters, double- or triple-spaced according' to local practice or a par-
ticular announcer's desire. A few simple rules aid the writer to avoid
errors or illegibilities that might mislead the announcer:

If a typing error occurs, never strike over. Instead, xxxxx out the of-
fense and rewrite the word. (Later, black out the error with a soft black
copy pencil carefully, so that the editing does not create a new chance
for mistake) . This rule is especially important in the cases of initials,
capital letters, figures, and other symbols that do not have spelling
context to aid the eye in identifying them.

If you edit typewritten copy in pencil, do it neatly. Use as few inter-
lineationstypewritten or penciled as are consistent with speed in

114 News by Radio

getting the copy to the announcer. If time permits, retype paragraphs
or pages in which editing might cause confusion.

Include phonetic spellings of words that might puzzle the announcer
usually, though not always, foreign words. Be sure don't phoneticize
Joliet, as did one press service editor, "HO-LEE-AYE." The accepted
form:

General MacArthur ordered the break-up of the Zaibatsu (ZY-BOT'-
SOO) in order to ....

Don't phoneticize unnecessarily. And don't, as did one of the national
book clubs in a script for which it hoped radio stations would give it
free time, put an asterisk after the word in question and the phoneticiza-
tion as a footnote at the bottom of the page!

Be generous with punctuation commas, periods, and dashes espe-
cially. Newspaper and magazine style calls for as few commas as clarity
permits; radio style just the opposite. Commas should be put into copy
wherever they are needed to suggest slight voice pauses. Dashes in
radio copy surround parenthetical expressions (some radio editors and
some announcers prefer rows of periods or "suspension points" instead
of dashes) or indicate longer or more pronounced pauses. For example:

Then says Miss Brownie she will be feminine, poised, natural, and
terrific.

Thomas listed them as General Motors which reported earnings of
147-million Chrysler, Hudson, Mack, Nash, and Studcbakcr.

The two cities are 240 miles apart about the distance of Minneapolis
from Fargo.

Tomorrow seven more liners, headed by the Queen Elizabeth, will arrive.

State University won another football game this afternoon. Its ninth in
a row a real record.

OR:

State University won another football game this afternoon its ninth
in a row ... a real record.

Use plenty of capital letters. In radio copy, meaning is often immedi-
ately suggested by capital initials on titles and other words which, in
ordinary newspaper "down style," would be written with small letters.
It is better to write "the General moves today" than "the general moves
today."

How Is It Written? 115

Make paragraph indentations deep at least ten spaces.

Make paragraphs short usually no more than five or six lines.

Underline (by typewriter or pencil) words that demand special an-
nouncer-emphasis. But don't overdo it. Announcers don't like to be
told their business.

Put end-marks at the close of all stories either on the typewriter or
in heavy black pencil. An effective typewritten end-mark is a row of the
# symbol (########). Some writers use the conventional
newspaper symbol, -30-. Some use their own initials usually modestly
written in small letters rather than caps.

Number all pages, consecutively.

Indicate clearly in the script the spots where you think commercials
may best be inserted. The announcer may not follow your suggestions
if timing doesn't work out right, but they often help him.

Hyphenate as few words as possible at the ends of lines. Some writers
make no end-of-line hyphenation an absolute rule a pretty good one.

NEVER let a sentence begin on one page and continue to the next.
A period, end-mark, or continuation line should be the last typewritten
symbol on every page.

Try to avoid continuing a paragraph from one page to the next.

If a story continues from one page to the next, mark MORE, in
typewriter or pencil, clearly at the bottom of the first page.

Use abbreviations sparingly, or not at all. The abbreviation "Adj."
and many othersmay prove puzzling. Many newsrooms insist that
even such words as "Mister", and "Doctor" be spelled out.

Write figures unmistakably as you want them to read: "one thou-
sand" rather than "1,000," "25 hundred" rather than "2,500." A widely-
followed rule commands that figures smaller than 1,000 be expressed in
figures, others spelled out: "2 million 500 thousand/' "8 thousand 500,"
"750 thousand," "37 billion." The UP Radio News Styk Book pro-
scribes "a million" because of the chance that it might be heard "8
million." Some radio newsmen insist on hyphens in figures: "37-
billion," "2-million 500-thousand "

Make all pages uniform in size BV2 by 11 inches, A smaller page in-
serted in a script may confuse the announcer; a larger page is difficult to
handle.

116 News by Radio

Put on the script only what you want the announcer to read (except
for necessary editing marks) . A script cluttered with nonessential pen-
cilings and other marks may trouble him.

Do not use newspaper copy reading symbols on radio copy. They
may be confusing to one not familiar with them.

Finally . . . break as many of these rules as the announcer who is to
read your copy desires. Tailor copy to fit his particular taste.

Accuracy

Whatever his failings, the prime aim of every responsible worker with
news is accuracy. Whatever the loose popular wisecrack about it, the
degree of accuracy attained by those who gather and write news is enor-
mously high.

Many of the radio news problems in maintaining a high standard of
accuracy are precisely those of any other medium. The heart of accuracy
is fact. Earlier in this book (Chapter 3) is discussed the difficulty of
determining just what the facts are; within this limitation, however,
the ardent hope of every news writer is that he may work with unequivo-
cal and unquestionable names, dates, places, quotations, and other
facts the sum of which truly and truthfully describes an event.

Assuming that the news writer has such unequivocal material at his
disposal, he needs to exercise everlasting vigilance to make sure that
he gets it down on paper without error. He must check facts that he has
not personally verified; he must make sure that he writes "250" when he
means "250" and not, in haste, "260" or "350." He must write with
simplicity and clarity that surpasseth all misunderstanding. He must
edit his copy with an eye to every comma.

All of this applies to every news writer, whether his work is for news-
paper, news magazine, news letter, or newscast. But the worker in radio
news faces special problems.

He must produce copy that will be audibly as well as visually accurate.

This means that he has to keep constantly before him the precept
with which this chapter opened, and its corollary as well: that the ear is
a fuzzy recording instrument. If he fails for an instant to remember
either precept or corollary, he may find himself writing copy that,
though factually accurate, carries a false impression to the listener.

How Is It Written? 117

That is to say, he may write copy that will leave with a hearer an im-
pression contrary to its true meaning.

Observance of the suggestions in this chapter will steer him away
from most such pitfalls. But he must remember that radio copy is heard
once and once only unless he sees to it that significant or easy-to-
mistake facts are made indelible. For example:

A report from Moscow by way of Madrid says that Premier Stalin
will give no Russian food to Germany this winter. It's an unconfirmed
report . . . and it's in direct contradiction to what Stalin promised last
week. According to this story, Stalin is angry because Germans haven't
raised enough of their own food.

The report may or may not be true. Remember, it's unconfirmed and
it comes to us through an often unreliable channel.

The fact that the news in this story is probably untrustworthy could
hardly be missed. But without the qualifications that appear in every
sentence, it might be mistaken for indubitable fact. If, for instance, the
story appeared like this:

Until 1947, little published material on handling radio news was avail-
able. About the only volume beyond two mimeographed handbooks
published before the war and now out of date was:

Phil Newsom, United Press Radio News Style Book (United Press Associa-
tions, 1943) . A brief simplified manual offering fundamental precepts
for radio news style,

The postwar development of radio news and of university instruction in
radio news writing and editing led to the publication of a number of books
and manuals, intended both for classroom and radio newsroom use. Among
the books:

William F. Brooks, Radio News Writing (McGraw-Hill, 1948). A brief
manual, with emphasis on NBC practice and a good chapter on news
for women.

Carl N. Warren, Radio News Writing and Editing (Harper, 1947). A
primary textbook in radio news practice.

Paul White, New on the Air (Harcourt, Brace, 1947). A vastly readable
book, excellent on network news procedures and on news dramatiza-
tion.

(continued on next page)

118 News by Radio

Premier Stalin is quoted as saying that Russia will give no food to Ger-
many this winter. Stalin is angry because Germans haven't raised enough
of their own food. This position contradicts Stalin's promise of last week.

Repetition, as has been said before, is a priceless tool ot the radio
news writer, even when it uses up precious seconds.

And emphasis on the source of news, when it concerns a matter of
which there may be the slightest doubt, is mandatory.

Among the manuals of radio news practice:

B. L. Hotalingy A Manual of Radio News Writing (Milwaukee Journal,

1947).
Baskett Mosse, Radio News Handbook (Medill School of Journalism,

Northwestern University, 1947).
INS Radio News Manual (International News Service, 1948).

6

How Does It Go Together?

The Format of the News Program

News broadcasting is not old enough for ossification to have set in; no
pattern or format for the news show so fixed as that of the newspaper
story has grown up. Radio's very flexibility demands daily adjustment
to such factors as the nature of the news that makes up a show, the per-
sonality of the man who is to broadcast it, the competition it faces, its
purpose, its audience. These factors and others some fairly constant,
others changing from day to day operate to control the form of a news
broadcast.

Nevertheless, radio news editors have developed a widely flexible
guide for organization of the news show departmentalization. It is no
more than a loose guide, subject to daily alteration or outright jettison.
But its outlines are clear in most news shows you hear.

The pattern is characterized by division of news into a few main
categories five or fewer, as a rule. In any news show there is pretty sure
to be an international department, a national, a state or regional, a
local in effect, a geographical pattern. Some editors think it effective
to add a human interest category; most don't.

The departmental format has a good deal to recommend it, for both
editor and listener. Its simplicity and orderliness make it easy to arrange
and fit together, whether it is being written from scratch in the news-
room or merely clipped from the teleprinter. The same simplicity and
orderliness help the listener to understand the often involved inter-
relationships of news they give him a clarity of news picture that he
wouldn't get if he were told, in jumbled succession, of a strike in De-
troit, a Latin-American counter-revolution, the latest United Nations
impasse, a two-alarm fire on East Twelfth Street, and a second strike in
Los Angeles.

Usually the show opens with a punch. Its editor selects the story he
thinks holds greatest interest or importance for his audience, and moves

119

120 News by Radio

directly into it. If the story is one from the international scene, he fol-
lows it with other news under the same head. Then he draws a breath
and starts off on a second category.

During World War II this format was pretty firmly formalizedwar
news led ninety-nine in a hundred shows. Often half the news-time
went to stories from the fighting fronts. Then followed international
diplomatic and political news, war-related national news, other national
. news; finally, regional and local news. It was a rare day, from 1941 to
1945, when something other than war led the news program. After V-}
Day, as the news from Europe and the Pacific grew less dramatic, the
stereotype of leading with international news was quickly discarded.
But the departmentalized format remains.

Within the main categories, as in the show as a whole, this pattern
customarily follows what the reporting textbooks call the "order of de-
creasing importance." The strongest story comes first; the next strong-
est second; and so on.

(Some radio newsmen hold that newscasts should open not with the
day's "best" story, but rather that a short and "softer" story should pre-
cede. They argue that the show as a whole should open "easy/' lead
the listener in, just as the first sentence of the individual story does.
.Those who follow this principle are in a minority.)
, Radio news editors are inclined to frown on human interest cate-
goriesthat is, on saying to their listeners, "We will now make you
laugh or cry for two minutes." They prefer, rather, to use human inter-
est stories spotted through the show where they are appropriate. Some
editors insist that a show close with a light touch, a humorous story (as
do many announcers, who think such material gives them opportunity
to close with a virtuosic fillip) . But most who have tried this conven-
tion have found that on many days the humorous stories are very sad
indeed. The most satisfactory rule for use of the human interest story

The departmentalized pattern was dominant in the war years partly
because the radio wire services followed it. On both UP and AP radio wires,
copy for five- and fifteen-minute newscasts was served up in this form.
This meant that radio stations without rewrite staffs had little choice but
to -accept it. Doubtless the fact that the pattern was presented to them so
-frequently influenced radio newsmen doing rewrite jobs to make it habitual.

How Does It Go Together? 121

seems to be that of a Pacific coast editor: "Use 'em when they're good,
when they're short, when they're in good taste, and when they fit
smoothly into the show."

The departmentalized pattern, though it is the common one, is by
no means sacrosanct. It may effectively be varied, for instance, by open-
ing with an outstanding story of regional interest a story about an un-
seasonal blizzard, perhaps then picking up the international and
national news and returning at the end to more regional stories. The
order of the main categories may be and should bealtered accord-
ing to the nature of the news. A summary of the major news, in one-
sentence bulletin form, may be used either to open or close the show,
regularly or on special occasion.

Many departures from the basic pattern suggest themselves; and the
wise editor will experiment with all he can invent, both to gain variety
in his broadcasts though he must always remember that regular listen-
ers like familiar patterns and in the hope of developing successful new
patterns. For example: WCBM-Baltimore designed a fifteen-minute
daily news show in three parts: first, the "How-Time-Flies" depart-
ment, reviewing Baltimore news of one, five, and fifteen years ago;
second, a "Club Calendar/' a list of outstanding current club and civic
events; finally, an interview with an authority on a current topic. ABC's
"Three Views of the News/' a summer replacement for the Winchell
show, is similar in form Ben Grauer on current events, Ed Thorgersen
on sports, and a visiting fireman (such as Schiaparelli, the dress de-
signer) on a special topic. WIND-Chicago, running fifty newscasts a
day, devoted the 7-to-8-A.M. period to six ten-minute news periods, each
on a different category of news. Late in 1947, NBC began broadcasting
a "second edition" of its 7: 1 5 P.M. "News of the World" roundup the
later "edition" at 11:15. NBC says that the second show is "not a re-

KVOA-Tucson opens a fifteen-minute afternoon newscast with a quick
spot summary covering the last half of the show, and closes with a spot sum-
mary covering the first half. "Thus," says KVOA, "both the listener who
tunes in late and the one who tunes out early get at least the gist of the
whole show/* KVOA adds that this format might be even better adapted
to a breakfast-time show, aimed at the listener who may have to run to
catch a street car.

122 News by Radio

peat broadcast. Maintaining the format of the first program with
Morgan Beatty presiding at the news desk in Washington and calling
in NBC correspondents throughout the world, the second edition will
be completely revised up to air time to incorporate reports of latest de-
velopments."

The five-minute news show is a condensation of the longer program.
It is usually firmly departmentalized; its bulletin-like stories are ar-
ranged according to a standard routine, with little variation. It rarely
offers straight human interest material. Its crowded spaceonly three
-to three and one-half minutes if it's a sponsored showpermits no more
than forty or fifty words to any but a vastly important story, and no time
at all for entertainment. __ ___

A variation in effect, though usually not in basic organization, is
achieved in what is called the headline show. It borrows a technique
directly from the newspaper the use of a brief summary, sharp and as
dramatic as may be, at the head of each story. The technique is simple:

AMERICAN DIPLOMAT LOST IN AIR CRASH
A dispatch from Hawaii this morning tells us of ....

This pattern has its virtues. The headline has punch and emphasis;
properly used, it sharpens listener-attention toward the news to follow.
It breaks the even flow the monotonous flow, if the announcer is un-
skilledof the straight-copy show, and may thereby gain dramatic
effect. It keys each story in advance, tells the listener what to expect;
sometimes it may be devised to tell him only enough to arouse his
interest (as, for instance, in a question-headline: WHAT ABOUT
ATOMIC BOMB SECRETS?).

But it has a number of shortcomings:

It is artificial, just as the newspaper headline is artificial. Its attempt
to summarize may result in misleading oversimplification. It breaks
the "conversational" flow of the broadcast; it may seem to be throwing

Some newscasts make regular features of what they call "last-minute
bulletins 7 ' brief shots of striking news thrown into a minute's time just
before sign-off. This device has its danger: If s likely to be artificial, for its
implication that three or four bulletins have just come into the newsroom is
not always truthful, and now and again the listener is going to know it.

How Does It Go Together? 123

equal emphasis on each story, or undue emphasis on minor stories; it
sometimes calls unfortunate attention to the mechanics of putting the
show together.

It is more effective in a two-voice than in a one-voice show one voice
for the headlines, another for the stories. This adds mildly to the pro-
duction problem, and considerably to the cost.

Unless deftly handled, it may separate unduly stones that ought to
be tied together. It may turn a listener away if the headline doesn't
interest himrather than attract him.

The repeated breaks in the flow of news especially as stories in the
show become shorter and of less significance may become annoying
to the listener. This tendency can be reduced by grouping a number of
related stories under one headline; but this departure from pattern may
in itself puzzle the listener.

It is a little harder to write than the straight-copy show. And news
service copy, designed for other use, requires more editing to fit into
the pattern.

For these reasons, the headline show is not widely used. It may
nevertheless have its place in the over-all schedule of the station with so
many news shows daily that variety in pattern is desirable.

o

Most departures from usual format End their justification in this
need for variety; in the necessity of offering a show different from the
one a competitor is putting on the air at the same time; in the desire to
fit a show to a special situation; or in the personality or special capacities
of a particular broadcaster.

An example of the show fitted to the man was that broadcast every
morning in a Midwest city by a former foreign correspondent. During
the war, he dealt almost exclusively with war news; often he devoted his

A news editor who makes a regular practice of breaking the rule that radio
news stories must be short is Dick Crombie of KJR-Seattle. On one of his
regular news shows timed so as to compete with those on other stations,
Crombie uses only one to three stories in a fifteen-minute period. He be-
lieves that he not only gains diversity, offers the listener a different kind of
radio news diet, but that he also offers major stories developed with back-
ground, so that their meaning as well as their barebone facts are presented.

124 News by Radio

entire time to exhaustive development of the day's two or three most
important war stories. To use his background and experience, he usually
wove comment on the news in with its factual presentation. The war
over, he turneJ to a more conventional pattern.

In another case, a man of breezy personality, skillful at humorous ad
libbing, appears to organize his shows by throwing all the stories into
the air and presenting them strictly in the order in which they come
down. This makes a pretty bad show for the thoughtful listener; but
this newscaster gains a considerable audience, thanks to the effective-
ness of his manner.

A news broadcaster on a 5,000-watt station in the Northwest comes
on the air just after a network international round-up. He devotes only
a closing minute of his time to national and international news; most of
his show goes to local and regional news, with a three- or four-minute
commentary on a local news situation at its midpoint.

The format of the network international round-ups, familiar to all
radio listeners, grows out of their nature. Usually they operate from
New York or Washington; they take their listeners in turn to distant
corners of the earth to bring in foreign correspondents, with news of the
national scene opening or closing the period.

Occasionally news shows deal with one event only. Scores of broad-
casts went out from San Francisco in the spring of 1945 with news of
nothing but the United Nations conference. A natural disaster such as
a Mississippi flood, an accident such as the crash of an army airplane
into the Empire State Building, a local parade welcoming a visiting
dignitary to the city any such event may call for broadcasts devoted
to nothing else. Shows of this kind usually considered in the "special
events" classification depend partly on prepared script, partly on ad
lib color and description, often partly on interviews. They are to be
discussed in more detail in Chapter 9,

Where Does the News Come From?

The bulk of the news on which American newscasts are builtto re-
peat what has already been said more fully in Chapters 1 and 3 comes
from the news services. These services offer two types of service to radio

How Does It Go Together? 125

newsroom: News written especially for broadcast comes from AP, UP,
and Transradio; news written for newspaper publication, from AP,
UP, and INS (about a dozen stations, in 1947, bought this kind of serv-
ice from the British Reuters service, and four from the Canadian Press
News),

What do the radio wires provide?

Let the UP wire serve as example (but remember that such examples
are "dated" almost the day they're written, for specific practices on all
services change frequently) .

It clicks off its sixty words a minute, twenty-four hours a day, print-
ing its stories on yellow paper off a big roll long enough to last for more
than a full day's service. The heart of its service is its series of "round-
ups" nine departmentalized summaries a day, each providing enough
copy for about ten minutes of broadcast time. These round-ups are
"cleared" from a main UP bureau say New York or Chicago at
periods when they are most likely to serve broadcasters 7 needs for
fifteen-minute newscasts. The first one moves before six in the morning
to furnish copy for early shows, others at irregular intervals through
the day until the ninth in late evening. They follow a general rather
than a set pattern. There are always sections to cover international and
national news, and a postwar innovation regional sections summariz-
ing the latest regional news. The order in which these sections are
presented varies according to the nature of the news, except that the
regional section always comes last. On occasion there may be addi-
tional sections: one devoted to news of labor-management problems
when such news is extensive, one on a special occurrence such as a
national election, one on a great natural disaster or a weather phenom-
enon of broad proportions, one on "sidelights" brief disconnected
stories of general interest. They are scheduled to move through the
printer without interruption, at stated times, but they are sometimes
broken for bulletins or the less-frequent flashes.

Each round-up is followed by "The World News in a Nutshell"
half a dozen ten- to fifteen-word paragraphs summarizing the major
news highlights.

Second, the UP wire provides a dozen five-minute broadcasts ea-

126 News by Radio

titled "News of the World in Brief." These follow a more definite
pattern than the longer round-ups fifty-word summaries of half a
dozen stories of widest (usually international) news first, then as many
of national news, then a few paragraphs of regional news.

To supplement these summaries, which carry no "date lines" (on
the radio wire, the term "date line," though generally used, is a mis-
nomer, for it gives only the place of origin of the news, without the
date), dozens of individual stories occupy some of the time between
themmost of them short, but some running to 300 words or more.
These stories carry date lines:

WASHINGTON CONGRESS IS IN AN UPROAR TODAY . . .

Often they cover more fully events summarized in the round-ups or
"World in Brief" shows; more frequently they are stories on events of
limited or regional importance or interest. Most of them are straight
news, but a score of them a day are headed SPORTS, and another
score human interest stories FEATURE.

About a dozen times a day (the number varies from bureau to
bureau) the printer interrupts the flow of news on the trunk wire the
wire whose copy originates, say, in New York or Chicago for regional
"splits." A "split" is a period during which the regional UP bureaus
send to their clients stories originating in their own geographical areas.
Often a split follows immediately on a round-up, or a five-minute show,
to provide the regional section. Splits of this kind are usually brief-
three to ten minutes on the wire. But some run to fifteen minutes or
longer.

Weather receives particular attention. In the early morning and the
late afternoon the printer grinds out the latest weather forecasts a
long string of them, covering all the areas served by a regional wire.
Special forecasts supplement these regular features from time to time.
When an event such as the season's first cold wave comes along,
stories headed UNDATED WEATHER move several times a day on
the wire.

Markets also get regular space. Stocks and bonds, grain, produce and
livestock markets both listings of opening and closing prices and
summarized stories about trends on all such markets are routinely

How Does It Go Together? 127

reported; the news editor knows that at stated times each day he will
receive this kind of news from both national and regional sources.

The editor also knows that he must watch for special warnings on
individual stories. A story may be headed EDITORS: NOTE THE
NATURE OF THIS STORY. This usually means that the story deals
with crime, sex, or other subjects against which some stations have
prohibitions. Or it may be headed FOR AUTOMATIC RELEASE
AT 7:30 P. M., or HOLD FOR RELEASE-EXPECTED ABOUT
6 P. M. In the one case he may schedule it for use at 7:30, without
further instruction; in the other, he must watch the printer for the
release.

He learns to watch, too, for corrections of matter already moved on
the wire, and for "repeats" repetitions of stories or sections of stories
requested by individual newsrooms whose printers have for one reason
or another gone temporarily off the beam. Occasionally he is told,
IMPORTANT NEWS EXPECTED FROM THE WHITE
HOUSE ABOUT NOON; occasionally he finds the flow of news in-
terrupted by interbureau messages, usually in code.

Some stories are headed ATTENTION EDITORS. Usually these
stories deal with news of peculiar interest to the radio industry, with
new service plans of the UP, or like matters. They are put on the wire
for the information of the editor rather than for broadcast though he
is free to use them if he wishes.

Finally, there are a large number of daily and weekly features most
of them five-minute broadcasts for one voice; some longer and more
elaborate. Most of the daily features move on the wire between mid-
night and 4 A.M., when the wire service day begins the four-hour
period when broadcasts are fewest and news activity at its lowest. A
few news commentaries and the like move at regularly scheduled
periods daring the daytime. The list changes from time to time, as

A sample of the kind of story to which special attention is drawn:

ATTENTION EDITORS:

Dallas, Texas News Commentator Cedric Foster (of Mutual Broadcast-
ing System) has been named defendant in a 100-thousand dollar slander
suit.
The suit was filed ....

128 News by Radio

news trends change ('Today's American Hero" was dropped soon
after the end of the war) ; but the list in early 1947 is typical:

For women: "Women in the News/' "In the Women's World/' "In
Your Neighborhood/' "Good Eating." For farm audiences: "On the Farm
Front/' "Farm Market Survey." Sports: "Speaking of Sports/' "Great
Moments in Sports/' "Sports Lineup/' "Sizing Up Sports." Business:
'Tomorrow's Business," "Weekly Business Review." Commentary: "To-
day's UP Commentary/' "United Press Reporting/' "Under the Capitol
Dome." General: "Time Out/' "World of Tomorrow/' "In Movieland,"
"Your New Home/' "Names in the News/' "Highlights."

In the same period, the UP radio wire provided a number of extra
features:

Seven series of scripts: eighteen broadcasts called "Along the Baseball
Trail" and sixteen on "Sizing Up the Majors"; twenty-four on gardening,
twelve on income tax, and six each on the Moscow Big Four meeting,
fashions, and retail shopping. And five single broadcasts on Washington's
birthday, Thomas A. Edison, Alexander Graham Bell, Adolf Hitler, and
infantile paralysis.

The AP radio wire corresponds closely, in many ways, to the UP,
It offers five fifteen-minute summaries a day, the first clearing in time
for a 7 A.M. broadcast and the fifth at 10:45 P.M.; it supplements these
with periodic suggestions that editors may combine a number of
specifically designated stories and summaries to make up other fifteen
minute shows. In general pattern the AP fifteen-minute summaries
are similar to the UP round-ups.

"Bulletins" and "flashes" arc regular features of all news wires. Bulletins
are terse summaries one or two sentences of "hot" news events; they are
heralded by five bells on the printer, and they take precedence over other
news, often interrupting stories on the wire as they break. The AP radio wire
triple-spaces them for attention; the UP heads them "A Bulletin from the
United Press" (a bid for getting the words "United Press" on the air) .
Radio news editors become blas6 about bulletins they know that bulletins
are customarily followed by enlarged stories marked SUB. Unless an editor
is close to a deadline, or a show is actually on the air, he's likely to wait for
the SUB.

Flashes are something else. Signalized by eight to ten bells on the printer,

(continued on next page)

How Does It Go Together? 129

AP presents twelve five-minute newscasts the first clearing shortly
after midnight (the AP day runs from midnight to midnight) and the
last at 1 1 : 30 P.M. These, too, are similar to their UP counterparts.

And in most other ways the two services are alike. AP has, to cor-
respond to 'The World in a Nutshell/' a series of "Spot Summaries"
that move hourly around the clock. It carries its special sports, human
interest, market, and weather news. It keeps its newsrooms up to date
by providing frequent SUBS for earlier or developing stories. It carries
six regional splits in twenty-four hours, some of them serving (as on
the UP wire) as the regional sections of fifteen-minute shows. Similar

they appear only when sensational news occurs: the death of a President,
the end of a war, the cessation of a strike of national proportions. They arc
couched in telegraphic terms:

FLASH WASHINGTON
. PRESIDENT DIED THIS AFTERNOON

Like the bulletins, they are followed by enlarged stories, but more
quickly, and often in "takes" or separate paragraphs headed MORE
.PRESIDENT'S DEATH or ADD ROOSEVELT. Development of the
stories they announce may take all the wire's space for many succeeding
hours (there was little but invasion news on the wires for twenty-four hours
following the flash of June 6, 1944, on the Allied landing in Normandy).

Bulletins and flashes on the radio wires usually come a few seconds later
than those on the newspaper wires, thanks to the necessity for rewriting
for radio.

Radio listeners know that any program on the air may be interrupted for
news of this character more frequently for flashes than for bulletins. Radio
news editors have learned that sometimes too great haste does not pay. In
April of 1945 the AP flashed a premature declaration of immediately forth-
coming German surrender; radio put it on the air, only to find that UP was
not carrying the story and that Senator Connally had talked not wisely but
too well at San Francisco. The next month INS was first with a flash on
President Roosevelt's death; most radio newsmen, though they put it on the
air immediately, said carefully that "International News Service [or "a news
service"] has announced" the tragedy, or that the news was unconfirmed.
In August, a false flash mysteriously found its way onto the UP radio wire,
declaring that JAPAN ACCEPTS SURRENDER TERMS. Though it
was followed in a matter of seconds by a- "kill" order, many radio stations
had already broadcast it.

130 News by Radio

corrections, special notices to editors, interbureau messages, and so on
appear.

AP's special features (AP calls them "telescripts") many of which
correspond directly to those of the UP in early 1947 were:

For women: "Women Today," "Listen, Ladies," "To Market, To
Market." For farm audiences: "Farm Fair." Sports: "The Sportsman,"
"Sport Special" Commentary: "Between the Lines," "Behind the World
News," "Washington Today." General: "Jigsaw News/* "Side Street Amer-
ica," "Flashes of Life," "Stars on the Horizon," "Sideshow," "Today in
History/' "It Happened During the Week," "Leaders of Tomorrow," "Pre-
view of Tomorrow."

Transradio Press, which offers radio newsrooms the third wire written
and edited for broadcast, follows a pattern similar to those of the AP
and UP radio wires. It is limited by two factors: Its service runs only
eighteen hours a day, from 6 A.M. to midnight; and it does not have
the vastly extended news-gathering organization built up by AP and
UP, a fact that holds its service largely to national and international
news (it offers no regional splits) . Features of TP service:

An hourly bulletin-like "headline" summary of major news, "Transradio
Headlines/*
Fewer summarized, "ready-made" broadcasts for either five- or fifteen-

What, you ask, if AP and UP services are so much alike, is the basis for a
choice between them? The most voluble speakers on this subject are the
sales representatives of the services.

A good many radio editors say that for most practical purposes one service
is about as satisfactory as the other (there are, it is true, violent partisans of
each). Without question a radio newsroom can, with decently intelligent
editing, do a good job of newscasting with either service. In the early com-
petitive days of the two services say in 1941 there were many radio news-
men who thought UP service sometimes overwritten, striving too hard to
achieve vigor, color, brightness; and as many who thought AP, in the con-
servative AP newspaper-writing tradition, underwritten, lifeless. Since that
time both services have settled into a sound and generally satisfactory radio
news style; in this matter, too, they now closely approach one another.

On what basis, then, make a choice? Among the factors that influence
station decisions are: price of service; a belief that one service or the other
provides generally sounder news coverage (national and international, or
regional, or both); the matter of competition the fact that a competitor
is using one service may lead a station to select the other.

How Does It Go Together? 131

minute periods. Use of the periodic suggestions for combining selected
stories to form such newscasts (like the AP wire's suggestions for the same
purpose) .

Heavy emphasis on sports news.

As many as twelve, or more, brief daily "commentiques" of 200 to 300
words each, rather than five- or fifteen-minute commentaries.

Emphasis in "Radio Intelligence for Executives" on news of the broad-
casting industry, much of it not intended for broadcast.

Emphasis on Washington news.

Inclusion of a number of the special features like those carried on AP and
UP wires (but fewer of them, in part because TP is not operating in the
early morning hours when such features are often moved) .

o

The newspaper wires whose printers operate in many newsrooms are
primarily useful to stations with news-writing or editing staffs. Their
stories are intended for readers, not for listeners, and since they offer
no material tailored for radio use they cannot ordinarily be used
effectively for broadcast without rewriting. An increasing number of
stations, however, are depending entirely on rewritten news; for such
stations the newspaper wire is usually thought to be more satisfactory
than the radio wire. It operates at the same speed as the radio wire-
sixty words a minuteand it can produce no more copy in a day. But
it gives more detail on almost every individual story (note again the
contrasted examples in Chapter 5); it offers every story that the radio
wire carries, and some the radio wire doesn't (both get their news
from the same reporters), since some types of stories are considered

The question arises: Why, if the newspaper wire gives individual stories
in greater detail than the radio wire, and since it operates at the same speed,
can it offer more stories? Why isn't the radio wire, with its shorter stories,
more inclusive? The answer: The newspaper wire repeats itself compara-
tively little. Once a story has been fully told, it is unnecessary for news-
paper purpose to retell it. The newspaper copy desk can use the early
morning story as well at noon, if there are no new developments on it, as it
could use one hot off the wire. But the radio wire must retell a story half a
dozen times in the same period. AP, for instance, would put the story on its
radio wire in two fifteen-minute scripts, three or four five-minute scripts
and perhaps a "separate" during a six-hour period. Its newspaper wire would
carry the story only once.

132 Newa by Radio

unsuitable for broadcasting. In general details of operation, it resem-

bles the radio wire closely.

Into the newspaper wire picture comes INS, a third entry. INS
officials hold that its copy, intended primarily for newspapers, is so
expertly and interestingly written that much of it can be broadcast
effectively "with only the minimum of editing that any copy ought
to have before going on the air." Most radio newsrooms, however,
seem not to go along with this opinion. Three-fourths of the INS
printers in radio stations in early 1948 were in newsrooms receiving at
least one other service presumably a radio wire service in most cases.
Only thirty-two stations (according to Broadcasting Yearbook) were
operating newsrooms with INS service only.

The three major news services are in agreement on the meaning of
advance release notices. In 1948 they announced that stories released
for morning papers would become available to radio at 7 P.M., Eastern
time; those released for afternoon papers at 7 A.M., Eastern time.

What are the sources of news other than the wire services?

Not until after World War II was any other source of great impor-
tance to more than a few pioneering stations. Those few were the
stations which had developed their own local and regional news
coverage. This is the most important undeveloped source of news for
radio; it is discussed at length in Chapter 8. It is enough here to say
that it should be considered vital to most stations.

Certain other sources, however, exist. One is the A.T. & T. sports
ticker which some newsrooms boast the fastest sports news service,
since it reports events like baseball games inning by inning (the press
services usually report them only every three innings). There are
always "handouts" coming into every newsroom prepared "free
publicity" from all kinds of organizations that would like mention of
their affairs on the air. Some of these are worth air time; most aren't.
They come to the newsroom in mailbags, by telephone, by personal
bearer.

NBC and CBS furnish special Washington news services to their

How Does It Go Together? 133

affiliates recorded programs of special interest to an affiliate's locality,
such as an interview with a Congressman, and the like. A service called
Radio Washington offered regional Washington news to individual
radio stations in 1946, and built up a list of some dozen clients, but
apparently found this list insufficient to make the operation successful.

Putting the Rewrite Show Together

The first task of the man who is to write copy for a newscast is to
organize his material.

He starts by "clearing the printers" taking from them all the copy
that has moved since the last previous show. Let us say he has two
newspaper wires at his disposal. He reads through all the copy rapidly,,
for he has learned a "skimming" technique and cuts or tears off each
story as he goes. He balances one service's story against the other s,
deciding whether he'll need only one, or both, to write his story. He
disposes of each story as he goes along. He may put it into one of
several piles on his work table national, international, regional; or
more specialized, such as labor, sports, diplomatic, United Nations.
He may throw it into a waste basket, if he's sure it's of no use to him
or other editors. He may file it for future reference. Or he may lay it
aside for the farm editor, or the sports man, or some other specialist
on the station's staff.

If his newsroom also provides radio wire service, he may follow the
same process with a second set of copy. Though he may use the radio
wire little, it's helpful to him to know what news the wire is playing,
and how it's being treated. Many radio news writers prefer to depend
heavily on newspaper wires, however, since they offer more news than

Actually, the competent news man radio or newspaper begins work
long before he gets near his office. He keeps constantly abreast of the current
news and its implications, by reading newspapers, listening to newscasts,
reading Time and Newsweek and other such publications. And he reserves
some of his spare time for books like those of John Gunther, and othei
means of building up his background knowledge. He cannot waste precious
minutes, once he sits before his typewriter, looking for such material a
necessary part of his working equipment.

134 News by Radio

radio wires and since merely reading radio copy may influence style or
approach.

Now his job becomes the organization of specific departments of his
show, and of specific stories within each department. Probably he has
already decided while he was sorting the copywith which story to
lead his show, and at least in a general way how he is going to follow
it. He picks out the copy on his main story, and anything that should
be related to it, and makes a separate pile of it. Perhaps he goe: to the
newsroom's reference shelves for background information; perhaps
he examines a map on the wall. If he is very methodical, he may
organize all the copy he expects to use in the same manner, and arrange
it all in order. More likely, having got ready for his first story, he goes
to work on it.

If you're watching him, you're likely to be astonished at the speed
with which he writes. He seems to be working "from memory." In
effect, that's what he's doing. Rather than pick each sentence or fact
laboriously from examination and re-examination of the copy, he writes
the story from the knowledge he has gained of it in the earlier reading.
Occasionally he refers to the wire copy to pick out a title, a date, a
specific statistic. The experienced radio news writer believes that this
method makes it easier to write his copy in smooth, broad strokes
rather than in fine detail.

He starts his typewriter going two to two and a half hours before
the show is scheduled. Few radio news editors can turn out a complete
show in less than two hours about ten minutes for each triple-spaced
page of copy.

His first words may or may not be a conventional opening "good
morning" or something of the kind. The preference of the man who
is to read the copy governs this.

In any case, he is sure to work hard over the first sentence work
to make it a short, sharp, striking sentence that will be easy for the
reader to "punch" and sure to catch the listener's interest. Such a
sentence, perhaps, as:

Justice is catching up with the top-ranking Nazis this morning.
OR:

How Does It Go Together? 135

Half a million more men are out of work today.

OR:

The Midwest is fighting its way out of the season's worst snow storm.
OR, PERHAPS:

We told you this morning that the Governor would have an important
announcement on the proposed session of the Legislature. Now we can give
it to you. There'll be no session . . .

Then he goes on to develop the story, probably telling it in greater
detail than he would grant most stories. Since it's his lead story, he
may let it run to 300 or 400 words, a length pretty sure to make it his
longest single piece of news. Midway through it, he may get up for
another trip to a reference source, or make a telephone call to check
on a fact or get additional information. Finished with it, he stuffs the
copy on which it is based into a waste basket, or lays it aside for possible
use in a later show.

Now comes his second story, and a new problem that of "transi-
tion/' moving smoothly and conversationally from one story to the
next. Discussion of the transition problem appears later in this chapter.

Thus he moves, rapidly through the show, checking his copy, dis-
carding printer material as it's used, perhaps rearranging order of
stories as he goes. Every half hour or so he checks the printers again
checks bulletins to see whether they affect stories he's using, rips off
new material he wants. Bulletins or fresh stories may force penciled
revision or complete rewriting of some of the work he has done. If the
show is one that carries a mid-commercial, he suggests the place for it
at about the midpoint of his copy probably at the end of a major
news department. After this suggestion, he again follows the wish of
the announcer as to whether to write in a second opening device: "Now
back to the news," or something of the kind.

He tries to complete the show fifteen or twenty minutes before air
time. He has now written about a page more copy than the announcer
customarily uses enough for a margin of safety. The last page or so
is made up of short stories; perhaps the writer pencils heavily in the
margin of those he thinks may best be omitted the word OPTIONAL

136 News by Radio

or some other symbol. If the show customarily closes with a human
interest story, or if the writer thinks a particular story a peculiarly
effective closing, he marks it clearly as the "kicker/'

Now comes the job of editingcareful checking of every word of
the copy for possible errors, for infelicitous phrasing, for illegibility.
Overtyping or "x-ing out" must be clarified or blacked out in pencil
Interlineations must be sharply defined.

The copy now goes to the announcer, if he is other than the writer.
The announcer reads it through carefully, questioning the writer from
time to time about phrasings, meanings, pronunciations. He may do
some editing himself underlining words or phrases he decides to hit
hard, or words that demand special care; perhaps marking pauses or
breathing spaces; perhaps altering phraseology here and there.

Meantime the writer is back at the printer, making a last-minute
check on late news. He may find something that demands rewriting
of some of the copy. If it's a late afternoon show in summer, he may
turn to getting the late baseball scores. Perhaps these or a not-off-the-
printer story he won't have ready by the time the show takes the air.
In such case, the writer bangs out the copy as rapidly as possible and
tiptoes into the broadcasting booth to give it to the announcer. Then
back to the printers, to watch for possible news-breaks up to the end
of the broadcast.

Exactly what goes into such a newscast is shown in the exhibit

How to figure the length of a show?

Baskett Mosse, former NBC news man now directing radio news courses
at Medill School of Journalism, presents in the Newscaster a chart of three
methods for quick estimate of the time-length of a news script. The simplest
of the three is based on the number of typewritten lines. For an average
15-minute show (12 minutes 30 seconds of news), 188 lines are needed;
for a 10-minute show (8 minutes of news), 120 lines; for a 5-minute show
(3 minutes 30 seconds of news), 53 lines. (The average line, written on a
pica typewriter from margin to margin, includes ten words.)

The word basis: A 15-minute show requires 1,880 words or 9V2 pages of
copy; the 10-minute, 1,200 words or 6 pages; the 5-minute, 530 words 01
2V2, to 3 pages. (A page is pica-typewritten, with margins of about an inch
at the sides and 1 Vi inches at top and bottom. )

The inch basis: A 15-minute show, 62 Vi inches of copy; a 10-minute, 40
inches; a 5-minute, YJVi inches.

How Does It Go Together? 137

given an exhibit presenting both original teleprinter copy (and some
other suggestions of source material) and the finished newscast copy.
This show was written from stem to stern by two newswriters in a
Minneapolis radio newsroom for broadcast at 12:30 P.M. on December
1, 1945. It drew its material primarily from the Associated Press news-
paper "A" wire (serial numbers slugged A), the United Press news-
paper Midwest Trunk wire (slugged HX or PR), the AP radio wire
(slugged APR), and the UP radio wire (slugged MS). The opening
weather story was based largely on telephone calls to the United States
Weather Bureau and other local sources. Occasionally the writers drew
on their own knowledge of the current news.

Careful examination of the wire copy and the rewrite underlines
one of radio news's hazards departure from original fact. In several
cases the rewritten copy does not say exactly what the original says-
note the story from Italy and the Higgins story as particular examples.

The newscast's typewritten copy, triple-spaced and in caps and
lower case on yellow copy paper, with deep paragraph indentations
and very small margins, ran to 207 lines. Of these, the announcer used
only 165. He discarded five short stories (one of them a repeat of an
earlier story), totaling 34 lines, before going on the air; he edited out
three short paragraphs, totaling eight lines, during the broadcast.

The copy for the newscast appears here in large type; the original
wire copy, comments, and explanatory material in small type. Passages
in the wire copy used directly in the final copy are in italics. Care has
been taken to present both wire copy and final copy exactly as it
appeared, with typing or other errors included.

The Newscast

Northwest residents woke up this morning to find streets and high-
ways covered with a glassy sheet of ice. It didn't take them long, either,
to discover that driving was very difficult and that most busses weren't
running. In the Twin Cities and Duluth, motorists trying to get to
work were soon caught in traffic jams at the bottom of hills. A number
of accidents have been reported as cars skidded into one another or
crashed into stationary objects such as telegraph poles.

The worst part of today's storm and ice is that it may continue

138 News by Radio

through Sunday. The weather bureau tells us that the rain is due to
continue all day and that it probably will turn into snow tonight or
tomorrow. Weather bureau forecasters say that because of the low
cloud cover there isn't going to be any increase in temperature, either.
That means the present icy conditions are here to stay for at least the
next 24 hours.

Highway department officials are extremely pessimistic about road
conditions, They warn motorists not to travel unless it is absolutely
necessary and then they are urged to drive with extreme caution.
Conditions are particularly bad in northern Minnesota and north-
eastern Wisconsin. The temperature in these areas is around the 28
degree mark, which means it isn't cold enough for snow and not warm
enough to melt the ice.

There was no bus service either in or out of the Twin Cities until
mid-morning. The Northland Greyhound canceled all trips out of the
Twin Cities until about 10:30 a. m. when two busses were sent out,
one to Willmar and another to Bemidji. The Deephaven busses also
started running about the middle of the morning. Anoka, Stillwater,
Mercury and Medicine Lake busses also are in operation, but they are
running very late.

According to the weather bureau, temperatures are warmer in
southern Minnesota and South Dakota, and the ice has turned to
slush. Driving is still hazardous, however, and drivers in those areas
should proceed with caution. It's quite possible that temperatures will
drop before nightfall, thus restoring the icy conditions, which were
prevalent this morning.

At Grand Forks, a light rain is falling right now, but as yet there is
no ice. But since the weather bureau predicts a drop in temperatures,
you Grand Forks residents had better be prepared for difficult driving
conditions there.

This present storm is very widespread. It is centered in central Kansas
with icing conditions extending from Missouri north into Canada,
and from central North Dakota to eastern Wisconsin. The weather
bureau expects no relief until sometime tonight or tomorrow, when
snow is expected, thus taking at least some of the glaze from the icy
streets and roads.

How Does It Go Together? 139

The weather situation remains bad over much of the Northwest,

and the ice that is forming in Minnesota will continue to pile up. And

tomorrow it will hit Wisconsin, to make driving hazardous there.
The Dakotas will have cloudy skies today and tomorrow, with lower

temperatures tonight, and a little light rain in eastern South Dakota

today.

(To this point the newscast is built from material gained by tele-
phone. Now wire copy is used: )

HX74

Chicago, Dec. 1 (UP) Weather forecast:

Wisconsin Rains south and central and freezing rain or drizzle extreme
north portion tonight. Slightly -warmer. Sunday cloudy with rain snow
northwest portion.

Iowa Rain tonight changing to snow flumes extreme west portion late
tonight. Warmer east and colder extreme portions, Sunday mostly cloudy
and colder.

Minnesota Rains south and light freezing rain or drizzle north por-
tions this afternoon and tonight t with rain changing to snow north and
snow flurries southwest portions late tonight or early Sunday. Snow
north and snow flurries south portion Sunday. Colder Sunday afternoon.

RW1122A

Minnesota will continue to have its freezing drizzle during the day,
which will turn into snow tonight or early tomorrow. The mercury will
drop tomorrow afternoon.

Wisconsin will get its freezing drizzle tomorrow, and the tempera-
ture will climb slightly.

And in Iowa, rain tonight will change to snow. Tomorrow will be
colder.

The present Twin Cities temperature is right on the freezing mark,
and will stay there, meaning that ice will get thicker and slipperier dur-
ing the rest of the day. So watch your driving and your footwork.

(Material for the following paragraph comes from an earlier newscast. )

Weather is the main topic of conversation in several other parts of
the country today. New Englanders still are talking about their two-
day snow storm which moved out over the Atlantic last night. It left
behind 45 persons dead, and a heavy deposit of ice and snow. Com-

140 News by Radio

mtmications were disrupted, and coastal areas suffered considerable
damage from high winds and lashing tides.

A76WX

TRUMAN
By Ernest B. Vaccaro

Washington, Dec. 1 f AP) President Truman and nearly 200 guests,
including five disabled soldiers, caught the football fever today as they
bundled up in their warmest clothes for a holidayp in Philadelphia.

Distinguished friends were in Cabinet and Congress were invited to
accompany the Chief Executive to the Army-Navy classic aboard a special
White House train scheduled to leave at 8:45 a.m. (EST) .

The soldiers, all amputation cases, were Isadore Turnasky, Fernand R.
LeClaire, John L. Eisenmann, Albert Berlanger and Walter Leszcynsky.
They are patients at Walter Reid Army Hospital here.

Aides said the President was disappointed that more enlisted men at
the Hospital couldn't go along but that he gave his last tickets to these
five.

SU741AES NM

A94WX

BULLETIN

FIRST LEAD TRUMAN
By Ernest B. Vaccaro

Washington, Dec. 1 (AP) President Truman, taking along five dis-
abled soldiers, left the capital today to join 102,000 other fans at the
Army-Navy football game in Philadelphia.

SU904AES

A95WX

BULLETIN MATTER

Washington First add first lead Truman x x x Philadelphia.

The President's special train, carrying nearly 200 guests including Con-
gressmen and Cabinet officers, pulled out at 8:45 a.m. (EST) .

Although an old Army man himself, Mr. Truman went to the game as
a neutral observer. He arranged to sit on the Army side during the first
half and on the Navy side during the last half.

A96WX

The five soldiers accompanying Mr. Truman, all amputation cases, were
Albert Belanger (CQ), Fitchburg, Mass.; John L. Eisenman (CQ), Wey-
mouth, Mass.; Fernand LeClaire, Willimantic, Conn.; Walter Lesczczys-n-

How Does It, Go Together? 141

sky (CQ), Wilmington, Del.; and Isadore Turansky (CQ), Erie, Pa. All
were from Walter Reid Army Hospital here. * *~

The soldiers, among the first to go aboard the train, got the last of the
President's tickets. Aides said he was sorry that more men from the Hospital
couldn't go along.

(NO PICKUP)

SU907AES

Three other special trains, loaded with Congressmen, Army and Navy
officers and their friends, made the trip from Washington to the Philadel-
phia classic. Space on the specials was sold out weeks ago.

GC934AES NM

A107PX

PXOUT

Army-Navy Weather

Philadelphia Dec. 1 (AP) The sun poked out for the first time in
three days today and it'll stay out for the Army-Navy game, the weather-
man reported.

But "it'll be a little stiff," he added, because the wind will be blowing
briskly through the open north end of Municipal Stadium and the tem-
perature "won't get much ofcr 40."

NQ948AES NM

A121PX

PX OUT

WITH ARMY-NAVY (100)

Philadelphia, Dec. 1 (AP) Football mad fans put in a hard night
before the Army-Navy game.
Edmund Baer, manager of the Benjamin Franklin Hotel, reported:

1. As many as eight men slept in a room, and cheerfully too.

2. Sample rooms, function rooms, ballrooms and cots set up on an
impromptu basis were used for sleeping.

3. Officers of the Army and Navy slept side by side with enlisted men
and civilians in lobbies and lounges.

Night clubs reported a rush trade, much of it from carefree visitors who
had no knowledge of where to lay their heads.

And many a fan got his sleep in an all-night motion picture house.

CZ1042AES

(Note that AP stories on the "A" wire are timed in Eastern standard
time, the others in Central standard. The symbol "CQ" in A96WX
means "correct" spelling corrected from that in A76WX.)

142 News by Radio

HX62

WITH FRALEY

Philadelphia, Dec. 1. (UP) Its fair and cold with a temperature of 36
degrees predicted by the weatherman for the Army-Navy grid classic today.

The sun was shining on a dry cold day. The field was in excellent condi-
tion and everything was in readiness for the starting whistle.

RW1003A.

A129PX

BULLETIN

PRECEDE WASHINGTON

Philadelphia, Dec. 1 ( AP) A special train carrying President Truman,
five disabled soldiers and nearly 200 guests to the Army-Navy football game
arrived in Philadelphia at 11:18 a. m. (EST) today.

CZ1143AES NM

Mr. Truman told reporters there were 200 blankets at the Municipal
Stadium to protect the Presidential party against the wintery weather.

Happiest of the group which came over on the special train -were the
disabled veterans from the Army's Walter Reed Hospital at Washington.

They got their tickets and top level transportation by 'writing the Presi-
dent a direct appeal for seats to the big game.

NQ1152AES

As the special train sped towards Philadelphia, the President made a
surprise visit to car six where he shook hands with the soldiers, dl sergeants.

"I'm glad you could come" he told them. **I hope you have a good time.
There are blankets for you if you get cold."

It was Mr. Truman's first Presidential visit to Philadelphia.

In a happy frame of mind t he went from car to car on the White House
train, shaking hands 'with members of the party ; calling most of them by
their first names.

He said today would be his fifth trip to an Army-Navy game.

It was his first on-the-record trip out of town since he cancelled scheduled
visits to North Carolina, Georgia, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas. He made
a secret flight to Grandview, Mo., last Sunday to visit his mother, Mrs.
Martha Truman, on her 93rd birthday.

NQ1201PESNM

Governor Edward Martin and Mayor Bernard Samuel went aboard the
special which arrived 15 minutes ahead of schedule.

After an official greeting from these two officials and other welcomers,
the President left at 1 1 : 55 a. m. for the Municipal Stadium.

CZ1208PESNM

How Does It Go Together? 143

The President and his guests reached the Stadium at 12:03 and went
directly to his private box. on the 50-yard line on the Army's side for the
first half.

Mr. Truman was greeted by officials of both the military and naval
academies. The President entered the Stadium in a limousine accompanied
by a police escort.

JJ1225PES

HX75

Philadelphia, Dec. 1. (UP) President Truman, his official family
and more than 100,000 other spectators poured into Philadelphia's huge
Municipal Stadium today for the 46th renewal of the Army-Nav7 football
classic.

A bright, dry, cold day greeted the thousands of game-bound fans who
filled the Stadium to capacity an hour and a half before game time waiting
expectantly for the annual pre-game parade of midshipmen and cadets.

The President arrived by special train from Washington with Mrs.
Truman and his daughter Margaret.

The city was jam-packed for the occasion with five-star generals and
admirals, Congressmen, Cabinet members, CFs from army and navy
hospitals and those of the general public lucky enough to grab ducats for
the game.

Included among the greatest collection of gold braid ever assembled
outside of a Presidential inauguration were Adms. William F. (Bull)
Halsey, Jonas Ingram and Royal Ingersoll; Cice Adms. H. G. Leary; Rear
Adms. Milo F. Draemel and John H. Brown. Secretary of the Navy James
V. Forrestal will head the Navy delegation.

Gen. Douglas Mac Arthur was unable to make the game due to pressure
of business in far away Tokyo. A reservation had been held for MacArthur
until game time.

RW1126A.

The weather is clear and cold in Philadelphia today where President
Truman and his party of nearly 200 guests are watching the Army Navy
football game. The contest started about 12:30 at the same time we
went on the air a few moments ago.

President Truman and his guests reached the stadium about 11
o'clock central time, and went directly to a private box on the 50-yard
line on the army's side of the field. During the half, the President will
move over to the Navy side as custom demands.

A special train carrying the President and his guests arrived shortly

144 News by Radio

after 10 o'clock this morning. Aboard were five disabled soldiers from
the army's Walter Reed hospital in Washington. They got their
tickets and transportation to the game by writing directly to President
Truman.

As the train was speeding toward Philadelphia, the President himself
made a surprise visit to the car occupied by the soldiers.

"I'm glad you could all come/' Mister Truman said as he shook hands
all around. "I hope you have a good time. There are blankets for you if
you get cold." The President was in a happy frame of mind this morn-
ing. He went from car to car on the train shaking hands with other
members of his party, calling most of them by their first names. He told
newsmen that this is the fifth time he has seen an army-navy football
game.

The civil aeronautics authority in Philadelphia canceled all flights
in and out of Southwest airport and within a ten-mile radius of the
stadium where the game is now going on. The order was issued as a
protective measure for President Truman.

Philadelphia hotel men say that football fans put in a hard night as
they waited for game time to come around. One hotel manager re-
ported that as many as eight men slept in a room and they did so
without complaining. Cots had to be set up in sample rooms and ball
rooms. Officers and enlisted men slept side by side in hotel lobbies
and lounges.

HX44

By John L. Cutter

United Press Staff Correspondent

Washington, Dec. 1. (UP) The Pearl Harbor investigating com-
mittee is determined to nail down the reason for the delay in decoding
and translating Japanese messages intercepted before the Dec. 7, 1941,
attack.

The committee took a week-end recess today but expects to plunge back
into the question when hearings resume Monday. Maj. Gen. Sherman
Miles, who was head of Army Intelligence at the time, will return to the
witness chair.

Evidence before the committee shows that . . . (the story continues
for 51 lines more, detailing evidence given by General Miles before the
committee),

D812A

How Does It Go Together? 145

HX56

Washington, Dec. 1. (UP) The Senate appropriations committee
today prepared to take up $122,275,000 (M) worth of flood control and
rivers and harbors projects approved by the House.

House approval was given overwhelmingly despite objections of its
appropriations committee members who asked delay of consideration until
next year.

The projects for which the House voted funds included:
Rivers and Harbors

New Work

Great Lake to Hudson River Waterway 2,000,000

Mississippi River Between the Missouri River and

Minneapolis 8,439,500

Flood Control
Garrison Reservoir, N. Dak. 2,000,000

(The story continues with eighteen other similar items, none in the
WCCOarca.)

RW946A.

While all the excitement was going on in Philadelphia, Washington
was quieter than usual this morning. The Pearl Harbor probers are
taking the day off. The House and Senate are in recess for the week end.
Members of the Senate appropriations committee are preparing to
take up the 122-million dollar flood control and rivers and harbors bill
passed by the house yesterday.

If the measure is passed it will mean 2-million dollars in federal funds
for the Great Lakes waterway, 8 and a half million for improvement of
the Mississippi river between Minneapolis and the point where it
empties into the Missouri, and 2 million more for the proposed dam at
Garrison, North Dakota.

HX47

By James E. Roper

United Press Staff Correspondent

Washington, Dec. 1. (UP) Congressional pressure today virtually
assured a public airing of charges that State Department representatives
have been acting contrary to U. S. policy, particularly in China.

Chairman Tom Connolly, D., Tex., of the Senate foreign relations com-
mittee revealed he 'would ask the committee to admit the public and the
press on Wednesday when it hears the story of Patrick J. Hurley, who
resigned as ambassador to China. Hurley charged procommunist and pro

146 News by Radio

imperialist foreign service representatives undermined his diplomatic work
in China.

The foreign relations committee mil vote Monday on whether to follow
Connolly's lead and thus order the first open meeting of the committee
at this session of Congress.

Hurley also was invited to testify ... (the story continues for 23 lines
more, presenting a number of Congressional statements on the subject) .

D831A

The Senate foreign relations committee will vote Monday whether
it will open the Patrick Hurley investigation on state department policy
in China to the public. The hearing is scheduled for Wednesday.

HX45

By Ruth Gmeiner

United Press Staff Correspondent

Washington, Dec. 1. (UP) The government today handed farmers
a blueprint for 1946 production outlining cutbacks from high wartime
levels for most food crops, livestock and livestock products.

Secretary of Agriculture Clinton P. Anderson, in announcing national
farm production goals for next year, urged farmers to plant 356,244,000
acres in crops.

This would be 5,500,000 acres more than were cultivated this year r but
boosts in corn and cotton production make up most of the increase.

The goals for poultry, milk and eggs . . . (the story continues for 33
lines more, with other details of the proposals) .

D821A

Secretary of Agriculture Clinton Anderson today outlined his 1946
food production program for the nation's farmers. He urged farmers to
plant 356-million acres in crops, which is 5 million acres more than were
planted this year.

HX70

London, Dec. 1. (UP) United Nations delegates listened to hours
of American travelogues and speeches today and looked at Movies and
brochures designed to persuade the UNO to establish its permanent head-
quarters in certain parts of the United States

Atlantic City, the Black Hills, Boston and Chicago presented their cases
to the preparatory commission's sub-committee this morning, and others
were scheduled for this afternoon.

Contesting claims ranged from a no-strike pledge by Boston labor against

How Does It Go Together? 147

the UNO to a Black Hills contention that no one ever would waste an
atomic bomb on that sparsely settled area.

Paul Bellamy, Black Hills representative, offered 100 square miles in the
states of Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming.

Bellamy outlined the resources and physical aspects of the Black Hills.
He suggested that trade could be stimulated by setting up shops at head-
quarters, "because* American tourists like to buy things/' He promised there
would be no import duties, but gave no hint that he had checked the
point with U.S. government officials.

JR1625A

PR4

Pierre, S. D., Dec. 1 .(UP) Arguments for selection of the Black Hills
as the United Nations Organization capital -were to be presented today to
a UNO preparatory commission sub-committee in London by Paul E.
Bellamy, Rapid City businessman.

Bellamy, who had informed Governor M. Q Sharpe of the appointment,
declared that "competiionis tough" because of the lack of housing, print-
ing, educational and communication facilities and of the great distance of
the Hills from Europe.

Sharpe, however, in a "best wishes" message reiterated the argument
that the absence of a large city in the Black Hills "is to our advantage for
many reasons."

CD1046A

In London, United Nations delegates listened for hours while Amer-
icans from Atlantic City, the Black Hills of South Dakota, Boston, and
Chicago urged the organization to locate the world capital in their re-
spective areas. Speaking for South Dakota is Paul E. Bellamy, a busi-
nessman from Rapid City.

HX14

BULLETIN

1ST LEAD TRIAL (OECHSNER)

Nuernberg, Dec. 1 (UP) Rudolf Hess flew to Britain to lure King
George VI back to Germany for a peace conference with Adolf Hitler 7 the
United Press learned today as the war crimes tribunal ruled that Hess was
mentally capable of standing trial.
MORE ET457A

HX16

ADD 1ST LEAD TRIAL (OECHSNER) XXX TRIAL.
In a statement describing his flight, Hess revealed that Hitler knew

148 News by Radio

nothing of his scheme. Hess wrote a letter to Hitler before leaving Germany
in which he described his plans, it was learned.

Hess parachuted onto the Duke of Hamilton's estate in Scotland on
May 10, 1941, only a few weeks before Hitler attacked Russia.

BJ516A

HX19

ADD 1ST LEAD TRIAL NUERNBERG (OECHSNER) XXX
RUSSIA.

Lord Justice Sir Geoffrey Lawrence, British presiding justice, announced
when court opened today that the tribunal considered Hess sane after his
melodramatic statement yesterday confessing that he had faked his loss
of memory.

Hess asked that he be permitted to continue in the trial, and the tribunal
agreed to his request.

(PICK UP 3RD PGH EARLY: HESS ROSE XXX).

BJ531A

HX21

BULLETIN

WITH TRIAL (OECHSNER)
By Ann Stringer

United Press Staff Correspondent

Nuernberg, Dec. 1. (UP) Rudolf Hess parachuted into Britain in
1941 to bring King George VI back to Germany for a peace conference
before Adolf Hitler opened his attack on Russia, the United Press learned
exclusively today.

MORE BJ53SA

HX28

ADD HESS NUERNBERG (STRINGER) XXX TODAY.

Hitler knew nothing of his deputy fuehrer's scheme . . . (the story
continues for 38 lines, mostly concerned with retelling Hess's 1941 exploit) .

BJ615A

A25

BULLETIN

FIRST LEAD WAR CRIMES

Nuernberg, Dec 1 (AP) The international military tribunal ruled
today that Rudolf Hess, who confessed he had been faking amnesia, must
continue to stand trud with 19 other Nazi leaders accused of -war crimes.

MK421AES

How Does It Go Together? 149

A27

BULLETIN MATTER

FIRST ADD HESS-WAR CRIMES XXX WAR CRIMES.

Lord Justice Sir Geoffrey Lawrence, . . . (the story continues for 97
lines, devoted to trial proceedings of the day before. It does not mention
Hcss's purpose, played up in the UP story).

WE-KAS02AES

A100 (200)

WITH WAR CRIMES

Nuernberg, Dec. 1 (AP) Gaunt-faced Rudolf Hess, childishly self
satisfied at getting the spotlight in the international war crimes trial, laid
aside his novel today and amused his fellow Nazi defendants with his tale
of faking amnesia before the world.

Hess had Grand Admiral Karl Doenitz and Erich Raeder shaking with
laughter before the court session opened when he told them how he pre-
tended loss of memory and partial insanity. All other defendants were
absent yesterday when Hess made his sensational confession and most of
them were convulsed with laughter when they learned of it for the first time
today.

Freed of further need of maintaining the absent-minded pose of a man
who remembered nothing of the war years and his ruthless power as Hitler's
deputy, Hess followed the court proceedings closely. Missing for the first
time was the novel which he read during the opening days of the hearing.

Hess boasted of his skilled navigation on his mysterious flight to Britain
four years ago when questioned briefly in his cell before the trial by Maj.
Douglas Kelley, U. S. army psychiatrist.

He confirmed reports that he had left a note to Hitler telling him he was
going to appeal for peace in the hope of what he called saving civilization
from bolshevism. He told Kelley he wanted to make a direct appeal to
Britain's king.

KA925AES

Rudolf Hess told the international war crimes tribunal this morning
that he went to Britain in 1941 in an effort to arrange a peaceful
settlement of the European war. He said he planned to talk King
George of England into coming to Germany for a conference with
Adolf Hitler.

The court ruled that Hess will have to stand trial along with the 19
other Nazi war criminals.

150 News by Radio

A104

(240)

FIRST LEAD MAGNATES
By Charles Chamberlain

Iserlohn, Germany, Dec 1 (AP) Seventy-six steel magnates repre-
senting Ruhr industries worth billions of dollars were arrested at their homes
last night in a series of raids by hundreds of British security police and
troops.

The raids began at 11 p. m. and were so thorough that only eight of the
original list of 84 marked were not apprehended. Picking them up was only
a question of time.

The industrialists were caught in circumstances ranging from drinking
champagne to taking stomach pills before going to bed.

A director of the August Thyssen steel works was embarrassed when the
British said they found him in a bedroom with the blond 24 year old daugh-
ter of a baron.

Fritz Baum, manager of the Ruhr gas utility in Essen, was drinking
champagne with his wife and two friends. Rat poison pills were taken from
Walter Eichorst, another director of the Thyssen works.

Dr. Karl Lipp, head of the purchasing department of the Hoesch steel
combine of Dortmund, was given permission to play a bedtime lullaby on
the violin to his son before being taken away.

Most of the industrialists were in bed and all came quietly, police said.
The arresting parties operated on information partly supplied by an Amer-
ican intelligence detachment at Duesseldorf.

Senior British intelligence officers said the magnates would be transferred
to an internment camp in the British zone where they will be interrogated
and masses of documents relating to the Ruhr industries will be studied with
the possibility of charging some of the men in custody with war crimes.

Those arrested x x x picking up second graf.

MT939AES

A45
95

Aversa, Italy, Dec 1 (AP) German General Anton Dostler was shot
to death by a firing squad today for ordering the execution of 15 American
soldiers captured behind the German lines in Italy in March, 1944.

Dostler, the first German general to die for war crime participation in
western Europe, was convicted in October by an U. S. court martial, which
disregarded his defense plea that in ordering the executions he was carrying
out the commands of higher officers.

Holding himself stiffly erect in the prisoner stockade, the German gen-

How Does It Go Together? 151

eral died without flinching before a firing squad of 17. S. soldiers.

The 1 5 American soldiers were captured and executed without trial after
they had landed behind German lines near La Spezia in a daring raid to
blow up a railroad tunnel.

DN552AES

Also in Germany, British troops arrested 76 German steel company
executives last night in a series of raids in the industrial Ruhr area.
And General Anton Dostler of the German army was executed this
morning by a firing squad of 15 American soldiers. The execution took
place in Italy, where a year and a half ago Dostler ordered the execu-
tion of 15 Americans found behind German lines.

A5

-95-
AMS IN

Tehran, Iran, Nov. 30. (Delayed) (AP) The Russians began carry-
ing out a surprise evacuation of Tehran last night.

The railway station, communications centers and private billets including
the military headquarters were completely evacuated.

The governor of Azerbaijan, appointed recently by the central Iranian
government, arrived in the provincial capital of Tabriz today from Tehran
in a plane put at his disposal by Soviet authorities.

JR229AES

A39

(150)

TEHRAN, IRAN FIRST ADD RUSSIAN EVACUATION XXX
SOVIET AUTHORITIES.

Meanwhile, the Iranian foreign ministry said the Russian note refusing
passage of Iranian troops into trouble spots of northwestern Iran asserted
that "fighting and bloodshed would break out" if Iranian troops entered
the territory and that the Soviet government would be forced to bring in
additional soldiers.

The note denied that Russia was intervening in the political or economic
affairs of Iran and termed untrue allegations that the Soviet government
had given help to Kurds of that region.
DASH

A Tass dispatch broadcast by the Soviet radio and recorded in London
confirmed the Iranian text and commented that the Russian note declared

152 News by Radio

the Tripartite Treaty of 1942 ''was not always observed by the Iranian side
in its part concerning the maintenance of internal order on Iranian terri-
tory."

"Behavior of some representatives of military and gendarmerie detach-
ments by far not always contributed to the establishment of peace and order
in the districts to which they went, and last year appropriate representations
were made to the Iranian government on this matter/' the broadcast said.

JR518AES

A83 (200)

By Vern Haugland

Bekassi, Java, Dec. 1 (AP) Naked bodies, believed to be those of 18
Indian soldiers and four Englishmen, -were found in a shallow grave in this
village 12 miles west of Batavia today.

The Dutch news agency Aneta said the bodies were those of the crew
and passengers of a transport plane which crashed in Batavia's outskirts
last Friday.

An Indonesian woman, who had been held prisoner in the barracks where
the men were confined, led a British unit to the burial spot, about 50 yards
from the prison. She said four white men and 18 Indians were brought here
naked in trucks last Saturday evening. They were beaten that night, she
said, and Sunday they were led to the nearby river bank, one by one, with
their hands tied behind them. There they were individually assaulted by
yelling men with "anything that would cut" the woman said.

The woman, who had been imprisoned because she was married to an
Amboinese, said she overhead a telephone conversation which indicated
that an Indonesian general was informed about the prisoners and had
ordered them killed.

British native troops, acting on reports that the missing airmen had been
in Bekassi 9 sent a patrol to this village yesterday. They found it deserted,
with only a Dutch youth and three Amboinese women in jail. This morning
a battalion with tanks, mortars, artillery and air support set out again from
Batavia. They reached here without difficulty in mid-morning.

KA820AES

The Russians staged a surprise move in Iran during the night, and
began withdrawing their forces out of Tehran, capital of that country.
British troops in Java have discovered the bodies of 22 persons near
Batavia. They are believed to be those of four Englishmen and 18 In-
dian soldiers murdered by Indonesians when their plane was grounded.

How Does It Go Together? 153

A54FX
"95"

CHINESE
By Spencer Moosa

Chungking, Dec. I (AT?) Russia has agreed to delay withdrawal of
Soviet forces from Manchuria until Jan. 3, the Chinese government an-
nounced today.

The agreement will enable Chinese government personnel to take over
the administration of Manchuria and will permit Chinese government
troops to move in before the Soviet withdrawal is completed, the announce-
ment stated.

It was for this purpose, the Government said, that the date was changed.
The Russians had been scheduled to withdraw Dec. 3, but Generalissimo
Chiang Kai-shek feared that Chinese Communists thick in Manchuria
would assume control if Soviet forces were evacuated that soon. Central
government troops have not yet been able to penetrate the territory in cor>-
trolling strength.

Chinese government troops now are driving toward Mukden. Dispatches
reported the Nationalists advancing along the Peiping-Mukden railroad
have reached a point 20 miles from Tahushan, 65 miles west of Mukden.
They have not yet contacted Chinese Communist forces reported to have
dug in near Tahushan.

A55FX

The dispatches reported alleged representatives of several Communist
puppet forces approached Nationalist headquarters at Shinhsien with offers
of surrender.

A semi-official Nationalist dispatch charged that some 200,000 Com-
munist troops are preparing a four-pronged drive aimed at placing the
strategic maritime province of Shantung entirely under Chinese Red con-
trol. The dispatch said Communist forces destroyed a sizeable stretch of
the Tientsin-Pukow railroad north of the junction city of Hsuchow a$ a
preparatory move in the drive.

DS324APS NM 95

It was announced officially in Chungking today that Russia has
agreed to postpone for one month her withdrawal of troops from Man-
churia,

(The paragraph above was deleted from the newscast before it was
broadcast. )

154 News by Radio

A77CX (KX FX)

STRIKES AT A GLANCE
BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

(CX) Five big strikes account for about four-fifths of 550,000 workers
idle in nation's 145 labor dispubes.

Major developments:

Automobiles Await CIO Auto Workers 7 reaction to General Motors
plan to make parts for rivals while 70 GM plants are strikebound.

Meat packing CIO Packinghouse Workers back up wage hike demand,
vote 20 to 1 for strike.

Railroad equipment End walkout which delayed equipment for new
Pullman cars 7 Simmons Co. employes return at Kenosha, Wis.
-DASH-

A78CX

UNDATED STRIKES (610)
BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

(CX) General Motors President C. E. Wilson has surprised the auto
industry with his plan for GM to produce parts and accessories for its com-
petitors while GM itself is not making cars because of the CIO Auto
Workers' strike.

Wilson, in a letter last night to President R. J. Thomas of the striking
CIO United Auto Workers, outlined his proposal. He said GM is willing
. - . (the strike roundup story continues for 5 3 lines, dealing with the GM
strike and other strikes) .

AB759AES

HX38

BY UNITED PRESS

General Motors Corp. officials today waited for the United Automobile
Workers (CIO) to make the next move in the coast-to-coast walkout which
has shut down 93 plants and kept 225,000 GM workers from their jobs.

Following the first renewal of negotiations in the 1 1 -day-old strike, the
company last night proposed a partial resumption of operations for the
benefit of other automobile manufacturers. A Union reply was expected
momentarily.

The proposal, as outlined in a letter to UAW President R. J. Thomas
from G, E. Wilson, head of the giant General Motors firm, provided for
the reopening of GM parts and accessories divisions to worfe exclusively on
material for other auto manufacturers.

Wilson's statement that the GM tie-up . . . (the story continues for 59
lines, with details of this and other strike situations).

BJ705A

How Does It Go Together? 155

HX4

By Allen V. Dowling

United Press Staff Correspondent

Detroit, Dec. L (UP) Partial resumption of General Motors opera-
tions to provide parts for other car makers -was up to the United Autojiiohilc
Workers Union (CIO) today.

The management proposed such a work resumption and expressed hope
that negotiations -with the UAW v tight had to an end of the GM strike
now in its llth day.

In a letter to R. /. Thomas, head of the powerful union. Corporation
President G.E. Wilson offered to reopen GM parts and accessories divisions
to -work exclusively on material for other auto manufacturers. A union reply
today was indicated by a spokesman for Thomas.

At the same time, Harry W. Anderson, . . . (the story continues for 45
lines, devoted to details of the GM strike situation).

ET423A

The auto industry still is awaiting a reply from the United Auto
workers regarding the sensational offer made yesterday by General
Motors. The company, you remember, said it will keep making parts
for its competitors even though it can't use them itself.

HX11

Chicago, Dec. 1. (UP) A weeklong "demonstration" -walkout against
Montgomery Ward and Co. -will end on schedule at the close of business
today, union sources said.

Samuel Wolchok, president of the United Retail, Wholesale and De-
partment Store Employes (CIO), said in New York last night that he was
well satisfied with the success of the nationwide strike, first of a series
planned against Ward's "tyrannical labor pvlicies."

The union leader cited a company offer to increase wages of some 7,000
Chicago employes as proof of the effectiveness of the work stoppage and
said the URWDE would continue efforts to obtain increases for all Wards'
employes.

Ward spokesmen however, consistently have contended that the mail
order firm's business was little affected by the walkout. The company issued
a statement yesterday that more than 70 per cent of its employes remained
on the job throughout the strike, called a week ago to protest Ward's re-
fusal to arbitrate.

Local 20 of the striking union met today to hear details of the company's
wage offer, which includes an increase in the minimum rate from 45 to 60

156 News by Radio

cents an hour and a general five-cent-an-hour boost for workers in Ward's
Chicago properties.

Company and union officials will meet Monday to discuss the offer.

ET449A

The demonstration walkout of Montgomery Ward employes in half
a dozen cities is scheduled to end today. It was called, you know, in
protest against the company's policy against collective bargaining by
the store employes union. Remember, the Saint Paul stxre of Mont-
gomery Ward is not affected by the strike, and will be open as usual
all day today.

(Middle commercial)

MS4

BY UNITED PRESS

Undated North Dakota merchants today are praying for the miracle of
a real Santa Claus one with an extra large sleigh.

For it looked today as though that's about the only way they'll get holiday
merchandise delivered in time for Christmas shoppers.

A survey of nine major North Dakota cities by the United Press revealed
the 14-day over-the-road truck driver strike has placed merchants behind
the proverbial "eight-ball" insofar as holiday stocks were concerned.

The survey included Fargo, Grand Forks, Williston, Minot, Valley City,
Devils Lake, Jamestown, Mandan and Bismarck.

MORE DS 754A

MS5
ADD UNDATED N. D. STRIKE XXX BISMARCK.

Christmas shoppers were already jamming . . . (the story continues for
30 lines, with details of shopping conditions in several of the nine cities) .
D909A

MSI 3

St. Paul, Minn., Dec. 1 (UP) Less than carload freight shipments
were moving in and out of the Twin Cities again today with lifting of an
embargo placed on such shipments Nov. 24.

The car service division of the American Railroads Association cancelled
its ban on in-coming freight loads of less than carload size, effective at
12:01 a.m.

Simultaneously, the Interstate Commerce Commission suspended its
embargo on outgoing freight of this class.

The ban was imposed because the Midwest truck drivers strike caused
freight to pile up in the Twin Cities.

D923A

How Does It Go Together? 157

APR?

Washington Fourteen senators have asked AFL teamsters and Midwest
truck operators to meet them in Washington Sunday for an airing of issuea
in the truck drivers' strike in seven: Midwest states.

The group telegraphed both the president of the teamsters and of the
Midwest Truck Operators Association.

Among those signing the telegrams were Minnesota Senators Ball and
Shipstead.

J

The outlook for Christmas shoppers in North Dakota continues to
be a bleak one as a result of the strike of over-the-road truckers. It is be-
ginning to look as though deliveries of many items of holiday merchan-
dise is going to come too late to do much good.

A survey of nine major cities in the state presented a universally
gloomy picture. Merchandise in some spots may be exhausted long be-
fore Christmas. And railroads have indicated that they are not able to
cope with added traffic.

The shipping situation was eased somewhat in the Twin Cities area,
with the lifting of the embargo against less-than-carload lots of mer-
chandise. The embargo was imposed in order to help clear the pile-up
of goods in railroad warehouses due to the truck drivers' strike.

And in the truck strike, the latest development is the request of four-
teen senators that the union and operators meet with them in Wash-
ington. The meeting would call for an airing of all the differences be-
tween the two parties.

HX43

First Creek, Wash., Dec. 1. (UP) Salvage of a school bus and its
cargo of 14, including 13 children^ was believed near today, with the dis-
covery of the vehicle's motor hood 170 feet down in the cold waters of
Lake Chelan.

Lt. L. P. Ross, working in relays with five other divers, found the hood
late yesterday, leading anxious relatives of the victims to believe the big
school bus had been located.

The bus careened into the deep glacial lake from a narrow mountain road
last Monday during the height of a snow storm, carrying 15 children and
the bus driver to their deaths.

An examination paper signed by Louis Acklund, 11, one of the tragedy's
victims, was found at a 150 foot depth by Diver J, C. Hannah. Walter

158 News by Radio

Arthur McGray, commercial diver from Seattle, submerged 260 feet in the
deepest plunge of the day.

The divers mil follow buoys marking the path of the bus along a steep
underwater cliff today, hoping to find it within 300 feet, the maximum
depth to which they can safely go. If it is beyond that point, grappling hooks
could be used.

D759A

The last chapter in the tragic story of the school bus which plunged
into the waters of Lake Chelan in Washington may be written soon. It
is believed that the bus with its fourteen bodies may be recovered in
the near future.

Divers, working in shifts, found the hood of the vehicle in one-hun-
dred-and-seventy feet of water. The divers have marked the path of the
bus along the underwater cliff, and hope to find it before they reach
the three hundred foot depth. Beyond that point, they will not be able
to operate, and grappling hooks may have to be used.

###
AI02KX
(100)

Kansas City, Dec. 1 (AP) Kansas City civic leaders are considering
plans for the construction of two-car garages as the possible answer to the
city's critical housing shortage.

The garages, as outlined in the proposal submitted to labor and construc-
tion representatives by Mayor John P. Gage yesterday, would be used as
human dwellings until permanent homes could be built.

Approved by the representatives, the plan calls for the organization of
two non-profit corporations to buy materials and build the garages.

Such structures, according to Mayor Gage, could be mass produced
cheaply and would be useful when the emergency has passed.

GG830ACS NM

Two-car garages may be resorted to as a means of relieving the hous-
ing shortage in Kansas City. Civic leaders there are planning the con-
struction of a number of the garages, and would use them as dwellings
until permanent homes can be built.

Labor and construction representatives have approved the plan,
which calls for the formation of two non-profit organizations to buy the
materials and erect the garages.

###

How Does It Go Together? 159

HX48

Washington, Dec. 1. (UP) Shirley Temple said last night that
juvenile delinquency is not the fault of teen-agers but that the blame rests
with communities where they grow up.

''Young men and women do not want to be bad if they are f it is because
the community somehow failed them," she told the National Youth Con-
ference and board meeting of the General Federation of Women's Clubs,
which continues today.

The 17 -year-old movie actress ; now the wife . . . (the story continues
for 21 lines with other details of Miss Temple's talk and those by other
speakers).

D837A

Actress Shirley Temple has joined the ranks of movie stars who are
becoming social conscious. Last night the 17-year-old star told the
National Youth conference and Board meeting of the General Federa-
tion of Women's Clubs in Washington that juvenile delinquency is
not the fault of the teen-agers, but that the blame should fall on the
communities which produced them.

"Young men and women do not want to be bad/ 7 Miss Temple told
her audience, "and if they are it is because the community has some-
how failed them."

(The paragraph above was deleted from the newscast before it was
broadcast. The paragraph that follows came from a telephone call
from police headquarters.)

Minneapolis police have asked us to aid in locating Vivian Weir, the
daughter of John Weir who formerly lived at 2533 Coif ax avenue south
in Minneapolis. Mr. Weir died this morning at General hospital. The
name againVivian Weir.

APR21

SUBS APR 14

(DULUTH)

St. Paul A former commander of the Minnesota American Legion f Earl
V. Cliff, has taken issue with the location of a proposed two hundred bed
veterans hospital at Duluth.

Addressing the concluding session of the Legion's annual convention in
St. Paul today, Cliff charged that this would be a violation of the Veterans
Administration's announced policy of establishing such institutions near
medical centers.

160 News by Radio

Cliff stated he believed that base hospitals in this state should be built
near the University of Minnesota, or the Mayo Clinic. This would permit
taking advantage of the services of medical experts at those institutions.

The former commander went on to say that if the Duluth hospital is to be
only a feeder institution, then he believed the veterans administration
should first get busy on construction of base hospitals . . . and let the
feeders come later.

JM1145ACS 1

The proposed location of a veterans hospital at Duluth has been at-
tacked by a former commander of the Minnesota American Legion,
Earl V. Cliff. Cliff told the concluding session of the annual Legion
convention in St. Paul that base hospitals in Minnesota should be
established near the University or the Mayo Clinic in Rochester.

Cliff said that the Duluth location would be a violation of the
Veterans' Administration policy of locating such hospitals near med-
ical centers.

APR20

Minneapolis A representative of the New Orleans ship builder, Andrew
J. Higgins, is said to be enroute to Minneapolis today in connection with a
possible expansion of the firm.

The representative is being sent as a result of invitations extended by the
Minneapolis Civic and Commerce Association, and the Minnesota dis-
tributor of Higgins products, the McGovern-Stewart Company.

JM1143ACS 1

Andrew Higgins, the New Orleans shipbuilder, is reported to be on
his way to Minneapolis in connection with the choice of a new location
for his boat-building firm.

The Minneapolis Civic and Commerce association extended an in-
vitation to Higgins to locate here when it was rumored that he was
liquidating his New Orleans plants as a result of labor troubles.

APR22
SUBS

Litchfield, Minn. The jury in the second degree murder trial of
Mrs. Alice Broderius and Walter Reinke at Litchfieldj still has not reached
a verdict.

The jury began its deliberations shortly after five p. m. Friday and con-

How Does It Go Together? 161

tinned until 1 1 o'clock. At nine o'clock this morning, a fresh start was made,
but to noon there had been no indication that a verdict had been reached.

The defendants are charged with killing Rudolph Broderius, husband of
Mrs. Broderiusbn when he and three friends visited the Broderius turkey
ranch near Cosmos, Minn.

JM1148ACS 1

The jury in the Litchfield murder trial of Mrs. Alice Broderius and
her hired hand, Walter Reinke, still has not reached a verdict. The
jury started its deliberations at five o'clock yesterday afternoon, and
recessed around midnight. It resumed its consideration of the case at
nine this morning.

The jury has the choice of acquitting the pair, or convicting them of
second or third degree murder or manslaughter. The pair are charged
with shooting and killing Rudolph Broderius and wounding three of
his companions.

(The paragraph above was deleted from the newscast before it was
broadcast. The five stories that follow, for which wire copy is not here
included, were also deleted.)

A young Minneapolis couple who eloped early in the week are back
home again, and happy about being there.

Eighteen-year-old William Heegel Jr. of 3829 Thirty-fifth avenue
south and his sixteen-year-old bride returned to the home of the bride's
parents.

The first problem confronting the young couple is the question of
family disapproval. And after that they are going to battle with the
housing shortage which is far from a pleasant prospect for newlyweds,
young or old.

Deer hunters in North Dakota have had good luck during the five-
day season which ended last night. Chief Game Warden E. M. Lee
estimated that six thousand deer were shot during the period.

Some two thousand hunters were disappointed, because eight thou-
sand licenses were issued.

South Dakota may soon learn whether its bid for the world capital
of the United Nations Organization will be accepted. The representa-

162 News by Radio

tives of 22 communities in the United States and two in Canada are
arguing the relative merits of their localities before the committee
which will decide the location.

Ralph Bellamy of Rapid City is appearing in behalf of the Black
Hills site.

A Minneapolis man who disappeared last September and was be-
lieved drowned in Mille Lacs Lake has turned up in New York City.
Robert H. Lee, a newspaper reporter, disappeared at the same time that
his boat was found floating upside down on the lake.

When discovered in New York, he was suffering from malaria and
pneumonia. His family believe that his disappearance was caused by
war neurosis.

Three opinions handed down by Minnesota attorney general Burn-
quist indicate that circumstances may have a lot to do with
the question of whether or not a returning veteran may have his job
back.

All of the opinions concerned school employes. Burnquist ruled in
one case that a man who gave up his job to join the Navy should have
his job back. In another case, an Ely teacher who had coached basket-
ball before joining the services had refused to take a new assignment as
swimming coach. It was ruled that he must teach swimming if he wants
to keep his job.

And in the third case, a school bus driver went into service without
notifying the school board. His contract later expired, and Burnquist
ruled that his rights as a veteran expired with the contract.

Putting the Radio Wire Show Together

Building a newscast from radio wire copy is simpler and faster than
writing one from the newspaper wire, but many of its problems are
similar.

To see what happens in the process, let's watch the growth of a 12 : 1 5
P.M. show for KUOM-Minneapolis on August 27, 1947.

KUOM is the University of Minnesota station. Its shows, since it is
an educational station, are without sponsorship; this means that, in

How Does It Go Together? 163

the 12:15-12:30 period, it has fourteen minutes and thirty seconds for
news. Experience has shown that the announcer who reads this show
needs about 230 lines of copy, plus a closing headline summary, for the
period. The newsroom has the Associated Press radio wire.

The editor arrives in the newsroom a few minutes before 10:00
(there have been no earlier news shows on KUOM this morning) . His
first job is to prepare a two-minute headline-summary show for use at
10:57. From the printer he takes the sixth five-minute news summary,
which had cleared af9:30; he reads it through rapidly, then edits it
down to about half its original length and dispatches it to the station.
Now he's ready for the 12:15 show.

He finds on his desk a note saying that the show is to be broadcast
from the KUOM remote booth at the State Fair grounds instead of
from the studio upstairs. This means that he must make gestures in the
direction of State Fair news in editing the show, and that copy must be
ready at 1 1 : 30 instead of 12:00, in order to give a courier time to take it
the four miles to the grounds.

The printer had last been cleared at midnight. The editor takes off it
the hundred-foot strip of copy that has moved since that time: two
fifteen-minute summaries, five five-minute summaries (in addition to
the one he has used) , six or eight feature scripts, a batch of spot sum-
maries, two regional splits, and some forty or fifty individual stories.
He methodically clips the file of copy, and arranges material in separate
piles international, national, special features, regional, and so on. A
good deal of the copy he discardsthe five-minute and the first fifteen-
minute summaries, the features his station has no need for (some that
may become useful as background material he files in a cabinet in the
corner) , the sports copy (his station pays little attention to professional
sports), and so on.

Ordinarily he would now skim through all the major copy to decide
which of the day's stories to emphasize, and how to organize his show.
But since today's newscast is to emanate from the State Fair, he decides
to open with a Fair story. He goes to the latest regional split, and finds a
story on record-breaking attendance flowing through the gates, to-
gether with a brief round-up of the day's program. He takes this copy
and a Northwest weather forecast to the typewriter and turns out a

164 News by Radio

one-page story that becomes the first page of the broadcast (the script
is reproduced .on this and following pages). He heads the page
KUOM-12: 15-8-27-47, and numbers it prominently in the upper left-
hand corner. He counts the lines and notes the number in the lower
righthand corner.

he EjgadrV*sird ^^Ettendeoice is heavy again today. The weather is
fine sunny ... a lighc base in tbs air . . . not too warn. And crowds
are pouring through the gates in what seem to be record numbers*

Already, you know, attendance at the Fair is well ahead of the pnrWous
record. Yesterday nearly 80 thousand people cans - and that brought the
four-day total to more than 300 thousand* That's 70 thousand core than the
beat previous attendance for the first four daya, in 1941.

Today is the big day for 4-H youngsters at the Fair* Topping their
program will be the selection of the healthiest 4-H boy and girl in the state,
and the crowning of the 4-H style queen.

Judging of the health king end queen began yesterday and the winner*
will be announced tonight. For the first time health improvement end leadership
ia community health projects will be considered in choosing the champions.
In former years the boys' and girls 1 individual health only was considered.
Former service nan on the grounds will meet in the new agriculture
Building today as part of ceremonies honoring war veterans. On the
entertainment program of the day, there'll be more harness racing this is
Pan Patch day, in memory of the famous old pacing champion* Special recognition
also is planned for the Arrowhead region of Minnesota, and the city of Duluth.

The weatherman says that temperatures here and through all the
Vunimiq Northwest will remain moderate . . . about 75 to 80/jtfhere may
be a few showers in some sections.

How Does It Go Together? 165

Now he turns to the latest fifteen-minute summary if he's lucky, it
will provide the basis for a good deal of the rest of the show. He discards
the headline summary with which it opens, since the pattern of this
show calls for a summary at the close rather than the beginning. The
first story is one about two State Department men going to a Paris

lat's look at th foricn nwre.

STILL IS LABORING flWdp.TO LEATHER HER LATESt
CABXNE2 CFcms PEIER~BESIGHATE CONSSANm' ZSALDARIS HAS HELD BES
CONFERENCES VITH AMERICAN AMBASSADOR LINCOLN J&CVEASHc AND TSALDARIS
HAS ANNOUNCED THAT HE INTENDS TO PROCEED AT ONCE VITH"YHE JOS OF
FORMING A 3 CABINET OF HIS OWN*

XT 1$ EXPECTED THAT THE NAMES' 'OF THE NEV HINISTE8S JLL BE DISCLOSED
VITHIN A SHORT TIME. GREECE HAS BEEN SI'/HOUT A CABZKE? SXHCE THE
GOVEBNMENS FELL LAST SATURDAY IN A DISPUTE OVER OPERATIONS ACAINS*
GUERRILLA FCffiCES.

ISALDAftlS IS BELYING UK3W THE SUPPORT OF THE CHIEF OF THE NATIONALIST
?ARtY-GENERAL STYLIANOS ZEKVAS III BIS CABINET-FCffiHING TASK* PARTY
EEHESENTATION IN HIS PROJECTED SIGHTIST CABINET EVIDENTLY VlLL ?E
NARaOFEB TK&H THAT OF THE PREVIOUS GOVERNMENT* H XS SAID, HOTEVER,
THAT TSALDARIS Via BY NO HEARS BE ASSURED OF A MAJORITY ?HEN THE
GREEK PARLIAMENT CONSIDERS A TOTE OF CONFIDENCE ON WCNDAY*

THE: GOVEBKWEHT OF FRANCE TODAY ANNOUNCED rfi nf^ ftli^ TyMrTt 1fi g
BREAD BATXONS TO THE FSENCK' COPLS m ACTION AS ATTRIBUTED TO "THE

'B'EK.ORABU; STATE" OT-FRAKCE'S sRAiff- HARVEST, THIS YEAR* A COWUJNIGLUE

ISSUED BY THE FRENCH CABINET SAD) THE DAILY BREAD RATION VlLL BE -

APPROXIMATELY SIX OUNCES*

'

166 News by Radio

ference; this is the latest news in the summary, but he doesn't like it
to open the international department because he thinks its chief virtue
is recency rather than interest or importance. He chooses in its place a
story on the Greek cabinet crisis. Reading the story carefully, and
checking it against other earlier stories on the same subject (a practice

ACROSS THE ENGLISH CHANNEL IN LGJJDON, THE HWH COURT OF JUSTICE
HAS POSTPONED UNTIL FRIDAY A HEARING ON AS APPLICATION FOR A
TOIT OF HABEAS CORPUS* 3H$ APPLICATION HAS BEEN BROUGHT BY THE JEWISH
AGENCY AND IT SEEKS TO PREVENT THE DISEMBARKATION 0? 4,400 JEWISH '
REFUGEES IN GXBMftNY*

HEAHWHILS, JNFOj&HED SOURCES IN PAJUS SAY THE FRENCH SOTOS&EWT SAS , '
GIVEN A. FAVORABLE REPLY TO A BRITISH REQUEST TO HOVE TEE REFUGEES TO
FRANCE BY TRAIN AFTER THEY REACH SERmffY TO? WEEK. '

BRITISH AUTHORITIES AT HftttBURG, GEBWARY, ARE MAJORS
PREPABAtlOHS TO RECEIVE THE fljE^fft" tglfftvvpt^ OESrxsH

iau4.n Tjwr umi'i'm *^Mn'i(Ag*fe OSE BRITISH OFFICIAL SAIB IT $

BELIEVE* ABOUT 1,000 OF THE REFUCfcES Hfc Y NEED MEDICAL ATTI^ITiaN*
THE JEfS HAVE BESN ABOAR3) SHIP FOR ^PATC SINCE THEY LEFT A
SOWHERH FRENCH PORT LAST MWffH IN A FU1ILE ATTEMPT TO SUP

HE BfiltlSH BLOC?5E OSF -PALESTINE*

TOO TOP-BAWER AMERICAN DIPLOMATIC POLICY HAKERS 4R* OK TBEIR WAY
TO PARIS. THEY WILL BEPRESENT THE FIRST AHERICAJI PA^TXCXPJItlW IR
LAYING THE GBOIHD WORK FOB WAB-BAVA6E& EUROPE'S RECOVERY WEfc THE
MARSHAL! PLAK.

THE TtO^OTOCIALS CEORE KENHAN, BISECTOR QF THE STATE
DEPARTMENTS POLICY HAWING BOARD, AND CHARLES/ScS^fe^ SIEClAt
ASSISTANT to B^ER-SECREIARY OF STATE ROBERT WOT^'LTvT TOPAY BY
PLANE* A BRIEF 'sTATE DEPARTMBIT AlWOlflifCEMEffir SAID WEREUY THAT THE
TWO OFFICIALS ARE 60ING TO PABIS FOR CONSULTATIONS f ITH AMERICAK
OFFICIALS Cfl*3&gp$ WSIAIE DSPARttSENT MftTTERS, INCLtolNG THE ISOBLEK

How Does It Go Together? 167

he follows with each succeeding story), he decides that it does the job.
He edits out two words; he types at the head of a sheet of copy paper
"Now let's look at the foreign news"; he pastes the Greek story below
this transition, and puts an end-mark just below it.
The next story is easya brief piece about food shortage in France.

THE TRIAL OF 2* BISECTORS OF THE BILLION-HOLLAS
CHEMICAL TRUST OPE8-ED TODAY IN NUERNBERG, CERMANY, ttTH THE* DEFENDANTS
SITTING IN TE SAME DOCK VHE3E BESMANH COERI13G AND HIS KA2I
HEHCHJOU SAT """** *~

UNITED STATES COURT HEAJH) THE PRQSECUTICfi CHARGE THAT

DELIBERATELY FOSTERED ADOLF HITLER'S VAHS OF
FOR THEIR OW PROFIT.

THE UHITO SKATES CHIEF OF COUNSEL FOB tAB CRlKES*-BRIfiABIEft
IELFQRB TAYLOE DECLARED THAT THE MEN IEEE NOT BElSG TRIED AS
NAZIS 4 SAID HEt

*THE IKPICTKEKT ACCUSES THESE WEN 07 MAJOR RESPONSIBILITY FOR
VISITING UPON MANKIND THE HOST CATASTROPHIC WAR IN KlfflM HISTORY*
XT ACCUSES THEM OF WHOLESALE ENSLAVEMENT, ?LtMDER AND KVEDER*"

THEmT-WO OF THE 24 INJUCTEB CHRKAS TOE IN THE JOCK TODAY,
TVO OF THEM RECOVERING FHOH ILLNESSES AND DNABLE TO BC IKSHT
WDJTY^OHE OF TH? 24 SftV HEJpEP INJWCENT TO THE ^ARXOUS *AR
CHARGES CONTAINED IN THE BLISTERING, TSDJTt-THO^SAND-HCRD IHBICTHENT^

1 ACfcOSS THE fORUD;IS CKIW^ KtOTS OF THE ^MHESE AIR
. SERVICE ARE SEABCHDlfi TAV FOR BAL3S QT HONEY^PUttPED FRO A PLANEt
ntOT ROBERT ROUSSELOT OF KOEl, HXS50ERI AS FCOICE TO JETTISON A
HUGE CARSQ OF CHIHESE CtOUUIUCY KOMDAY HE HIS CHDJE&E NATIONAL
RELIEF AND BEHABILmtlOH ADMIKISTRATIOW' ?L*E EELOrcD IHG3WE TROUBLE,
JK 9ESTE&H CHINA,

THE SHANGHAI OTFICE O? THE Att SERVICE SAYS TOT rT DOES HOT
. HOf HUGH KOWEy AS 3WVOLVED, BUT OTHER SOURCES SAY STJC8,

168 News by Radio

Since "France" is the fourth word in the story, he decides that no
transition is called for. He pastes this story on page 2, without change.
For the third story, he combines paragraphs from two stories on the
subject. Some editing is necessary here, for simplicity and to avoid
repetition.

v

' * THE LONDON CONFERENCE AIMED AX FORKING OUT MANS FOR THE
RESTORATION 07 CERMAN? INDUSTRY APPARENTLY HAS HET 1TITH CONSIDERABLE
SUCCESS* AH OFFICIAL SPOKESMAN SATS THAT .MO^fDirriCULlIES WERE
IROte OUT AT reSTERBArs SESSION BEWEEN AHERICA~B&ItISH-AND-
FRENCH DELEGATES* AND A COMMUNIQUE SIVIBG THE BROAD RESULTS OF THE ,
THREE<-KER TALKS IS EXPECTED LATE TQDAt. THE PARLEY IS .BELIEVED
TO BE HEARING AN END. .

A DUTCa ARMY COMHUJIQUE HOB ACCUSES THE INDONESIAN REPUBLICAN ' ' , , :
ARHY OF 300 SEPARATE VIpIAlIONS OF THE UNITED NATIONS CEASE FIRE ORDER,
SINCE IT BECAME EFFECTIVE AUGUST 4TH. MEANWHILE, THE NETHERLANDS
GOVERNMENT DAS TAKEN THE FIRST STKP TOVARD THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A
PROJECTED UNITED STATES OF INDONESIA* THIS VAS THE ANNOUNCE KENT THAT "
TH DUTCH HAVE ESTABLISHED THE SELF-SOVERNINS TERRITOR^OF E&SJ
AN AREA WHICH TAKES IN THE RICH OIL REGIONS

! INTERNATIONAL -TRIBUNAL IN TOKYO,
FORMER FREKTCR HIBEKI TOJO tTQH'-JOH) MS BEFEHDE'THE MOVEMENt OF
JAPANESE TROOfcS INTO SOUIHERR IHDOCHINA-IK^^LYi '1MU THE BE-
SPECTACia, BliLll-BEADED FORMER JAMNESE ".OFFICIAL SAID. THE, TROOP ACTION '
WSIHAT^HEIERUEJ) ^

ALSO Id TOKYQj SI>IPLE ^BOT-IMPRESSr^ ^SERVICES' HAVE PEEH HKLD IN
HE1MOHY OF, THE tWE AH8A'SSAI>OR GEORGE ATC!3ESCM . JUMIOR, '.TO ' NIHE OTHER
TO$,OtfS 'KILLED H* AN AU'CRASB ATJBUST .ITTH* EERAL Attt) XRS*

f THE SEVERAL HUNDRED 'SPECTATORS tiHp' GATHERED

J^C AKTH1MERE, AHONS THE SEVERAL HUMJRED SPECTATORS *Hp CATHERED - ' ' tffl ,

^TVB*? 3 ^ ' '- : - '' &

^*^^^

How Does It Go Together? 169

Now he goes through other stories, completing pages 3, 4, 5, and 6
with international news or national news of international import. Most
of this copy he takes from the fifteen-minute summary; one story, how-
ever, is a date-lined "separate" the story at the top of page 6. He uses
this story, blacking out the date line, because of the heavy Scandinavian

!> AfcERtCAN U$VE|JJ$S ASCRIBE AH AC* OF VIOLENCE 3M mu IN
UHICH THEY ORE OTOLm. TO IftmUEftg ME UCVKDUail COLOKEL CHARLES

CAPL3J QT LOU HOCK, ARKANSAS* Ad ATSACHE TO THE AHER1CAB EMBASSY
IN NES MUO, AND HISS JUK UttAK*:]^ OF ^CRAJCNTO, CAI.IFORKIA, WO
IS XfH TOK VWXtED STAKES XKTORI^TtOR SERVICE IN f^S? J3ELHX, THE
AE3?ICANS TOE SETU^JNC TOK A UCdUQH TRIP TfJfW XHEJB ttAIN
WAS mim RW A ViLUSE WfK' BY ^ ^Sf OB* THE RIOKRS ttl.
15 KOHAMMEM8 mSSSNCERS AWrr !?6riCE VhSDeCES&yttlilY TMED SO BREAK
IMS'O THE

PEESHDEOT HERBERT BOpVER SAYS THE ?ORU FOOD
fl HIS WQBD$*>00ESaiT LOOK VERY QODf HOOVER EXPLAINED THAT

AJ> THE VORL& NEE& At ftESEMS, HE SAID, IS PROBABLY GREATER THAN

*S5n$S&itoi SaT ' Xa*MBUUDV H&VE J!IS VIEfS IS CHICAGO ENROUTE
TO HEHf 70JRK, VHERE HE tILL ASSUME THE CHAIRMWiSHIF OF THE mt
<!^RESS20NAt COMMISSICN ?QR BEORGAMtZAttON OF fiOVERHMEKt BUREA^S^
HOOVER EKMCASJ23E3) THAT HE HAS SO OPINIONS FOR ^UBIlC XE$SliJ

2S i$W( THE FORMIR JRESIDJSIT BECI4RED EMPHATICALLY .THAT
WOT ACCENT t8r v HOJHNATX<3N EVEH IT It EHE OFFERED TO 1

^:. . B ^-^.-. _Lttnu jut: ttffi m HmfaiiM08 '

170 News by Radio

population in KUOM's listening area. Most of the copy requires little
editing. From one story (page 4) he removes what he thinks is a dull
opening phrase, and substitutes a preposition; from another (page 5)
he takes a repetition of the phrase '73-year- old."

National news he finds slim. There's a long story on the forthcoming

FOUH-?Otf 'SCANDINAVIAN WESTING, OPENED

TODAY IN COPENHAGEN WTft THE FORE IS H LISTERS OT SWEDEN, NORWAY,
ICEUNB AHD DENMARK XMfX*G-HUtt A &AHISH FOREIGN OFFICE SJOKE$mtf
SAIB THE WBJISTERS UOULD DISCUSS THE MftRSKAU 4*TO*EtBlW 1 S. RlOPOSAi
AND THE ftUESIIOH 0? A EUROPEAN CWOtfS UNION*

IS AWHKON, tHE HXHISTERS WU, TRY TO AStfXVE At A JOIKT JfQSfcXC
STANJ) OK SUCH ISSUES AS THE ^LSTJ$E Atf FRANCO SJAW J^OBJ^KS^
THESE IROBLEHS CO BEFORE A UNIT2P IWTIOHS rUHARY SESS10SI NEXT
MONTH* _../- .-..- ^._ ..,.. : .-..^^..^.

AT UKE SUCCESS, NE YORK, A SPEGlAt RECEPTIOH COMMITTEE HAS BEEN"
SEJ UP TO GEEET TVO EGYPTIAN DEMWSTMTORS VKO WICE HAVE BEEN
GOT OF THE DHSTED NATIONS SECURITY COIWCIL CHAKBEJt* IHJ
fiaSERAI TR7CVE IIE SA?$ T^ TUG EfiYIVIANS tlJ-L BE SABRED TROh TE U-N
HEABCiOARTEHS AREA. AND LIE SAYS THAT IF THE TWO SEKaJSIEATOIiS SHOULD
SU? IS THET ?ILL BE HANDED OVER TO THE POLICE *

'7' A COSCRESSICNAL COMMITTEE <r HEAJB ^OR EROJ?E
COMPOSED OF 1 lEClSIAIORS^- THE qROUP ILt VISIT fS' COtWTfelES TO

. THE VARIOUS ASPECTS OF V& AJHERICA^ Ai OCRAf THE ACtllfc CHAIRMAN
^OT THE SWCIAL' COHMITTEEi 'EEP^ESEKTATIVE CHRISTEN HESTER OF
flASSCAHUSETTS, .SAID. THE -COHGEESSWEN Via CQHCENTRATE GO A STUDY 07
MANS OF CARRYING, OUT; THE MSRSHAtI* PLAH* *i - ' ' ,

'

How Does It Go Together? 171

American Legion convention; he uses this intact with a little editing
and the insertion of the word "Well" to open it. The other, on increas-
ing automobile prices (page 8), he decides needs a new lead. This he
writes on the typewriter; then he attaches all but the first paragraph of
the original story.

<JCNSK>ERAai BEKIJBH-THS-SCSSES LESION ACTIVITY, SUCH AT

V *irtO BACK'm SAtlOWH. CGMfiftNDSS THIS TEAR. BUT
MUCH OF THE ACTION IS PUBLIC A8D CARRIED OUT IK A SPIRIT OF

tNEE C3r YESfERUfcf AFtISCKH> OM

GROUP OF UaOKHAIRES BGM4 A 9ftERING PROCESS ALL tHZIR OWN all H

tent yicnas IERS Mostly ^BOSN. AN& *HEH

W D^ MOVING* SOIffi LIGIOKMA1HES SFURBD THEM IMTQ
SPIRITED ACTIQK WITH ELECTRlCALLY-CHARGEB CASES.

K BIG ^iO AND $ JARADE IS : /OMORROtf fCGHt* &ip THE MAZH

FATHER KNICKERBOCKER .UNBERSSANSS THE SEED FEE RUrA20N ADD
POUCEKEN WILL NOT JNTERTERE VXTK THE rWtffiSERS UNLESS THEY ARC
CAUSING SERIOUS INCONVENIENCE TO IKE PUBLIC.

RGB* CAN&IftAtES fOR TOE fOSI OF &I1$NAU C^^WBER - BAVS S

i> pAtjamjtTEns is smtss i KHE ?sro?$n.wssA itK,e tREUKWASY

StJRVETS ARE SAIB TO INUICAtE THAT POLICE CHIET JAHES r.ONIIL OF
HANCHESTE1, mt HAHPSHlftE, HOLDS A SLIG3T LEAD IK, TIE A^LT
03F ?E tlTXEfltJSe lOTDLtTOS, OHIO'S MUKtttt

HXAS, ABt CCOSE

POST* SELECTION OF A NEtf NATIONAL COWttNBnt i&T VIHB UP
f W HE

172 News by Radio

Now he turns to regional news. The latest regional split is now mov-
ing on the printer; on it he finds a late State Fair story. He uses this
story with a new lead which gives him an opportunity to mention again
that the broadcast is coining from the Fair grounds. He follows it with
three other stories taken from the splits.

Going to buy a new automobile this j*rt

If you &fo, you can figure the cost right now. The auto industry
axpeets -ifctt no* ttort Ford and Studebakar havo joined the other big
eorpani^s in prioa increases the prices will hold through 1947,
But rwrtye&r tho story nay change*

liirroHorrvE INDUSTRY OBSERVERS wist our tittx. Bs^sr '

*S PLANNED TO tHE 194* NEV CAR MC$>ELS<, &$) THET SAY THIS
nil HUH INTO MILLIONS OF DOLLYS. AS'/A RESULT, THEY BROADLY HINT
IHAt DETAIL TOICES MIGHT BE ADVANCED EVER MORE NEZT YE^R* IKE
OBSERVERS EXPLAIN THAI THE CURRENT nidi BOOSTS HAVE HAD NOTHING
DO ITK THE SE-TOOLZHC, BUT SE5tJLTEl> f 'INSTEAD, FROH.A PAYROLL
BOOST Of ABOUT 15>WILUO- COLLABS-FOR THE AUTOMOTIVE B^DOSTRY.
TJffi RISES ALSO ARE ATtRIBlffED TO HIGHER COSTS OF MATERIALS, TO'OLS,

tSS rQRP !)TOB CpHlRAHY.AHNOUMCED W1CE INCREASES YESTERDAY AND
SWAT* ,* U$T M^t-tHC' ^WDEBAKKR ^KSftATiW COHFLJSTQ) THE ***
^PLBt WARKINa U? W PASSENGER AND TRICK PRICES FRQM $50 TO
$115* THE BOOSTS' FOR TEE' INDUSTRY AS A WOLE HAVE BEEN FROM $4?

'

""'

How Does It Go Together? 173

Time to count lines. The ten pages, he finds, give him 199 lines; he
needs 230. He checks the University news sent over by the University
news bureau, and estimates that he'll get about ten lines from it. So he
looks through all of the unused copy, and checks the printer, for addi-
tional stories. Regional and national copy furnishes nothing more. He

Here 1 s sons more State Pair l

'This aero is about eoarpletion of three
nioro typoa of cat a*

ft nm H0g^Ami& OFF HOST v

WEIRING U OT m IT BUS BJBBCKS OFfE*E&.
OF HARVAftP, ILLINOIS, TOHED THE JE8SET ENTRIES j VZTH

tO !CK MM30B FAJff AT ORLANDj, 3NUUINA** 6EOKE f#
OF KQRJlCEtLO^ KtttHESOtA, ANB UL SIHDBERG OF S'OUtH HAVER,

TIN HEW) OF
nuURJCETARMS OF

-THREE MEMBERS OT THE HOSES TAMIiY F! K
OH'S SHARE OF TBE PEIZES FOR SHRO!SHtEE S8EEK CV*MOSES TOOK IHZ
CHAHFIQNSHIP A?ARB 9XfK HIS A5E

ns FAtra ctrros MOSES, HIS SON, BUW. V==Afcto

XM FOURTH coirora^oH, w YEAR OLD SOLD utesos, QFl

Itt^FWE WHWE ROCK CHICKES*

' KEEE'S ^OOD NEfTS FOR MOTORISTS IK THE WIN CITIES AREA*

IT RAMSEY COUNT? WCTROLEUH BETAZIXRS j
' SAYS THERE 1f BE PLESIY OF fiASOL*WE I
OVER m 1A1EK BAT FEEK-END* '

tHERE HAB' BEEN SOME ?EAR5 THAT THE SU??17 10UU) BE IHSITFFICIEMT TO
ttEET tKE s EXFFCTEI> HEAVY |>EiAD FWaXR SAIB THAI 3
, STATION HAt tlM OOTt OF SASOUBfii BUT THAT Wlli Bt Tt 1
V THE RULE. ' ' ' - -.

174 News by Radio

takes a short Chinese story from the remains of the fifteen-minute sum-
mary, and a long new story on the trial of German industrialists in
Hamburg; from the latter he eliminates the word "Farben" because
he thinks it may puzzle a good many listeners. These two stories total
twenty-two lines, and become page 3-A. He now has 221 lines.

7UBUC HEARING ON THE CWT20VERSIAL SBEStlflS
OP BEST CONTROL AND gVXCnoN IN KINHEAPOUS SAS HELD LAST MIGHT.
JHttJ AT TSE 8U OT SOTRAt HOURS OF fftQ Aft) CO* D*SCUS$0H It *AS

mosta THAT THE cm couswii, c<mTt^&tfcT<! m HAftie$ ww.

HOWS StOft? IH THE HATH31*

AFtS* USTENlKfi tO tiK" A$fiHMEj*TS SHE COM$riXt$E VOTEF TO miOE THE
HIOPOSSB ORDIICE tMDtt A2WSEMEHT ABfc OVI3i If UNE BT UKE TK
IfiE CITY WJQRKEY*

SUCH mOCEDOEE'OUU3 MAKE IX ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO HAVE .A
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How Does It Go Together? 175

Going to the typewriter, he turns out thirteen lines of University
news.

Then he glances at the latest spot summary from the wire. Not what
he wants. He goes again to the typewriter and hammers out his own
closing summary.

On the campus of the University of Minnesota tonight there'll ba
n piano recital open to the public. The artist is John, Wannamaker, en
instructor in music at Drake University* Er. UTennasaker, a svasnar student
at the University, id 11 give his concert in Scott Hall at 8:30.

The dispute on the cKnpus over wages of non-teaching, civil service
employes is at a standstill today* The latest news since Governor
Youngdahl has appointed * fact-finding committee is the letter Just
mds public by President LorrilU

In the letter. President Iterrill sey* that the present University
wage scale is higher than that outlined in an agreenent between the union
and the University last January. It 1 8 over this agreement, calling for
retroactive pay, that the dispute centers. President Jtorrill says that
the 1947 Legislature granted the University funds which have been used
to raise wages above the scale the agreement called for.

176 News by Radio

The clock says 11 :25 as he completes it, and the announcer appears
with word that the broadcast is going out from the regular studio,
rather than from the Fair grounds. This calls for some quick editing on
pages 1 and 9.

The broadcast is ready 234 lines and summary.

Kow, th* summary of she najor newst

Tfornesotans are crowding to the State Pair in St. Paul. Attendance
is already far ahead of the previous record. And the weather today is good
again.

In Greece, the new premier Const eat in tsaldaris is having a
tough time to gat a cabinet together.

The London, confer race on plans Tor restoration of Germany is meeting
with considerable success.

In New York City, thousands of American Legionnaires are preparing for
the opening of their convention tomorrow*

Autonobile prices are ejqjeoted to remin at their present levels for
the rest of this year. All the big manufacturers have raised their prices la
the last few days.

A St. Paul petrolejoa industry official says t hare' 11 be plenty
of gasoline for motorists ever the Labor Cay -week-end.

How Does It Go Together? 177

Now the announcer reads it carefully in more leisurely manner
than usual, since he has plenty of time. As he goes through it, he under-
lines words he wants to emphasize, and circles words whose pronuncia-
tion he must watch carefully (for example, "Greece," "France," and
''further reductions" on page 2; "Balikpapan" and "Tarakan" on page
4) . Into the auto price story on page 8 he inserts an aside.

At 12:15 he goes on the air the editor meanwhile watching the
printer to make sure there are no news-breaks that demand inclusion
in the show. After the broadcast, the announcer reports that the copy
came out "on the nose" just the right length.

Moving from Story to Story

A newspaper story, under its own headline, stands on its own feet.
Except in the few cases in which several stories drop out of a multi-
column headline, or one story is tied to related news by some other
typographical device, interrelationships are not so commonly shown.

Relationships among stories in a newscast are of first importance.
One of the prime tasks of the news editor is to achieve the effect of
relationship, of continuity, of easy flow. Three principal reasons:

1. Listener-understanding is aided when like stories are properly tied
together, when news events of allied nature are described sequentially.
The departmentalized format of most newscasts grows out of this fact.
It is obviously more effective, from the point of view of the listener, to
link all the labor news in a news show together than to offer it scattered
throughout the broadcast.

Clip-and-paste, or " tack-up/' newscasts like that just described are usually
put together on ordinary copy paper W^ by HVz inch soft-finish paper,
yellow or white. Such paper is easy to handle, takes mucilage readily,
doesn't rustle as the announcer handles it close to the mike. Some editors
use wire staplers to attach the copy to the paper backing; most use glue or
mucilage in the familiar small bottle with rubber applicator. In using glue,
care must be taken that none escapes from under the edges of the copy.
If it does, it may cause pages to stick together.

Some announcers prefer only one story to a page. Others are willing to
have the editor put on a page as many stories as he can place there, as long
as he is careful with his end-marks or his MORE symbols when a story con-
tinues from one page to another.

178 News by Radio

2. The "conversational tone" of the news show is enhanced by show-
ing relationships. It is easier for the listener to keep up with a newscast
that flows easily from one subject to another than with one that bumps
each time a new story is introduced. And such a newscast sounds more
like conversation.

3. Skillful use of transitional devices is economical of time.

All of which is not to say that a newscast, to be effective, ought to be
a mass of transitions with stories connecting them. Overuse of the
linking devices becomes artificial, hence annoying to the listener.
Some stories simply can't logically be tied to anything else (though this
in itself might suggest a transitional device) . Moreover, the occasional
sharp break usually signalized by a slight announcer-pause serves to
accent a story, and to avoid monotony. No conversationalist would be
likely to talk for twelve to fifteen minutes straight without occasionally
changing the subject. No newscaster should be asked to.

What are the devices?

First, the simple conjunctions.

The radio writer takes a cue from the conversational habit of pref-
acing many sentences with "and." The word often thrown in con-
versationally where it might better be left out is a smoothing device,
a device for maintaining continuity. It can be, and is, used widely in
radio news copy to introduce sentences sometimes within paragraphs,
sometimes to open new paragraphs or even new stories. There's danger
in its overuse it shouldn't appear as often as in casual conversation.
There are news editors who eschew it. But the bulk of practice favors
it, and with good reason.

Often its best use is not merely as a lone conjunction, but rather in
connection with a phrase or clause that continues the transitional idea.
It should normally be followed by a genuine addition something that
logically builds on or adds to what precedes. For example:

And there's more news of stormy weather from Tampa.

A number of examples of its use most of them effective occur in
the KUOM script in this chapter, and in other scripts and excerpts of
scripts in this book.

Another of the simple conjunctions of wide usefulness is "but."

How Does It Go Together? 179

"But" introduces a contrast; for contrasting stories or ideas it is often
an excellent introduction. Suppose a story in a newscast tells of fine
local weather. The next story, introduced in the example above by
"and/ 7 might then open:

But down in Tampa they're expecting a hurricane.

Like "and," "but" should not be overused.

The other simple coordinating conjunctions ("or," "for," "nor") are
not so generally useful.

A widely-used one-word device is the interjection "well." It's another
that some writers avoid as they would poison. But their dislike of it
usually grows from careless overdependence on it. If often serves
smoothly to introduce stories of certain types usually stories of less
than serious nature:

Well, here's a queer story about a dog.

OR:
Well, Slugger Ted Williams has done it again.

See also page 7 of the KUOM script.

A second class of conjunctional devices is the group of conjunctive
adverbs: accordingly, also, besides, hence, however, moreover, never-
theless, so, still, then, therefore, thus. Often they can be employed to
advantage. Careful writers, however, avoid vulgar or clumsy misusages.
"Also" should introduce only something having kinship with the pre-
ceding story not merely another story (it should be used sparingly in
any case, for it's a clumsy sentence-opener) . "Thus" should be used to
mean "in this manner," not "therefore," And so on.

A number of phrases have come into general radio news use time
phrases, place phrases, other connective phrases. Representative time
phrases:

At the same time More recently

This morning Meantime

Word has just come Just before the speech
We haven't yet heard

Among the most abused time-connectives in newscasting are "mean-
time," "meanwhile," and "in the meantime." Used jealously, they may

180 News by Radio

accomplish excellent transitions. But they should appear only when
they show a close relationship. That is to say, it is hardly permissible to
use "meanwhile" to show only that one story occurs while another of
no similarity or relationship is taking place; it should be used to mean
that the second event not only has a time kinship but also a kinship in
general nature.

Place phrases serve not only as connectives, in the sense here de-
scribed, but also to move the listener easily to a new geographical area
of news activity. They are often of vital necessity to clarity of under-
standing. If one story deals with an event in Los Angeles, for example,
and the next with one in Chicago, the listener must be told at once of
the change in locale. The simple "in Chicago" is the most common
and the most useful such phrase; it is also the easiest to overwork.

If a newscast uses date lines, the place phrase is unnecessary. But
most don't; and in such shows, every change of locale must be made
clear. If a story doesn't actually open with a place phrase, the location
should appear (when it's important) somewhere in the first or second
sentence. Examples of this appear in almost all the international stories
in the KUOM script: "Troubled Greece/' "the government of France/'
"across the English channel in London," "two top-drawer American
diplomatic policy makers are on their way to Paris," and so on.

Among commonplace phrases are:

In the Far East Nearby, in New Jersey

Down in Texas From far-off India

Across the Atlantic On the Manchurian front

Subject-matter transitional devices are also common. Useful and
effective if they don't appear too often are sucl\ phrases as:

Speaking of railroads, here's ....

On the political scene

More news about the American Legion.

During World War II the most overworked of all transitional devices was
probably that employing the word "front." One heard from every radio that
news was coming "from the European front," or the Asiatic, or the Pacific,
or the home or the women's, on occasion! Many news writers came to
avoid it for this reason. A very good reason.

How Does It Go Together? 181

Another effective transitional device is the reminder phrase "you'll
recall that," "you remember we told you that" and the like. 'Such
phrases not only introduce stories smoothly but also flatter the listener.

To tie two or more stories together, news writers often employ an
opening phrase covering them all. Place or subject phrases such as many
of those cited above accomplish this purpose. Another method:

Two stories come from Chicago this morning.

One says that ....

The second Chicago story has to do with ....

OR:
Here are a couple of stories that will amuse you.

Typical Radio Station News-Days
KABR-Aberdeen, S. D.

7:15 A.M. 15-minute program, using news and "Farm Fair" (AP fea-
ture)

9:15 A.M. 1 5-minute straight newscast, using 5-minute summary, South
Dakota news on the regional split, and other late news

10:45A.M. 5-minute news-feature program, using "Behind the World
News" (AP feature)

12:00 NOON 1 5-minute straight newscast, based on 5- and 1 5-minute sum-
maries and other late news (no regional)

10:00 P.M. 1 5-minute straight newscast, based on 5- and 1 5-minute sum-
maries, the South Dakota split, and other late news

All shows come straight from the AP radio wire, without rewriting, editing,
or paste-up. KABR is a 5,000-watt Mutual affiliate.

WHO-Des Moines, Iowa

7.30 A.M. 15-minute straight newscast, its news selected to take advan-
tage of the fact that the WHO signal gets outside of Iowa
at the early morning hour

8:45 A.M. 10-minute two-voice program: a man for 5 minutes with a
round-up of world news; a woman for 5 minutes, with
news of special interest to women

182 News by Radio

12:30 P.M. 15-minute straight newscast, using world-wide news and a
heavy proportion of Iowa news (since the signal at this
hour does not carry as far as in the early morning)

5 :00 P.M. 10-minute straight newscast same pattern as the 12: 30 pro-
gram

6:30 P.M. 10-minute straight newscast same pattern as the 7:30 pro-
gram

10:15 P.M. 1 5-minute straight newscast, a general news round-up. Often
followed by a second 15-minute program with "public-
service" news

11:30 P.M. 1 5-minute combination of news round-up and background of
the news

All shows except the 5 P.M. are written entirely in the WHO newsroom.
The 5 P.M. leans heavily on AP and UP radio wire copy. WHO is a 50,000-
watt NBC affiliate.

KOIN-Portland, Ore.

7:15 A.M. 1 5-minute straight newscast, a general news round-up
12 :00 NOON 1 5-minute straight newscast, a general news round-up

2:00 P.M. 10-minute feature newscast, opening with brief "headline
summary"

3 :00 P.M. 1 5-minute straight newscast, a general news round-up
10:00 P.M. 15-minute straight newscast, a general newscast

All shows combine copy from AP and UP radio wires. The 10 P.M. "Five
Star- Final," is the day's chief show, and is about half rewritten from the
wire copy. KOIN is a 5,000-watt CBS affiliate.

WRC-Washington, D. C.

5 : 30 A.M. 1-minute straight newscast ( WRC origin)

6:00 A.M. 5-minute straight newscast (WRC origin)

7:00 A.M. 15-minute straight newscast (WRC origin)

7:30 A.M. 5-minute straight newscast (WRC origin)

8:00 A.M. 1 5-minute network round-up ( 2 minutes from WRC )

8:30 A.M. 5-minute straight newscast (WRC origin)

9:30 A.M. 5-minute straight newscast (WRC origin )

How Does It Go Together? 183

1 2 : 00 NOON 1 5-minute straight newscast (WRC origin )

1:45 P.M. 1 5-minute Washington news round-up (network show of
WRC origin)

6:00 P.M. 5-minute straight newscast (WRC origin)

6:05 P.M. 10-minute news commentary (WRC origin)

6:45 P.M. 1 5-minute network round-up

7:15 P.M. 1 5-minute news round-up (network show of W^RC origin)

7:45 P.M. 1 5-minute network commentary
11 :00 P.M. 5-minute straight newscast (WRC origin)

11:15 P.M. 1 5-minute news round-up (network show of WRC origin)
12 MIDNIGHT 5-minute straight newscast (WRC origin)
12:55 A.M. 5-minute network round-up

All the shows of WRC origin except four of the 5-minute straight newscasts
are written entirely in the 'WRC newsroom, using AP 24-hour newspaper A
wire, UP night and day newspaper trunk wires, INS day and night wires,
day and night Washington City News Service, and special NBC corre-
spondents' service. The four 5-minute "tack-ups" are taken from the UP
radio wire.

WRC is a 5,000-watt NBC-owned station, the network's point of origin for
all Washington shows. The daily schedule shown here is heavier than those
for KABR, WHO, and KOIN because it includes network as well as local-
origin news shows (the other three, like all network affiliates, supplement
their own schedules by adding network news shows) .

7

Multivoice News Shows

The single-voice news show dominates radio's news programming.
Most stations presenting newscasts with more than one voice schedule
them as weekly rather than daily offerings.

This is not because of doubt of their effectiveness. Skillful use of two
or more voices on any program adds to its interest. It is not "natural"
that one voice indulge in a twelve-minute monolog; the average man is
not accustomed to hearing any voice, even his own, continue for more
than a few seconds without interruption. Moreover, the use of more
than one voice provides variety, color, sometimes drama and conflict;
it may speed up an otherwise lagging show. The radio listener is inter-
ested in people within limits, the more people the more interest.
Variety of intonation and accent, variety of personality as revealed by
voice, change of pace, the rise and fall of question and answer all these
are desirable qualities in radio broadcasting.

"Why, then, are not more news shows cast in the multivoice mold?
Why, when sponsors are so vitally aware that drama and entertain-
ment are qualities that draw listeners and sell products, do they not ask
for them, in news shows, in the larger measure that departure from the
one-voice pattern would insure?

The reason is not simply that the listener, through habit, has de-
veloped a high degree of acceptance of news presented by one an-
nouncer.

Nor is it that news in itself has high intrinsic interest that the twen-
tieth-century human, being a literate animal with an increasing sense
of the interdependence of his own welfare on the thousand cross-cur-
rents of contemporary events, is eager enough to get the news so that
he will take it in any form.

The reasons (they have been suggested earlier in this book) :

Time It takes longer to get a multivoice show ready for the air than
a one-voice show. To write it is a little more time-consuming. To pre-
184

Multivoice News Shows 185

pare it for broadcasting takes more time. It has to he "cast" that is,
the voices have to he selected (though this may not have to be done
anew for every broadcast) . And it uses up precious time on the air. You
usually can't get as much news into the multivoice show as could be
packed into the simpler form.

Production It may have to be rehearsed. Two news announcers ac-
customed to working together on a two-voice show perhaps won't re-
quire rehearsal. But if the program involves use of radio's other principal
toolssound and music or if a number of voices appear in the script,
the production-rehearsal problem grows.

Cost This factor is closely related to the time and production ele-
ments. Two announcers get twice as much salary as one; a cast of actors
requires a sizable talent fee. Rehearsals cost money. The multivoice
show is more expensive for the station, more expensive for the sponsor.

Nevertheless, there are multivoice shows on the air. As competition
for audiences grows keener in a news world in which the ready-made
stimulus of war is lacking, as a half-dozen or more FM stations in one
county start their battle for the county's listeners, broadcasters 7 interest
in the more involved news-forms may grow stronger. There is ever}-
likelihood that the coming years may see more rather than fewer of
them.

There have been developed three basic types of news-show using two
or more voices:

1 . The simple multivoice show

2. The radio news interview

3. The news dramatization

The Simple Multivoice Show

Essentially, this type of show most common of the plural-voice news
programs employs more than one voice for variety and emphasis,

Such multivoice programs as the networks' international news round-ups,
or the three-part show designed by WCBM-Baltimore (described in Chap-
ter 6), are not considered here. They are, in effect, combinations of a
number of one-voice presentations, each complete in itself, without the
interweaving that makes them closely-knit units.

186 News Ly Radio

sometimes for clarification, but not to create any illusion of reality. It
is not an attempt to reproduce dialog. Rather, it is closer to the pattern
of the printed newspaper story, with its headline and subheads. It is as
though a newsroom director said, "I have several voices to work with.
In what simple manner can I use them effectively?"

The simplest pattern for such a show is that using one voice to pre-
sent ''headlines/ 7 the second to give the news under the headline. This
kind of newscast often describes itself under such a title as "Headlines
in the Xews" or 'Today's Headlines."

Its writing and problems, discussed in Chapter 6, are not difficult
The individual stories in it are handled much as are those in a straight
newscast, with such modifications and simplifications in their openings
as may be called for to take advantage of the fact that the subject or
key of the story has already been given. There need be no attention to
the usual transitional devices, since the headlines serve the purpose.

Such a show is usually introduced as should be all shows departing
from the standard straight newscast pattern by an announcement
calling attention to its special nature and perhaps introducing the own-
ers of the voices. This means that a third voice, that of the announcer
(who commonly reads the commercials), comes into the picture a
fact that provides added opportunity for variety and also increases
cost and the chance of miscuing and fluffs.

As a variation on this basic pattern, the headline voice may give
sentence introductions *'in Times Square a hundred thousand New
Yorkers are welcoming the New Year" or "a disastrous airplane crash is
Just reported from Cleveland/' Other variations will suggest them-
selves.

A multivoice show at its simplest may readily be built from the
KUQM newscast in Chapter 6:

ANNOUNCER: Again Station KWWW presents "Headlines in the News/'
Here are Gil Gray and Glen Smith, with latest headline
stories:

GRAY: STATE FAIR ATTENDANCE BREAKS RECORDS

SMITH: The crowds are thronging to the Minnesota State Fair again

today. The weather is fine .... etc.

Multivoice News Shows 187

GRAY: GREECE LABORS TO SOLVE CABINET CRISIS

SMITH: ConstantinTsaldaris just named premier of Greece is try-

ing to form a new cabinet .... etc.

GRAY: BREAD RATIONED IN FRANCE

SMITH: France's grain harvest is in "deplorable state" this year. And

the French government has just announced .... etc.

To convert this pattern into the variation mentioned above:

GRAY: Bigger crowds than ever before are going to the Minnesota

State Fair this year.

SMITH: Fine weather is bringing record crowds to the Fair grounds

again today .... etc.

A number of other departures from the basic pattern have developed
some of them successful, others not so good. Here are examples of two
patterns used during World War II:

ANNOUNCER: Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.

Today, the Allied troops hurled back all Axis attacks in North
Tunisia.

The RAF hit back again over Germany last night giving Ber-
lin severe air blows on the birthday of Hitler's Luftwaffe.
In the Southwest Pacific, General MacArthur's airmen are
still waiting to attack a Jap convoy.

And in Washington, Secretary of the Navy Knox said, "Well
utterly destroy the Jap fleet before the war is ended."
Here are Gil Gray and Glen Smith with the details:

GRAY: Allied troops have pushed back all of General Jurgen von

Amim's attacks in Northern Tunisia. . . .

(Gray then continues with detail of the Tunisia story,
the RAF story and the MacAithur story. After establish-
ing the Knox story, he says:)

Knox asserted:

SMITH: We will utterly destroy the Japanese fleet before this war is

ended. We probably will .... etc.

(At the end of the Knox quotation, Gray resumes; Smith
comes in only when he is giving verbatim quotations in-
troduced by Gray.)

o

188 News by Radio

ANNOUNCER: Headline news in the world today . . . brought to you by Gil
Gray, Glen Smith, and Kenn Barry.

(MUSIC: FANFARE)

ANNOUNCER: First, from the North African theater.

GRAY: British hurl back wide Nazi tank attacks near Hedjez-El-Bab

in Tunisia. (PAUSE) Montgomery and the Eighth army
wheel into position south of Mareth line.

ANNOUNCER: On the Russian front.

SMITH: P,ed troops smash westward from Kharkov. (PAUSE) Nazis

resist stubbornly in muddy Donets sector.

ANNOUNCER: The air war over Europe.

BARRY: American heavy bombers smash at Brest in France. ( PAUSE )

RAF medium bombers attack Dunkerque in third day of sus-
tained air activity on the Continent.

ANNOUNCER: And here are the summaries.

(Gray then follows with the stories he has introduced;
Smith with his stories; Barry with his. This will consume
about a third of a fifteen-minute show. The pattern is
then repeated, with minor variation.)

Both of these patterns, making more than orthodox use of the an-
nouncer, are more complicated than the basic pattern. They illustrate
excellently the principle that confusion increases in direct ratio to com-
plication. Both would be harder to follow than a simpler form.

The first also illustrates, however, a legitimate and effective use of
the added voice to present a quotation. This device makes it possible
to give quotations understandably and uncluttered by credit lines, and
longer than the one-voice show can offer.

Alternation of two voices from story to story is often entirely satis-
factory. But to alternate voices within a story, for no apparent reason
except to use two voices, is bad:

GRAY: Out at the Minnesota State Fair, attendance is heavy again

today.

SMITH: The weather is fine sunny . . . a light haze in the air . . .

not too warm. And crowds are pouring through the gates in
what seem to be record numbers.

Multivoice News Show* 189

GRAY: Already, you know, attendance at the Fair is well ahead of the

previous record. Yesterday nearly 80 thousand people came
and that brought the four-day total to more than >00 thou-
sand.

SMITH: That's 70 thousand more than the best previous attendance

for the first four days, in 1941 .... etc.

Another practice best avoided is illustrated in the following passage
(actually written for broadcast, but fortunately stopped before it got on
the air) :

ANNOUNCER: The weekly round-up of Washington news, presented every
Saturday at this time by Gil Gray, Glen Smith, and Kenn
Barry. Here's Gil:

GRAY: Thanks, Larry, and good evening, radio friends. There are

many things happening in Washington right now. So many
debates going on among senators, representatives, and war
administrators that well, we don't know quite where to
start.

SMITH: Probably the best topic of conversation right now, Gil, is the

farm-labor bill. Stimson and McNutt are two of the men on
the administration's top ladder who've found in the past few
days that they can't come to agreement.

GRAY: That's right, Glen. McNutt strongly opposed

BARRY: I'd like to interrupt, Gil.

GRAY: Go ahead, Kenn.

BARRY: Just to mention something about . . . etc.

The fallacy of this ardent attempt at informality and conversational
tone is evident. In the first place, it isn't good copy its writing is arti-
ficial. In the second, and more important, the attempt to present news
as though in a casual conversation deprives it of prime qualities: objec-
tivity and authority. These aren't newscasters presenting facts, but
rather three men discussing better, perhaps, gossiping about facts.
The listener is pretty sure to find what they offer less convincing and
authentic than it ought to be.

A woman's voice is used on some multivoice shows, usually to pre-
sent news of feminine interest or quotations from women. One such

1 9 } News by Radio

show is "Colorado Speaks," a weekly half-hour program presented suc-
cessfully for some years by KLZ-Denver to summarize the opinions of
Colorado newspapers on current affairs. After a standard opening,
Voice A presents a brief summary of the topics the press has been dis-
cussing. Voice B used for this purpose only then comes in: "Apprais-
ing the Japanese situation, Hubert A. Smith of the Denver Catholic
Register says that:" This is followed by Voice C's quotation from
a Register editorial. At its end, Voice B introduces another quotation,
and Voice A gives it. This pattern, continued through the show, pre-
sents excerpts from twenty-five or more newspaper comments. The
fourth voice, a woman's, is used for quotations from women editors.
The show, carefully backgrounded with music, involves production
problems not usually tackled in such programs.

A Los Angeles station has used a multivoice technique in a daily
show to present a melange of news, feature material, excerpts from
books and magazines, and the like.

In summary, it may be said that the multivoice pattern, in its many
variations, serves a useful purpose; that it may be very effective if it isn't
labored or tortured into illogical, artificial forms; but that it is certainly
secondary to the straight newscast form because of its time, cost, and
production problems.

The Radio News Interview

Properly used, the interview 1 is a simple and effective method of in-
troducing meaning, authority, and color into radio news or news com-
mentary.

Poorly used as too frequently it is it is likely to be stilted, or stum-
bling, or artificial, or all these. Worst of all, it may "sound like an inter-
view" rather than an interested and interesting conversation. More of
this later.

By definition, the radio news interview is the broadcast in which
an authority 7 is brought before the microphone to present, in response
to the "leads" of an interviewer, facts or competent opinion on a sub-
ject of news interest. Usually the interviewer is a member of the station
staff an announcer, a newscaster, a staff specialist in sports or agricul-
ture. The "authority" is a person selected because, by experience, back-

Multivoice News Shows 191

ground, or position, he is able to offer facts and comments which a
listening audience will accept as competent. Suppose the subject is a
rowdy post-football game celebration by high school students; the
authority might be a high school principal, a student participant, a
policeman, or the motorist whose car was overturned by the youngsters.
If it's a problem of international politics, the interviewee might be a
university political scientist, a national officer of the Foreign Policy
Association, or a foreign correspondent. Occasionally both participants
may be guests the high school principal interviewing the police chief,
or a professor interviewing a distinguished visiting authority. Occa-
sionally there may be more than one interviewee the broadcast may
become a three- or four-way conversation.

In any case, the program is one in which, in simplest terms, there
are a questioner and a respondent. Thus it differs from the multivoice
programs described earlier in this chapter. It is a multivoice show, but
not one in which all voices are used strictly for expositional purposes.

Obviously the interview is a means of adding vitality to news presen-
tation. Not only does it introduce the dramatic effect of dialog rather
than monolog (the substance of any news interview could be written
into a straight newscast). It also brings to the audience a personality
of interest and authority. .

But a more significant value in its use lies in the opportunity it offers
for showing the background, the meaning of the news. A newscast over
a station in an agricultural area can present all the facts about the
drouth that threatens to hamstring farm production; but to give
listeners the meaning of the facts the word of an agronomist, or a dirt
farmer, or an agricultural economist is needed. And the interview is a
most effective method of offering the expert word. This is of course
directly analogous to the newspaper's use of the news interview.

Scores of such radio interviews perhaps the majority of them are
ad-lib. This is often satisfactory when the interviewee is sure the mike
isn't going to bite him, and when the interviewer is skillful enough to

Interviews are used in many shows other than news. Most of the things
said here about news interviews may also be said about other types of inter-
view programs personality interviews, special feature interviews, and
so on.

J92 News by Radio

direct the broadcast with pace, judgment, and smoothness. Often,
however, one or another of these conditions may not hold. The likely
result is a broadcast that falters or stutters, one that is repetitious, one
that sends listeners in droves to the opposition station. Though the
interview from script offers its own pitfalls, it is less likely to miss fire
than the ad-lib variety. Many stations require that scripts for all such
broadcasts be submitted twenty-four hours or more ahead of mike-
time for checking and possible improvement.

Whether script or ad-lib, most interviews require a good deal of pre-
broadcast preparation. At the least, the participants need to confer
on areas to be covered, some of the leading questions to be asked and
answered, the order of topics, and so on. Experienced radio men often
conduct such a conference in the broadcasting booth, the mike on the
table between interviewer and interviewee, to accustom the neophyte
to talking with the mike in front of him.

At most, preparation for the radio interview may call for a good
deal of study of the subject by the man who is to write the script (it's
most desirable for the writer also to act as interviewer), for a long
discussion of it by the participants, for writing the script and submitting
it to the interviewee, for revision, and possibly for a rehearsal or two.
It isn't often that all these steps are carried out. But several of them
must precede every interview.

At least a rudimentary script is necessary even for the ad-lib inter-
view. It consists sometimes of nothing more than scrawled notes on
the topics the interview is to cover, or perhaps a list of questions the
"straight man" is to ask. An outline's virtue is not only that it provides
to the questioner material for his part of the performance, but also
thatif it's carefully made it sets an orderly pattern for the program.
Without it, there would be probability of omissions or confused and
confusing presentation.

What are the qualities desirable in a "good" radio interview script?

Let it be remembered that the radio interview is neither a casual con-
versation between two individuals nor a catechism of one individual
by another. It is something between the two. It is not the first, except
in rare cases, because it is presumed that the man featured in the inter-
view knows a great deal more about his subject than does the ques-

Multivoice News Shows 193

tioner, or the listener whom the questioner represents. That's the
reason he's on the program. The two are not presumed to be conducting
a wholly informal conversation, one characterized by the realism of
dramatic dialog. On the other hand, a degree of informality, of the
conversational manner, is necessary for precisely the same reason that
it's necessary in straight news presentation; and nothing is less effective
aurally than the mechanical question-and-answer device.

The best result is likely to be attained when the script writer keeps
in mind the point just made: that the questioner represents the
listener. The listener is at ease in his living room; he is presumably
interested in the subject, and he is glad to have the authority brought
into a chair on the other side of the fire place to expound it. All of
which means that the questioner's approach should be, in effect, the
one the listener would adopt if the situation were real instead of
imaginary.

The effective script, then, is one in which the questioner is somewhat
in the position of the student who has read the text, but doesn't think
he knows all the answers. He wants to know more, and he's well
enough informed so that he can converse on the subject, can ask
intelligent questions. He guides the course of the interview to the
points he and the listener want to reach. And he does it in a manner
suiting the circumstanceusually a circumstance in which the authority
of the interviewee entitles him to be treated courteously, not with the
familiarity of a barroom buddy.

Take this last point first. Recall the radio interviews you have heard
in which the synthetic familiarity, the first-name chumminess, has been
artificial, unconvincing, often annoying. Then let your first rule be,
"Don't make the speakers pals unless they are pals."

An example of what not to do:

ANNOUNCER: .... and here is the eminent pediatrician, Dr. Albert Mor-
gan. He will be interviewed by Gil Gray.

GRAY: Good to have you here this evening, Doc.

MORGAN: Thanks, Gil. I'm glad to be here.

GRAY: Suppose you start, Doc, by telling us how you got into this

work . . .

194 News by Radio

The point is obvious. Dr. Morgan and Gray likely never clapped
eyes on each other before they met to arrange the interview. The
listener knows this, and he isn't fooled by the artificial familiarity. He
would be more at ease, and more impressed by the speaker's authority,
if the script went something like this:

GRAY:' Good evening, Dr. Morgan.

MORGAN: Good evening.

GRAY: First, Doctor, I'd like to know how you got into this work

In some interviews, of course, first names or nicknames are appro-
priate. If a newspaper sports editor, for example, is interviewing a foot-
ball coach he has known for years, it would be ludicrous to use formal
titles. But the too-common assumption in radio that facing each
other across a microphone justifies verbal back-slapping is best for-
gotten.

The examples above, good and bad, illustrate another important
device in interview-writing: that of presenting early in the script what-
ever information is necessary to establish the expert's right to speak.
In some cases the formal introduction of the broadcast will do this.
In most it is desirable to let the interviewee himself tell the listener
something of his background or experience. Usually this can be man-
aged in one brief speech forty or fifty words. Then the interviewer
can turn the conversation directly onto the subject.

Another tip on the use of names: Don't use them too often. They
should appear frequently enough in the opening speeches so that the
listener will have plenty of opportunity to set in his mind the identi-
fication of the voices; after that they should appear much less often.

How much should the interviewer talk? How long should speeches
b? How frequently should questions be inserted?

Tbe answers to problems like these grow out of the need to keep
the program moving, to keep it conversational in manner. Few men
in conversation talk in long speeches unless a speaker is telling an
anecdote or presenting a well-integrated exposition, he rarely talks
without interruption for more than three or four sentences. In a fifteen-
mraute interview, tie authority may be given half a dozen speeches of
150 words or so perhaps even longer, on occasion. But he is not

Multivoice News Shows 195

giving a formal talk he is conversing. He should not be forced tc
orate too long in one place.

Therefore, on a page of interview copy, you'll ordinarily expect tc
find four or more speechestwo or three by the questioner, responses
by the interviewee.

Again, it should be remembered that it's a rare conversation in which
one man ends every speech with a question mark. Some of the inter-
viewer's remarks must be questions. A good many of them should be
declarative sentences, or half sentences often devices for rhetorical
effect, devices to break up what might become overlong monologs,
Speeches like these:

I see what you mean.

Not much chance of success in that kind of thing.

I certainly didn't know that there are water buffalo in Patagonia.

I wish you'd enlarge on that.

Well, we've had the same kind of thing happen here in Midland.

Most conversations are well larded with such words as "well," "yes/'
and other short helpers. They are useful in interview scripts.

A caution: Men and women chosen to appear in radio interviews
are not often radio actors. They are not skilled at timing speeches, at
simulating laughter. Consequently speeches that call for split-second
interruptions, chuckles, and the like are to be avoided. "Straight copy"
is always better than anything demanding specialized microphone
skilL

Similarly, it's dangerous to write humor into interview scripts. Vast
is the number of untrained speakers who can put humorous lines into
a mike and make them come out funereal.

The following interview* broadcast over ABC on January 7 y 1946
is skillfully written. As you examine it, remember that it is special
pleadingan exposition of the position taken by the steel industry
toward the strike impending when the interview went on the air. Il
employs a distinguished newspaper specialist as the questioner, and a
leader in the steel industry as interviewee. The questioner's first speecl
lays the scene (it's the longest single speech in the script) . After thai;

* From an uacopyrighted pamphlet, ''Management* s Job," published by Amer
ican Iron and Sted Institute^ 1946:

FORREST:

196 News by Radio

the questioner moves to the background, and the interviewee with the
adroit help of the straight man carries the show.

ANNOUNCER: Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Under the sponsorship
of the American Iron and Steel Institute, this program brings
you an interview with Ernest T. Weir, chairman of National
Steel Corporation and a director of the Institute. Mr. Weir
will be questioned by John G. Forrest, financial editor of the
New York Times, on the general situation in the steel industry
as it looks today. Mr, Forrest.

Thank you. As I understand it, Mr. Weir, the highlights of
the situation in the steel industry tonight are these:
One Last spring, most steel companies signed renewal con-
tracts with the CIO's United Steel Workers Union. Those
contracts were to run until the autumn of 1946, and they con-
tained clauses prohibiting both strikes and lock-outs.
Two Several months ago, the union demanded an increase
of S2 per day in straight-time pay.

Three The steel companies replied that they could not pay
a wage increase because they were now losing money on most
of their steel products that substantial price increases would
be necessary to allow most steel companies to break even, let
alone pay wage increases.

Four Last November, the OPA refused to allow a price in-
crease. However, the President has directed OPA to re-study
the matter and make a new report no later than February 1.
Five The union held a strike vote in November; the majority
of steelworkers voted for the strike, and the union leaders have
set January 14 one week from today for the start of an in-
dustry-wide strike.

Six Last week, the President appointed a fact-finding
board which is to report on the steel wage issue as it affects the
union and the United States Steel Corporation. Is that a fair
summary, Mr. Weir?

Yes, Mr. Forrest, you are a good reporter.

Mr. Weir, I suppose you noticed in the Times today that the
steel board has requested the union and the United States
Steel Corporation to return to collective bargaining. Would
any agreement arrived at by collective bargaining, or any facts
found by this board with respect to the United States Steel
Corporation, apply to the steel industry as a whole?

WEIR:

FORREST:

Multivoice News Shows

197

WEIR:

FORREST:

WEIR:

FORREST:

WEIR:

FORREST:
WEIR:

FORREST:

WEIR:

FORREST:

WEIR:

FORREST:

WEIR:

Mr. Forrest, the steel industry is composed of from 1 50 to 200
corporations of all kinds big and little. I think it's quite ob-
vious that a situation that might apply to one company would
not necessarily apply to all the rest.

By the way, Mr. Weir, does your company have a contract
with the United Steelworkers?

Some of our subsidiary companies do. Others have contracts
with independent unions the United Mine Workers and the
Weirton Independent Union.

The United Mine Workers, I assume, will not be a party to
the steel strike. How about the Weirton Union?

The Weirton Independent Union, which is the bargaining
agency for the production and maintenance employees of the
Weirton Steel Company, has not indicated any intention to
strike.

Has it made any wage demands, Mr. Weir?

It has and is continuing negotiations with the Weirton
management in accordance with the terms of its contract.

Now to get back to the general situation. As I see it, you have
three separate factors that influence the present situation
management, the union and government.

Yes, that's true, and, unfortunately, unions and government
now attempt to exercise functions that are properly the sole
responsibility of management.

Responsibility of management? How is that, Mr. Weir?

It is management's job to balance the different groups that
make up each company, to coordinate their functions, and to
direct their activities. In whatever it does, management must
consider all of these groups. You know you can get a pretty
fair idea of a company's operations by watching an orchestra
at work.

You may be right, but an orchestra and a steel company seem
pretty far apart to me.

Not so very far. Anyone watching an orchestra sees manage-
ment and production being carried on right before his eyes.
An orchestra may have over 100 musicians. Each individual
may be a skilled artist with his particular instrument, but in
the orchestra, the musician does not play as an individual but

198 News by Radio

as a member of a particular section of the orchestra and as a
member of the entire orchestra. To produce orchestral music,
each musician and each section of instruments must do the
right thing at the right time. They can't do that without man-
agement in the person of the conductor. The conductor is
doing a management job and the orchestra a production job
from the first note to the last.

FORREST: And I suppose, Mr. Weir, the orchestra audience compares
with the buying public?

WEIR: Right the buying public calls the industrial tune. An or-

chestra may have the best musicians and instruments in the
world, but without the conductor, it would never produce
music. It would just produce noise. Without management,
industry's production would be the equivalent of noise.

FORREST: Do you imply that industry today does not have the coopera-
tion that is necessary to efficient production?

WEIR: I imply more than that and to illustrate, I would like to refer

to the orchestra once more. Then I will leave it and stick to
industry. Suppose there was a fellow sitting in one section of
the orchestra who could cancel the conductor's directions and
give other directions of his own. Then suppose that there was
another fellow one who did not know much about music
sitting beside the conductor who tugged at his elbow now and
again to give suggestions, advice and orders. Under these con-
ditions, you can well imagine what kind of performance an
orchestra would give. And the management of any business
today is up against conditions very much like that.

FOHREST: AH right, Mr. Weir. Let's apply that comparison to industry.
Who are the fellows responsible for the "sour notes"?

WEIR: Well, the fellow who could overrule the conductor is a certain

type of union leader. The fellow tugging at the conductor's
elbow could be one of many bureaucrats in Washington, D. C.

FORREST: Will you tell us specifically how these things prevent manage-
ment from discharging its responsibility?

WEIR: Gladly, but perhaps we should first name some of manage-

ment's responsibilities. Management's basic, long-range, over-
all responsibility is to the public as a whole to produce more
goods and better quality at lower cost. Industry also has a re-
sponsibility to be efficient, and to provide a fair return on the
investment of its stockholders. In the past, American manage-

Multivoice News Shows

199

FORREST:

WEIR:

FORREST:

WEIR:

FORREST:

WEIR:

FORREST!

WEIR:

ment, workers and investors, together, have discharged these
responsibilities well enough to give the average American the
highest standard of living ever known in any country or at
any time in history.

A few moments ago, you intimated that steel companies could
not pay the wage increase demanded by the union without
violating the responsibility of management. Will you please
explain that?

Well, since steel companies arc now making most of their
products at a loss, they are not getting enough money from
customers to pay the wage increase. So they would have to get
it from other sources. The first step, of course, would be to
wipe out dividends to stockholders because dividends are paid
out of profits and there wouldn't be any profits. The next step
would be to rob the business of funds vital to its very ex-
istence.

You mean funds such as surplus, reserves and depreciation set
aside to replace machinery and materials, and funds for the
building of new plants?

Yes. And there would not be enough money from all sources
together to pay the wage increase. Most steel companies
would operate in the red. The result for stronger companies
would be increased debt and for the weaker companies bank-
ruptcy. Under today's conditions, management cannot pay
the huge wage increase demanded by the union and at the
same time meet its responsibilities to the public and to the
owners.

What do you mean, "under today's conditions"? Are things
so much different now?

Yes. The unions now attempt to make management's de-
cisions on prices, on profits, on production schedules, on
depreciation reserves, and on many other phases of industrial
operation. Management cannot be a divided thing. Whoever
has the responsibility for management must have the right to
manage.

And I suppose you also mean that whoever has the right must
accept the responsibility.

Exactly. If the unions and government are now permitted to
make management decisions, then the public must realize

200

FORREST:

WEIR:

FORREST:
WEIR:

FORREST:

WEIR:

News by Radio

that the United States is being placed under an entirely new
economic system. \Ve know what the present system has ac-
complished in the way of goods, jobs and wages, and in cre-
ating the highest standard of living in the world. Do we want
to change that system?

Well, Mr. Weir, on the basis of a good many years' experience
as a financial editor, I think I can say that American manage-
ment has given us the world's best job of management, and
on its record it is a safe assumption that it will continue to do
that kind of job.

I'd like to say, Mr. Forrest, that your newspaper and many
others have been doing a good job of explaining the func-
tions of management. Some thoughts along this line were well
expressed by a fellow newspaperman of yours Edward T.
Leech, president and editor of the Pittsburgh Press in an
editorial which pointed out that American business has:

" 1 Given the world's highest quality

"2 At the world's lowest prices

**3 While paying the world's best wages."

He pointed out that tinkering with the works by amateurs will
not make the works run better, but may stop them from run-
ning at all.

What do you think should be done, Mr. Weir?

Mr. Forrest, I think that Congress should pass legislation that
would take away the position of marked favoritism that labor
unions now hold under the one-sided Wagner Act. Such new
legislation should take labor relations out of politics and take
politics out of labor relations. It should compel unions as
well as management to accept responsibility equal to their
power.

Then do you think that the right to strike should be pro-
hibited?

Absolutely not. After all, the right to strike is merely an ex-
tension of the individual's right to take a job or leave it. The
only way strikes should be restricted is in the manner of con-
ducting them. The right to strike should not be construed as a
license to use violence and hoodlumism as has been true in
so many cases.

FORREST:

WEIR:

FORREST:

WEIR:

FORREST:
WEIR:

FORREST:

WEIR:

FORREST:

WEIR:

Multivoice News Shows 201

Well, do you believe then that the Steclworkers Union has
the right to strike next week?

No!
Why not?

Because the union is breaking its word. In the contracts,
signed -only last spring, the union pledged itself not to strike
for the duration of the contracts.

I noticed an ad in the paper this morning signed by the
United Steelworkers, CIO, where they deny they are violating
the contract

I saw the ad and it is characteristic of the CIO's tactics. Sup-
pose we let the no-strike clause speak for itself. Here is one
from a typical contract: "During the term of this Agreement,
neither the Union nor any Employee, individually or collec-
tively, shall cause or take part in any strike, or other interrup-
tion or any impeding of production at any plant of the Com-
pany covered by this Agreement. Any Employee or Employees
who violate the provisions of this Section may be discharged
from the employ of the Company."

Mr. Weir, you have said, I believe, that you, and steel man-
agement in general, are in favor of high wages, but that you
object to the present union demand for higher wages. Isn't
that a contradiction?

I am in favor of high wages the highest that can possibly be
paid and I'll stand on my record as an employer as well as on
my words. Steel management in general feels the same way.
But there is a difference between money wages and real wages.
I am in favor of higher wages that are based on the production
of more goods and services. They are red wages. Everyone
benefits from them. By producing more we can all have more.

Yes, but the steel union bases part of its case for a wage ad-
vance on the increased productivity of the industry.

Yes, but it talks about the future. It is asking an increase in
anticipation of something that may or may not happen. For
this reason, the wage demand is unsound. But I have con-
fidence in this country. I believe that eventually, on a per-
fectly sound basis, steelworkers will receive higher wages than
the union now demands. Those wages will come only if man-
agement in the steel industry is permitted to use its brains

202 News by Radio

and its know-how in turning out more steel and better steel at
lower cost.
FORREST: Fine. How soon will that day come, Mr. Weir?

WEIR: Your guess is as good as mine, Mr. Forrest. But we will make a

start toward it, just as soon as we get reconversion really mov-
ing. There is the biggest demand in history for goods of all
kinds. Our warehouses and storerooms are empty. The way to
solve our problems is to get rolling get producing the things
that people need and want. Increased production is the real
source of higher real wages. And those higher real wages will
conic if, with its responsibility, management also is allowed
to have the right to manage.

ANNOUNCER: Thank you, Mr. Weir and Mr. Forrest. You have been listen-
ing to Mr. John G. Forrest, financial editor of the New York
Times, interview Mr. Ernest T. Weir, chairman of National
Steel Corporation and a director of American Iron and Steel
Institute. This program is one of a series sponsored by Amer-
ican Iron and Steel Institute. If you would like a copy of to-
night's broadcast, write to the American Iron and Steel
Institute, Empire State Building, New York 1, New York.

Dramatizing the News

Radio's most effective means of telling a story is through dramatiza-
tion. This is as true of the presentation of news as it is of fiction, drama,
history, biography, anything else. Dramatization is the tool which
makes "documentaries" so effective. Skillfully employed, it will do
more to throw a body of news-facts, or a set of news-opinions, into
their proper focus than any other method, for it more nearly approaches
reality. It has tremendous effectiveness for the presentation of back-
ground, for filling in the gaps in the listener's knowledge gaps that
make it impossible for him to understand a news situation fully. It
may be either selective or exhaustive; it may cover a day or a cen-
tury. It offers opportunity to use a variety of techniques full-fledged
drama, interview, speech, straight news. And it has the potentiality
of building bigger audiences than most straight news shows can
hope for.

But

You can count on one hand the dramatized news shows you know

Multivoice News Shows 203

af. The familiar trilogy time, cost, and production problems
provides the reasons.

The essence of radio news is speed, and dramatizations cannot be
thrown together. Writing the news drama is time-consuming. It
demands not only skillful script writers and fundamental news
materials, but also many hours of researchoften by a staff of specialists
and sometimes a dozen rewrites of portions of the script. And it
calls for casting, rehearsals, music, sound-effectsall the trappings
that go into any other kind of radio drama and that add to its cost as
well as to the time it needs. It is significant that most such shows
appear on the air but once a week, and that few stations have under-
taken them programs of this kind are usually on the networks,
underwritten by big advertisers or the networks themselves.

In 5pite of all these disadvantages, radio has had one internationally
famous news dramatization, the "March of Time," and a number of
lesser shows, both on the nets and on individual stations. Both AP and
UP provided transcribed fifteen-minute shows of this kind during
the war, dramatizing news-experiences of their war correspondents.
And the newsroom or its first cousin, the special events department,
is usually called on to write the script. Now and again if not for a
regular program, then for a centennial celebration or a Community
Fund drive show the man in the newsroom may find himself suddenly
asked to turn dramatist. For a talent fee, if he's lucky.

What kind of material does he choose?

First of all, newsy material subjects that can readily be hung on
current news pegs. Though there may be exceptions to this rule, they
should be rare (else the show won't be a news dramatization). The
news peg may be no more than a peg a bit of dramatization may
spend 95 per cent of its time telling the history of the beginning of
logging in the Pacific Northwest, but its place in the script should be
justified by the fact, for example, that the oldest sawmill on Puget
Sound has just given up the ghost.

Second, human interest material. Dramatization means, among
other things, the revelation of human values. A topic that yields
incidents of adventure, of humor, of pathos incidents involving
people is likely to be easiest to mold into dramatic form. The topic

204 News by Radio

need not, however, always be one that shrieks of human interest on
its surface. Most radio listeners would think a bank statement sadly
deficient in human qualities. Yet a skilled news dramatist might build
from a bank-statement peg a sharply effective show that reveals in
understandable terms the meaning of a statement's dull statistics,
or the human-interest story that lies behind a bank's growth, or the
relation between the statement's showing of drastic reduction in savings
deposits and the recent economic facts of life of the bank's clientele.

Third, material that demands interpretation. Dramatization, as has
been said, may be radio's most effective tool for throwing into cleai
light the confusions of a new tax plan that leaves most laymen fum-
bling and mumbling. A series of brief lay-language vignettes, each
showing how some provision of the plan affects the individual tax
payer, may do the best possible job of helping the listener to under,
stand how his own pocketbook will be attacked.

The local or regional station undertaking news dramatization is wise
to shape such shows largely or even entirely around local or regional
subjects. Such subjects lie in the area of its principal service; they are
usually subjects on which it can most easily procure adequate informa-
tion. Moreover, they avoid competition with the few similar broad-
casts on the networks broadcasts presumably done by agencies with
more money, facilities, and talent available. The local station can't
often compete with "March of Time" in a dramatization of the prob-
lem of displaced persons in the Upper Ukraine; it can do a job nobody
can touch on the accomplishments of Lake County 4-H clubs in live-
stock feeding, or the need for local support of a Red Cross campaign.

It is not within the scope of this book to provide all the instructions
for doing such a job. All the instructions, sad to relate, don't appear in
any book; only by trial and error will most radio writers learn the high
art. But there are books largely devoted to dramatization: Max Wylie's
Radio Writing (Rinehart, 1949) and Erik Barnouw's Hand Book of
Radio Writing (D. C. Heath, 1947) are the most useful. By all odds
the best dissertation on news dramatization is the chapter in Paul
White's News on the Air (Harcourt, Brace, 1947) ; but even Mr. White
doesn't give all the answers. By studying such guides, by endless
practice, and by application of his knowledge of the fundamental

Multivoice News Shows 205

principles of radio news selection, judgment, and presentation the
newsroom man may develop acceptable skill.

As a start, look at a typical "March of Time" script/ "March of
Time" has been on the air since March 6, 1931. Since that date it has
become one of America's best-known radio shows. The Time people
will tell you that producing a show takes the better part of a week:
A story and planning conference, for example, on Monday morning;
research and script writing Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday; re-
hearsals Thursday and Friday, final production Friday evening. They'll
also inform you that there are 220 "cues" in the average show a third
to musicians, a third to actors, the remainder to Westbrook Van
Voorhis as the "Voice of Time," and the sound effects men.

Before you read the script, a few notes on it: It includes five sections,
the last three of which are mentioned as teasers in the opening an-
nouncement. The first two and the fourth are thoroughgoing dramatiza-
tions; the third is a straight speech; the fifth is a combination of
dramatization with what this book calls the multivoice technique.
There is one frank commercial, between second and third numbers
(before the listener has heard any of the numbers announced in the
opening," after his appetite has been whetted by the two brief un-
announced numbers); there are also mentions of Time's colleagues,
Life and Fortune, in connection with two of the numbers. The original
script, intended to fill thirty minutes, was written in 589 lines; in
rehearsal this was cut to 544. The first, second, and fourth numbers
ran three to four script pages; the third and fifth, to six pages. Van
Voorhis, the "Voice of Time," is VAN.

Now the script, complete (the lines cut out in rehearsal are placed
within brackets):

(MUSIC: HIT THEME)

VAN: THE MARCH OF TIME!

(MUSIC: THEME UP AND DOWN)

ANNOUNCER: TIME, the weekly news magazine, takes you to the news
fronts of the world: Can Fascist Spain survive in a demo-
cratic Europe? The heroic and tragic story of an American

* By written permission of Time Inc., October 7, 1947.

206 News by Radio

guerrilla chief in the Philippines. And a personal meeting
with the first U.S. Marine to return from Two Jima. Stand by
for the MARCH OF TIME!

(MUSIC: THEME UP TO CURTAIN)

VAN: Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. This is Westbrook Van

Voorhis speaking for the editors of TIME Magazine.

It is now the Allied Watch on the Rhine.

U. S. civilians at home, remembering how we dealt with
Italian civilians, and well aware of the doughboys' soft heart
may well ask: How are we treating German civilians? Are we
coddling them? A new answer and a firm one came this week
in a cabled report from officers of the American Military
Government of Neuss, first Rhine city to come under Ameri-
can control. In the Rathaus, or city council house, the U. S.
captain in charge marches into the office of the Buerger-
meister, or Mayor of Neuss.

(SOUND : MILITARY BOOTS TO HALT)

MAYOR: Ach, good morning, Herr Captain! I am at your service.

CAPTAIN: (TOUGH) O. K. You can continue as mayor of this town,
but I'm the boss. Get that straight.

MAYOR: }a wohl. I shall cooperate.

CAPTAIN: As long as you do, and as long as your people behave, okay.
Otherwise, out you go. In the first place, all civilians will be
confined to their homes until further notice.

MAYOR: But Herr Captain, how can they? Where can 30 thousand
people go? Half the homes in Neuss are in complete ruin!

CAPTAIN: [I don't care where German civilians live.] They've got to
stay off the streets so as not to get in the way of our military
operations. My order will be obeyed.

[(MUSIC: STING)

[(SOUND: SOME OFFICE BUSTLE IN B. G.)

[MAYOR: (CAUTIOUSLY) Herr Captain . . .

[CAPTAIN: Well, out with it, Buergermeister! Are your town cops help-
ing my military police clear the streets as I told you?

[MAYOR: Alas, Herr Captain, my police are prisoners of war, your
prisoners* Apparently your soldiers rounded them up thinking
they were German soldiers. Their uniforms are green gray . . .

Multivoice News Shows

207

[CAPTAIN:

(MUSIC:
(SOUND:
DOCTOR:

CAPTAIN:

DOCTOR:
CAPTAIN:

(MUSIC:
(SOUND:

MAN:

CAPTAIN:

(MUSIC:
(SOUND:
CAPTAIN:
MAYOR:

CAPTAIN:

If we've made a mistake, we'll release them, put them in
civilian dress, and give them arm bands. But if a German has
a uniform, it's better to throw him in a prisoner of war pen
and investigate later.]

STING)
SAME)

(VERY CAUTIOUS) If you please, Herr Captain, I am the
sanitation official . . . Water and sanitation facilities have
broken down completely, of course . . .

Well, round up whatever German doctors there are, and let
them take care of any civilians who get sick . . .

But your own medical corps . . . your own wonderful sani-
tary equipment . . .

Not a chance, doc! I'll see that notices are posted where water
is available; that it must be boiled before drinking. That's all
we can do at present.

STING)
SAME)

But, Herr Captain! You do not understand. Meine frau she
will have the baby any minute! Now your army doctors . . .
I have read how they . , .

Not in Germany. Go get a midwife or one of your German
doctors and consider yourself lucky if you find one. It's your
affair, not mine.

STING)

SAME)

What's the trouble now, Buergenneister?

It is my people, Herr Captain. They stay off the streets, as
you command. But they are hungry. I beg, I implore you to
release emergency army rations to them!

Look, Mayor. We got better use for our army rations. Collect
whatever food there is in the shops that hasn't been destroyed.
Then, gather the food your civilians have hoarded in their
homes ...

MAYOR: Hoarding? Oh, nein .

208

CAPTAIN:

MAYOR:
CAPTAIN:

(MUSIC:
VAN:

(MUSIC:
(MUSIC:

VAN:

VOICE:

YOUNG:

OFFICER:
YOUNG:

OFFICER:
YOUNG:

News by Radio

And sell it to these hungry people of yours. The money will
go into a food fund that won't cost us a cent. Because we
aren't putting out any.

But you are already housing and feeding some civilians.

Sure, we're feeding three thousand. They're Russians, Poles,
French, Dutch, Belgians and a few Algerians we found here
in Neuss. And we're going to keep on feeding 'em, until we
can get ? em back to their homes. They're entitled to it. You're
not!

IN .... J

That's the way American Military Governors handle German
civilians. If you've been worrying about it, forget it. Worry
about something better or worse.

CURTAIN)

HIT ORCHESTRA AND VOICES RODGER YOUNG
ENOUGH TO ESTABLISH FADE)

This week a new war song is marching into American hearts:
The Ballad of Rodger Young, written to honor all infantrymen
in the name of one. Its author, Private First Class Frank
Loesser, writer of "Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition"
and many another topflight hit. The story of Private Rodger
Young that led Composer Loesser to write what may well be
the war's top song is told in LIFE magazine.

Rodger Young of Clyde, Ohio, was one of the smallest men
in Company B of the 148th Regiment in the 37th Infantry
Division. But he was a good soldier. How good was revealed
in an incident that occurred just before the 37th Division
went into combat, for the first time, on New Georgia Island
in the southwest Pacific, Sergeant Young approached his
company commander.

Sir, I have a request to make.
Yes, Sergeant?

IVe been slightly deaf, sir, ever since I was in high school.
When we were in training at Camp Shelby, sir, my ear trouble
got worse.

Having trouble now Sergeant?
Yes, sir, worse than ever.

Multivoice News Shows 209

OFFICER: And you want a medical discharge?

YOUNG: Oh, no, sir. I'm just afraid my poor hearing will interfere with

my job as a squad leader. I may miss some important message,
or some sound in the jungle. That'll be dangerous for the
men under me.

OFFICER: Then what is your request, Sergeant?
YOUNG: Sir. I want to be demoted to the rank of private.
(MUSIC: BRIDGE)

VAN: Soon thereafter the 37th Division landed on New Georgia,

fought bitterly resisting Japs back through the jungle. Late
one afternoon the platoon in which Rodger Young was
fighting was ordered to withdraw a little for the night. The
platoon suddenly was pinned down by intense fire from a
Japanese machine gun concealed on higher ground only
seventy-five yards away.

(SOUND: MACHINE GUN FIRE OFF IN AND OUT AS CUED
BATTLE SOUNDS)

SERGEANT: Hold it, you guys! Hold it! Anybody hit?

YOUNG: I am.

SERGEANT: Rodge. Hit bad?

YOUNG: No.

SERGEANT: Okay, you guys. Pull back. Keep low,

YOUNG: Hey, Sergeant! I got that machine gun spotted. I'm going
after it.

SERGEANT : Come back here, Young!

YOUNG: (OFF) 111 get 'em! Stay where you are!

( SOUND : MACHINE GUN FIRE. THEN SEVERAL GRENADES)

SERGEANT: They hit him again!

MAN: He's still throwin' grenades, though!

(SOUND: GRENADES MG FIRE THEN A BIG GRENADE
BLAST AND QUIET)

MAN: He knocked the gun out!

RIGBY: Yeahbut they got him!

(MUSIC: BRIDGE)

210 News by Radio

[VAN: The Commander of the 148th Infantry, Colonel Lawrence K.

White, wrote to Private Rodger Young's mother:

[WHITE: Private Young fought and gave his life in order that you and
his other relatives and friends might continue to enjoy our
American way of life. We are indeed proud to be members
of Private Young's Regiment.]

VAN; President Roosevelt gave Private Young posthumously the

nation's highest award for heroism, the Medal of Honor. That
is the story that led Composer Loesser to write the Ballad
of Private Rodger Young, and, in honoring one hero, to
honor all infantrymen. Here is the Ballad of Rodger Young.

(MUSIC: VOICES AND ORCHESTRA)

VAN: This week on the Rhine and across the vast arc of the Pacific.

American commanders are making many bold decisions based
on many different facts. All day long and all night long these
facts pour in reports from the battle lines, reports on supply
and transportation conditions behind the fronts, intelligence
reports about the enemy ahead. And back here on the home
front editors are having to do much the same kind of think-
ing ... to help Americans understand the complicated,
everchanging current of the week's news. All this week, for
example, the editors of TIME, The Weekly Newsmagazine,
have been receiving reports from their correspondents on
every battlefront of this war. For instance, there are five TIME
and LIFE men on the Western Front men like Senior Editor
Sidney Olson, whose account of the Ninth Army's push to
the Rhine you can read in TIME this week. And in the Pacific
theater there is Teddy White, soon to take off again for the
Burma front. There is Bill Gray in Manila and Robert
Shcrrod and Gene Smith on bloody Iwo Jima, From their
reports and those of other TIME correspondents all over
the world, TIME's editors write into TIME Magazine one
clear, complete story of the week's news a story that makes
the war news really make sense. And that is just one of the
reasons why more than a million busy, well-informed Ameri-
can families now turn to TIME this week and every week.

VAN: War must always mean separation of fighting men from

their loved ones. But one of the most tragic romances of this
war concerns a young American officer in the Philippines and
his sweetheart. It is the story of Major Bernard "Andy"

SOUND:

:OLONEL:

:NDY:

IOLONEL:

:OLONEL:

COLONEL:
LNDY:
:OLONEL:
LSTDY:

IOLONEL:

IETTYLOU

Multivoice News Shows 211

Anderson, the greatest leader of Filipino Guerrillas, and it
was cabled this week by TIME and LIFE correspondent Carl
Mydans. A few days after U. S. troops had pushed into
Manila into the American lines east of the Philippine Capital,
came a man in a tattered and dusty uniform. He had lines
on his face, and more years than his age. He was escorted to
a nearby command post.

BATTLE EFFECTS IN B. G.)

Major Anderson reporting, sir.

Not Andy Anderson!

Yes, sir. United States Armed Forces in the Far East.

(BE SURE TO SMILE) Well, Major, if I wanted fifty
thousand pesos, I could turn you over to the enemy.

(SMILE) Yes, sir, I understand there is a price on my head.
But all I care about right now is to get to Manila.

I'm sure we can arrange that, Major.
You see, I'm going back to Betty Lou.
Betty Lou?
My fiancee.
Oh!

It's been a long time. It's been Betty Lou who kept me going
when things got so tough in the hills I thought I was reaching
the end. When the Japs were closing in and there was no
food and you felt like this is it, I thought of Betty Lou and
kept going.
(SOFTLY) We'll get you to Betty Lou, Major . . .

I haven't seen her for more than three years, sir. It was New

Year's day Nineteen Forty-two in Manila. I'll never forget it.

It was early, very early in the morning. Her father, Captain

Gewald, had already left for Bataan. (FADE) I was with

her in her mother's apartment . . .

Oh, darling, after you've gone, 111 think of so much we

should have said.

I know, Betty Lou, there's so much and so little to say. Here

we were to have been married on January 10, but that will

have to wait, now, until I come back.

212 News by Radio

(SOUND: KNOCK OFF)

ANDY: (UP) What is it? Oh, hello, Bert.

(SOUND: DOOR OPEN)

PETTIT (OFF) Andy! Come on! We've got to go now. We're going
to blow up the last bridge to Bataan.

ANDY: (UP) 111 be right with you, Bert. (LOW) Goodbye, Betty

Lou. We'll be back as soon as possible.

BETTY LOU: Yes, darling, I'll be here. I'll be waiting for you.
(MUSIC: IN)

ANDY: Betty Lou and her mother stayed behind in Manila waiting

for the Japanese. For them, it meant Santo Tomas intern-
ment camp. After the fall of Bataan and Corregidor, Bert
Pettit and I managed to escape to the mountains. We
planned to go on to Mindanao and Australia, but everywhere
it was the same. Filipinos flocked around us.

(SOUND : SOME FILIPINO CROWD IN B.C., BRUSH EFFECTS )
FILIPINO i: You not going to leave us?

PETTIT: Yes, I'm sorry, but Lieutenant Anderson and I have to leave
Luzon.

FILIPINO i: No, no!

ANDY: We'll come back with MacArthur!

FILIPINO H: You stay, please. You tell us what you want us to do.

FILIPINO i: We want to fight the Japans.

PETTIT How about it, Andy?

ANDY: Bert, it looks like maybe we got a job to do here.

PETTIT: Yeah, it looks that way. All right, you guys, but understand
this: There's no pay, no allowance. Any man who joins up
does so for one reason and one reason only love of his
country. (APPROVALS) Okay.

ANDY: You know, Bert, I'm gkd we're staying. I'll be closer to Betty

Lou.

(MUSIC: IN)

ANDY: In three years, not one man backed out on us. It wasn't long

before we had word from General MacArthur:

Multivoice News Shows

213

MACARTHUR: Hit the enemy wherever he can be hit. Destroy his communi-
cation lines, his dumps, harass him so he cannot move with-
out protective strength!

(MUSIC: IN)

ANDY: Our problem was not in finding men. It was sorting the

best out of the endless stream of volunteers. When our funds
ran out, we were overwhelmed by offerings from Filipinos.
They fed and clothed us. At first, I kept in regular touch with
Betty Lou in Santo Tomas camp. And always, I could hear
her say:

BETTY LOU (FILTER) Yes, darling. I'll be here. Ill be waiting for you.

ANDY: Later, I had to stop writing for fear it might mean her life.

Besides, we were always on the move. We now had hundreds
of men and our chief shortage was arms. Two men, then
three, were assigned to every pistol, every rifle, every machine
gun, so that if one man was killed, another could carry on.
Of news from outside, we heard nothing. The guerrillas
would ask me:

FILIPINO i: When are the Americans coming back?

ANDY: I don't know, son. Honestly, I don't know.

FILIPINO n: When the Americans do come back, sir, wfll we be free?

ANDY: That will be up to you Filipinos. The problem now is to kill

Japs.

(MUSIC: IN)

ANDY: Finally, in 1944, we made contact with guerrilla forces on

Mindanao and Samar, and we became part of the United
States Armed Forces in the Far East. Two Filipino radiomen
arrived with full equipment. Supplies and men began to
come in. Our orders were to avoid combat with the Japs
that might endanger the safety of the people. But on January
6, three days before the Lingayen landings, a new order came
through the island radio network:

VOICE: (FILTER) Now is the time for maximum violence against

the enemy.

(SOUND: RUMBLE OF BLAST BUILDING TO)
(MUIC: WIPE)

214

ANDY:

BETTY LOU

(MUSIC:
(SOUND:

COLONEL:

ANDY:

COLONEL:

ANDY:
(SOUND:
VOICE:
COLONEL:

ANDY:

VOICE:

ANDY:

VOICE:

(MUSIC:

VAN:

(MUSIC:

VAN:

News by Radio

For three years, my men had trained for this moment. Bridges
were blown up. Railroads were cut. Jap units were cut off,
annihilated. My job was done. Now I could look forward to
Manila and to Betty Lou:

(FILTER) Yes, darling, 111 be here. I'll be waiting for you.
STING AND OUT)

TRAFFIC IN B. G., JEEP TO HALT, STEPS OUT,
CONTINUING UNDER)

This way, Major.

Three years. I wonder how she'll look. It's been a long time.

Yes, and a horrible time for everybody in the prison. You'd
best be prepared for ....

I understand, Colonel.
DOOR OPEN AND SHUT)
(FADING IN) Yes, Colonel?

This is Major Anderson. (AD LIBS) We're inquiring for a
Miss

Betty Lou Gewald. Tell her Andy's back.
Fin sorry, Major Anderson.
Don't be sorry, fella. Just take me to her,
Miss Gewald died two weeks ago,

IN)

In Manila, Carl Mydans cabled, there are big pennants
welcoming Major Anderson, greatest of guerrillas. As Andy
walks down the streets Filipinos crowd about him, show off
their babies named in his honor. But one welcoming face is
missing, the thought of which sustained him for more than
three years, brought him back to Manila.

Betty Lou is not there.
CURTAIN)

Here tonight at the March of Time's New York microphone
is the first United States Marine to return home from Iwo
Jima. His name: Marine Gunner Paul White. As combat
photographic officer he has participated in D Day landings
on three of the greatest Marine Corps amphibious operations

Multivoice News Shows 215

in the Pacific, and at Iwo Jima, working under Commander
McLain, he was attached to the staff of Task Force Com-
mander Vice Admiral Richmond Kelly Turner and Lieutenant
General Holland M. Smith, tough, able commander of the
Marines' toughest landings. Gunner Paul \\Tiitc!

WHITE: During D Day I spent most of the time in a small rocket-
firing ship very close in shore, to coordinate the work of
several teams of photographers. At dusk of D Day I saw one
of the unforgettable sights of the war. The sun was setting
on the other side of the island from us, which threw every-
thing into sharp black relief. At our left was the volcano
mountain Surabachi, which we knew was honeycombed
with caves filled with Japs and guns. We went in at Iwo Jima
with our eyes open. Every man who hit the beach knew as
much of what to expect as our top commanding officers. We
could see the black shapes of several of our tanks crawling
up the slope of the mountain. In front of each one were the
figures of four or five Marines, and in back of each, perhaps
ten more. While they were advancing, our Navy ships were
firing at the mouths of the caves, hoping to seal them up.
But the Japs kept firing. Then I saw our first tank take a
direct hit and burst into flame. We saw silhouetted figures
hurled into the air by the explosion. Marines around the
tank hit the dirt, then got up and moved ahead.

Then another tank was hit. I saw the silhouette of one man
bend down to pick up a fallen comrade. But he couldn't pick
him up alone. Another Marine came to help him. Then, very
slowly, the three men came down the slope and disappeared
into the darkness. That entire sight, in sharp black relief lit
up only by gun flashes, hit me harder than anything I have
ever seen. On shore for the next nine days the Marines fought
slowly ahead through the toughest fighting they have ever
faced. Iwo Jima is not like other islands we have taken,
where we have been able to secure some territory and hold
it safely after a few days. Iwo Jima is so small that even four
days after D Day, every inch of the part we held was still
under Japanese shell and mortar fire. The mortar fire especially
inflicts horrible wounds. In spite of that, our wounded were
evacuated with wonderful speed, by ambulance jeep from the
fighting lines and by small boats out to the hospital ships. If
civilian nurses could have been with me when I went along-

216

(MUSIC:

VAN:

(MUSIC:

VAN:

News by Radio

side a navy hospital ship, and took a look at the hundreds
of bleeding broken bodies waiting to be lifted aboard, the
Navy wouldn't have to take our precious time and personnel
to do recruiting. In battle when we are not doing our own
jobs we pitch in on anything else we can find. We helped
carry wounded, and I took messages back and forth between
the 'fighting areas and the ships offshore. The worst of that
was having to report the deaths of men who had been my
friends. Compared to all the other shows I've seen, this one
makes the others seem almost like rehearsals.

It is more intense, more explosive. In the eight or nine days
I was there, there wasn't a letup. The whole thing is close-in,
pointblank firing by heavy weapons. On an island only five
miles long by two and a half miles wide, how could it be
anything else? It is like getting caught inside an arsenal that's
blowing up in every direction. On the night of D Day plus
three, we heard a Japanese broadcast ordering the Japs on
Iwo Jima to annihilate ten Marines each before they died.
The score to date is the price of seven dead Japs for every
one dead Marine.

Thank you, Gunner Paul White.
HIT AND FADE)

This week, in Mexico City, the Inter American Conference
is ending. Its prime accomplishment, the Declaration of
Chapultepec, uniting twenty North, Central and South
American republics against aggression from within and from
without. One little noted meaning of this Declaration: It
marks the failure of Fascist Spain under General Francisco
Franco to win Latin American republics to a Spanish Fascist
ideology. And, while Fascism fails in the west, in Europe,
too, General Franco's friends are growing weaker. Spain,
scene of the first military victory for Fascism in Europe, may
soon be the last openly Fascist country in Europe. Therefore
shrewd observers are asking these questions: Which will
come first: peace in Europe or revolution in Spain? And will
the overthrow of Franco really solve Spain's internal prob-
lems?

BRIDGE)

Newest, most comprehensive report on Spain today appears
in the current issue of TIME'S sister magazine FORTUNE,

Multivoice News Shows

217

based on first-hand material gathered by Gabriel Javsicas. Its
title: "Spain Unfinished Business." Its author: Henry Hart.
Mr. Hart.

HART: Spain was the scene of the bloodiest civil war in modern his-

tory. It lasted from 1936 to 1939, cost a million lives, and in-
capacitated a million more, ended in victory for the Fascist
rebels under Franco and a single Fascist political party, the
Falange. Yet Franco is now certain of only one thing, that
the people are waiting to get rid of him. On the surface Spain
appears to have recovered somewhat from her civil war. There
has been some revival of Spanish industry.

VOICE i: Most important cause of that revival: 160 million dollars
poured into Spain by the American and British governments
since 1941.

VOICE n: Its purpose: To buy up wolfram, the ore of tungsten, indis-
pensable in war material, and prevent the Germans from get-
ting it through conquered France.

HART: But the liberation of France last summer ended the Allied

need for buying Spanish wolfram. Thus, Franco has lost his
chief economic support. Now goods are getting scarcer. Prices
are rising continuously. The masses of Spain wait grimly for
the disintegration of the Falange, which has totally controlled
Spain for six years.

VOICE i: There is no freedom of press, religion or public assembly. Four
different kinds of secret police and armed guards spy on the
populace.

VOICE n: All employment depends on the Falange, which supervises or
manages all production and distribution,

VOICE m: The Falange rules by martial lawl
(MUSIC: BRIDGE)

HART: Early in its regime the Falange tried to win the Spanish people

over by a grandiose program of social and economic reform.
[One of its main features the export of Falange ideology to
Spanish-speaking people elsewhere in the world is a failure
in Latin America. The workers, who were promised new rights,
are instead kept in abysmal poverty by rigorous wage ceilings
in the face of fantastically rising prices.] But the ten-year plan
of industrialization is still only a blueprint. For example:

News by Radio

Out of four thousand kilometers of railroad scheduled to be
electrified, only fourteen have been completed.

The new factories envisaged to make synthetic rubber, ni-
trates, gasoline and oil, do not exist.

The proposal to break up the great private estates has resulted
in the resettlement of only six hundred families, at a cost of
more than eighteen thousand dollars per family!

BRIDGE)

The real explanation of Spain's food shortage is the business
activity of the Falange itself, which creates three different
prices on food all black market.

Farmers and land owners are compelled to sell their produce
to government syndicates, at ceiling prices, but actually sell
most on the black market.

The government syndicates in turn sell a great deal of produce
on their own black market.

The Army contributes bread to still a third black market, be-
cause it sells its surplus at illegal prices.

The result is that today the Spanish people get from one-
fourth to one-half the minimum number of calories they
need. As one Spaniard said:

They spilled so much blood to give us this!
BRIDGE)

Private business men are constantly protesting, with amazing
frankness, against the arbitrary acts, regulations and corrup-
tion of Falange officials. For example: in the office of the
transport ministry:

Your new decree is graft! It is our ruin!

But senor, you are free to join the new syndicate.

Hombre! Much good that will do usl Our profits will go to the
syndicate, to our competitors, and to the minister who signed
this decree!

HART: In Spain such talk is a daily occurrence because so few of the

people, even in the Falange itself, really believe in the Franco
regime. One of the current jokes goes like this:

SPANIARD i: Hey, Gonzales, who is the greatest general in Spain today?

218

VOICE i:

VOICE ii:
VOICE in :

(MUSIC:
HAET:

VOICE i:

WICE n:
VOICE in:
HART:

SPANIARD i:

(MUSIC:

HART:

SHIPPER:

SECRETARY:

SHIPPER:

Multi voice News Shows 219

SPANIARD ii: It is not General Franco. It is General Protest.
[(MUSIC: BRIDGE)

[HART: The top army officers have become hostile to the Falange.

And finally, the Church has begun to oppose it. These are the
facts about the Catholic Church in Spain:

[VOICE i: Before the civil war, only ten to fifteen per cent of the popula-
tion were active Catholics.

[VOICE n: During the civil war, the Spanish Church supported Franco,
which alienated many of those who had remained faithful,

[HART: Soon after coming to power, Franco helped the church by

restoring property and schools to the religious orders. But he
has now alienated the church by dissolving Catholic unions
and, through Fascist youth organizations, loosened the hold
of the church over the young.]

(MUSIC: BRIDGE)

HART: The present political situation was summed up for Fortune

Magazine by Franco's hard-boiled, cynical Minister of In-
dustry and Commerce, Demetrio Carceller:

CARCEIXER: The monarchy gave us bad government and took recourse to
dictatorship under Primo de Rivera. Then the Republic was
rotten. We, of course, are no good, either. The fellows who
come after us will be just as bad. Look at the Spaniards in
exile. All of them are agreed only on the obvious: They don't
like us. No one in Spain likes us, either. But no one can agree
on what they want instead of us.

(MUSIC: BRIDGE)

HART: In spite of that cynical estimate all Spanish political leaden

want to avoid another civil war. They want a parliamentary
government free of the use of force. But whoever follows
Franco will have to give land to the peasants in the South, and
develop industry in the North. Until that happens, Spain
will continue to be the most explosive element in Western
Europe.

VAN: Thank you, Henry Hart r for that report on Franco Spaia

VAN: Time Marches On!

(MUSIC: IN)

220 News by Radio

VOICE: Over this same network every afternoon at 4 o'clock Eastern

War Time, listen to TIME VIEWS THE NEWS, another
program prepared by the editors and correspondents of TIME
magazine. And next Thursday evening, at this same time,
listen again to the MARCH OF TIME.

(MUSIC: UP AND DOWN FOR)

(MUSIC: CURTAIN)

o

A second news dramatization script this one broadcast by WCCO-
Minneapolis on March 9, 1947, in the "Northwest News Parade"
seriesmakes some of the same points, and some different ones. Like
the "March of Time/' the "Parade" series went on the air weekly.
Usually it included four episodes, the pattern changing according to
the news. It had two purposes: to "humanize" the news that is, to
present human interest material and to background the news.

The show given here* fulfills both purposes. The first story it tells,
heavy in human interest, also backgrounds a crime story so that the
listener unfamiliar with the situation will thoroughly understand its
curious aspects. The second, aimed primarily at explaining an involved,
difficult-to-understand matter, takes advantage of every opportunity for
human interest development.

Ralph Backlund, one of the script writers of the story of Ruben
Shetsky, has this to say of the script: "The Shetsky story was written
after midnight on Saturday (because the news had just broken) and
was substituted for two other pieces that had been incorporated into
the script earlier. When the cast arrived for rehearsal at 7 A. M. Sunday
(broadcast time was 10:05), they found it all waiting for them but I
got only three hours of sleep that night. That, obviously, is the reason
we so seldom attempt to cover spot news in the 'Parade/ "

Like the "March of Time" script, the original script for the following
dramatization shows a number of deletions (they are not included
here) . The "Parade" is a somewhat simpler script using only organ
music, for instance, rather than orchestra than the "March of Time."
The script:

* By written 'jennission of WCCO, Minneapolis, September 17, 1947.

Multivoice News Shows 221

NARRATOR: It's deadline time again, and here is ....
ANNOUNCER: NORTHWEST NEWS PARADE!

MUSIC: THEME, FULL FOR TEN SECONDS, THEN DOWN
TOBG

ANNOUNCER: Each Sunday morning at this time WCCO brings you the
dramatized story of the top news of the week in the North-
west. Ever}' day the people of the Northwest make news.
You hear those stories each day over your WCCO newscasts.
And each Sunday morning the WCCO NEWS DEPART-
MENT selects the best of those stories, and brings them to
you in living drama ....

ISTMAN: Stories which make the headlines ....
ZND MAN: Stories from the backroads ....

BRD MAN: And the human side of the news .... the little-known, but
fascinating sidelights discovered by WCCO's news reporters.

MUSIC: THEME UP FULL, THEN OUT

ANNOUNCER: And now, to report today's chapter of NORTHWEST
NEWS PARADE, here is Paul Wann.

MUSIC : ESTABLISH DRAMATIC THEME AND DOWN TO BG

NARRATOR: Shortly before noon yesterday, a car pulled up before a modest
house in Sunland, California. The address was 1-0 8-1-9
Woodward Avenue. Two men stepped out of the car, strode
up the sidewalk, and rang the bell ....

SOUND: DOORBELL INSIDE HOUSE. DOOR OPENS

WOMAN: (VERY COMMON SORT) Yes? What do you want?

G-MAN: Is Lou Gimmel here?

WOMAN: Yes ... no ... i don't know. What do you want with

him?

G-MAN: Take a look at this card, lady.

WOMAN: (SHORT YELP) Oh!

G-MAN: That's right F. B. I. Now, call him. We Icnow he's here.

WOMAN: (OBVIOUSLY SHAKEN) 111 ... Ill go get him ....

G-MAN: No you won't. Stay where you are and call him from here.

WOMAN: (PROJECTING) Lou . . . Lou . . . come here a minute.

222 News by Radio

SHETSKY: (FROM INSIDE) What is it?

WOMAN: Come here . . . please.

SHETSKY: (ON MIKE ) Yeah?

G-MAN: Are you Lou Gimmel?

SHETSKY: Yeh, that's me. Whadda ya want?

G-MAN: You are also Ruben Shetsky, aren't you alias Wayne

Saunders?

SHETSKY: Uh ... oh ... all right. I'm Shetsky.

G-MAN: Okay, come along. Your vacation is over, Mr. Shetsky.

MUSIC: UP DRAMATICALLY, THEN OUT

NARRATOR: And so the long-dormant story of Ruben Shetsky suddenly
came to life once again. It is a strange, fantastic story ... a
sordid story. And it had its beginning on the night of July
27th, 1945, in a Minneapolis night club the Casablanca cafe
at 408 Hennepin Avenue.

MUSIC: SNEAK IN. SOMEBODY DOODLING ON PIANO. IF
THIS DOESNT WORK USE JUKE BOX. HOLD IN BG

NARRATOR: It was between two and two-thirty A.M., long after the closing
hour. A few lights were still burning . . . and a group of
people were seated around a table in an alcove, concealed from
the street.

SOUND: STUDIO LAUGHTER AND GABBLE. SOME ARGU-
ING. UP, THEN BACK TO BG

NARRATOR: Among those present was Ruben Shetsky, then known as
Wayne or "Big Waynie" Saunders. Shetsky was part
owner and operator of the Casablanca. His wife, Bernice, was
there. So were two or three other women, including Ruth
Hutchinson and Hilda Castle. So was Tommy Banks, reputed
owner of several Minneapolis night spots. And so were two
brothers Al Schneider, organizer for General Drivers Union
Number 544, and Fred Snyder. Exactly what led up to that
brutal scene at the Casablanca is still a matter of doubt . . .
but there is no doubt whatever about what happened next.
Ruben Shetsky suddenly leaped at Al Schneider, and the two
men started to scuffle.

SOUND: MEN SCUFFLING AND GRUNTING. CHAIRS AND
TABLE OVERTURN. WOMEN SCREAM

SCHNEIDER:

SHETSKY:

WOMAN:

SOUND:

WOMAN:

SHETSKY:

SOUND:

BANKS:

SNYDER:

SHETSKY:

SOUND:

MUSIC:

SOUND:

WOMAN:

POLICE:

WOMAN:

Multivoice News Shows

(GASPING) Listen, Shetsky, I don't care who you are or
where you come from you don't mean anything to me ....
Okay, then ....
SHRIEK

TWO SHOTS. CHAIR FALLS OVER. THREE MORE
SHOTS

ANOTHER SHRIEK

And now, Fred Snyder, I'll get you too ... you ....

QUICK SCUFFLE

Leggo of me ....

If you shoot me, you'll shoot him too ....

Get out of the way, so I can get the rat!

MORE SCUFFLING AND YELLING

UP QUICKLY, THEN DOWN TO BG

CARS PASSING IN STREET

stop, police . . . stop . .

inside. Somebody's shot
. go on in ... (FACE)

(HYSTERICAL) Stop . ,
What's the matter, sister?

There's been a murder . ,
Al Schneider's been shot .
it was a murder ....

POLICE: Hey, wait a minute, come back here!

MUSIC: UP AND OUT

NARRATOR: Ruben Shetsky was apprehended and charged with second de-
gree murder. But before he came to trial, six affidavits were
submitted in his behalf one of them by Shetsky himself. It
attempted to show that the shots had been fired in self-
defense ....

IAWYER: (READING) The defendant was in deathly fear of both of
these men, who were of exceptional strength and brutal force,
with a temperament and desire to cause trouble. Thus he feels
he was fully justified in protecting his life by shooting Schnei-
der ... It was a question of his life and his fear thereof, and
his absolute belief in the fact that he knew he would have
been beaten to a pulp and his bones broken, and killed if he
had not acted in self-defense in the manner in which he
did ....

224 News by Radio

S-ARRATOR: But County Attorney Michael Dillon shortly expressed his
opinion of this fantastic document ....

DILLON: The proper place to try a lawsuit is in the courts and not by
affidavits. It is a laughable matter to hear a man who is over 6
feet tall and who weighs over 220 pounds, and who is armed
with a deadly weapon, say he was afraid of a man not quite so
big, who had no gun or club, nor any defense of any kind
except his fists. It is a cowardly thing to blacken the character
of a man who is dead and unable to speak for himself ....

BARRATOR: And when the trial came up in district court, County Attorney
Dillon said in his opening statement ....

DILLON: We will show you that while every one of the five shots from
first to last was being fired, Schneider was in the corner of an
alcove. He never moved from the time the first shot struck
him. He was hit by a second and a third, and then he lay in
that corner. There was blood in just one spot, and that was in
the corner underneath the body.

BARRATOR: The testimony was long and often contradictory, but one fact
was rather well established just who fired the shots. It was
brought out by Mrs. Ruth Hutchinson, who was one of the
women present at the bloody scene ....

)ILLON: Now, Ruth, as you were standing there, was your attention
called to anything?

itrTH: Yes.

DILLON: By what?

IUTH: A shot.

>ILLON: What did you do then?

IUTH: I turned quickly.

>ILLON: In what direction did you look?

LUTH: South.

>ILLON: What did you see?

KJTH: Mr. Saunders Shetsky, that is and Mr. Schneider were in

a sort of a clinch.

DILLON: As you stood there, how many shots did you see fired?

KJTH: I counted five.

HLLON: How many did you actually see fired?

Multivoice News Shows 225

RUTH: Two.

DILLON: Who fired the shots?
RUTH: Mr. Saundcrs Ruben Shetsky.

MUSIC : UP BRIEFLY AND OUT

NARRATOR: There was another witness who told almost the same story
. . . Miss Hilda Castle, who was also present that night ....

DILLON: What was it, Miss Castle, that attracted your attention?

HILDA: A shot.

DILLON: What did you do then?

HILDA: I turned around. I saw Shetsky standing and firing two

more ....

MUSIC: UP QUICKLY AND OUT

NARRATOR: But on Monday, September 24th, the trial took a sensational
turn. Ruben Shctsky's two lawyers arrived at the courthouse a
half hour early, and went to the office of County Attorney
Dillon. The three of them then hurried into the offices of
District Judge Paul S. Carroll. Police Chief Ed Ryan and
Sheriff Earle Brown were called in. Clearly, something was
up. Just what, was announced by Judge Carroll when he
called in the reporters ....

CARROLL: Gentlemen, the defendant in this case has disappeared. He
has been missing since yesterday morning. I have been told
that he received a telephone call at his apartment . . . and
went out. (FADE) He is said to have been expected back
shortly ....

MUSIC: IN, UP BRIEFLY, AND OUT

NARRATOR: And that was the signal for one of the greatest manhunts
Minnesota has ever seen ....

POLICE: (FILTER) This man, Ruben Shetsky, alias Wayne Saunders,
is wanted by the Minneapolis Police Department. Age 38.
Height 6 feet, 1 inch. Weight 210 pounds. Eyes medi-
um hazel. Hair dark chestnut. (FADE) Complexion
medium dark. Build stout ....

2ND POLICE: (NO FILTER) Every detective on our force has been as-
signed to this case. The uniformed police, also, have been
asked to be on the alert. In addition, the help of St. Paul

226 News by Radio

police, state highway patrol, and sheriffs throughout the state
has been asked ....

NARRATOR: There were immediate reports that Shetsky had been the vic-
tim of foul play. As a matter of fact, that theory was advanced
by his lawyer ....

MCMEEKIN: He was afraid of something. He was not the sort of man who
would walk out on his friends. He appeared before the grand
jury and he appeared for arraignment and for the trial. He has
just disappeared. I think he'll be found in a ditch somewhere.

NARRATOR: But Ruben Shetsky was never found in a ditch. And as time
went by, there were numerous and completely unfounded
reports that he had been seen here ... he had been seen
there ... in a St. Paul telephone booth ... in Minne-
apolis ... in Chicago ... in Milwaukee. And then the
case became unique in the history of Minnesota courts. The
trial was resumed in his absence, and the jury brought in a
verdict ....

SOUND: CROWD NOISES. THUMP OF GAVEL
JUDGE: Gentlemen of the jury, have you arrived at a verdict?

FOREMAN : We have, your honor. We find the defendant, Ruben Shetsky,
guilty of murder in the second degree.

MUSIC: UP DRAMATICALLY AND OUT

NAKRATOR: More than six months later on June 6, 1946 Judge Carroll
pronounced sentence on the still missing Shetsky . . , .

SOUND: GAVEL

CARROLL: The court hereby sentences Ruben Shetsky, in absentia, to
serve the rest of his natural life in the Minnesota state peni-
tentiary at Stillwater ....

MUSIC: UP AND OUT

NARRATOR: Thus Ruben Shetsky became the first man in the history of
Minnesota to be tried, found guilty, and sentenced in ab-
sentia. A kind of raffish legend began to grow around the man;
he was a riddle was he dead, or alive? Today, we have the
answer to that riddle. He is not only alive, but he will be re-
turned to Minneapolis to pay his debt to society. And now, 18
months after his sensational disappearance, the final chapter
in his career is about to be written. It is already being written
by the people who were most deeply involved in the strange

Multivoice News Shows 227

and lurid affair ... by Mrs. Annabelle Schneider, widow
of the man who was so brutally slain on the night of July 27th y

LxTy

This whole thing upsets me very much ... It brings it all
back to me. I'd never like to hear about it again. Still, I'd like
to talk to Shetsky, and find out what really happened ....

It is being written by Slietsky's former attorney, Thomas
McMeekin of St. Paul . . . .

All I can say is that the case is over. He won't need me.

And most of all, it is being written by Henncpin County At-
torney Michael Dillon ....

I am delighted to hear of Shetsky's capture. By absenting him-
self voluntarily, he has waived his rights to further trial, or
even to be present at his sentencing. The mechanics of jailing
him are all that remain to be done ....

DRAMATIC TAKEOUT
ESTABLISH. DOWN TO BG

We Americans have an emotion, bordering almost on rever-
ence, when we hear the word "Constitution." The feeling is
the result of our acceptance of the Constitution of the United
States as the cornerstone of all our rights and privileges, but
that same respect has extended over into our attitude toward
the constitutions of our respective states. For that reason,
many of the people of Minnesota have been disturbed during
recent days by a growing tide of criticism against their own
state constitution.

OUT

(ORATING) And I say it's time we go to work and examine
this horse-and-buggy constitution of ours. Gentlemen, we're
using exactly the same document to govern us that we did
ninety years ago. The struggling settlements of this great state
were connected by ox-carts in those days. The oxen have been
gone for generations, but we're still trying to get along with
an ox-drawn constitution ....

NARRATOR: After hearing such statements, the people of the state are
gradually becoming aware that a state constitution has noth-
ing of the sacred quality of the document which governs our
nation. They've been surprised to learn that many states have

ANNABELLE:

NARRATOR:

MCMEEKIN:
NARRATOR:

DILLON:

MUSIC:
MUSIC:

NARRATOR:

MUSIC:

MAN:

228 News by Radio

had half a dozen or more different constitutions. And now
they're beginning to wonder about the document that governs
Minnesota, and why there is a growing demand for a new one.

MUSIC: SNEAK UNDER AND HOLD TO BG

KARRATOR: Before we talk about the shortcomings of the Minnesota con-
stitution, let's move back in history to the year 1856. A cluster
of small villages had grown up on the St. Croix River and on
the Mississippi across from Wisconsin. Everything else was
unbroken prairie or forest belonging to the Indians. A terri-
torial legislature sat in St. Paul and argued about state-
hood ....

MUSIC: OUT

DELEGATE i: Mister Speaker, I say it's time we think of taking our place
among the great sisterhood of states. Think of the glorious
prestige. But even more, think of the other advantages. A new
state gets large grants of federal land. A state can borrow
money. A state ....

DELEGATE ii : And let me add that a state has to pay taxes. Why, our taxes
are so light now we hardly think about them. Why not let well
enough alone?

NARRATOR: And in the National Congress at Washington, there were also
a good many who had no special desire tp see Minnesota be-
come a state, especially so the Senators from the South.
Senator John B. Thompson of Kentucky was talking in the
Senate ....

THOMPSON: ... I am opposed to the admission of new states. I regret
that Wisconsin and Iowa were ever admitted. For my part, I
would rule the people of a territory as Great Britain rales
Afghanistan, Hindustan and the Punjab, making them work
for you as you would work a Negro on a cotton or sugar plan-
tation. Territories should be governed by proconsuls, and
should be made to know their place. I don't want Slavs, Ger-
mans and Swiss to swarm up in these northern latitudes and
eventually come down upon the South. (FADE) I am not de-
sirous of seeing Senators from a new state, arrogant, presum-
ing, Free-Soilish ....

WARRATOR: But Congress, nevertheless, passed an enabling act, and
Minnesota got ready to draw up a constitution as its blueprint
for statehood. It was an unfortunate time to demand any ac-
tion requiring sober judgment and cooperation. Democrats

Multivoice News Shows

229

hated the new upstart Republican party with a bitter con-
tempt . . . and the Republicans responded in the same man-
ner. The issue was largely the burning slavery question, and
the newspapers of both sides rose to new heights of invec-
tive ....

MAN: The burning issue, as I see it, is between White Supremacy

and Negro Equality. The Black Republicans are desirous of
upsetting the laws of God and Nature. They wish to see the
Negro in the jury box, on the witness stand, and even and I
shudder to write this to see their daughters married to
Negroes.

ZND MAN: The Democratic party represents the very dregs of all that is
unholy. They are dough-faces and boot-licks; they are all that
is looked down upon by us Republicans who represent the
rights of man and the nobleness of human nature.

NARRATOR: These, then, were the two parties who were to take over the
important job of writing a constitution for a new state. When
the people of the territory elected their delegates to the con-
stitutional convention, both sides claimed the victory. There
were men from both parties who were elected by fair majori-
ties. But in between was a large group of duplicate delegates,
each claiming victory in his own district. And everyone of
them came to St. Paul. On the July day set for the convening
of the assembly, the Republicans were on hand early in the
Capitol building, and sat apprehensively around ....

SOUND: STUDIO NOISES

MAN: Wonder when the Democrats arc going to show up?

ZND MAN: Don't know, but I don't trust them. But I think we're all set
for anything they might try. Right at noon John North is go-
ing to call the convention to order. If the Democrats aren't
here by noon, that's just their misfortune.

MAN: Suppose they come early and try something,

2ND MAN: Then North will call the convention to order right away.
(FADE) Don't worry we have everything planned out

NARRATOR: And outside in the corridor the Democrats quietly collected.
SOUND: SUBDUED STUDIO NOISES

DEMOCRAT: (SOTTO VOCE) Now, you all know how this is going to
be handled. The minute we open the doors we all rush in.
Then Charlie Chase here takes over. You all set, Charlie?

230 News by Radio

CHASE: All ready. I'll rush right up front, and call the meeting to

order. Well be in charge before they know what's happened.

DEMOCRAT: And if they make any attempt to interfere, we'll adjourn the
meeting right away. That still gives us control. All ready?
Now, open the doors and let's go!

SOUND : GENERAL PANDEMONIUM. DOOR OPENING, FEET
TRAMPING, AD LIB SHOUTS, ETC. GAVEL RAPPING

CHASE: (PROJECTING) The meeting is now called to order.

NORTH: Hey, just a minute. I'm in charge.
SOUND: GAVEL

NORTH: I am calling this meeting to order. Will the delegates please
take their seats.

MAN: I move that the meeting be adjourned.

CHASE: (RAPIDLY) It has been moved that we adjourn. All in favor

signify by the usual method.

CAST: SCATTERING OF "AYES" AND "NOES"

CHASE: The "ayes" have it. I now declare this meeting adjourned un-

til noon tomorrow. That's all.

SOUND : GAVEL. ALL SOUND OUT

NARRATOR: The historians are still arguing over that incident. But the
Democrats were gone as suddenly as they had erupted into the
meeting. The Republicans stayed on, and went about the busi-
ness of organization. The Democrats took over another hall,
and proceeded to hold their own convention. And so instead
of one, there were two separate constitutional conventions in
the territory. Each one went about its business as though the
other had never existed. And some of the matters debated
sound strange to the people of the present state of Minnesota.
For instance, there was a strong move to make the northern
boundary of the new state a line running west through what is
now the city of Little Falls, with the western boundary at
the Missouri River.

MAN: (PROJECTING) . . . And let me say, gentlemen, the.

simplest kind of intelligence calls for the east-west boundary.
Such a line would give this state the rich prairie lands lying
between the Mississippi and the Missouri in the Far West.
Common sense dictates that we forget about the northern part
of this territory. After all, what does it consist of? An eternal

Multivoice News Shows

231

NARRATOR:

wilderness, dark and impenetrable, which will never be in-
habited by anyone save hunters, trappers, traders and Indians
(FADE) from whom we would never collect a penny in
taxes ....

That argument sounds strange to us these days, when \ve con-
template the wealth of the northern part of the state which
many of these constitution makers wanted to throw away.
Today it includes the wealthy Mesabi iron range, the fertile
farm lands of the Red River Valley, and the lumber and recre-
ation facilities of the pine woods. It includes such thriving
cities and villages as Duluth, Cloquet, Hibbing, Bcmidji, and
Crookston. Needless to say, that move failed. But as the two
conventions continued, an uneasy feeling grew up on each
side ....

We're getting to be the laughing stock of the whole nation.
Maybe we should get both sides together.

But wouldn't that look as though we were giving up the fight?

Somebody has got to compromise. Otherwise we'll never get
anything done. I say we should appoint a committee. (FADE)
Otherwise we never will be a state ....

There were too many hot-headed younger men on both sides
to prevent the two conventions from meeting together. But
each one appointed a committee, and so the two groups got
together. The meeting got along better than one might have
expected, if you disregard such minor incidents as the time a
Democratic delegate broke his cane over the head of a Re-
publican. But they managed to compromise, and the constitu-
tion was drawn up. Two copies were made. One was ratified
by the Republican convention; the other by the Democrats.
And that fact has given the historians something else to argue
about.

PROFESSOR: My studies have convinced me that the Congress of the
United States received and approved the copy signed by the
Democrats. However, there is a fair body of proof which indi-
cates that it was the Republican version which was sent to
Washington. (FADE) May I quote Peabody, Volume Two,
Pages 9 8 and 99, in which he has this to say ....

The constitution was accepted in Washington, and Minne-
sota became a state. But is there any wonder that a document
drawn up in such a fashion should be full of weaknesses? The

MAN:

2ND MAN:

MAN:

NARRATOR:

NARRATOR:

one section.

Listen carefully right here.

232 News by Radio

wonder is that it has lasted for ninety years. And what do the
experts say about the constitution?

WOMAN: Pardon me, but may I be accepted as something of an expert?
After all, I did my graduate work on the Minnesota constitu-
tion, and wrote a thesis about it. I don't think you could find
a better example of the weaknesses of the constitution than by
turning to Section Ten of Article Nine. Why, there's a whole
(OVERLAP) tragedy tied up in that READER: Section ten: The credit

of the state shall never be given
or loaned in aid of any individ-
ual, association or corporation,
except as hereinafter provided.
Nor shall there be any further
issue of bonds denominated
"Minnesota State Railroad
Bonds" under what purports
to be an amendment to Sec-
tion Ten of Article Nine of the
Constitution which is hereby
expunged from the Constitu-
tion (FADE DOWN) saving,
excepting and reserving to the
state, nevertheless, all rights,
remedies and forfeitures accru-
ing under said amendment.

Maybe you can sense the
hard feeling in that talk
about what purports to be
an amendment. That all
goes back to 1858, when
there were a bunch of fly-

by-night companies that
promised to build railroads in Minnesota. The constitution
forbade state loans to such companies, so it was amended.
And, of course, the railroads went broke and the people lost
their shirts. That section you just heard is a tombstone on a
dream that died and, incidentally, cost the people of Minne-
sota several million dollars. Why, if you want to look up the
whole history of that episode, you'll find the reason why
Minnesota came to be called the Gopher State.

NARRATOR: That sounds like a good story. How about telling it to us ....

WOMAN: I'm sorry, but I didn't put that in my thesis. But if you're
really interested, I suggest you go to Folwell's History of
Minnesota. (FADE) You'll find it in Volume Two, Pages
45 through 49 ....

NARRATOR: We can't forget that the Minnesota constitution changed
through the years with all sorts of amendments. Some of them

IJultivoice News Shows

233

plugged up loopholes in the original constitution. Others just
grew up to reflect the particular prejudices of the moment.
By now it resembles a pair of work overalls, so thoroughly
patched that there is very little of the original fabric visible.
And what still remains is often disregarded. Ask any member
of the state legislature ....

LEGISLATOR: I could give you a hundred examples. But just take, for in-
stance, that bit about requiring that half the state Senators
should be elected in alternate years. We've just ignored that
in Minnesota. And in the legislature itself there's a consti-
tutional provision that every bill should have three readings.
We just forget about that over in the state Capitol. It just
doesn't work out.

NARRATOR: But the greatest complaint is against the difficulty 7 of amend-
ing the constitution. It takes a majority of all the people voting
at an election to make a change, and most Minnesotans who
go to the polls refuse to vote either way on an amendment.
They just leave that square blank on their ballots, and so, by
not even voting, they kill it.

MUSIC: SNEAK UNDER

NARRATOR: But this is the point where the people of the state take over.
If they have any interest in their own government, they'll ac-
quaint themselves with the issues. There's a movement in
the state legislature to draw up an entirely new constitution
and submit it to the people. If that fails, there's another
campaign to make it easier to amend the document. We on
NORTHWEST NEWS PARADE are taking no sides. But
we do insist that it's the duty of the people of Minnesota to
find out the issues at stake. Remember, without an en-
lightened public, there can be no democracy.

MUSIC : FULL AND OUT

MUSIC: THEME. FULL, THEN DOWN TO BG

NARRATOR: And so we end today's chapter of NORTHWEST NEWS
PARADE, but already the Northwest is making the news
stories you'll hear next week at deadline time on NORTH-
WEST NEWS PARADE. Be with us, then, as we open
another chapter in the news of this great part of the United
States.

MUSIC: UP FULL. THEN DOWN TO BG AGAIN

234 News by Radio

ANNOTHS-CER: NORTHWEST NEWS PARADE is a. regular weekly presen-

(Optional tation of Station WCCO. It brings you the drama behind the

if needed/ week's news events in the Northwest. Listen to your daily

WCCO news broadcasts for the news as it occurs, but be sure

to turn to NORTHWEST NEWS PARADE for the story

behind the news.

MUSIC: UP FULL. THEN DOWN TO BG AGAIN

BARRATOR: NORTHWEST NEWS PARADE was written and pro-
duced in the WCCO Department of News and Special
Events. Writers were Ralph Andrist and Ralph Backlund of
the news staff, with Bob Sutton directing today's chapter.

MUSIC: FULL AND CONTINUE TO END

8

Radio's Local News Service

Late in 1945, Illinois radio newsmen met at Springfield in a "radio
news clinic" to discuss common problems. The clinic was the first of
a series sponsored by the NAB News Committee; in the next eighteen
months others met in some twenty other states. The program for each
was arranged by a committee of station news editors from the region
the meeting served. At each, one topic stole the show:

Local news: What are we doing with it? What can we do with it?

This was a surprise only to the benighted station operators for whom
news had been no more than easy and inexpensive canned program-
ming to fill spots between recorded shows. Everybody in the radio
business who had given serious thought to radio's news service, either
as programming in the public interest or as a highly salable commodity,
had been predicting since before V-E Day that local news was destined
to increase vastly in importance to the radio newsroom.

This prediction was coupled with a fear that, the war over and the
flow of vital and dramatic news from abroad dwindling, listener-
interest in news would go back to prewar levels. The fear turned out
to be unjustified. Six months after the war ended, a CAB report showed
that seventeen commercial network news programs had dropped less
than one percentage point in average listener rating (eight of the
shows increased their rating; two held it constant; seven declined).
Two years after V-J Day (July 30, 1947), Radio Daily reported that a
survey of 636 program directors' opinions showed news second only
to music, "the perennial favorite," in audience pulling power. "This
vote," said Frank Burke, editor of Radio Daily, "refutes the claim in
some agency circles that interest in news broadcasts is falling off and
that the quality of news programs fails to sustain interest among
listeners." As further evidence, he pointed out that 398 of the 636
program directors expressed belief that news programs held as much
audience interest as they had during the wartime period.

235

236 News by Radio

The prediction that local news offerings must increase had come
from many quarters, and in many forms. Ralph W. Hardy of KSL-
Salt Lake City, speaking before an NAB district meeting in February,
1945, had said, "Instead of trying to 'outnetwork' the networks, it
would be wiser to augment the network services with features conceived
and handled throughout from a local point of view and thus do a job
the networks are not in a position to do." And a month later the NAB
News Committee spoke more specifically. The closing paragraph of
its lengthy set of recommendations for handling radio news said:

From the standpoint of local news reporting, it is recommended that sta-
tions study the possibility of their coverage in this field. Undoubtedly local
material will form an ever-increasing part of news broadcasts after the war.
Opportunities for added public service are manifold in this phase of news
reporting.

Some newsmen had for years been cultivating and reaping from
the rich local field. In 1930 KMPC-Beverly Hills had put ten reporters
on the Los Angeles news runs. WFOY-St. Augustine started including
local stories in newscasts in the early 1930's. WMBD-Peoria had offered
ten minutes of local women's news daily since 1932. KYSM-Mankato,
Minn., like a number of other stations in vigorous competition with
local newspapers, had had local and regional coverage, with its own
news staff, since 1937. Scores of stations though certainly not a
majority had devoted some attention to local news.

Such stations had a generous lead over others when, with the end
of the war, there came the inevitable re-evaluation of radio news serv-
ice. The news clinics, enthusiastically supported by the radio stations
(and credited by the radio editor of Editor & Publisher with contrib-
uting "to the general improvement of radio news which nearly every-
body in the business recognizes"), were an evidence of the general
interest in such re-examination. Another was the rash of pieces in print
on successful local news operations; another the appearance of the
National Association of Radio News Directors, led by John F. Hogan,

The first periodical solely for radio newsmen made its appearance just
after the war. It was the Newscaster, a four-page monthly published by INS
for free circulation "in the interest of radio men handling the news." In-
evitably, its first few issues devoted a good deal of space to the selection of
a Miss Radio News of 1946! Most of its material consisted of news of radio
news personnel and of brief discussions of local radio news problems.

Radio's Local News Service 237

news editor of WCSH-Portland, Maine, and of a number of city,
state, and regional associations. In May of 1946, the Institute for
Education by Radio at Columbus, Ohio, offered two well-attended
panels for discussion of radio news problems under the leadership of
members of the Council on Radio Journalism; one was devoted
entirely to local news handling, the other to radio news copy.

That news editors' re-evaluation of their craft was not confined to
local news alone was suggested by Jack Shelley in the Ne\v$caster
(November, 1945). Shelley, director of the excellent newsroom at
WHO-Des Moines, said in part:

The people who are going to get hurt most in this transition period arc
those who abused the "get-rich-quick" possibilities of the war boom in radio
news.

They're the people who sold every newscast they could cram into the
schedule, because any sponsor would buy news.

They're the people who filled their shows with nothing but war news,
because it was so easy to use up ten or fifteen minutes with a couple of nice
long round-ups off the wire.

They will find the adjustment to peacetime newscasts the hardest of all;
but for all of us the signal is to swing more and more emphasis to regional
and local coverage, plus good features.

There is, for example, no law which requires newscasts invariably to begin
with overseas or Washington news. When you've got a good state or even
local story, don't be afraid to lead with it.

Most of all, we are going to have to become reporters again. Now is the
time to cover your police court and statchouse with your own men, if youVe
never done it before. With wire or film recorders, there are dozens of state
and local stories which can be covered with on-the-spot material you didn't
have room for during the war days.

In other words, Shelley urged that radio newsmen should think in
terms not alone of finding substitute material for war news, but also
of avoidance of stereotyped patterns; that they should provide news not
only because of its salability, but because of its public service values.

Another shot in the arm came when the FCC, in March, 1946, made

In its December 2, 1946, number, Broadcasting Magazine published re-
sults of its second annual Broadcasting Trends survey. Among the findings:
Seventy-six per cent of American stations broadcast more local news in 1946

than in previous years.

Forty-one per cent either were broadcasting or planned to broadcast more
news shows than formerly.

238 News by Radio

public its "Blue Book" called "Public Service Responsibility of Broad-
cast Licensees." Much of the report (reputedly written by the same
Charles A. Siepmann who criticized broadcasting severely in his Radio's
Second Chance) was devoted to the Commission's insistence that
the extent of a station's "live" local programs was an important factor
in FCC evaluation of the station's service, and that local news pro-
grams would receive high rating among local offerings. Though the
report rested on a firm base the provision of the Federal Communica-
tions Act that the FCC would be responsible for holding stations to
operation in the public interest it was received with anguished howls

The FCC Blue Book in its original form (dated March 7) defined as a
wire program (hence not a local live program) "any program the text of
which is distributed to a number of stations by telegraph, teletype, or similar
means, and read in whole or in part by a local announcer. Programs dis-
tributed by the wire news services are wire programs. A news program which
is part wire and in part of local non-syndicated origin is classified as wire if
more than half of the program is usually devoted to the reading verbatim of
the syndicated wire text, but is classified as live if more than half is usually
devoted to local news or comment."

Robert W. Brown, executive news editor of INS, protested to the FCC
that "it is arbitrary to force the licensee to devote more than half of all news
programs to local news to obtain a local live rather than wire program
classification/' and that a licensee using a full news service, with editors
selecting news of interest to the area, is in reality performing a local live
function. Radio news editors were widely in agreement that arbitrary de-
mand that more than 50 per cent of a news show be local was unreasonable
and unrealistic (though the FCC language was indefinite enough so that
nobody was entirely sure just what it meant) . But they also pointed out
that the INS request for clarification might result in an interpretation favor-
able to INS over other news services. If the FCC should rule that a news
program rewritten in a station newsroom from a news service wire is a local
live program, they said, it would mean that stations using the INS wire
would be in safer position than those using AP, UP, or TP radio wires and
not rewriting them.

The FCC responded to INS that its language had been misconstrued and
misunderstood, but asked that INS suggest changed wording. Early in July
the FCC issued revised definitions; that of the wire program was altered
only by the insertion of the words "or virtually verbatim" after the word
"verbatim" in the last sentence.

On August 1 Brown asked for further clarification; on August 30 the

(continued on next page)

Radio's Local News Service 239

of "censorship! government control!" by a large portion of the broad-
casting industry. Anguished or not, however, the industry was im-
pressed; and one evidence was the fact that the rate of establishment
of newsrooms in radio stations a rate that had already spurted since
the beginning of the year was further stepped up.

FCC made response.. "It is not required," said the FCC letter, "that fifty
per cent or more of a news program usually be devoted to 'purely local
items' in order for such a program to be classified as local live. A news pro-
gram based upon material received by wire, but more than half of which is
very substantially edited and rewritten by a station staff member or by a
writer employed by a sponsor and announced in its edited or rewritten
form should not be classified as a wire program because of its being based
upon material received by wire.

"The important factor in this regard is the treatment given locally to the
news rather than its origin. For example, a program consisting of a verbatim
reading by a station in New Yorlc of a wire news text about New York
affairs would still be wire. On the other hand, a program of national and
international news based entirely upon material furnished by the wire news
services would be classified local live if more than half of it consists of ma-
terial which has been very substantially edited and rewritten as indicated
above."

This definition has been accepted by INS and by the radio newsrooms
of the country. But it still leaves questions. What, precisely, is meant by
"very substantially edited and rewritten"? Is it enough merely to clip 200
lines of copy from a printer, arrange them in some kind of order, and put.
them on the air? Is this "substantial"? If it isn't, the 25 per cent of 26,000
news scripts examined by Charter Heslep in the Office of Censorship during
the war that, in Heslep's words, "hadn't had a pencil touched to them/'
would not qualify as local live. If it isn't, the relatively large number of sta-
tions that depend heavily or wholly on radio wires for their news shows, and
that don't have genuine news editors to "edit and rewrite" them, must
mend their ways if they wish to get local live credit. On the other hand, the
stations with only newspaper wires, presumably facing a rewrite job in
order to turn newspaper copy into radio style, would be in better position.

Those who believe that the public can best be served only by a writing
newsroom would say that the definition, so interpreted, is desirable. Cer-
tainly it builds a fire under stations slow to establish their own newsrooms.
But it also handicaps the small station that cannot afford a newsroom elab-
orate enough to do a thorough editing and writing job; and by the same
token it favors the larger station which is already in better position than the
little fellows to build up its hours of local live shows.

240 News by Radio

The FCCTs interest in local news in station programming was under-
scored in April, 1946, when it favored for a license in Orangeburg, S. C.,
the one of two applicants that showed both the intent and the facilities
to place heavy emphasis on local news service. Of this situation the
FCC said:

We believe that an essential function of a radio station's operations in
the public interest should contemplate the gathering and broadcasting not
only of national and state news received over one of the regular news wire
services but also the gathering and broadcast of local news on a regularly
scheduled news program. On the record, Edisto Broadcasting Company
seems unwilling to assume that function. We do not believe that the busi-
ness of dissemination of local news should be left solely to the local news-
paper as proposed by Edisto, and we do not believe that the discharge of
this function would prove unduly onerous to the owners of a radio station
operating in Orangeburg.

Another stimulus to local news on the air came in the 1945-47 period
from a series of newspaper strikes. When delivery services of most
New York newspapers were tied up in mid-1945, radio stations in the
area were bombarded by requests for news time (and for advertising
time, by such advertisers as the movie houses). WABC canceled two
regular shows to present news round-ups from the New York papers.
WLIB, affiliated with the Post, broadcast three half-hour news shows
for the duration. WJZ and WNEW doubled their news coverage.
The Times station, WQXR, put on three emergency shows each
morning. WEAF increased the percentage of local news in its regular
shows. The World-Telegram and the Journal- American bought time
for news offerings. WHOM mimeographed copies of AP reports and
distributed them to hotels and restaurants. And Mayor LaGuardia
acted out the adventures of Dick Tracy over WNYQ the municipal
station.

KGVO-Missoula, Montana, found itself in a situation like WPAY's in
October, when the Missoula papers suspended. But it took a different tack
in meeting it. Analyzing its daily news output network as well as local
KGVO discovered that it had 35,000 words of news on the air each week-
day. This, it figured, was the equivalent of a sixteen-page paper. On this
basis KGVO decided not to increase its news service. The analogy is not,
however, entirely fair, since much news is repeated in a radio station's day.

Radio's Local News Service 241

In Portsmouth, Ohio, WPAY faced a similar situation. Pressmen
on the local Times struck in November, 1945, and stayed out seven
weeks. WPAY, a 250-watt station, serves almost precisely the same
area as does the Times. The station at once arranged with the paper
a cooperative news service. Four local news shows a day were provided
by the paper's reporters; the paper's columnists and comics were read
into WPAY mikes. In seven weeks WPAY became so convinced of
the value of local news that it developed a local news-gathering staff,
and after the Times resumed publication it continued a heavy and
expanding program of local news.

That local audiences respond to local broadcasts was demonstrated
in a survey of news listening in early 1948 conducted by the Bradley
University Department of Journalism at Peoria, Illinois. Peoria audi-
ences expressed a preference of more than three-to-one for a local
newscaster, Brooks Watson of WMBD, over H. V. Kaltenborn and
Edward R. Murrow, the next two on the list; and Kaltenborn and
Murrow were only a shade ahead of two other local newscasters.

What Is "Local" Radio News?

To the newspaper man the term * local news" means just that: news
of the area served in concentration by his paper, news of the town ox
city or county; news of city government, schools, sports, clubs, business,
"society." In some newspaper shops with regional or state circulation,
the term acquires a wider geographical meaning, but the news it
describes changes little in kind.

To the radio newsman, it means many of these things but with a
number of differences.

A prime difference is that of the medium's coverage. Whatever a
station's power, whatever its promotion literature describes as its
primary area, its coverage is subject to considerable fluctuation. Atmos-
pheric conditions, season of the year, time of day all change the extent
and power of its signal. Moreover, the extent of both primary and
secondary areas is likely to be greater than that of the newspaper. The
importance of this factor is greater for the clear channel station than
for the local channel; Class I (50,000 watts) stations have listeners
spread over tens of thousands of square miles. The man in Baton Rouge,

242 News by Radio

La., is little interested in the doings of the Knights of Pythias over in
Shreveport; KWKH-Shreveport, with a primary area of forty-seven
counties, can give little attention to what the Knights are doing. But
KRMD-Shreveport, with 250 watts, covers a far smaller area, and can
count on interest among a high proportion of its listeners in the inti-
mate activities of Shreveport citizens.

A second difference is that of "space." This factor the fact that
newspaper stories can be, and usually are, longer than radio stories-
has already been examined in this book. It is one that the local radio
reporter must keep foremost in mind.

Also explored is the fact that radio news is informal in manner, that
it can take advantage of color and human interest in news more
effectively than can the printed word. This factor will be developed
further in this chapter,

In brief, then: Local news for radio is the briefly and sharply told
story of local events of fairly general interest to listeners within a
station's primary area. For some stations, those with state or wide-area
coverage, "regional" is a better adjective than "local"; but the term
"local" is loosely used in this special meaning by radio newsmen, and
it is so used here.

How Does Radio Cover Local News ?

Nobody in radio or out of it has developed a method of news-
coverage superior to that of the newspapers: The use of reporters
who cover major news sources regularly, and special occurrences fires,
accidents, conventions as they come up. Radio has followed the
essential pattern.

But with a number of significant departures.

A good many of the differences have been suggested or described,
some at length, in this book. But it is worth while here to re-examine
some of them in the light of the coverage problem.

Primarily, it must be remembered that radio unlike the newspaper-
is not fundamentally a news medium. The newsroom is the heart of
the newspaper. News is the prime "programming" it has to offer. But
ie radio newsroom is only one of tie sources of radio programming,
rhe radio day emphasizes a variety of audience-attractions different

Radio's Local News Service 243

from those of the newspaper; and r since a radio day normally includes
more "editions" than does that of the largest newspaper, it demands
more repetition of news and briefer development of most stories.

The effect of its shorter stories on radio's news coverage is, in a sense,
to make it sketchier than that of the newspaper. The radio reporter,
therefore, has to guard against interpreting brevity in terms of super-
ficiality. He must know as much about the news he is covering as does
his newspaper competitor; but he must be more selective in his fact-
gathering, or he'll waste a lot of precious time in collecting material
he can't possibly get on the air. For the newspaper man turning to
radio, this means an adjustment of sights. His need for speed and
accuracy remains; but he must learn to discard almost by instinct the
nonessentials that he might weave into the later paragraphs of a news-
paper story perhaps twice as long.

Partly because of this, the radio newsroom can usually do its job with
a comparatively small staff. "Typical" staffs and their duties have been
described in Chapter 4. Each situation has its own controlling factors-
competition, management's attitude to the news function, area cover-
age, and so on and no two are exactly alike. A 5,000-watt independent
station with a relatively wide primary area, in a Rocky Mountain state
where press service regional coverage is not complete, with a strong
signal and with vigorous newspaper competition an entirely hypo-
thetical example may well decide that it needs two news services
and a six- or eight-man round-the-clock newsroom staff, augmented
by correspondents. A clear channel station, on the other hand, may
decide to let its network and a two-man force carry the load (though
most radio newsmen would call it lunatic if it did) .

Radio has not yet come forward with the station devoted to newscasting
alone. Such a station may one day be projected. One can dream up a station,
say, with contracts with two or more networks so as to have the advantage
of big network names, and with a daily schedule made up entirely of straight
news shows, commentaries, interviews, news dramatizations, specialized
news of agriculture, sports, business, women's affairs, "cultural" matters and
the like and local news. What kind of audience such a station might build
is a matter for speculation. One thing is certain: Its newsroom would be like
none described in this book. And its reportorial operations would be far
more extensive than anything here contemplated.

244 News by Radio

Best thinking in recent years is (as NAB has recommended) that,
since news is of vital program importance, every station must have at
least one competent, well-trained newsman to direct news operations.
At a radio news conference in mid-1946, when one editor after another
was detailing his station's experiences and practices, a representative
of a Class IV station in a small city finally complained woefully that
he did not see "how a 250-watter could afford a real news operation."
His answer came from "Curly" Vadeboncoeur of WSYR-Syracuse,
then chairman of the NAB News Committee.

"No station, no matter what its situation, can afford not to put in
a news operation," Vadeboncoeur said. "From every point of view-
all the way from the dollar angle to the public service problem a com-
petent newsroom is the soundest kind of investment."

The specific use a station makes of whatever news staff it maintains
also depends on its special circumstances. Essential is the production
of the copy in time for the ever-present deadlines, whether by type-
writer or scissors-and-glue. The gathering of local news is worked out
by the individual staff to fit its broadcast schedule some of it by the
standard legman technique of the newspaper, a great deal of it by
telephone. Many radio newsmen with newspaper background find
themselves making far more use of the telephone than they did as
newspaper reporters, because of their more frequent "editions" and
because they almost always can gather satisfactorily by 'phone the
highlight material they need.

What About Recording Devices?

A brand new tool, the recording device, has become standard equip-
ment in the enterprising radio newsroom, 250-watter or clear channel.
Before the war radio had only the record-cutting machine, a clumsy
and cumbersome instrument at best, for this purpose. The war saw
development of portable magnetic-wire and magnetic-tape recorders
(captured German tape recorders lent much to American development
of this kind of machine) . In the postwar years a number of these
machines have become available; many newsrooms are finding tape
recorders most useful because of the ease with which they can be
"edited." It is certain that their efficiency and ease of use will increase

Radio's Local News Service 245

in the hands of electronic technologists.

By the use of one or another of these machines, a newsroom man
or crew can go to the mayor and get his own words, in his own voice,
on the current city tax situation; or to a council meeting and record
a hot debate; or to a fire and let witnesses, firemen, and those who
inevitably fled into the icy night in scanty clothing describe the event;
or to a speech and record it all; or to the gaffer who is celebrating his
hundredth birthday anniversary and let him cackle his recipe for
longevity into the mike. The recording can then be turned over to the
newsroom, edited and cut to fit a newscast's pattern, and put on the
air. (Such editing, as has been said, is easiest with the tape recorder
because of the speed and accuracy with which the desired excerpts can
be cut and spliced.)

One of the pioneers in use of the recorder on local news is William
Ray, who holds the dual role of director of news and special events
for the NBC Central Division in Chicago and news director of NBC's
Chicago outlet, WMAQ. Ray's station uses the recorder not only to
gather spots for insertion in regular news shows, but also for a daily
ten-minute all-recorded local show, "News on the Spot." Ray, enthusi-
astic about the device, points out:

"The recorder lets radio take the listener where the news is. It has
the vigor, realism and color of on-the-spot broadcasting, plus the
advantage gained by careful editing, plus the important factor of
being able to broadcast events not alone when they occur (as in
genuine on-the-spot broadcasts) but at regular stated times, when
listeners are in the habit of tuning in."

So WMAQ uses recorders all day long, and spices many news shows
with their offerings. So do many other stations. But not all stations
go all the way with Ray. George Lewin, former newsroom manager
of KMPC-Los Angeles, had this to say:

We use our wire recorders to cover all local stories of special interest. We
find that it is better to have a 2- or 3-minute insert in a regular show than to
devote a 15-minute period to any one story unless it be of transcendent
interest.

Occasionally, however, we take a full period for one story. When Douglas
and the Navy unwrapped the new turbo-jet supersonic plane, we did a 15-

246 News by Radio

minute wire-recorded show at the scene, using description and interviews.
We put it on the air that afternoon in a sustaining period.

Our wire recorder goes to the state capitol periodically. We record inter-
views with the governor, other officials, and leading lawmakers on topics
in the news, plus any good features kicking around. These are used in the
10 p. m. "Voices in the News" and on Clete Roberts' news commentary
at9-15p.m.

Though the recorder broadens the base and scope of newsroom
operations, its merits are subject to warm debate among radio news-
men. Most acknowledge readily that it is a valuable tool; but some
say it should be used more sparingly than its more ardent partisans
advise. Among the criticisms leveled at it:

1 The recorder is too often used "for its own sake" for no profit be-
yond the unmeasured promotional advantage of boasting the recorded ma-
terial in the show. One news editor who makes this criticism says that often
the recorded quotation is less effective, and harder to knit into the show,
than would be a quotation written into the body of the story.

2 The recorder sometimes closes the lips of news sources. Public figures
who talk willingly to reporters often become close-mouthed when the re-
corder's mike is thrust before them. Herbert Hoover, holding a news confer-
ence for press and radio following his return from his postwar worldwide
famine inspection tour, read a prepared statement to newsmen, but refused
to permit its recording (on the ground that he was to make a full radio re-
port a week later) . General Omar Bradley talked freely to reporters on
veterans' affairs, but denied KYA-San Francisco the right to put his state-
ments on records. And many lesser figures get mike fright.

It has been cynically suggested that public figures who talk willingly to
reporters but shy from recorders do so because they can always say of broad-
cast statements merely attributed to them that "I was misquoted," but that
they cannot deny their own voices.

3 The necessity of editing recorded statements and tying them nicely
into newscasts adds to the labor, time, and difficulty of producing news
shows.

4 Some of the statements made on unrehearsed recordings interviews,
man-on-the-street shows, crowd scenes and the like are nonbroadcastable,
and editing recordings to remove such statements takes away from realism,
color, and continuity.

5 Expense of using recorders in stations employing union labor is high,
since union regulations demand three men to handle them (an announcer,
a reporter, and an engineer) . But one man can do the whole job with many
recorders, and the nonunion shop does not face so heavy an expense.

Radio's Local News Service 247

6 Skill rnd experience are prerequisite for the man who is to handle the
recorder especially skill in ad libbing interviews and other nonscript
shows. But no part of radio news work can be handled without skill and
experience.

None of these objections is insurmountable. As experience in the
use of recorders expands, more and more stations will use them, to
greater and greater advantage.

The Public and Radio News

One distinctive radio news problem is that the public, longer
accustomed to the press, thinks of the newspaper as the prime news
medium. To whatever extent this attitude is justified, the distance
between radio and press will be narrowed in the public mind as radio
develops its local and regional coverage. One cause behind the attitude
is the fact that radio offered relatively little local news in its first
fifteen years as a news medium; because of this the man in the street
who observes an auto accident, or the woman whose bridge club is
going to entertain its husbands, thinks first of telling the newspaper
about it. If radio were apparently as much interested in the local scene
as it is in the national and international (affairs with which the average
man has no personal contact), the man who knows some news would
be far more likely to call the radio newsroom as well as the city desk.

In recent years a good many stations have taken active and effective
steps to overcome this attitude. They have asked listeners to telephone
news tips to the station; they have offered small cash fees for tips, put
on contests, and used other devices. They have publicized their interest
in news, their desire for tips, on the air and by mail.

Akin to public tardiness in recognizing radio's interest in local news
is hesitation in many quarters to grant radio reporters the privileges

When CNKW-New Westminster, B. C., instituted a system of prizes
for news tips $1.00 for the best tip daily, $5.00 for the best of the week
it drew immediate results. On March 12, 1947, a male voice called the
newsroom and announced that its owner had just robbed a Vancouver
home of $230. CNKW broadcast the story and asked the caller to come
to the station for his $1.00 award. The man telephoned the next day to
reject the offer. But ten days later he called again to announce a second
robbery, a $250 job! Neither CNKW nor the police caught up with him.

248 News by Radio

traditionally given to newspapermen. Fulton Lewis's fight to get radio
newsmen into the Congressional press gallery, and the struggle to gain
similar privilege for radio reporters in the Massachusetts legislature,
have already been mentioned (Chapter 1 ) . In 1942 Edward R. Murrow
had to stage a minor rebellion in London to procure parity for radio
war correspondents in the war and diplomatic news centers of the
Western Front. The Association of Eastern Fire Chiefs resolved to
limit radio coverage of fires to prevent hordes of radio-informed specta-
tors from impeding fire-fighting (a genuine radio news problem);
Dave Driscoll of WOR-New York won a promise of full cooperation
with radio reporters from the New York fire commissioner by promis-
ing to keep the problem foremost in mind in fire coverage. In Chicago,
radio newsmen formed the Chicago Radio Correspondents' Associa-
tion to stage a campaign against discrimination against radio reporters
in court coverage. In 1946, the UN Security Council closed its doors
to mike coverage but not to newspaper and periodical coverage; radio
newsmen were not invited to a news conference at Alcatraz during a
prisoners 7 riot.

But the attitude of news sources is slowly changing. In 1945 the
Radio Correspondents' Association culminated three years of effort
by opening a radio news gallery broadcast room in the Senate wing
of the Capitol in Washington. The next year Harold Ickes not only
invited radio men to his final news conference as a Cabinet member,
but permitted WOL-Washington to record his red-hot remarks. And
in 1947 live microphones were permitted for the first time at a Congres-
sional committee hearing (the hearing on proposed aid to Greece and
Turkey), and in June NBC was allowed to make special arrangements
to present a vote-by-vote account of the Senate's action to override
President Truman's veto of the Taft-Hartley Bill. In September, when
the Daytona Beach, Florida, city authorities turned down the request
of local WNDB for permission to broadcast a policeman's plea for
reinstatement before the Civil Service Appeals Board, the Daytona

Radio itself has contributed to public failure to recognize its news rights
by persistently referring to "press conferences/* Radio news editors who
see this problem urge their fellows to use the terms "news conference" or
'^press-radio conference."

Radio's Local News Service 219

Beach News-Journal attacked the refusal and upheld the station's
and the public's right to hear the proceedings.

Broadening the Coverage

Newsrooms that interpret "local" coverage as "regional" have taken
another leaf from the newspaper book: the practice of developing
strings of correspondents. This is an obvious and necessary step if the
station is to be on top of the news not alone in its own city but also
throughout the region it reaches. To depend entirely ori news service
splits for regional coverage is to broadcast much of such news after
it has appeared in the newspapers in whose cities the stories originated,
for this kind of news usually comes to the services from "stringers" or
correspondents who depend heavily on local papers for their material
(often, as laudably loyal members of the local newspaper staffs, they
permit the papers first use of news) .

So more and more stations have built up their own stringers. WRBL-
Columbus, Georgia, covers nine Georgia and Alabama counties
through correspondents in county seats and large towns two weekly
newspaper editors, a drug store manager, a school teacher, a lawyer, a
filling station operator, an advertising man, and a clubwoman. It pays
half a cent a word for news for broadcast, double for especially fasi
coverage, bonuses for scoops of which it has had many. KYSM-
Mankato, Minnesota, uses high school journalism students in twenty
surrounding towns as stringers, and stimulates them by contests.
WMRN-Marion, Ohio, also uses high school students. WIGM-
Medf ord, Wisconsin, has correspondents throughout its coverage area.
WCCO-Minneapolis, with both AP and UP regional services, has
radio newsmen in Duluth and other stations as its correspondents.
And so on. Scores of stations now use the string system. The telephone
is the most common means of communication between correspond-
ents and their newsrooms, though telegraph, mail, and even teletype
are also used.

A few examples of radio stations' cooperation in news-gathering
have appeared. A "co-op news bureau" set up in the Olympia, Wash-
ington, state capitol in 1946, under Carl Downing, former news editor
of KPQ-Wenatchee, prorated posts to seventeen member stations at

250 News by Radio

$4.50 to S26.50 weekly, and furnished spot service, response to queries,
and transcriptions. In New York state nine upstate stations linked
themselves together by telephone line to share stories originating in
any of the nine localities; each station had the privilege of taking as
many or as few stories as it wished, and shared costs accordingly.

In some situations radio newsrooms have cooperative agreements
ivith local newspapers for interchange of news. This is a natural
arrangement when radio station and newspaper are under the same
ownership as in Winona, Minnesota, where carbons of late stories
are furnished by the Republican-Herald to KWNO. In St. Cloud,
Minnesota, the Daily Times local staff gathers news both for the
newspaper and for KFAM, and does much of the rewriting for radio.

KATE-Albert Lea, Minnesota, independent of the local newspaper,
has a "swap deal" with the paper and with another in nearby Austin,
whereby KATE is provided with the newspapers' local news half an
hour after the papers' press time. This means that the papers and the
station present the news at virtually the same time.

And in New York City WEAF (now WNBC) set up direct lines
to newspapers in Newark, the Bronx, Brooklyn, Westchester, and
suburban Long Island to increase its local coverage.

But there are many situations in which the local radio station,
whether newspaper-owned or not, is in violent competition with the
local paper.

WHAT Does the Newsroom Cover?

In the broad sense, news is news. Anything that the newspaper
prints may be broadcast material; anything that the radio newsroom
puts on the air is pretty sure to be newspaper material.

In a narrower sense, a sense already much discussed in this book, a
lot of news given extensive space in the press gets little time, or no
time at all, on the air. News that comes under the various taboos of
"good taste" and undue emotional impact, or that is too detailed for
broadcast purposes, or that is published in the press primarily in its
function of daily historian (such as vital statistics), or that cannot be
made anything but so dull or complex as to be unlistenable, is rarely
broadcast. All these limitations, however, disqualify less news than

Radio's Local News Service 251

might be expected; and the definitions of broadcastable news are
broadening as radio newsmen learn to make more interesting, or less
offensive, types of material they have shied away from.

In short, virtually all the local news to which the press gives more
than routine playvirtually everything that makes front page or other
main news columns, in contrast to compressed or departmentalized
standing-head coverage is fodder for the radio mill. And even this
generalization leaves loopholes.

For instance: A good many radio newsmen have worked on the
principle that newscasting has no place for a counterpart of the news-
paper "society" or "personal" columns, especially the detailed notes
about the petty activities of the local citizenry: "Mrs. Abner Wilkins
has gone to Emeryville to spend a week with her sick aunt." Yet a
Peoria, Illinois, station, WMBD, has outstanding success with a ten-
minute, six-day "Town Crier" program, one on which thirty-Eve to
forty local items for women, gathered by one woman newsroom
employe, are presented. WPAY-Portsmouth, Ohio, gives extensive
time to "personals" and minor local items on its six local shows a day.
WMAZ-Macon, Georgia, covers women's meetings and activities
through its civic and education director. WHIZ-Zanesville, Ohio,
broadcasts three local "calendars" each day: "Club Calendar" at
10:45 A.M., "Birthday Calendar" at 11, and "Obituary Calendar"
(which has the highest audience-rating of the three) at 12:15 P.M.

Which is to say that the smaller station, aiming at developing its
strictly local audience, can build better-than-respectable listenership
for the precise kind of minor local news that is so important in every
small city daily or weekly. Dozens of examples to buttress those just
given might be cited.

KABR-Aberdeen, South Dakota, found that high school students were
not always dependable news sources. KABR, like most stations, in winter
storm periods broadcasts lists of schools which are to be closed because of
impassable roads or severe cold. After it had several times been the victim
of long-distance calls from students who, representing themselves as high
school officials, announced the closing of their schools, KABR developed
code words which had to be employed by principals in such telephoned
announcements!

252 News by Radio

The clear channel station, or that selling essentially regional rather
than strictly local coverage, approaches such news with a good deal
more caution. But any newsroom maintaining a local operation must
give time, attention, and manpower to such local sources as city and
count}' offices, local businesses, and the like.

And even the clear channel, big city station knows that certain
types of local news having to do with events other than governmental
and political are always audience-pullers. Food news, for example. For
years Don Goddard has had two successful fifteen-minute shows on
WNBC-New York. Appealing to thousands of rural and small town
housewives, Goddard invariably includes the latest market news on
strawberries, cabbages, pork roasts, and so on their availability, their
prices. Rather than offer mere lists and prices, Goddard presents such
material in chatty, friendly fashion, as though he were talking across
the back fence with each listener.

This kind of newsnews dealing with food, clothing, household
necessities, the commodities about which every American is thinking
every day can always be handled effectively on the local level, more
understandably and meaningfully than in regional or national round-
up stories.

Regional or national stories on these and many other subjects, how-
ever, can almost always be turned into local stories. Suppose the wire
brings a story saying that a government agency promises a sharp up-
swing in the production of men's suits. The newsroom man hops on
the telephone, calls three or four local clothiers, and comes up with a
strong local story (but one with more than local implications) on what
the increased production is going to mean in the retail stores the
listener's point of contact with the news development.

Another example: A Washington story forecasts vastly enlarged
need for beef for export. The station in a cattle-raising area Texas or
North Dakota or Colorado develops, through its local markets and
perhaps the county agent or a livestock association, a local story that
makes the national news intimately significant to the station's listeners.

Some stations apply the same technique to stories that break in the
newspapers with which they compete. One Midwestern clear channel
newsroom director explains it this way:

Radio's Local News Service 253

Though we maintain an elaborate news operation and write all our own
shows, we can't hope to gather and broadcast all the local news the papers
offer. We'd have to have a forty-man newsroom, instead of a seven-man, and
practically twenty-four hours of air time to do it. Inevitably, we get beat on
some local stories. But we can still capitalize on them. When a good story
breaks in a local paper, we examine it carefully to see what it doesn't say
where it has failed to fill the gaps, where it needs explanation. Then we'get
busy, send a man out or put him on the telephone and come up with a
follow story that has all the virtues, for us and for our listeners, of an original
news break.

Of necessity, whether the radio newsroom uses this technique or
not, it must check its local competition, newspaper or radio, closely.
What the other fellow is doing will always affect what it will decide
to do.

"Backgrounding" the news, of which the technique just described
is an example, is considered at greater length in Chapter 11. On-the-
spot coverage, another phase of local activity, is given consideration in
Chapter 9.

Two approaches to newspaper competition appear in the methods of
two big newsrooms in one metropolitan center. The director of one says
frankly: "Just before each news show we check the bannered or featured
stories in the latest editions of our local papers. Then we make sure that
we feature the same stories in our newscasts. Often our shows get to the
public before the papers do. So we get credit for breaking the big news first/'

The competing newsroom director speaking: "We decide in our own
newsroom, before we see the papers, what are the feature stories, and play
them regardless of what the papers do. In other words, we believe in our own
news judgment. Often the papers' judgment and ours are the same; we
think that when they differ we are at least as likely to be right as are the
papers."

Most competent newsmen prefer the second approach.

Weather News

"The first training for a new man in our newsroom is learning to
write the weather story."

That's the statement of the director of a clear channel station news-
room, made before radio newsmen at the Institute for Education by
Radio at Columbus in 1946. It's one way of expressing a principle on

254 News hy Radio

which radio editors are unanimous: that weather news gets high
priority on any kind of newscast.

The wire services pay their respects to the principle by providing
frequent and full weather forecasts they move on the wires several
times a day, so that the predictions can be kept fully up to date and
by giving elaborate coverage to weather phenomena of any kind. When-
ever there's a flood, a storm of more than local proportion, a blizzard,
a twister, a Florida hurricane or a Los Angeles snowfall, a cold wave
or a stretch of temperatures above ninety, th* wires carry full reports
both as separate stories often headed UNDATED WEATHER if
the story covers more than one localityand in the round-ups and
summaries.

A local newsroom can do fairly well in weather coverage by depend-
ing wholly on the wire. But only fairly well. Weather stories become
more meaningful and more interesting if they're developed locally,
following the method described above.

'We go direct to the United States Weather Bureau for our weather
data, rather than rely on the printers," said the newsroom man at
Columbus. "We use a full and I mean full analysis of weather
conditions whenever it's justified; Temperatures, wind, barometric
pressures, and so on. We don't hesitate to devote a full fifteen-minute
show to weather alone, if in our judgment the story is really the head-
liner of the day.

"That means a lot more than bare statistics. When we're building
a weather story, we get our men out into the weather, or on the 'phone
if time presses, and find out what's happening to people. If it's a heat
wave, we report on the swimming pools and the parks, the kids playing
in sprinklers, the heat prostrations. In a blizzard, it's routine for us
to give long lists of schools closed throughout our area we have a

At KRKD-Los Angeles one morning, News Editor Doug Douglas was
broadcasting a 5:45-to-6 show. At 5:50 he observed light fixtures swinging
and the building shimmying. Without a pause, as Douglas finished a story,

he ad Jibbed a Los Angeles date line and said, "There she goes, folks it's

a real earthquake. But don't let a little shake like this get you down. Just
stay tuned to KRKD for all the latest earthquakes. Let's travel on now to
Washington, D. C., for a few political shakes."

Radio's Local News Service 255

deal with county school authorities to keep us informed. And we get
lots of information from the state highway department about the
condition of the roads."

WDAY-Fargo reported, at a radio news short course at the Univer-
sity of Minnesota in 1947 7 that it had put on 4 'a solid hour" of news
during a recent storm, and that this kind of effort is not unusual in
WDAY weather coverage.

In Iowa, the Highway Commission and the state's radio newsrooms
have worked out a cooperative system whereby the state highway
patrol makes immediately available to the newsrooms all information
about highways. Individual stations in other areas have made similar
arrangements. WHO-Des Moines has a fifteen-minute weather show
daily at 8 A.M. one that gives forecasts for eight states and abundant
detail on Iowa temperatures, rain or snowfall, wind velocity and
direction, and other such data.

The Feature Angle

The warmth and intimacy of the human voice and the informal
manner of radio news give radio a notable advantage over the press
in the presentation of feature or "color" stories. To emphasize such
news is sometimes to limit further radio's already tightly-packed time
for straight news detail; and it may be to run the risk of overplaying
the feature angle. But feature material, used with caution, may do
much to add to the effectiveness of radio news. Color is always more
attractive to the consumer of news than the black-and-white of
straight reporting. And, in the hands of skillful news editors and
reporters, it often helps the listener to understand a news situation,,
to "get the feel of it," better than he could from less imaginative
coverage.

Here is the area in which the local newsroom can do most to dress
up its news presentation. In national and international news, the news-
room is at the mercy of its printers if they don't bring color with
their straight reporting, the newsroom can do little about it. But its

Once in a while a local newsroom can do something to add color even
to international news. On D-Day in 1944, when its printer was grinding
away factual detail on the start of the Normandy invasion, KUOM-Univer-

( continued on next page)

256 News by Radio

local news, gathered by its own men on the spot, can be plentifully
spiced with feature material.

Suppose, for example, that an early morning fire occurs in an apart-
ment building. The story could be presented factually and accurately
something like this:

A two-alarm fire sent twenty-five Midtown apartment dwellers out into
chilly fall weather about 3 this morning. The fire was in the Milmar apart-
ments at the corner of Third and Main Streets. The building was entirely
burned out before firemen managed to control the flames. Nobody was
injured.

Fire Chief Maher says the fire started in a mattress in a first-floor apart-
ment. The apartment was occupied by Miss Patricia Maloney, a stenog-
rapher. Miss Maloney spread the alarm, so that all residents of the building
escaped.

And so on. The story tells the major news. It does not take the
listeners to the fire.

Suppose, instead, a reporter goes to the scene, talks to spectators,
interviews Miss Maloney and other residents of the building. His story
may take a very different tack:

Miss Patricia Maloney, a Midtown stenographer, who lived in an apart-
ment at Third and Main Streets, smoked a last-minute cigaret early this
morning . . . and the result was that twenty-five occupants of the Milmar
apartments had to rush from their beds into chilly fall weather.

Miss Maloney fell asleep before she finished her smoke and her cigaret
fell onto her mattress. She told about it as she stood shivering in a fur coat
over her night clothes all she saved from the fire.

"I don't know what woke me," she said. "The smoke, I guess." She went
on to say, "Anyway, I realized my mattress was on fire. I just grabbed my
coat and ran through the hall screaming."

Miss Maloney's warning roused all tenants of the building, and all

sity of Minnesota found on the university faculty a man who had spent
many summers in the areas of France where Allied troops were landing.
This man put on a fifteen-minute personal-experience account of the coun-
try one in which he gave first-person knowledge of the terrain, the beaches,
the railroads, the Norman towns and fields that lay in the path of the
invasion. The result was a colorful and revealing picture that gave KUOM's
listeners understanding they could not have got from the news service
stories, packed as they were with detailed information.

Radio's Local News Service 257

escaped. But the fire was spreading fast by the time the firemen arrived
two alarms were turned in and this morning the building is a total loss.

Edgar Upson was the last tenant to leave the building. He explains it
this way: "I was halfway down the stairs when I remembered my new
camera. I just got it yesterday, and I didn't want to lose it."

So Upson tore back to his apartment to grab his camera and two suits of
clothes.

Upson was luckier than most tenants. Mrs. Walter Mandell told a
KWWW reporter tearfully that she saved only the night clothes she wore.

She said she never saw anything burn so fast. And she continued. i4 I
wanted to go back to bring some things out, but I didn't dare."

Spectators supported Mrs. Mandril's story. A motorist passing just as the
alarm was spread says that he stopped his car half a block away and that
by the time he got back flames were shooting from half a dozen windows.

The story could go on for as long as the newsroom chose to extend
it. And it would carry to the listener a much more colorful and interest-
ing picture than the straight news account. It would also take more
time a factor the editor must consider.

Stories in this vein can, however, be employed more concisely than
in the example, and in situations less dramatic than fires and catas-
trophes. The flavor of a taxpayers' protest before the city council can
be better presented by a description of the council chamber scene,
with some quotes, than by the unadorned report and the flavor may
be more meaningful than a factual, but colorless, report. A church
picnic can be brought to life by telling of the mishaps in the three-
legged race.

Siegfried Mickelson, newsroom director of WCCO-Minneapolis r
who believes color reporting a prime factor in radio's local news cover-
age, has this to say: "I want my reporters to tell what they see, hear,
smell. I want them always to get the major significant details, of course.
But I want such details clothed in revealing human-interest color.
Thus we show the audience that we are not merely reading from a
newspaper, but that our men are on the scene. We gain not alone in
interest but also in authoritative tone."

Newsroom men have experimented with first-person coverage in
events they report "I saw, I heard, I talked with ..." Sometimes
the technique is sharply effective. But some of those who have used it

258 News by Radio

think the problems it raises discount its value. If the reporter is also
the broadcaster, it is likely to work well. But if the announcer must
introduce the reporter, a small production problem arises. Sometimes,
indeed, the reporter cannot have returned to the studio in time for
the program. Mickelson says on this point that "third-person writing,
handled so as to show clearly that our reporters are on the job, has
proved so effective that we rarely bother with first-person reporting/'
The wire recorder is often a boon to reporting events of this nature.
An account recorded by the shivering Miss Maloney of her experience
at the apartment fire would lend greater vitality to the story than the
announcer's quotation does.

Local News and Promotion

When the Detroit News started broadcasting in 1920, its purpose
was promotional. At first by broadcasting news, later music, it thought
(as its radio editor said in 1924) that "goodwill is about the only return
we expect from our station."

Most of the other early "broadcasters looked on radio in the same
light. Of the 576 licenses in force on May 1, 1924, two-thirds were
held by radio and electric companies and a few newspapers which
thought of broadcasting not as a business for its own sake, but as a
promotional adjunct of other businesses.

When broadcasting celebrated its twenty-fifth anniversary in 1945,
it had become a billion-dollar business. And its thoughts of promotion
were of self-promotion, not of building up other enterprises.

The relationship of the newsroom to this fact has two contrasting
facets: A station's news programming may be used as one of its most
vigorous avenues of promotion for the station as a whole; and the
remainder of the station programming may be used to promote its
news services.

The second half of this contrast is obvious. Throughout their broad-
cast days, many stations use station breaks to announce their next
news shows; they call attention to newscasts, commentaries, special-
event shows, and others emanating from the newsroom by familiar
and simple devices.

Radio's Local News Service 259

The first facet is more complex. There are scores of methods by
which a station may employ its news operations for station promotion.

Most common is the familiar advertisement of the extent or fre-
quency of news programming. WMIN-Twin Cities, a 250-watt station,
uses movie-screen and other announcements of its hourly on-the-hour
news shows; WIND-Chicago, 5,000 watts, boasted more than fifty
news programs daily in 1946 (twenty-four of them, five minutes each
hour, sold to one sponsor). The "independent," non-network station
is more likely to adopt and promote such a plan than the larger
station; its time is freer, and with the limited programming facilities
usually characteristic of the smaller station it may depend far more
heavily on the relative ease of preparing news shows. When it does,
it uses every kind of promotion to let its audience know that it is "the
station with the news."

A number of stations, however, have developed more imaginative
and probably more telling methods of using news in promotion. Some
use specific news stories especially local stories- for this purpose.

WFOY-St. Augustine, for example, which puts on the air each week
more than 450 minutes of local news, issues the WFOY Daily News
Sheet, on 8V2- by 14-inch paper, with copies of local stories it has
broadcast. Carrying the dates and times of broadcast, these News
Sheets are mailed to local or primary-area citizens whose names have
appeared in them. WKBH-La Crosse, Wisconsin, WILM- Wilming-
ton, Delaware, and a number of other stations get out "news memos"
of like nature.

Some stations believe that modesty about their news operations is
not a virtue. John Verstraete, former news director of 50,000-watt
KSTP-Twin Cities, considered it profitable to call unabashed atten-
tion to his newsroom's "scoops." "We always let the listener know
when we have beaten the newspaper and radio competition," Ver-

The radio trade press especially Broadcasting, Radio Daily, and Radio
Showmanship cany hundreds of stories detailing the promotional activ-
ities of American radio stations. Many such stories deal with the use of
news in promotion, and the alert newsroom director has to keep abreast
of them.

260 Newa by Radio

straete said, "not once but each time the stoiy is used." KSTP closes
most of its news shows with the reminder that its next newscast is to
come at such-and-such an hour.

WRBL-Columbus, Georgia, prints its newsroom slogan "Accuracy
Speed Human Interest" on cards and drops them on the desks
of the sheriff, the city clerk, and other news sources. The practice, says
WRBL, wins friends for the station and stories for the newsroom.

News shows may also be used to inform listeners of newsworthy
events the station is to cover political speeches, on-the-spot broad-
casts, and the like. In these cases the newscast is providing news as well
as promotion.

A Miscellany of Local News

WMAZ-Macon, Georgia (10,000 watts) puts a news editor and
two reporters on duty early in the morning, and two more reporters
on the afternoon and evening shift. They cover the city thoroughly,
put on six newscasts with local and UP and INS news. The station
also uses nine network news shows daily.

WINR-Binghamton, New York (250 watts) broadcasts seven
straight news shows, two sports shows, and a local commentary daily.
It carries local news on every show; believes that news shows should
run to fifteen minutes because "five or ten minutes devoted to news
is insufficient to present the complete news story." It has AP service.

WHIZ-Zanesville, Ohio (250 watts) found through a cross-section
listener panel of fifty-eight listeners that they "got enough national
and international news from network shows"; the station therefore
concentrates on local and regional news in the newscasts it originates.
One man gathers all local and regional news. The station has AP
service.

WPAY-Portsmouth, Ohio (250 watts) sent several thousand post-
cards to "a selected list" of listeners telling them of the station's news
department and soliciting news tips. One man gathers local news and
edits shows, in direct competition with the newspaper which owns
the station. It has AP and UP service.

Radio's Local News Service 261

WIZE-Springfield, Ohio (250 watts) has a "woman ace reporter
from the newspaper" who gathers local news. She is "so well estab-
lished" that local stories are often reported to her ahead of the news-
papers. WIZE has three all-local five-minute news shows, at 7:55 and
10:25 A.M. and 4:25 P.M. It has UP service.

At WING-Dayton, Ohio (5,000 watts), one newsman gathers,
writes, and broadcasts two fifteen-minute all-local newscasts at noon
and 6 P.M., and a ten-minute all-local show at 3 P.M. These are "the
station's major newscasts." WING has AP service.

WJTN-Jamestown, New York (250 watts) maintains a local news
bureau of four full-time men because "our listeners want complete
local coverage of news and sports." One of the men devotes his time
to near-by Warren, Pennsylvania. WJTN has UP service.

WOW-Omaha (5,000 watts) has a staff of seventy-five correspond-
ents. It picks them from names suggested by county sheriffs, pays them
on "enterprise, initiative, quality, and quantity, with no set formula."
It gives correspondents credit on the air for especially noteworthy
work. It has AP and UP.

KNEL-Brady, Texas (250 watts) has no wire service, but operates
its newsroom strictly on a local basis. Its listeners "have learned to
depend on KNEL for news of their friends and neighbors." KPAB-
Laredo, Texas (250 watts) also operates on this basis, without a wire
service.

WBNY-Buffalo (250 watts) operates an aggressive newsroom with
a five-man local staff, a full-time Washington correspondent, and
three news services (AP, UP, and INS). A station without network
affiliation, it makes extensive local and national news service its prime
weapon to combat opposition. Roy L. Albertson, owner, advises
straight-from-the-shoulder handling of local news, and has a number of
successful "campaigns" against local abuses to his credit.

WSLB-Ogdensburg, New York (250 watts) has a sixty-man cor-
respondent staff, puts on a daily "Rural Reporter" show at 10:50 A.M.
It has UP service.

262 News by Radio

WLBR-Lebanon, Pennsylvania (1 7 000 watts) boasts three local
and regional features: A ten-minute "Capital City Daily" show from
HarrisbuTg, made up chiefly of Harrisburg local (as distinguished from
state government) news; news of each of six primary-area communities,
one a day, in a radio version of the community weekly newspaper; and
a "Local News Review" at 7 P.M, daily, a rewrite of the day's local news
for listeners who missed earlier programs. WLBR has AP service.

WLIB-New York (1,000 watts), the New York Post station, puts
heavy emphasis on local news in its ten-minute hourly newscasts (which
are broadcast by reporters rather than announcers) . It maintains a full
newsroom staff of reporters and editors, uses a wire recorder extensively,
offers two periods of news devoted exclusively to Brooklyn and the
Bronx. It seeks the local angle on national and international news,
and sends special correspondents to cover important international
events. It has AP and UP service.

WINR (see above) "never uses an individual story more than three
times in a day." Each time a story is re-used, it must be rewritten.

WFBL-Syracuse (5,000 watts) has two daily regional news shows,
at 9 A.M. and 5:45 P.M. Four correspondents in near-by primary-area
cities report twice daily by teletype to the WFBL newsroom; eleven
stringers at other points supplement these reports. WFBL has UP
service.

KGKY-Scottsbluff, Nebraska (1,000 watts) has been offering a
thorough local news service since 1938, with a small staff. Its "What-
is-news?" policy is broad: "Drunkenness and drunken driver stories are
never withheld everything goes. That's what makes a newscast."
KGKY has UP service.

KSTP-Twin Cities (50,000 watts) has activated its entire station
personnel as a local news-gathering force by offering $5.00 for the first
tip any employe turns in, $2.00 for each additional tip, and $10 for
the best tip each month. The device has led to a good many scoops
over radio and newspaper competition. KSTP has AP and UP service.

Radio's Local News Service 263

WIGM-Medford, Wisconsin (250 watts) broadcasts a fifteen-min-
ute "Community News Show" daily. Four reporters "all women with
a nose for news" cover not only major spot stories, but also per-
sonal news, births, deaths, "socials/' and the like. The news editoi
spends five hours a day putting the show together. WIGM has UP
service.

KELA-Centralia-Chehalis, Washington (1,000 watts), located twc
miles from the borders of the two cities, has twelve miles of leased wire
linking the two communities to the station. It has forty-nine remote
outlets along the system so that spot broadcasts may be made from
almost any location in its area. One man does leg work, news writing,
and broadcasting. KELA has UP service.

WIND-Chicago (5,000 watts), to meet a sponsor's need for z
special-pattern show, developed 'Today's News in Chicago," a seven-
day fifteen-minute program of local and regional news. It has thra
sections: "Chicago News" (strictly local); "News of the Neighbor
hoods" (close-in suburban); and "Chicagoland News" (regional). Ifc
materials are drawn from the regional splits of UP, AP, and INS.

KPO-San Francisco (50,000 watts) puts on at 1 : 30 P.M. each Satur
day a fifteen-minute show called "News in Advertising." Ina Stephen
son, assistant manager of KPO's news department, assembles for th<
show news culled from advertisements in magazines, newspapers, anc
radio "ads telling the story of new developments in business anc
industry score the most often on the program, but also included ar<
many institutional and educational advertisements."

At KVOO-Tulsa (50,000 watts), Ken Miller, news director, and hi
assistant sometimes with added newsroom personnel participating-
put on a half-hour show one night a week in which they quite frankl;
gossip about the news. As material for the program, Miller says, the
save feature stories that don't rate time in regular newscasts, an<
instead of broadcasting them straight, present them in informal cor
versation. They throw in a few records, make and drink coffee durin;
the show, and offer six to eight stories in this framework.

264 News by Radio

WKBH-La Crosse, Wisconsin (1,000 watts) and WLOW-Norfolk,
Virginia (1,000 watts) both make broadcasting of city council pro-
ceedings regular features.

Bill Leonard puts on a forty-five-minute show called "This Is New
York" at 9:15 each morning over WCBS-New York (50 r OOO watts)
nine minutes in commercials which is "more like a magazine than
a newspaper/' according to Jerry Walker's excellent description of it
in Editor & Publisher (January 31, 1948). Leonard stresses feature
angles of the news and movie^ book, theater, and radio criticism.
"When Leo Durocher was having a press conference to talk about
his return as the Dodgers' manager," says Walker, "Bill Leonard was
telephoning Burt Shotton in Florida, asking him how it felt to be an
ex-manager."

KATL-Houston (1,000 watts) has a "public service partnership"
with the Houston Press whereby the newspaper provides full local
news coverage to the station, as well as publicization of station activi-
ties, in return for standby announcement mentions of the partnership
with the Press in five noncommercial news and feature broadcasts
daily. KATL has the AP radio wire, the Press the UP news wire.

Harry Van Slycke of KSIW-Woodward, Oklahoma (250 watts)
was in a Woodward cafe for a commercial broadcast when fire broke
out in a shop across the street. Van Slycke, with his portable mike,
gave seventeen minutes of live running commentary on the fire (until
power was turned off as a precautionary measure) , and summoned aid
from fire departments in five near-by towns at firemen's request.

9

Special Events

Special events got regular broadcasting started, back in 1920.

SMK-Detroit and KDKA-Pittsburgh to refer again to the pioneers-
opened their regular schedules by telling their few thousand listeners
about the outcome of elections. They chose these events because their
audiences were ready-made, requiring no build-up; because, as matters
o public concern, they provided excellent material for a bit of brag-
ging-
There, in essence, are the characteristics of what radio today calls
"special events." Events that have wide popular interest; events with
a good deal of color, or drama, or warmth and human interest; events
whose reporting may, one way or another, be considered "in the public
interest."

As broadcasting developed after that flimsy start in 1920, it continued
to make the special event its prime device for snaring public notice.
The Dempsey-Carpentier fight at Boyle's Thirty Acres in 1921 . . .a
Princeton-Chicago football game in 1922 . . , the opening of Congress
in 1923 . . . the arrival of an unknown named Lindbergh in Paris in
1927 . . . the inaugural of Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1933 (an
event followed immediately by the first Fireside Chat) . . . the
Munich conference . . . the outbreak of war in 1939 . . . Pearl
Harbor . . . D Day, V-E Day, V-J Day . . . elections, coronations,
Olympic games, atom bombings, conventions, funerals. The list is as
long as the history of broadcasting.

Obviously, radio came early to realize that mere telling about such
events wasn't enough. To describe them at second or third, or tenth
hand failed to take advantage of one of radio's prime advantages over
other means of mass communication: the advantage of taking the
listener to the scene, of letting him hear the thud of the prize-fighter's
glove, the cheers of the French mob at Le Bourget, the very voice of
the most effective speaker radio has known. So special events became

265

266 News by Radio

part of the programming problem of every network and of every indi-
vidual station.

For the problem is one for the station whose world is no larger than
the boundaries of its own county as well as for the network. MBS may
broadcast a national-championship football game; the 250-watter puts
the local high school basketball games on the air. ABC tells the nation
which of Hollywood's charmers gets the current Oscar; the station in
Podunk broadcasts the county spelling bee. Opening of the United
Nations Assembly or Midtown Fourth of July parade . . . Republican
national convention or dedication of the new bridge across Swamp
Creek: each is a subject of news interest to a particular audience; each
has human interest; each is an activity whose broadcast in some degree
serves the public interest.

Unfortunately, the harassed manager of a small station can't toss
off a special event broadcast merely by writing a memo to his boys.
Such a broadcast has to be thoroughly planned, sometimes long in
advance some stations and nets planned D Day and V-E Day broad-
casts for years; it takes the efforts of many members of a station's or
a network's staff. It demands imagination, time, and money. The small
station has little time, and no huge reserve of money, to spare; and it
usually takes both to put imagination to work.

Nevertheless, the small stations are more and more naming "special
events directors" on their staffs the big stations and the nets have
had them for years. And in most cases the special events director is the
news director. A special event is usually a news event; the link is a
natural. Any news director who is more than a figure-head is con-
stantly thinking up special broadcasts that conform to the type,
whether or not he bears the title or uses the term.

A few notable broadcasting feats have taken on the flavor of special
events although they were not planned in advance. Radio's observance of
the death of President Roosevelt of which more later is one such feat;
the reporting of Pearl Harbor is another. Broadcasting in connection with
events like these, though it cannot be made ready beforehand, calls for the
same kind of mobilization of radio facilities. Radio has met such emer-
gencies with noteworthy success perhaps in part because of its experience
in preparing for the usual type of special event.

Special Events 267

Arranging a Special Event

Here's station WWWW, in whose city the annual Fall Festival
Parade is going to be the biggest ever. Two hours and scores of floats
long, half a dozen bands complete with drum majorettes, a reviewing
stand with the governor in it, and half the citizens of the county jam-
ming Main Street sidewalks. WWWW's news editor thinks his station
can carry the parade off Main Street to the stay-at-home half of the
county. The job perhaps turns into something bigger than he bar-
gained for, for these are some of the chores he has to do:

Get a map showing the parade's route; check it for desirable points
from which to broadcast; arrange remote lines (doubtless WWWW
has some remote lines in, but more may be needed); install micro-
phonesespecially one in the reviewing stand, so as to pick up the
governor's bestowal of a medal on the most agile baton twirler.

Get a list of all participating organizations from the Fall Festival
committee, complete with hundreds of names of marchers, Boat-
riders, parade marshals, and the like; get a schedule of the order of
their appearance in the parade. Prepare a card for each float, marching
unit, or other element in the parade, giving pertinent names and
other data.

Put a script-writer to work to prepare a hundred or more pieces of
copy, thirty seconds to three minutes long copy giving appropriate
data on the history of the Festival, the overpowering size of the parade,
the number of steps each marcher will take, the difficulty of making
some of the floats, the donors of prizes, and so on. There must be, too,
reminiscent bits on the time Joe Fobes' horse ran away back in the
1916 parade, and the fact that nine-year-old twins won the drum
majorette award in 1945.

Assign announcers and engineers to each microphone; brief them
thoroughly on their parts in the broadcast; give them batches of copy
to use at appropriate times, including pieces for fill-in during the periods
when the parade has been stalled "by the breakdown of a truck. Warn
them to be on the lookout for fox terriers that frighten parading horses
or youngsters that wander into the line of march.

Arrange for interviews perhaps set interviews with the parade

268 News ty Radio

chairman or other notables (the copy probably written in advance)
and ad-lib interviews for which interviewers must be prepared.

Assign a man to do on-the-spot interviews among the crowd of
spectators; arrange for his traveling mike or mobile broadcasting unit.

Plan and execute recorded features interviews, brief speeches, band
music, and so on. Arrange for their appropriate timing in the broad-
cast.

See that the station's regular schedule during the period is cleared
for the special broadcast.

Finally, make sure that the station's studios are standing by to take
over in case a cloudburst postpones the parade until Tuesday.

The success of such a broadcast will depend heavily on the amount
of sleep the director misses during the preceding month. When the
show goes on the air, it should have the effect of being spontaneous,
unarranged; achievement of this effect is in direct ratio to the amount
and skill of advance preparation which is to say, to the degree to
which it is carefully nonspontaneous.

The hypothetical special event here outlined is perhaps more elabo-
rate than most. But it is also typical of special events. If a Fourth of
July speech is to be broadcast, there are mikes ancl lines to set up, and
announcers' scripts to get the main speaker on and off the air. When
a football victory celebration seems to be coming up, man-on-the-
street interviews and other events must be prearranged. When the
local visit of a great symphony orchestra is to be broadcast, there are
permissions to be gained as well as involved technical preparations to
make. _ Q _

Now an actual special event. This was a broadcast * by WCCO-
Twin Cities on December 31, 1946. Siegfried Mickelson, news and
special events director, started work on the show early in December,
upon learning that the sixty-five-year-old Minneapolis Chamber of
Commerce was to conduct special ceremonies to mark its relinquish-
ment of its title to the Minneapolis Civic and Commerce Association.
His first step was to confer with officials of the two associations and
gain approval for the broadcast. Then he made preliminary arrange-

* By written permission of WCCO, Minneapolis, September 17, 1947,

Special Events 269

ments with the WCCO program manager, and wrote the following
memorandum:

FROM Sig Mickelson

TO

Joscelyn

Wilkey

Beloungy

Dawson

Ward

Lucas

Ziebarth

Woodbury

Haeg

Backlund

Newsroom

Master Control

E. C. Hillweg

Butler

Jim Hayes

December 6, 1946

We have scheduled a half-hour broadcast from the
Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce on Fourth
Street and Fourth Avenue for Tuesday, December
31. This show will be transcribed at approximately
II A. M. and played back, subject to later confirma-
tion from the program manager's office, from 5 to
5:30 P. M. the same day. The occasion is the yielding
of the name "Chamber of Commerce" to the
Minneapolis Civic and Commerce Association and
the assumption of the name "Grain Exchange" by
the present Chamber of Commerce.

Will the chief engineer's office please have lines in-
stalled to the floor of the Grain Exchange? The con-
tact there is E. C. Hillweg, secretary. Our outlet
should be at the pit end of the floor, just off the plat-
form near a corridor on the side of the room closest to
Third Street.

The lines should probably be available from approximately 10:30 A.M. until
approximately 12:30 P.M.

We shall probably want to use four microphones on this operation. One
would be on a stand for the speakers' platform, one on a stand for band
music and crowd noises, one portable with sufficient cable to move around
the room with some freedom, and one, either portable or on a stand, for
the announcer handling the written copy on the show.

We do not as yet know the exact starting time for the broadcast, but as-
suming that the Grain Exchange on this day will close at 1 1 A.M. our sched-
ule will follow roughly these timings:

10:55 to 11:00 A.M. Color and background largely from prepared copy.
The sound of the gong closing trading for the day.

General celebration from the crowd with band music
and spontaneous group singing.

Ceremony in which the name "Chamber of Com-
merce" will be presented formally and officially to
Emmett Salisbury of the Civic and Commerce Asso-
ciation and the assumption of the name "Grain

11:OOA.M.
ll:OOtoll:08A.M.

ll:08toll:20A.M.

270 News by Radio

Exchange" by the present Chamber of Commerce.
There will be very brief talks by Mr. Tearse of the
Grain Exchange, Mr. Salisbury of the Civic and
Commerce, Mayor Humphrey and Governor-elect
Youngdahl.

Officials of the Grain Exchange are now developing
ideas for this ceremony. They will perhaps have some
sort of document which they will pass on to Salis-
bury, and there may also be some little ceremony
commemorating the assumption of the name "Grain
Exchange."

11:20 to 11:2430 Group singing of "Auld Lang Syne" and general
crowd noises and celebration.

This schedule is, of course, a very tentative one and is subject to constant
revision. It however will provide a working outline on which we can build
a show later. The exact timing will be dependent upon the scheduled time
for the closing of the grain exchange on that day. For example, if trading
should be closed at 12, our show will run from 11:55 to 12:25. It is also
quite probable that we shall wish to start a couple of minutes earlier than
five minutes before the hour for the end of trading. This will give us more
time to describe activities in the pit and also give us a chance to broadcast
the two-bell gong five minutes before closing time as well as the three-bell
gong at closing time.

At the moment, it is my assumption that no production man need be
assigned to this job, but I suggest that Mr. Wilkey assign an announcer as
soon as possible. It is my feeling that Larry Haeg, who is closely identified
with the grain business, handle the roving mike to describe the actual oper-
ation in the pit.

There then followed a series of conferences between Hillweg and
other officials of the two associations on the one hand, and Mickelson
and station officials on the other. It developed that trading would end
at 12:00, so the time of making the transcription was changed from
10:55 to 11:54. Frank Butler was assigned as announcer for the show.
Haeg, WCCO farm director, was briefed on his part in it.

Following these conferences, Hillweg presented to Mickelson, on
December 19, a revised tentative schedule. Starting at 1 1 : 54, it followed
Mickelson's original suggestion closely. It contained a good deal of
actual script introductions of speakers and the like, and a resounding
pat on the back for the Pillsbury Mills band, which was to perform.

Special Events 271

Mickelson responded with a second revision of the schedule a simpli-
fied version, omitting the script and circulated it among station
officials. In a letter to Hillweg with his revision, he commented in
part:

12:00 NOON I think we might allow a couple of extra minutes for a
demonstration here. A band number alone should take a little more than
two minutes and if we should get thirty or forty seconds applause, both be-
fore and after the band selection, it should run our time out to a minimum
of three minutes preceding the introduction of Mr.' Tearse. I would like to
see approximately three and a half minutes allowed here. . . .

12:08.30 There is a problem here as to whether, because of union regu-
lations, we will be able to introduce the Pillsbury Band for a selection. It
might be better if at the conclusion of Mr. Tearse's introduction of Judge
Youngdahl the band automatically break into "Hail to the Chief without
any formal introduction. In that way we could carry the music as sound-
effects and not as a definitely programmed band selection. I am checking
now to determine whether the band is composed exclusively of union musi-
cians. If it is, we can then disregard the union angle entirely. . . .

I am rather interested in having at least a five-minute pad at the end of
the show. If the program runs at all behind schedule this will permit us to
take up the slack at this point. If it runs directly on schedule this five
minutes will permit us from three to four minutes of group singing and a
minute or two of sign-off. . . .

There followed another conference Hillweg, Mickelson, and Ralph
Backlund, the writer assigned to the show another minor revision
of the schedule, and final instructions to performers and technicians.
On December 27 Mickelson sent to all parties to the program a final
version of the schedule. The day before the broadcast, he issued the
following memorandum:

FROM Sig Mickelson December 30, 1946

TO

Joscelyn Haeg

Wilkey Backlund

Beloungy Newsroom

Ziebarth Master Control

Dawson Butler

Ward Jim Hayes

Lucas E. C. Hillweg

Woodbury

272 News by Radio

Following is a relatively complete schedule for the grain exchange pick-
up Tuesday morning, December 31, at 11:54 A.M. This show is being
recorded for play-back at 5 P.M.

1 1 : 54 A.M. Show opens cold from Grain Exchange by Butler doing

voice. Butler reads two minutes copy prepared by news
department.

11-.56A.M. Butler cues in Larry Haeg in pit. Haeg describes pit

operations, gets color and sound effects of Grain Ex-
change in motion.

1 1 : 58.30 A.M. Haeg cues in Butler. Butler does more prepared copy up
to 11:59.45, when he awaits sound of gong closing
trading.

12:00 NOON Gong and we hope a demonstration from the brokers,

traders, and guests on the floor. We will try to establish
sufficient claque to make this demonstration work for
at least ten or fifteen seconds. Following it the Pillsbury
Band will play probably two selections. Butler can take
the first selection straight and then ad lib about the
second, describe the demonstration in the room and call
attention to the program which is to follow immedi-
ately. He should also be able to describe the speakers'
platform and the arrivals of the featured speakers.

12:06 P.M. Butler calls attention to the fact that H. H. Tearse,

president of the Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce, is
to preside over the meeting and will start speaking at
once.

12:06-12:09 P.M. Tearse speaks and presents scroll to Emmett Salisbury.
12:09-12:12 P.M. Salisbury responds.

12:12 P.M. Band plays a few bars from "Hail to the Chief pos-

sibly about a minute.

12:13 P.M. Tearse introduces Governor Youngdahl.

12:13^ P .M. Youngdahl speaks.

1 2 : 16 Yi P.M. Tearse introduces Haeg.

12:17 P.M. Haeg speaks.

12:20 P.M. Tearse announces group singing of "Auld Lang Syne."

12:23^p.M. Sign off.

Special Events 273

NB If for any reason the program should run short Butler

will have adequate copy to fill the end. \Vc could also
use a minute preceding the show at 5 o'clock to intro-
duce it if we need any further fill.

SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS

1 Butler will be able to get copy from Ralph Backlund for his 11:54,
11:56, 11:58.30, 12:00 and closing pieces. He should note that there will
be a gong at 11:55 signifying that only five minutes remain before the end
of trading.

2 Haeg It will help immensely if Larry will have his microphone as
close as possible to the gong at 11:55, and then if he will have it back up
there in a similar spot at 12:00; otherwise he can determine where he wants
to work and where he can get the best sound effects and best description
of the final moments of trading in the pit.

3 Engineering Department Would it be possible to put earphones on
both Haeg and Butler and feed them cue through ear phones? This would
simplify the switching problem during the first six minutes of the show,
when it may be a little difficult to throw cues because of the crowded
platform.

4 Note to all hands The program will carry itself from the point at
12:06 when Mr. Tearse takes over until approximately 12:22, when the
band is playing and the crowd is singing "Auld Lang Syne."

Backlund^ carrying out his part of the assignment, provided three
pieces of copy. The first, of forty-four typewritten lines, covered the
1 1 : 54 and 1 1 : 56 items on the schedule; the second, of twenty-six lines,
the 11:58.30 and 12:00 items; the third, of forty-five lines, the closing.
Note that the third piece is divided into "takes," so that the announcer
might cut it where necessary. The copy:

11:54 to 11:56

This is Frank Butler, speaking to you from the floor of the Minneapolis
Chamber of Commerce. The sounds you hear in the background the
steady murmur of voices and the occasional sharp outcries are those of one
of the world's great grain exchanges in operation. For this spacious room,
with its tall windows and slightly old-fashioned atmosphere, is the world's
largest cash grain market, its second largest futures market. No other spot
in the Twin Cities is so intimately tied up with the history of the North-
west* For sixty-five years, the men in this room have been keeping their
fingers on the pulse of the Northwest's vast agricultural production. They

274 News by Radio

have seen our good years and our bad years come and go, our bumper crops
and our failures.

In a few seconds from now at 11:55 A.M., on the last day of 1946
they, and you, will hear the sound of a gong striking twice. That will be a
signal a signal that only five minutes of trading are left under the historic
name of the "Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce."

When trading is resumed here tomorrow, it will be under the somewhat
more descriptive title of "The Minneapolis Grain Exchange."

(SOUND OF TWO BELLS)

Five minutes left five minutes in which to recall some of the history of
this famous institution. The Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce was
officially incorporated on October 19th, 1881 and, if we want to be spe-
cific about the time it was at 9:30 A.M. What was its purpose? Well, in
highly untechnical language, it was to provide a market-place for all of the
grain produced in Montana, North and South Dakota, Minnesota, North-
ern Nebraska and Iowa. Similar grain exchanges had been established else-
where in the country, all of them operating under the name "Board of
Trade." But that name already had been pre-empted in Minneapolis by
an organization equivalent to the present Civic and Commerce Association.
And so the newly organized exchange became the "Minneapolis Chamber
of Commerce."

During recent years, it has been the source of endless confusion. Every
day the Chamber gets hundreds of letters from persons wanting to know
about the business and recreational opportunities in Minneapolis.

And every day exactly at noon a messenger has carried a bag full of
this mail over to the Minneapolis Civic and Commerce Association, where
these questions are answered. Altogether, it amounts to about a ton of mail
a year. That, in itself, has been reason enough to change the name. But the
Chamber also has wanted a name more perfectly descriptive of its highly
important function.

We've already told you what the function is. Part of it is to provide a
place for trading in grain futures the colorful "pit/' Now, for a descrip-
tion of the last few minutes of trading in the pit, under the old name, we'll
turn you over to WCCO's Farm Service Director, Larry Haeg.

Jl:5830 to 11:59.45

That was Larry Haeg, describing the last few moments of trading in the
pit of the "Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce." To the uninitiated, trad-
ing in grain futures sounds like the utmost in confusion. The air of excite-
ment and the constant shouting make it seem like a very feverish business.

Special Events 275

Actually, of course, it is just a highly-developed business routine. Much of
the noise is explained by the fact that federal laws and the rules of this
grain exchange require all bids and offers to be made by "open outcry."
There's a very good reason for it to assure that all offers are open to all
buyers, and that buyers have access to all supplies of grain. In other words,
it prevents "deals on the side" and it assures the farmer of the best possi-
ble price for his crop in an open market.

Far less spectacular to watch, but equally important, is the cash grain
market at the other end of this huge room. Here, clustered around high
tables, are buyers and sellers with their samples of grain. They are all experts
men who can determine the exact value of a sample by its feel, looks and
smell.

Because color is such an important factor with barley, the barley samples
are displayed in the north windows where the steady, cold daylight shows
up the slightest variation in color.

But now, everyone is waiting for 12:00 NOON and the sound of the final
gong. When you hear it, you will know that a kind of milestone has been
passed that 65 years of operation under the historic name of the "Min-
neapolis Chamber of Commerce" are over. The name will pass to the Civic
and Commerce Association, and this great market henceforth will be
known as the "Minneapolis Grain Exchange."

Closing

(FOLLOWS SINGING OF "AULD LANG SYNE" CUT WHERE
NECESSARY)

With the singing of "Auld Lang Syne," we have come to the close of an
important day in the history of the Minneapolis Grain Exchange. But this
is one place where "Old Acquaintance" certainly will not be forgotten.
Under its new name, the Grain Exchange will continue to function just
as it has for the past 65 years during all the time it has been known as
the Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce.

* # #

Those years have left few marks on this high, paneled room with its pit,
its blackboards, its balconies for the markers, its telephones, and its almost

endless rows of buyers' tables.

# # #

But in 65 years, many things have happened. There have been tre-
mendously dramatic moments on the floor of this grain exchange
moments that have been vital to the whole Northwest.

276 News by Radio

There have been days when word flashed round the room of a destruc-
tive wave of rust in the Northwest wheat fields, or of an expected crop fail-
ure with its tremendous implications for our economy.

# * *

There have been moments of wild celebration, such as the time when
wheat first reached the wonderful price of a dollar a bushel. That happened
before the turn of the century, and was a fulfillment of every farmer's
dream. Maybe you remember those popular old cigars "P-V Cigars"
whose slogan was "As Good As Dollar Wheat."

# * #

But dollar wheat no longer has the same significance. Because wheat
climbed to 2 dollars before the first World War, and up to 3 dollars before

it was over.

# * *

The earliest days of the Grain Exchange are identified with some of the
most famous names in the history of the Twin Cities and the Northwest
with the Washburns, the Crosbys, the Pillsburys, the Bells. H. G. Harrison
was its first president, G. D. Rogers its first secretary. And among the
original incorporators were A. C. Rand, C. M. Loring (for whom Loring
Park is named), and D. C. Bell.

# * #

The early years were ones of struggle. But the Grain Exchange grew and
expanded right along with the Northwest which it served.

# #

The time of greatest expansion came during the Nineties when the
growers of the Dakotas and the Red River Valley started raising Northern
Hard Red Spring Wheat. That was the finest wheat in the world and the
demand for flour made from it was tremendous.

Rail lines pushed out to the west and north. With them went the grain
elevator builders ready to buy the first crops almost as soon as the farmer
had turned over his sod. Then came mechanization and diversification of
crops oats, rye, barley and flaxseed.

* * *

As the crops became bigger and more varied, the role played by the Grain
Exchange in marketing them became greater and greater.

# * #

It is because the Exchange has been so closely identified with the growth
of our region, that WCCO has been pleased to bring you this broadcast

Special Events 277

today. We have heard the formal ceremony in which the Minneapolis
Chamber of Commerce relinquished that name to be known henceforth,
and more accurately, as the Minneapolis Grain Exchange,

O

The term "special event'' usually is taken to mean a remote broad-
castone emanating from a scene outside the studio. But hundreds of
studio broadcasts each year may properly be described by the term-
anniversary programs, dramatizations to signalize important occasions,
forums to discuss current problems of consequence. One series of
programs that occupied a third of a station's time for six weeks may
properly be described as special event: KUOM-University of Minnesota
met a critical polio epidemic in 1946 by putting on the air some hun-
dreds of programs whose purpose was to keep children occupied and
entertained during a long quarantine period in Minneapolisand,
when the epidemic closed the schools, to get school work started at
home.

The networks are in better position to stage long-planned special
events than are individual stations. They have to their credit such
notable programs as Norman Corwin's "On a Note of Triumph/' an
hour-long V-E Day dramatization, which CBS had commissioned
Corwin to write six months in advance; the NBC series of United
Nations programs in 1946 and 1947; the superb on-the-spot broadcast
by ABC's, George Hicks off the Norman coast on D Day; the coverage
by all nets of the atomic bomb trials at Bikini; hundreds more.

Another type of special event of interest primarily to the local station
is the big spot news-break. A three-alarm fire is an obvious example;
or a flood, or a railroad wreck (or, indeed, a local epidemic). Usually
such events cannot be predicted their coverage is a challenge to the
newsroom's energy, inventiveness, and split-second mobility. Broad-
casting them is usually a matter of on-the-spot reporting, with no
preparation.

Special-event broadcasting, whatever its type, is sure to become an
increasingly important technique in the local station's operation. As
competition grows, the distinction it lends to a station's programming
will more and more demand its practice. It is one of the best means of

278 News by Radio

mating events intelligible as well as colorful. Moreover, it is always
"local live" broadcasting; in view of FCC emphasis on locally origi-
nated programs as part of a station's public service, it can hardly be
ignored.

"Man-on-the-Street" Broadcasts

Most radio stations now and again put traveling mikes on the streets,
or into crowds at county fairs and the like, for on-the-spot ad lib
broadcasts. These may be put on the air live, or recorded for broadcast
later. Devoted to offering comments of average citizens on current
topics, they are of several types:

The buadcast whose purpose is to bring to listeners the flavor of a par-
ticular situation or event: The New Year's Eve throng in Times Square, the
crowd at a movie star's funeral, picnickers at the annual festival of the
Polish-American Society.

The broadcast whose purpose is to discover typical attitudes toward cur-
rent news: The cost of living, the latest decision by the United Nations
Assembly, salaries for high school teachers (or taxes to pay them) . Similar
to this type is the feature broadcast, taking its cue from the familiar news-
paper Inquiring Reporter column: Do you believe wives should work?
Where do you intend to vacation this year? Do you think firecrackers should
be permitted on the Fourth of July?

The commercial broadcast one selling soap, bread, or sealing wax in
which the announcer takes a mike, for instance, into a grocery store and
works in questions about the sponsor's product along with those on the
topic chosen for the day. (This type is not ordinarily a newsroom project.)

The prerequisites for such broadcasting are evident. There has to be
a certain amount of advance preparation script, questions, and so oru
The man on the mike has to be alert, and skillful at ad libbing; he has
to be thoroughly versed in his subject if the broadcast is to deal with
a topic in the news. Most such broadcasts are essentially ior entertain-
ment, even though their ostensible purpose may be to get serious

During the war, man-on-the-strcet broadcasts were outlawed by the
broadcasting industry at the request of the Office of Censorship. Obviously
it would have been possible for an agent of the enemy, knowing that such-
and-such a broadcast went on the air regularly, to insinuate himself into a
position to be interviewed, and to inject prearranged signals or code re-
marks among his responses.

Special Events 279

answers to serious questions; this means that humor is important.

The dangers inherent in any unrehearsed show bulk large in man*
on-the-street programs. The individuals interviewed almost always
picked at random may be tongue-tied, or they may be given to titter-
ing or telling all about Uncle Henry's operation. They may be annoyed
at being questioned, or overcome at the fact that their voices are going
on the air. They are sometimes given to profanity, occasionally to
obscenity. Quick control of what goes into the microphone is a
necessity.

A common objection among discerning listeners to shows of this
type is the bad taste by which some of them are characterized. Some
broadcasters have attempted to achieve the effect of humor by putting
their victims on the spot, sometimes by being thoroughly insulting.
That most giggling respondents don't appear to object makes this
practice nonetheless offensive.

A Miscellany of Special Events

Two explosive-laden vessels in the Texas City, Texas, harbor blew
up, and carried a good deal of the city with them. Communications,
too telephone, telegraph, railroad, radio. WOAI-San Antonio, a
50,000-watt station with a big news operation, sent a man 200 miles by
police squad car to Texas City; he relayed messages to WOAI by police
short wave. Jerry Lee, special events director, flew oVer the area and
broadcast descriptions (some of which NBC picked up) . Other mem-
bers of the news staff worked on San Antonio angles. . . . Other
radio stations in southeast Texas and adjoining states performed
similar jobs. KCRC-Enid, Oklahoma (1,000 watts) was credited by
the Enid Morning News with "an outstanding example of unusual
and timely public service in a time of great tragedy."

Radio's coverage of the disaster was not without criticism, however.
Pat Flaherty, news editor of KPRC-Houston, made these comments
to a radio news conference at the University of Denver a few months
after the disaster (July, 1947) :

The most glaring fault among the many radio news crews working from
the disaster area was the tendency to sensationalize a story which spoke of
tragedy and pity from all angles of its presentation. The situation called for

280 News by Radio

a straightforward presentation of the facts and it was no place for radi
to become "newspaper-minded" and blare out with sensational heac
lines. . . .

Press services carried stories which were very much off base, and ther
were times when our direct broadcast from Texas City contradicted networ
newsroom reports on the same story.

In an effort to maintain a steady straight "filler" broadcast, some station
brought unqualified persons to the microphone for their reports on a dan
gerous and threatening situation. I actually saw and heard people on th
microphone who were there just because they were dirty and ragged. . .
It is safer to talk with these people first to find out what their story is be
fore they are given the liberty of an open microphone. That all goes back t<
the fundamental that the spoken word is the most powerful. Therefore, i
must be right.

WJR-Detroit (50,000 watts), tying in with WFBG-Altoona (25(
watts), put on two special pick-ups from the scene of the wreck o
the Pennsylvania Railroad's Red Arrow, near Altoona. Local tie-up
The Red Arrow is a crack Detroit-New York passenger train.

WCPOCincinnati (250 watts) sent a newsman, Paul Dixon, crawl
ing through a tunnel with a microphone to pick up calls for help fron
six men trapped in the wreckage of a building that had collapsed. Fo'
thirty hours WCPO and WKRC-Cincinnati (5,000 watts) continuec
on-the-spot broadcasts describing the rescue work.

KILO-Grand Forks, North Dakota (1,000 watts) put on a two-houj
show in 1946 to find homes for veterans. It offered one pair of nylon;
for a room and two for an apartment, and ended the two hours (origi
nally scheduled as a one-hour show) by housing 150 veterans.

Both stations and networks regarded the United Nations organiza-
tion conference in San Francisco as a special event. Networks senl
whole squads of newsmen and technicians to cover it, after weeks oi
preparation; individual stations sent commentators and reporters.
Incidentally, both networks and stations came in for severe, and
deserved, criticism for "Hollywoodizing" the conference devoting
too much time to feature broadcasts by Hollywood glamour girls.

The 1945 airwaves were laden with special-event programs com-
memorating broadcasting's twenty-fifth anniversary. Many, stations

Special Events 281

put on their own shows to celebrate a quarter of a century of operation.
Many stations have arranged special broadcasts in the interests of
traffic safety, prevention of juvenile delinquency, the fight against race
and religious prejudice, and other matters of public interest.

KSD-St. Louis (5,000 watts) sent its news and special events director,
Frank Eschen, to Rome to originate programs in connection with the
formal election of thirty-two cardinals at the Vatican. All four major
networks carried Vatican programs.

WTMJ-Milwaukee (5,000 watts) converted its entire program-
ming, when an eighteen-inch snow fell on the city, to broadcasts on
the crisis. Its staff, snowbound at the station, broadcast nearly a thou-
sand announcements in twelve hours: messages from stranded victims,
direction of volunteer services, lists of food distribution centers, post-
ponements of meetings and other events, emergency instructions in
case of fire or accidents, and so on.

ABC broadcast a special program in July of 1947 to present the
ceremonies at the opening of the long-sealed documents of Abraham
Lincoln. An ABC commentator was assigned to describe the scene
and introduce the speakers.

KLZ-Denver (5,000 watts) broadcast an eye-witness account of
"falling stars" as the earth passed through the tail of a comet. The
program, originating on the hilltop location of the station transmitter,
offered a description by a station announcer and technical comments
by an astronomer.

Allen Stout, of WROL-Knoxville (1,000 watts) won the annual
medal for "outstanding achievement in radio reporting" offered by
Sigma Delta Chi, professional journalism society, for his 1946 on-the-
spot broadcast of a gun battle between ex-GIs and politicians during
an election campaign in Athens, Tennessee. The citation said in part:

Because he had to whisper in order not to reveal his position to partici-
pants in the gun battle near him, his voice was not always intelligible above
the gun fire, but he was able to impart to the listener enough of the excite-
ment, the danger, and the ebb or flow of the battle to permit the listener to
see, feel, and hear the battle as it progressed. The broadcast undoubtedly

282 Newa by Radio

rank*; above most of the attempts of the armed service and radio corre-
spondents to broadcast on-the-scene events as they took place in World
War II.

WJR-Detroit (50 7 000 watts) and WCAR-Pontiac (1,000 watts)
had remote mikes ready to broadcast news of the settlement of the
General Motors strike in 1946 as the Federal mediator announced it.

The news editor of KXOK-St. Louis (5,000 watts) relayed on-the-
spot reports of a million-dollar fire from an automobile with radio-
telephone equipment.

Perhaps no event in American history has received the thoughtful,
dignified, and appropriate radio treatment accorded the death of
Franklin D. Roosevelt. The President's death was not a special event
in the usual sense it was not a foreseen piece of news, and not one
which demanded speed in its handling. Rather it was a portentous
occurrence whose every facet was of vast interest and importance to
the American people and the world. Radio interrupted its programs to
bring the shocking news to listeners, and canceled hundreds of pro-
grams as the story developed. It brought eulogies of FDR, testimonials
of a nation's grief, from every corner of the land. Networks and many
stations canceled commercial messages during the three-day mourning
period after April 12, 1945. Radio's public service in broadcasting the
full story to the people won accolades from the press and from public
figures everywhere.

10

News of Special Fields

Broadcasting Yearbook for 1948 devotes some twelve pages to names of
news, sports, farm, and home economics directors of American radio
stations. About two-thirds of the stations are shown by this directorv
to have personnel specifically assigned to one or more of these special
programming fields. The listing is not complete, for not all stations
provided information to the editors of the Yearbook. On the other
hand, it may be misleading, because some stations list individuals who
give only a few hours a week to the specialties part-time workers, or
workers whose major operations are in other activities.

Nevertheless, the list establishes a fact: Radio stations are aware of
the need for specialized treatment of material in certain fields.

Newspaper men have been aware of it for some years. One of the
most recent of the textbooks on newspaper reporting is devoted to
this thesis that jack-of-all-trades reporters, though certainly not pass
(particularly in the smaller newspaper shops), are being replaced or
supplemented by specially-qualified men and women who can give to
the intricacies of special fields the understanding and technical knowl-
edge without which much news can no longer be made intelligible.
The larger newspapers today boast specialists in fields ranging from
business, agriculture, social service, politics, and science to stamps >
chess and enameling of the finger nails.

Radio newsroom specialization has not gone so far largely because
of the natural limitations of the medium. Radio, in the American
broadcasting pattern, is not primarily a news and information medium,
but an entertainment medium. Radio does not carry nearly as many
words each day in any of the special news fields as do the newspapers.
Radio does not present detailed box scores, or complete market
reports. It offers less commentary, fewer individual stories (especially
when repeats are omitted from the count) , and, on the whole, narrower
news coverage than do the papers.

283

284 News by Radio

Radio, in short, does not and is not likely to go all the way with the
newspapers in specialization. The limitation on size of radio news
staffs, which is an affecting factor, has been discussed in Chapter 8.

All of this to the contrary notwithstanding, radio is slowly building
up its corps of specialists.

Let's examine that Broadcasting Yearbook listing a little further.
It shows that sports directors, in numbers, top the roll (fewer than a
fifth of the stations fail to list sports men) . News directors come next.
Perhaps three-fifths of the stations have "home economics" directors;
a few less have farm directors.

Impressive figures. But not to be taken at face value. A lot of the
stations show one man in two "directorships"; several show one man
in three. Many of the listings describe part-time which is likely to
mean casual operations. In one North Dakota station the farm
director not only handles broadcasts beamed at farm listeners, but also
sells time to agricultural industries. Few stations have full-time sports
editors; it is not unheard of that the "sports director" is an announcer
who used to play right field for his junior high school team.

And it must be observed that few radio stations boast business, or
religious, or science, or political specialists to suggest only a few
neglected areas.

What is the relationship of the specialist to the newsroom?

One of the four categories shown by Broadcasting specifically
represents the newsroom,

The sports director in almost all cases works closely with the news :
room.

The farm director usually depends heavily on news services, local
and wire.

The "home economics" or women's director all too frequently oper-
ates without reference to the newsroom. Her area is commonly limited
to "home economics" recipes, child care, beauty hints without
reference to news. More of this later.

Let's look in more detail at these and other fields in which radio has
done most to meet specialized news problems.

News of Special Fields 285

Agricultural News

"The farm director's jobthe one we thought of a few years ago
as a part-time one for an announcer now requires a full-time man
and a secretary, and a part-time announcer who can cover while the
farm director is on the road. An ideal set-up would call for a full-time
reporter in the field, acting as a teammate of the men in the offices
and newsroom."

That's Earl Williams, manager of KFAB-Omaha, talking before a
Nebraska radio news clinic. (His full talk, an excellent one, is reported
in Radio Showmanship for August, 1946.) Williams has just finished
pointing out that handling farm news if it is to grow to full stature,
and to deliver full value to station and listener alike is no sinecure.
"It's a job for a man with a nose for news, the ability to write, ani
most of all, the natural feeling for the farm angle, which comes from
background and constant association with the people involved, from
those in government down to the smallest farmer in the area."

Specialization means specialization. The farm editor needs to be a
man who knows the farm. He's a reporter, to be sure one who can
gather and write news. But he's a reporter who knows the difference
between a barrow and a boar . . . who won't talk about sowing
corn . . . who can make the term "parity" meaningful. He's one who
will know what is important to farmers and, as well, to nonfarmers
dwelling in an agricultural community; he's one who can talk about
trends as well as about spot news.

It's obvious that stations in agricultural sections are those most
interested in farm news service. Yet stations in Washington, Boston,
New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh maintain farm directors. The
reason is that the news of agriculture (as Williams of KFAB makes
clear) can be reported and interpreted not alone to fanners, but also
to city dwellers. Not in the same way for both audiences not even
always using the same news. But always recognizing that agriculture
is, after all, one of the nation's top industries.

All of which is to say, first, that direction of a radio farm news
service is a demanding job for a competent, well-qualified man; second,
that such a service may be offered effectively by any station, anywhere*

286 News by Radio

How does a station located, say, in a city of a quarter million popula-
tion in a predominantly agricultural area go about installing a farm
news service?

First, it selects that competent, well-qualified man to direct it.

Then it examines its broadcast day to decide when to put on its
programs for the farmers, and when to offer its agricultural news
beamed to urbanites. The answers to these questions have been estab-
lished by many surveys. The best time to reach farmers and farm
families is at noon 12:00 to 1:00. Next best: early morning, 6:00 to
7:30. Third: supper time and early evening (rural listening drops off
sharply after 8:30 or 9:00 P.M.). For the urbanites: any time when
they are accustomed to listening to news programs breakfast time,
noon, late afternoon or dinner hour, the mid-evening hours. For this
audience the farm news is knit into regular news shows, not segregated
into specialized shows.

Now the station looks over the kinds of agricultural material it can
offer to farm listeners. This depends to some extent on the station's
purpose: Is the farm service being instituted chiefly as an audience
builder, for promotional purpose? Then it is likely to concentrate on
entertainment familiar music, quiz and comedy programs and news.
Is it intended to buttress the public service record? Informational,
religious, educational programs and news. Is it to extend the station's
news service as such? News programs of wide variety are the obvious
means of achieving the third purpose. And since they also serve for
purposes one and two, as shown by many competent studies, they are
pretty sure to form the farm director's first concern.

What kinds of news?

Straightforward News of Community Agricultural Activities This
includes 4-H Club meetings, gatherings of farm associations, county
fairs and the like, soil conservation meetings, machinery demonstra-
tions, farm sales, visits of county agents and home demonstration
agents, and so on. Such news can be gathered only by vigorous report-
ing; it comes from a thousand sources. The farm director may need
to develop his own string of correspondents.

News of Governmental or Other Broad-Scale Activities of Special
Farm Interest Such news embraces the doings of the Department of

News of Special Fields 287

Agriculture and its many branches, Congressional and legislative meas-
ures affecting the farmer, and so on. This news is likely to come from
the news wire; often the farm director uses it as a springboard from
which to jump into carefully-planned localized stories. How will the
new plans for agricultural subsidies affect the fanners of the station's
primary area? What are local plans for the forthcoming visit of the
Rural Electrification administrator?

Weather News as It Affects the Farmer The range covers heat and
drouth, frost and blizzard, flood and storm. What protective measures
are suggested against a predicted late-spring freeze? Should farmers
be warned to shelter livestock against a blizzard?

News of Individual Farmers' Activities Here are included feature
stories on the new kind of incubator Fanner Brown has developed,
the success of Farmer Smith with crop rotation, the fact that Farmer
Jones is sending six sons and daughters to college. Opportunities for
such stories are legion. Their development depends only on the amount
of imagination and legwork the farm editor exerts.

News oj Advances and Changes in Agricultural Techniques This
news deals with stories that come from the county agent, from the
special features carried by the wire services, from state and Federal
agricultural bulletins, from the agricultural colleges and experiment
stations (which furnish abundant news services, including radio
scripts), from individual fanners.

News of the Economics of Agriculture Such information comes
from many of the sources already mentioned, from local bankers, from
farmers and farm marketing associations stories of farm income, the

Listen to Larry Haeg, farm director of WCCO-Twin Cities and first presi-
dent of the National Association of Radio Farm Directors:

"A distinction must be made, sharply and clearly, between farm NEWS
which is urban as well as rural in interest, and farm INFORMATION
markets, weather news expanded for the fanner, technical stories, and the
like. Every news show put on by a station in an agricultural area must carry
cunent farm news; but only the shows directed specifically to farm homes
should cany farm information.

"And of course it isn't enough for a station to carry just any farm news or
information. I believe that every local station must do its own farm service
job. There's no cotton in Minnesota!"

288 News by Radio

value of the fanner's dollar, the importance of adequate farm manage-
ment practices.

Market and Crop Reports This news is often carried in bulletin
form, as it comes from the wire services or from local agricultural
industries and organizations.

These categories, though they make no attempt to include all
possible varieties of agricultural news, suggest the wide possibilities
open to radio farm service; and they show why Earl Williams told his
audience that a farm director "must be willing to devote a tremendous
amount of time to the job, which will range from actual field work to
outside reading, from poring over the wire services to expanding wire
sen-ice stories into yarns of rare importance to the farm listener."

What about farm news for the city, or the general, listener?

It's similar news. In some newsrooms the farm editor, having com-
pleted his early morning farm news show beamed squarely at rural
areas, rewrites a selection of his stories for inclusion in the general
news show coming perhaps an hour later. A selection because the
general listener doesn't need and won't take as much detail as will
the farmer. And he isn't concerned in the technical aspects of farm
news that are of prime importance on the earlier show.

What about writing style in the two kinds of programs?

Again, within limits, it's the same. It's true that terminology may

The United States Department of Agriculture has issued an invaluable
little handbook Radio Handbook for Extension Workers which, though
it is intended for men and women seeking radio time, offers much that is
useful to the farm director and more to the small newsroom without a full-
time farm man. It is described as Miscellaneous Publication 592. Another
useful USDA publication, this one issued by the Bureau of Agricultural
Economics, is Attitudes of Kurd People Toward Radio Service (January,
1946). 7

Also of value to the farm news broadcaster:
The People Look at Radio (cited in Chapter 2)
"Radio Comes to the Farmer" by William S. Robinson (Chapter VI in

Radio Research, 1941, cited in Chapter 2)

Two articles in the August, 1942, issue of Radio Showmanship: "How to
Reap Farm Dollars" by Harry Truax and "Farmer in the Dell" by Tod
Williams.

News of Special Fields 289

be indeed, sometimes has to be somewhat more technical on the
farm show. But ideal treatment means that both shows should be
entirely understandable to any listener. A lot of farmers and farm
families are tuned in on the general news shows. And at least a few
city dwellers are listening to farm news programs. Robert White,
ABC's agricultural director, recognizes this when he says that "what
interests the farmer will interest the city man if it is properly presented/'

The famous NBC farm show, "The Farm and Home Hour," and
its ABC counterpart, "The American Farmer," both expect a minority
of urban listeners, and they're edited with these listeners in mind.

It should be remembered that the farm news show is not limited
to news of pigs, wheat, and the cost of tractors. Farm families are not
insulated from contact with "the outside"; they want news of the
world as well as specialized news. Herb Plambeck, farm director of
WHO-Des Moines, always heeds this fact. During the war, his early
morning farm program gave complete war coverage the war news
rewritten "not in the farm vernacular, but with a basic farm concept."
All of Plambeck's shows are rewrite jobs everything tailored tight
to his purpose.

Ken Hutcheson, farm director of KGA-Spokane, is another of the
many farm editors who tailor shows to fit. Hutcheson writes his daily
"Farm News Reporter," 12:15 to 12:30 P.M., in "everyday, colloquial-
ized American" not in farm jargon, but in simple conversational
form as understandable in the city restaurant as in the farm kitchen.

All of the special devices used by the newsroom in its general shows
are of use to the farm editor. KLZ-Denver sends its Lowell Watts
KLZ calls him "farm consultant" around Colorado with a recorder

KALE-Portland y Oregon, has developed two "farm emergency" services:
The fire service and the farm labor service. Its agricultural area is one in
which there are sometimes emergency demands for special types of farm
labor, such as fruit-pickers; when such emergencies develop, KALE puts on
repeated broadcasts to recruit labor and to direct it to the scenes where it's
needed. As for fire service: "If people will provide authentic information on
fires (farm or forest) in the Northwest," says Burton Hutton, head of the
farm service department, "we wfll interrupt any program to call help in-
stantly."

290 News by Radio

to talk to farmers, record interviews, and the like. Watts (who used to
be a leader in 4-H Club work and studied agriculture at Colorado A.
& M.) uses his gleanings on a special program, "The Farm Reporter,"
and on other news shows. Many stations are finding the recorder of
special value in farm news work because it is not easy to bring farmers
in to the studio.

KGLO-Mason City, Iowa, went the recorder one better in 1945 by
sending a mobile broadcasting unit to every fair in twenty-four counties
in its area.

Farm news programs may also use all of the program-patterns:
straight news, interviews, dramatizations, special events of all kinds.
Many farm shows originate at county and state fairs, livestock shows,
farmers 7 meetings, and on agricultural campuses. Bill MacDonald,
farm director of KFAB-Omaha, has covered for his station farm events
in Columbus, Ohio, and Denver, and many points between.

Sports News

Sports fans like their news hot. They like it partisan. And they like
plenty of it.

Radio has not been slow to take advantage of America's interest in
sports witness the fact that stations have more "experts" in sports
than in any other field. Few stations are without their daily sports
shows everything from straightforward sports news roundups to
features, interviews, on-the-spot coverage, and so on. Some stations,
indeed, have made their sports service their prime promotional
feature KRSC-Seattle, for instance, known as a "sports station"
because it plays up all sports, especially Seattle high school athletics;
or WRRN-Warren, Ohio, with its daily fifteen-minute local sports-
cast and its on-the-spot coverage of Warren athletic events.

The straight news sports show follows a fairly standard pattern. It
gives results of games, "dope stories" on forthcoming events, informa-
tive bits about athletes and coaches. The most common sports show
is a five-minute roundup about 10 in the evening, scheduled across the
board; it gives the day's baseball, football, basketball, and other scores,
and perhaps saves thirty seconds or soif there aren't too many scores
to tell fans that another big leaguer has been sold to the Boston

News of Special Fields 291

Braves. Many stations, during the baseball season, add another five-
minute show in the late afternoon. Others save a few minutes at the
end of regular news shows to cut in the baseball scores.

Sports news is usually handled by one man from start to finish he
gathers the news, gets it ready for broadcast, and puts it on the air. His
sources: The wire services (including an A. T. & T. sports ticker in
some stations) for major scores such as league baseball, college and
professional football, most other college sports, hockey, and the like;
local or regional sources for high school and other amateur sports which
the wire services ordinarily are not equipped to handle. Building up
these local sources is one of the prime jobs for the sports editor.
Usually it isn't difficultcoaches, managers, or players are only too
glad to telephone a station immediately after the last play and report
the major facts. Sports directors build up lists of such sources by per-
sonal contact, or by the easy expedient of sending cards to all schools
and other sports organizations in their areas. At the height of the
basketball season a station's telephone switchboard is ? on Friday nights,
a madhouse of incoming calls, often with a corps of extra operators on
duty.

Interviews with sports authorities or round-table discussions of cur-
rent sports are common features in most stations' sportscast schedules.
In the spirit of sports, such shows are most effective when they're
breezy and informal. The sports editor interviewing the local coach
is talking to a man he knows well, and it's more natural for the two
of them to chat ad-lib, using first names or nicknames for each other,
than to put on a formal prepared interview. The same thing is true of

Most sportscasters putting the scores-roundup kind of show on the air
work not from a carefully-prepared script but from a mass of notes strips
of copy torn from the printers, scribbled messages from the telephone oper-
ators, and so on. Since one of the virtues of such shows is that their news is
hot, sports editors rarely have time to work them into finished scripts.
There's a lot of ad Jibbing in such shows: "The Red Birds down at Midvale
won another basketball game tonight their ninth in a row. They took
Centerport, 51 to 39. The Midvale lightweights won from Centerport, too
squeaked out a 33 to 31 victory."

Tliis method obviously won't work if the sports announcer isn't the
sports editor if he hasn't gathered and arranged his material himself.

292 News by Radio

the fourway discussion after a football game among the sports editor,

the two coaches, and a visiting expert who saw the game.

"Dope stories" predictions, analyses, commentaries are also part
of a sound radio sports schedule. But they're not to be indulged in
unless the sports man is really a sports authority. It's dangerous business
to let the high school senior or the part-time announcer go out on limbs
too often he gets the saw on the wrong side.

As in other kinds of radio news operations, the recorder is a useful
instrument. It can bring statements by sports figures, perhaps a brief
view of the players' bench, into shows. One of its best uses is to take
the listener into the locker room after a game a place he can't pene-
trate on his own.

Certainly the most spectacular kind of sportscasting is the on-the-
spot coverage of a game itself. Like special events broadcasting of any
kind, covering a game requires a lot of preparation, as well as a lot of
knowledge, a gift for grasping the color and drama of an event, and
high enthusiasm for what the boys are doing on the gridiron or the
diamond.

The station staff and the sportscaster get busy days before the event
a football game, say. Likely the stadium is provided with broadcasting
booth and remote pickups. Most such broadcasts require several
microphone installations two in the booth, one or more on the field.

The sportscaster equips himself with a sheaf of prepared material:
Opening and closing announcements, histories of the teams and
their current performances, elaborate data on every player, color and
historical bits for fill-in purposes, credits, announcements, and so on.
He has to train a "spotter" for each team a man whose duties are to
inform him who is carrying the ball, who makes the block, who the
tackle. He needs a statistician to provide between-the-halves summary

"He Talks a Wonderful Touchdown" by Pete Martin in the Saturday
Evening Post of October 12, 1946, gives an excellent picture of the trials
and tribulations of a sportscaster. It tells how Byrum Saam, who puts 226
words a minute into the microphone during more than twenty football
games a season as well as during scores of other sports events through the
remainder of the year got that way. It's required reading for anybody in-
terested in the art.

News of Special Fields 293

of downs, yardage, penalties. Perhaps he arranges one or two interviews
to put on in the intermission. Likely he has a man to take over the
between-the-halves commentary and this man, in turn, must prepare
himself with data on the band's gyrations on the field and other half-
time ceremonies.

Finally, there are sports-feature shows. Many perhaps mostsuch
shows are based on the five- or fifteen-minute features provided by the
AP, UP, or TP wire services. Several of these come over the wire each
day, along with a number of weekly features. They have the disadvan-
tage that they are almost never local, and not susceptible to local tie-ins.
Some stations supplement them or straight sportscasts with local fea-
turespersonality and success stories about local athletes, or, as at
WMAQ-Chicago, interviews with local or visiting sports celebrities.
(But the WMAQ pattern, easy to follow because of the wealth of
celebrities always available, would be less effective in Midvale.)

A shortcoming of radio sports news is that (like newspaper sports
news) it has become stereotyped little inventiveness has appeared in
sportscasting since its first days. Another, and more serious, defect is
that many radio sports editors use neither their legs nor the telephone
enough. Though there are distinguished exceptions, many titular sports
directors let the wire services and mere box-score reporting do their jobs
for them. They fail to vitalize their shows with thorough and imagina-
tive reporting and this in a field that yields hundreds of excellent
stories to anybody who digs for them. Unquestionably some of the
onus for this fact lies at the stations' doors if the "sports director" is a
mere teletype-tearing announcer, he won't be much of a news editor or

What about news of racing?

Some stations prohibit it as a matter of policy, just as do some news-
papers. Others go all out, broadcasting on-the-spot descriptions from the
track as well as elaborate stories on betting odds, racing personalities, and
the like.

In 1947 the FCC was asked to decide whether racing news may not be
illegal because bookmakers (illegal in all states but Nevada) use such broad-
casts in their business. The 1948 decision: Such broadcasts are not illegal,
since they are given in the ordinary course of news presentation, come from
regular news services, do not go into undue detail, and are put on the air ten
or fifteen minutes after the races are ran.

294 News by Radio

reporter. And he certainly won't be up to "interpretative" news han-
dlinga type of responsibility that finds its place in sports news as in

any other news field.

Women's News

Among radio's many hundreds of women's shows, few have been
news programs.

Critics of American broadcasting have been concerned because,
they say, the soap opera has been radio's prime contribution to the
happiness and advancement of the nation's womanhood. There have
been cooking and recipe programs, beauty hints, talks on child training
and care of the home, health programs (must interest in health be a
feminine monopoly?), educational and other shows their subject
matter the kind you find on the women's pages of the newspapers.
Many of these have been excellent. But to repeat few of them have
been news shows.

Unquestionably this is partly due to the fact that there is no large
area of spot news development that is solely of interest to women.
Most of the news that appeals to women also appeals to their husbands
and brothers. Consequently any attempt to reach women with news of
interest to them alone is stymied at the start.

It is generally held and supported by reader-interest surveys that
personal news, society news, gossip are read more avidly by women than
by men. These are news categories in which radio has, until lately,
been little interested. Broadcasting has small place for gossip news as
such, thanks to the fact that most broadcasters consider this kind of
thing in bad taste; and small place for "society news" because the tra-
ditional interpretation of this news field restricts its subject matter to a
sharply limited audience. And personal news the news of the minor
activities of average citizens has been developed and used by few sta-
tions (Chapter 8, however, suggests that it is growing in importance in
the local news picture) .

A type of women's program masked as news is the women's feature
showthe show built out of the women's feature material provided by
tie wire services, or of like material. Once in a while such features are
genuinely newsy when they develop meaningful discussions of new
theories of child care, for instance, or when they interpret current news

News of Special Fields 295

of the food markets (KLZ-Denver uses wire-recorded interviews with
wholesale produce dealers during a regular newscast even- Friday morn-
ing). More commonly they are devoted to personalities, to human in-
terest tales stories that have little real news in them.

There have been, also, interview and discussion programs carrying
the "for women" catch line. Again, these have been more frequently
feature than news shows.

Radio will undoubtedly provide special news sen-ice for women as
newsrooms grow and as their directors provide more news-imagination.
But they arc not likely to carry this kind of news activity as far as they
go in special fields such as farm or sports news.

Political News

News of the stratagems and tactics of American politics has not been
developed as a separate news field. Political news is general news, and
properly should be treated as such given its place in the general news
shows.

One influence that leads broadcasters to eye political news askance
is the principle that radio must maintain an Olympian impartiality. If
radio is not to take sides since it must offer equal time and position to
rival political views and candidates, and may be called to answer for
failure to do so it has felt that it must walk with extreme care at all
times. In some cases caution has been translated into emptiness.

Radio's record in coverage of political news, nevertheless, is a good
one. Though individual stations have developed few political special-
ists, they have covered most political events with straight news stories,
they have provided plentiful network and some local commentary and
analysis, and they have given excellent service on election returns.

WMAQ-Chicago met the problem of political impartiality in the 1946
elections (as described by News Director William Ray) :

"On each 1 5-minute program during the campaign, we departmentalized
the political news, lumping all Republican news and political statements
together and making sure that an equal amount of copy on the Democratic
side was used on each broadcast. We did not accept party handouts, but
wrote our copy from candidates' statements and speeches. If we used ten
lines of Democratic copy, we followed with ten lines of Republican. We

(continued on

296 News by Radio

Radio reporters cover Congress and the legislaturesgovernmental
bodies with sharp political implications. They often make national or
local political conventions the occasions for special-events coverage.

Election returns provide a very special headache for radio news-
rooms. The newsroom staff is never large enough to cover all the pre-
cincts to the fullest ('indeed, the newspaper staff, much larger than its
radio competitor, has to be augmented to do it) . A common expedient
to remedy this deficiency is a cooperative arrangement with the local
newspaper a deal whereby the newspaper is paid for service, or given
air mention in return for its help. Newspapers were at one time gener-
ally chary of such an arrangement (see Chapter 1). But they have
learned that broadcasts of election returns stimulate newspaper sales
the man who heard election returns in general terms last night wants
them specifically, in black and white, this morning.

Most radio schedules network or local are shelved for election re-
turn service. Radio knows that its listeners are moie eager on election
nights for the news of the vote than for any of the regular shows, and it
is more than ready to cancel programs especially since this kind of
service builds up the public service record.

News in Other Special Fields

If the newsrooms have done little to develop specialized services in
the fields of politics and women's interests, they have done less in other
fields. Further discussion is as much about what might be done as about
what has been done.

did not attempt so strict a balancing of copy in programs shorter than 15
minutes."

WMAQ introduced such political material with a statement like this:
"Now, here's the political news. In accordance with the policy of this sta-
tion, equal representation is given each side."

In time and space, this is "fair*' treatment. But what if the Democratic
candidate made a hell-raising speech charging the Republican candidate
with every crime in the book, and the Republican remained a clam?

In Texas in 1946, seventy newspapers and thirty radio stations banded
together and spent $10,000 to cover election returns in the nation's largest
state.

News of Special Fields 297

Take business news for example. Here is an area of news of the ut-
most importance yet an area in which radio has done almost nothing
in intensive or specialized treatment. Some stations not all use the
stock market briefs carried by the wire services. Some put on the air the
daily market or business features also provided by the radio wire. Many
do good jobs in the development of spot business stories : the local angle
on the story from Washington that real estate values are declining; or
what local retailers have to say about a consumers* strike against rising
butter prices.

But few stations put regular, carefully-planned, expert business news
shows on the air.

One reason, of course, is the stereotype that business news is dull-
that it is technical, limited in interest, hard to understand. This is a
lame excuse. Business news is of interest and significance to everybody.
It is available in abundance. The newspapers have shown that it can be
presented simply and comprehensibly, and that there are business fea-
tures inside every door in a downtown office building.

Radio newsrooms are missing an obvious bet when they fail to build
regular daily business programs not dry-as-dust listings of Wall Street
transactions, but colorful and meaningful stories of what is going on in
the local business community. What radio listener, man or woman,
WCTU-er or alcoholic, would not listen with interest to a program
telling what has happened to liquor sales as a result of the state tax im-
posed a couple of months ago? Or to one on the effect on local payrolls
of the shortage in basic materials plaguing an important local industry?
How about a success story on the local boy who is just opening the
fifth in a prosperous chain of cut-rate drug stores? Is there any chance
that the lack of millwork holding up new housing will be relieved?
Should the Chamber of Commerce try to do something about diversi-
fying the city's industry? And so on.

The opportunities slap the radio reporter in the faceif he is aggres-
sive and imaginative, and if he's sensitive enough to the fundamentals
of business to feel the slaps, and energetic enough to dig ably for their
meaning. He doesn't need to be a Ph. D. in economics, but he shouldn't
be the kind of cloistered intellectual who thinks business operations
begin and end with the law of supply and demand,

298 News by Radio

Religious news is another neglected field. In this area, again, there
are some effective attempts at coverage "Tomorrow in Midvale
Churches" is a Saturday show to be found here and there; Easter and
Christmas church news sometimes gets adequate treatment. Most sta-
tions make feeble gestures by broadcasting Sunday services, network or
local; these are not strictly news, and their use is usually perfunctory.
Even the handful of stations operated by religious organizations and
denominational colleges do little to make religious news as virile and
meaningful as it ought to be.

There are few religious news editors in radio; and genuine effort and
news-imagination devoted to religious activitiesa field high in latent
audience-interestare notable only by their absence. Church conven-
tions, Sunday school picnics, new pastorates, retirements, campaigns
to raise funds for new churches, drives to combat juvenile misbehavior
these get passing notice. But the effort to develop significant "enter-
prise" stories, to cover adequately the religious holidays of the Jewish
and other numerically smaller faiths, to provide illuminating interpre-
tation of religious movements and trends, is lacking. This may be due
in part to fear of showing partiality. It is an unnecessary fear. News is
news, trends are trends; they can be handled fairly, revealingly, and in-
terestingly. And there are millions of listeners to whom religious ac-
tivity is a major passion.

What about news for children? Not news of children, but news for
children? Is this a field for development? Can children be interested in
news? Will the standard news program serve their needs? At what age
do children develop interest in news?

Lazarsfeld and Stanton ("Radio and the Press Among Young
People" by Frederick J. Meine, in Radio Research, 1941 ) have shown
that radio listening is high among children from thirteen to eighteen;
and, more significantly, that radio is the preferred news medium among
them, especially the younger ones. They also show that, as children
grow older, the extent of their radio news listening declines they tend
to turn to other news media.

Sound treatment of the problems and possibilities of radio news of
religious activities appears in Religious Radio, a book by Everett C. Parker,
Elinor Inman, and Ross Snyder (Harper, 1948) .

News of Special Fields 299

The question arises, then: Should not radio newsrooms, in llicir own
interest, make special effort to hold on to this audience that falls into
their laps?

A few efforts at presenting news for children have been made mostly
by educational stations in the universities or public school systems.
Here the purpose has been essentially to inform young listeners, to
clarify the obscurities of the news for them, to cement and enlarge their
basic news interest. That is to say, it has been an educational purpose
rather than the commercial goal of building young audiences and hold-
ing them as they grow older. There appears to be no reason why com-
mercial stations should not aim at, and achieve, both purposes.

Commercial stations might consider, too, the fact that the develop-
ment of children's news programs perhaps in five- or ten-minute spots
would be one way to meet the widespread criticism of cliff-hangers
and thriller shows as radio's prime offering for younger listeners. Such
shows, larded with human interest and audience-participation, -with
humor and perhaps with appropriate recordings, can certainly be made
effective. They would never have quite the youngster-appeal of Jack
Armstrong. But they could be built into attractive offerings; and they
would serve excellently, for the station giving its news service big play,

An educational station which has for some years successfully broadcast a
children's news show is KUOM, the University of Minnesota station in the
Twin Cities. The show fifteen minutes once a week is part of KUOM's
School of the Air schedule. The latest pattern for this show is: Four or five
questions on important state, national, and international news, each fol-
lowed by a fifteen-second pause during which children in school rooms
answer orally or in writing; about ten minutes of elaboration on one of the
topics suggested in the questions; finally, a record from one of the "Songs
of Friendship" albums, selected to tie in with the major topic. Young listen-
ers to the show suggested two changes: a minute or so of the week's sports
news, and a brief quiz at the end of the major topic discussion.

Before arriving at this pattern, KUOM experimented with a standard
newscast offering a fairly broad selection from major news stories of the
week. The pattern was finally narrowed to the one major story, presented
with background and explanation. The script writer says: "The show is not
'written down'; it is written simply, with unusual words eliminated, or ex-
plained by specific illustration. I use all the color I can, and as much humor
as can legitimately be worked in. I make the script chatty and informal."

300 Newa by Radio

to establish early the habit of turning to it for news.

There are other areas of specialized news largely neglected to date
but susceptible of development. Educational news is one such area.
News of racial and religious minorities is another. Entertainment news
theater and movies, music, recreation of all kinds suggests possibili-
ties. And then there is cultural news, scientific news, social service news,
veterans' news the list can be refined indefinitely. Few of these areas
deserve elaborate attention. All of them may be fields worth occasional
specialized broadcasts.

11

Making the News Meaningful

The State Department's Board of Consultants on Atomic Energy issues
a report proposing a "safe" method of control of the power of the atom.

Radio and the newspapers report the facts. They tell the public time
and place of the report, personnel of the Board; they condense the pro-
posals into language as concise and simple as they can manage. They
report that "dangerous" aspects of atomic energy would be exclusively
under the control of an international authority; that fissionable ma-
terials would be issued in "denatured" form for development of "non-
dangerous" uses by individual nations and their citizens; and so on.
They do a competent, thorough job of reporting what the recommenda-
tions say.

Have they finished their task?

Clearly they have not. For however sharply and precisely they tell
-what has happened, they have not helped their publics to an under-
standing of the event unless they find ways of telling -what it means?
what may be its impact on the life of a troubled world.

The atomic control story is a dramatic example of the need for more
than mere factual reporting. But it is not in essence different from
thousands of other stories. It is, rather, typical of thousands.

Newsmen of the last two decades have become deeply aware that the
news methods of a simpler world will not meet the necessities of com-
plex modern society. It is not enough merely to give listeners and
readers the factual picture of the day's events, however complete and
accurate it may be. The mass public is a lay public. It is inexpert in
chemistry and physics, economics, politics, medicine, social welfare,
psychology. It cannot understand the interrelations and impingements
the meaning of news without more help than mere information
gives it.

And so the newsmen have acknowledged that they must give the
public material to help it understand as well as to help it know. "When

301

302 News by Radio

workers in the gigantic steel industry* strike, the public must not only be
told when, where, why, how many, and the other basic facts; it must
also be given a view of the effect of such a strike on other industries, a
background to reveal the underlying causes, an insight into relation-
ships with other current events and with the daily life of the common
man. When a Central American republic overturns another govern-
ment, the public must be offered historical and political and geograph-
ical background that will clarify the situation. When medical scientists
produce a fantastic new drug under which infections dissolve, the lay-
man has to be told how widely it can be used, how it will be made
available, how its advent will affect medical practice.

Newspapers have developed a number of methods of meeting this
new demand. Editorials have for many years been partly devoted to ex-
planation, but they haven't been enough. Columnists have since 1930
become a standard phenomenon in daily papers, their function largely
to explain and interpret the day's events. Supplement of straight news
by background material has become common Herbert Brucker's
The Changing American Newspaper (Columbia University Press,
1937) and Sidney Kobre's Backgrounding the News (Twentieth Cen-
tury Press, 1937) are among the soundest discussions of what the press
can do in this direction.

The growth of Time and Newsweek stems in part from the need for
backgrounding. Other magazines Nati on and New Republic, Atlantic
and Harpers, Free World and Christian Century, a score of others-
have lent their energies to meet the need.

Radio, of course, has envisioned the problem. The radio commenta-
tor is one of broadcasting's answers. Programs frankly called "Back-
ground of the News" are another. Inclusion of explanatory material in
straight news shows is a third. Programs such as "Chicago Round

John Bartlow Martin, in the August, 1946, Harpers, quotes a typical
whitccollar worker: "There are so many things in the background you don't
know who to believe. Every newscaster that comes on says the UN did this,
it did that, 'til it don't mean a damn thing and you shut it off. I get a belly-
ful. That may not be the right thing to do but I don't know what to dc*
about it."

Making the News Meaningful 303

Table" and "America's Town Meeting of the Air" spring from the same
impulse.

Most critics of radio news think, however, that radio has by no means
done all it might. The commentator has done a part of the job; news
dramatizations in some cases are helpful. But insertion of back^ound
in the ordinary news show is still rare enough that its absence gives
point to the criticism.

Backgrounding the Straight News Show
Since there is never enough time on any news show for all the news
its editor would like to include, the space available for explanatory ma-
terial is limited. Every paragraph of background cuts out a paragraph
of news. That underlines one of the problems in backgrounding the
need for simplicity and concision. If the background can be presented
in one sentence, good.

And since the time for editing the show is also limited, an editor can

devote to digging for background only a few minutes out of the two

hours he ordinarily spends getting his copy ready another reason that

keeps the backgrounding brief,

A third reason is that the listener, though he may be subconsciously

Before World War II Elmer Davis's five-minute evening news summary
on CBS was one of the most highly-respected and most widely-heard news-
casts. He gave it up to become director of OWL The war over, he returned
to broadcasting as a commentator on ABC. On December 3, 1945, he wrote
these views of the meaning of the commentator's task:

"There never was a time when dependable analysis of the news, whether
on the air or in print, was more important than today. . . . There are half
a dozen lines of force in the world, and it is not yet by any means clear where
some of them lead. The news is complex and confusing, and on the surface
less interesting than the news of the war years; but it is just as important,
and in the long run may be just as dangerous. How dangerous it will be, what
will be the ultimate direction of some of the lines of force, what solutions
may be found for our present problems all that will depend in a large
degree on what the American people decide to do about it; and the wisdom
of their decision will depend on how well they understand what is going on.
To analyze and explain that news to the utmost of his ability imposes a
heavy responsibility on any commentator for the newspapers or the radio/'

304 News by Radio

appreciative of background, tunes his news show in primarily to hear
the latest developments on current stories.

To save time both in preparation and on the air, then, the editor
needs a number of shortcutting aids.

The first of these is his own qualification for the job. This means that
above all he has to be a thoroughly competent newsman. He has to be
able instantly to evaluate the news as it comes to him, to decide whether
it needs explanatory material to show its meaning or its relationship to
other news. Ideally he will be able to supply the backgrounding for
a good many stories without leaving his typewriter. In short, he must
be a man with sound background himself the kind of man suggested
by the "Standards for Education for Radio Journalism" outlined by
the Council on Radio Journalism (see Appendix B).

But no man can background every story that needs it merely by draw-
ing on his own knowledge.

So the well-equipped newsroom supplies him with sturdy crutches.
Many of these are suggested in Chapter 4 reference books, files of cur-
rent newspapers, news magazines, and specialized periodicals, atlases,
and the like. There should be also a "morgue," a carefully-built file of
clippings, "obits," other material saved against just this need. Im-
portant in such a file will be background material furnished by the radio
news wires geographical and personality features, roundups of his-
torical data, Washington columns, commentaries.

The editor writing his show from a newspaper wire will often find in
the copy with which he works the background he needs. Newspaper
stories, written more fully than those for radio, often contain explana-
tory material omitted from radio stories in the interest of brevity. The
editor can often extract from such copy enough data to fill in the gap
that mere factual presentation of the hot angle of the news might leave.

In short, the problem of material is not difficult when the radio news-
room has been properly set up when it has competent newsmen and
an adequate shelf of reference works.

Of course no such shelf, and no newsman's personal reservoir, will
meet every situation. Occasions arise when the editor has to get on the
telephone call a local businessman, a chemist at the local college, a
doctor, a city official. When he sees such a need arising in advance

Making the News Meaningful 305

hell see it often if he's on top of his job he will make time to go out
and interview some such expert, perhaps using a wire recorder, to fill
out his program.

Writing background material offers no special problem. All the prin-
ciples recited earlier in this book for simple, concise, conversational
manner apply, just as they do to straight news presentation. Look at
some examples.

A story comes over the wire let us suppose to the effect that
Marshall Field has decided to establish a daily newspaper in San Fran-
cisco. The story:

San Francisco is to have another daily newspaper. It will be called the Sezn
Francisco Sun, and its first issue will appear on July 1. Marshall Field, the
Chicago multi-millionaire, is putting up the money.

The editor knows that most listeners, if they think anything about
Marshall Field, think of a department store. He pulls some facts out of
his head and writes:

This will be Field's third venture in daily newspaper publishing. He
established the Chicago Sun just before Pearl Harbor . . . and bought the
New York "picture magazine" called PM just a month later. He has since
sold PM . . . it's known as the New York Star . . . and combined the
Sun with the Chicago Times . . . He's known as a political liberal.

Another story says that:

From United Nations headquarters comes word that Belgium wants to
put a territory in East Africa under UN trusteeship. The territory is called
Ruanda Urundi. The Belgians have held it as a mandate since the Germans
lost it at the end of World War I.

Here the editor is in luck. The name Ruanda Urundi rings a bell in his
memory, and he digs into the morgue to find a UP radio wire feature,
"Places in the News," moved a day or so earlier. From this five-minute
feature he condenses an add to the original story:

Ruanda Urundi is famous chiefly for having both the tallest and the short-
est people in the world. Ifs pretty primitive the Belgians have allowed its
four million natives to govern themselves. The natives are grain and cattle
growers but the Belgians have successfully introduced coffee raising. And
they have set up an enormous game reserve to keep the big game alive.

306 News by Radio

To a story reporting that a city in another section of the country has
adopted the city manager form of government, the editor adds a
sentence:

Three cities in this area Midland and Central City in Pennsylvania, and
Centervflle in Ohio will vote on the same proposal later this month.

A telephone call to the governor's office follows receipt of a story on
Federal aid to would-be housebuilders. As a result of information the
call develops, the editor completely rewrites the story, weaving the
background material through the original rather than tacking it on at
the end:

Congress plans to make liberal loans available to American home-builders.
But a string attached to the plan will probably prevent citizens of this state
from taking advantage of it.

Governor Blinkerton said today that the state doesn't have the necessary
legislation to take part in the plan. And he says he has no intention of call-
ing a special session of the legislature.

The Federal plan calls for loans from the national treasury for the actual
home building. But it asks that state or municipality lend the money to
purchase lots.

That's where, according to Blinkerton, this state can't go along. The gov-
ernor says he doesn't think the Federal plan is sound because, he goes
on ....

In another case, the editor may put the additional explanatory ma-
terial first, before giving the late news:

It looks as though Midland is going to go through another summer with-
out a city swimming pool.

You'll remember that in four of the last five years groups of Midland resi-
dents have tried to get the city council to build a pool. Each time they've
failed due to lack of money, lack of agreement on a site, and other ob-
stacles.

For the last few weeks it has seemed that this might be the year. The
Midland Rotary Club had agreed to raise the money by popular subscrip-
tion. And the Midland Golf Club had talked of deeding to the city three
acres for a swimming pool and park.

But today the club voted against releasing the land it's needed for ex-
pansion of the golf links. And the Rotary Club thereupon decided against a
money-raising campaign. As President Wilmer Jones explained, "Money
without a place to use it wouldn't do anybody any good/'

So Midland's swimmers are high and very dry for another year.

Making the News Meaningful 307

Other methods of providing background for news presentation aie
described elsewhere news dramatization, which is a most effective
method of clarifying involved aspects of news situations; various multi-
voice techniques, of which "Colorado Speaks," the KLZ-Denver show
described in Chapter 7, is one (similar to this program is "Radio Edi-
tion of the Weekly Press," on which WHCU-Ithaca, New York, b-oad-
casts news and comment from weekly papers in its area); the use of
recordings with fact and comment from authorities; and so on.

Still another device is the show devoted entirely to backgrounding.
Such shows, commonly under titles like "Behind the Headlines" or
"Background of the News," are usually fifteen-minute programs; they
are not commentaries, but are attempts to fill in the gaps left in the
average listener's comprehension by mere factual recitations. Obviously
they must hang directly on current news pegs. But they do no more
than summarize the news pegs; they devote their time to what underlies
the news.

Some such shows important to a station because they build up its
public service record are handled in a pretty shoddy manner. One sta-
tion each afternoon reads into its microphone articles from the Nation,
the New York Times, and other sober periodicals as its contribution to
understandability. The material is often excellent. The manner is not
often good radio. Such material is likely to come out of the receiving
set pretty formidable and stuffy.

Properly handled, each such show must be a rewrite job, just as news-
paper news must be rewritten for the ear. There are no new rules all
the familiar ones apply. Aside from the problem of radio style, the im-
portant aspects are that the material these shows present be competent
and authoritative; that it be nonpartisan, selected so as to offer con-
flicting views or explain contradictory influences on the news they dis-
cuss; and that the editor or writer who gets them up be himself a
competent newsman, one well enough informed so that he can do an
adequate job of selecting, compressing, evaluating, and interrelating
his material.

308 News by Radio

What Is "Commentary"?

Commentary is something else again.

Commentary, in radio news usage, is generally taken to be explana-
tion of a news event in the light of the speaker's personal knowledge
and judgment. Its essential difference from backgrounding lies in this
subjective element. Backgrounding, as has been made clear, is the
presentation of factual material, offered without comment to build a
framework into which the listener may fit the day's events. Commen-
tary, seeking also to build a framework for understanding, is the ex-
pression of judgment. It is qualitative. The backgrounder tells his
audience, after Colonel Lindbergh has made a speech on American
foreign affairs and the speech has been reported, that Lindbergh was
an avowed isolationist before World War II T that he withdrew from all
political activity after Pearl Harbor, and so on. The commentator may
say all this; but he adds that in his judgment Lindbergh's views are
sound as a drum (or dangerously incompetent), that they will lead to
peace (or war), that Lindbergh should stick to his own field (or that
he should be made President). He seeks not merely to infcrm the
audience, so that it can come to its own conclusions on the basis of the
pertinent evidence; instead he tries to lead the audience's thinking in
the direction in which he thinks it should go.

All of this may be very obvious. But it is obvious only to the student
of radio news, to the man who has his thinking straight. Evidence of
this is the general misuse of the term "radio commentator." To most
radio listeners, anybody who talks into a microphone on anything hav-
ing to do with news is a "commentator." Ask ten of your nonradio
friends which commentator they prefer, and nine of them will name
one or another newscaster as often as not a man who knows nothing
whatsoever about news beyond the fact that it is something that ap-
pears twenty-four hours a day on a convenient automatic typewriter in
the radio station. These nine friends will lump Swing, Heatte^
Sevareid, and the high school kid who reads the 7 AJVC. news on the
local 100-watter all into the same class. They're all to these nine
"commentators."

It is equally obvious that the line between the newscaster and the

Making the News Meaningful 309

commentator cannot always be sharply drawn. Winchell, almost al-
ways referred to as a "commentator/' is primarily a newscaster. His
broadcasts gain their character largely from the fact that he offers his
particular brand of news factual material. But as he has come more
and more to view himself as a seer and a capital-letter Authority, he has
larded his revelations with warnings, viewings-with-alarm, encomiums
in short, with comment. Drew Pearson is another who reports and
gives views in consecutive breaths. Many of radio's top-slot corre-
spondents, foreign and domestic, do both often with extremely high
competence.

On the other hand, Kaltenborn, Swing, Harsch, and Heatter are
pretty definitely commentators. The character of their broadcasts de-
rives not from the fact that current news forms the framework of what
they have to say ? but that the framework is clothed in their own sub-
jective explanations.

"Commentary" or "Analysis"?

The American Broadcasting Company describes Elmer Davis, one of
its most highly regarded newsmen, as "news analyst and commentator."
CBS declares that it has no "commentators" on its payroll, but only
"analysts." ABC says the two are one; CBS says they are sharply dis-
tinct.

The CBS view, announced as a company policy in September, 1943,
immediately brewed a storm. Paul White, CBS news director at the
time, had issued a memorandum "to CBS news analysts" on September
7, defining the distinction. CBS saw its news services, said the memo,
as a public charge a charge that, since the number of broadcasting
channels is limited, CBS would violate should its "analysts" become
special pleaders.

The analyst (said the memorandum in part) should attempt to clear up
any contradictions within the known record, should fairly present both sides
of controversial questions, and, in short, should give the best available in-
formation upon which listeners can make up their own minds. Ideally, in
the case of controversial issues, the audience should be left with no im-
pression as to which side the analyst himself actually favors. . . .

Actuallv freedom of speech on the radio would be menaced if a small

310 News by Radio

ences and have regular broadcasting periods in which to build up loyal
listeners, take advantage of their "preferred position" and become pulpit-
eers. . . . Then freedom of the air, within the genuine spirit of democ-
racy, would be merely a hollow phrase. . . .

The "analyst," in other words, explains, clarifies, elucidates, elal>
orates. He keeps clear of the presentation of personal opinion; he does
not harangue, preach, nor tell the public how to think. If he does, he
becomes a "commentator."

The CBS definition did not fall from a clear sky. The fundamental
principle on which it was based that the broadcasting channels are
public property and that they must be used to further "the public in-
terest, convenience, and necessity" had been expressed in the Federal
Radio Act of 1927 and the Federal Communications Act of 1934. It
had been implemented by dicta of the FCC to the effect that holders of
broadcasting licenses must not grant freedom of the air only to views
they approved, but must treat all causes and all comers alike; by fre-
quently-repeated suggestions from the NAB to its members that they
not only avoid special pleading but also frown on broadcasts dealing
with controversial issues; by codes of "ethics" or practice issued time
and again by networks and by individual stations.

The "Mayflower decision" of the FCC was for years broadcasting's guide
on the problem of editorializing. The decision was issued on January 16,
1941, as an incidental part of an FCC order granting license renewal to
WAAB-Boston, whose channel had been asked for in an application from
the Mayflower Broadcasting Corporation. After nearly two years of hesita-
tion, the FCC decided in favor of WAAB; a factor in its hesitation, the
FCC said, had been the fact that the station had for more than eighteen
months "broadcast so-called editorials . . . urging the election of various
candidates for political office or supporting one side or another of various
questions in public controversy. In these editorials, which were delivered
by the editor-in-chief of the station's news service, no pretense was made at
objective, impartial reporting. It is clear indeed, the station seems to have
taken pride in the fact that the purpose of these editorials was to win
public support for some person or view favored by those in control of the
station."

Nevertheless, the Commission concluded to renew the WAAB license,
upon the station's promise to give up editorializing (it 'had in fact already
done so, the FCC reported). But the formal statement of policy included

(continued on next page)

Making the News Meaningful 311

Nobody quarreled with the principle. There had been violations of
it, real and imaginary; the FCC had before this time, and has since,
called to account stations that failed to maintain scrupulous attention
to presentation of differing or opposing points of view. There had been
cases in which individual broadcasters had, according to public and
private charges, failed to represent the public interest. Boakc Carter,
once the most popular, as he was the first, of the national!}" broadcast
commentators, had lost a sponsor, it was said, largely because of the
extremity and virulence of the personal opinions he had expressed.

in the decision became a basic rule-of-thumb for broadcasters' guidance. It
said, in part:

". . . Under the American system of broadcasting it is clear that re-
sponsibility for the conduct of a broadcast station must rest initially with
the broadcaster. It is equally clear that with the limitations in frequencies
inherent in the nature of radio, the public interest can never be served by a
dedication of any broadcast facility to the support of partisan ends. Radio
can serve as an instrument of democracy only when devoted to the com-
munication of information and the exchange of ideas fairly and objectively
presented. A truly free radio cannot be used to advocate the causes of the
licensee. It cannot be used to support the candidacies of his friends. It
cannot be devoted to the support of principles he happens to regard most
favorably. In brief, the broadcaster cannot be an advocate.

"Freedom of speech on the radio must be broad enough to provide full
and equal opportunity for the presentation to the public of all sides of
public issues. Indeed, as one licensed to operate in a public domain the
licensee has assumed the obligation of presenting all sides of important
public questions, fairly, objectively and without bias. The public interest
not the private is paramount. These requirements are inherent in the con-
ception of public interest set up by the Communications Act as the cri-
terion of regulation."

Through the war years the Mayflower decision stood apparently sacro-
sanct. But with the passing of war as the top news subject, and with the
development of broadcasters' interest in local news and local topics, a few
and then many radio men began to question it. Why, they asked, should
not radio have the same editorial privileges of the newspapers? Why should
not radio men, even under a system of private operation of public facilities,
be permitted to take and express positions on public questions? Some broad-
casters, it is true, commented cannily that the Mayflower decision removed
from them the responsibility to stick their necks out. But in late 1947 a
Broadcasting Magazine survey showed 88 per cent of managers of com-

( continued on next page )

312 News by Radio

Fulton Lewis had often been charged with representing essentially the
"NAM point of view" a charge given color by the fact that he was at
one time in the employ of the National Association of Manufacturers.
Many other cases had arisen.

CBS's pronouncement, however, was the first broad-scale attempt to
draw a line between background and opinion in the offerings of the
men ordinarily called commentators. (CBS had announced a policy
based on the same principle in 1939, but it had not drawn much atten-
tion.) "Censorship!" shouted a number of such men'. Cecil Brown,
burning under Paul White's sharp reproof for broadcasting, on August

mercial AM stations saying they thought stations should have the right to
editorialize, and 55 per cent that they would do so if they could; only 10
per cent said they would not. Most of the managers reported themselves
ready to face the new political, social, and other problems they thought the
privilege of editorializing would raise; two-thirds of them thought the
privilege should be limited to individual stations and not granted to net-
works.

Already in September of 1947 the FCC had recognized the growth of
such attitudes by scheduling formal hearings on the problem to be held
early in 1948. Specifically, the Commission was responding to a petition of
WHCU-Cornell University for a flat statement as to whether a station
might broadcast its own views along with those of others on a subject of
local interest. Actually, it was influenced by statements of the NAB News
Committee, of many of the radio news clinics held in preceding months,
and of scores of individual broadcasters.

The hearings developed conflicting attitudes both within and without
the industry. Favoring abolition of the no-editorials ruling were the NAB,
which stood consistently against any kind of programming control by the
FCC, a number of stations which held that broadcasters should have the
same right to expression of opinion as have the newspapers, and others who
expressed the view that the Mayflower doctrine is an abridgment of Consti-
tutional freedom. CBS, incidentally, asked abolition of the doctrine de-
parting from its 1943 position largely on the ground that the "theory of
scarcity" of broadcasting channels is no longer valid. Many of those desir-
ing the right to editorialize, however, said they had no intention to put it
immediately to use. Opposed to change in the doctrine was an array of wit-
nesses who held that the public interest demands that the "privileged
group" holding broadcasting licenses should not be given the right to ex-
press opinion.

The decision of the FCC had not been rendered up to late 1948.

Making the News Meaningful 31 3

25, "what Cecil Brown thinks" (White's words) rather than, as White
saw it, facts to enable the listener to decide what to think, resigned
from the CBS roll. H. V. Kaltenborn, perhaps CBS's top man in the
public mind, resigned some time later to join NBC. The small but im-
pressive Association of Radio News Analysts, of which Kaltenborn was
a leader, objected vigorously. Essentially, the objections asserted that
CBS was denying its men the right of free expression.

This, of course, White denied. He declared that what the ARNA
asked freedom for qualified men to express their views freely was in-
consistent with public responsibility. He quoted Kaltenborn to show
that what Kaltenborn and ARNA wanted was substantially what CBS
wanted:

The radio news analyst (Kaltenborn had said in a recent speech) cannot
and should not function night after night as preacher and soap box orator.
He cannot constantly make himself the medium for passionate expression
of personal or minority opinions.

Kaltenborn had gone on to say that "no news analyst worth his salt
could or would be completely neutral or objective" that news evalua-
tion, selection or rejection of material, exercise of editorial judgment all
must be subjective. To which White replied that "complete jour-
nalistic objectivity is probably only an ideal, but the fact that it is
difficult if not impossible to attain does not impair the ideal itself, nor
excuse the broadcaster from a constant and vigilant effort to attain it."

The views of Edward R. Murrow CBS are pertinent. When Murrow
opened a series of newscasts over CBS in October, 1947, he explained
his conception of his job:

News periods should be devoted to giving the facts emanating from an
established newsgathering source, to giving all the color in the proper sense
of the word, without intruding the views of the analyst.

The news analyst further can and very often should give as much light as
possible on the meaning of events. In other words: The news analyst should
not say that they're good or bad in his opinion, but should analyze their sig-
nificance in the light of known facts, the results of similar occurrences, and
soon.

And in this he should always be fair. He is fully entitled to give and should
give the opinions of various persons, groups, or political parties when these
are known, leaving the listener to draw his own conclusions. .

314 News by Radio

We shall do our best to identify sources and to resist the temptation to
use this microphone as a privileged platform. . . . And we shall try to
remember that the mechanics of radio which make it possible for an indi-
vidual to be heard throughout the land don't confer great wisdom or in-
fallibility on that individual.

Most newsmen have appeared to feel that the dispute is somewhat
academic. "Analysts'* and "commentators" alike have said that the
CBS definition would make little difference in their work. They agree
with Kaltenborn that the self-respecting and competent analyst-com-
mentator has no right to mount a soap box. They agree with White
that the ideal of objectivity in the approach to facts is a goal to shoot
at. They present their broadcasts, they say under whatever descrip-
tive title with the aim of helping listeners to understand the news as
they think it ought to be understood, always as soundly as their knowl-
edge, judgment, and experience let them.

The difficulty of hitting on an acceptable definition of the term
''analyst" is aptly illustrated by an article in the April, 1946, Free World
by Cesar Saerchinger. Saerchinger, for years an NBC commentator,
defines the news analyst as "the man who not only selects his news but
analyzes or interprets it, either with or without personal or political
bias." In Saerchinger's dictionary, "analyst" means precisely what CBS
says it doesn't.

Evidence mounts, in any case, that the CBS policy has not hampered
its news service. A Peabody Award for "outstanding reporting of the
news" went in 1946 to CBS, with a special orchid to Paul White. The

In the Atlantic Monthly for November, 1943, appeared a discussion of
the problem of control of radio commentary, "Policing the Commentator/'
by Quincy Howe. It elaborates some of the points discussed in this chapter.

An excellent longer dissertation on radio commentary and commentators
also appeared in the Atlantic: "Hearing Is Believing/' a series of three
articles by Dixon Wecter (June, July, and August, 1945). Mr. Wecter de-
votes most of his space to comment on individual radio news figures
Swing, Harsch, Kaltenbom, Thomas, George Fielding Eliot, Dorothy
Thompson, Pearson, Winchell, Heatter, Lewis, and Upton Close.

Further development of the subject will be found in The American
Radio, by Llewellyn White (University of Chicago Press, 1947) , one of the
series of reports of the Commission on Freedom of the Press.

Making the News Meaningful 315

CIO-PAC, making a study of thirty-three daily news programs on the
four major networks during seven weeks of the 19+4 Presidential
campaign, concluded that CBS alone maintained a balance between
pro and con in "moral judgment" in matters related to the PAC. And
more than one critic has declared CBS news service to be the soundest
of its kind.

Commentary and the Station

Radio listeners are aware that commentators and analysts are usually
employees of networks rather than of individual stations. Upwards of
a hundred men (and a few women) go on the chains, daily or weekly,
with analyses of the news; the total number of such broadcasters in the
employ of individual stations is probably no larger, though there are
more than a thousand stations and only a handful of networks of all
kinds.

The prime reasons are easy to define: cost and fear of charges of
partisanship.

Cost of putting a commentator on the air is relatively high because
the commentator is ordinarily a select kind of performer. Dixon Wec-
ter, in the Atlantic articles just cited, presents a glib account of "the
typical evolution of a commentator" in which he declares that com-
mentators are usually golden-voiced boys who grow up from jobs as
news announcers to find themselves suddenly become authorities. This
is a little too glib. Most commentators are individuals who, before they
turn oracles, have attained a degree of public acceptance in the news or
public affairs fields. They are foreign or Washington correspondents,
social scientists, or authorities of other kinds whose special distinction
gives their comment on current affairs public standing. Because they
have such standing, they can command bigger figures on their salary
checks (as is indicated in Chapter 4) than most stations care to pay for
talent for only one or two shows a day.

The second reason derives from the thinking that has led much of
radio to avoid controversy. The local station, particularly the small local
station, knows that it must make its facilities available equally to all
parties to contested issues. Commentators even "analysts" no mat-
ter how objective and fair and conscientious they try to make theii

316 News by Radio

broadcasts, can at times hardly avoid taking, or seeming to take, sides.
From the point of view of the public interest, this is not necessarily ob-
jectionable; but it can become troublesome. Most stations choose the
course of avoiding trouble rather than seeking it. Ergo, few commen-
tators.

There are other reasons why many stations do not employ com-
mentators. Even though a small station might be willing to stand the
cost and face the charge of taking sides, it is not likely that it would
find a competent commentator easy to come by. And even though it
should overcome this obstacle, it could hardly hope that his offerings
would do much to raise its Hooper ratings. Comment on public affairs
does not draw "big audiences.

All of this to the contrary, some stations have made significant efforts
in this field. KDAL-Duluth puts a daily three- or four-minute com-
mentary on a local subject into the middle of its major local news show.
WINR-Binghamton, New York, schedules local commentary regu-
larly at 7:45 P.M. each day. A. D. Willard, NAB executive vice-presi-
dent, told an Ohio news clinic in 1946 that "soon radio will accept the
same responsibility" assumed by newspapers in presenting views on
local issues. "NAB will do everything to hasten the day," he said, "when
every radio station will build for itself the same position newspapers
have built for themselves in their editorial policies, and in standing up
for what they believe is right." The NAB radio news committee, in
1947, went on record in favor of radio "editorializing" as a function of
the competent radio newsroom.

Closely related to controversial commentary is the matter of vigorous
championing of causes in the public interest on which there is no con-
troversy. Nobody denies the desirability of attacking municipal corrup-
tion, juvenile delinquency, unsanitary restaurants, and the like; what is
needed here is not the willingness to engage in controversy so much as
the energy to dig into hidden situations and the courage to say what
needs to be said about them. Radio stations offer many examples of this

C. A. Siepmann, in Radio's Second Chance (Rinehart, 1946), writes
stimulatingly about the questions of partisanship, discrimination, and
other matters of radio's public policy. The book is worth every broadcasting
worker's time.

Making the News Meaningful 317

kind of thing. WBNY-Buffalo, by hard-hitting, insistent reporting,
caused a clean-up in a local police problem that had been given scant
attention by other local communication agencies. WSB-Atlanta and
WCCO-Twin Cities won widespread praise by their repeated shafts
at racial and religious intolerance WSB in its series of dramatized
"The Harbor We Seek" programs and WCCO in a special series of six
documentary shows, "Neither Free Nor Equal," which has not often
been equaled in calling spades spades. Harry M. Cochran of WSTV-
Steubenville, Ohio, won a 1946 Sigma Delta Chi medal for docu-
mented reporting of the criminal background of one of the operators of
local gambling dens. WCAU-Philadelphia put on a campaign to aid
the "Philadelphia Plan" of reducing food costs. Radio stations through-
out the land put on all kinds of programs, in 1947, to combat the juve-
nile delinquency problem. KRNT-Des Moines aided its community in
an impressive reduction in the number of traffic fatalities. And so on.
In any case, commentary is an integral and a vital part of the radio
news profession (or business) . That it is difficult, that it is seeded with
booby traps, that it is costly all such facts do not justify radio's avoid-
ing it. American broadcasting will not, indeed, be fully accepting its
responsibility until it shoulders the burden of leadership implied by its
position as trustee of a vastly important means of mass communication.
The FCC appears to feel that it is a necessity, and so does the public.
Radio as shown by the demand for modification of the Mayflower

Evidence of public interest in what a station does with its commentators
came dramatically in Los Angeles in the spring of 1945. Station KFI an-
nounced in February that all news analyses would be restricted to employees
of the station. In the following months the California legislature denounced
the action by resolution, and a citizens' "Emergency Committee on KFP"
was formed to protest on the ground that such action removed from the
air competent commentators whose broadcasts were of value to the public,
and that limiting comment to KFI employees might mean that only the
views of the station's owners would be broadcast. KFI countered later, after
formal protest to the FCC had been made, that it had no intention of tak-
ing off its schedule its NBC network commentators. The FCC promised to
watch "developments" in the case. The important point is not the merit
of the specific problem, but the fact that a portion of the public was aroused
to action against what it thought might be a threat to freedom of expression,
and to radio service in the public interest.

318 News by Radio

principle seems ready to devote more and more time to this kind of
leadership, in its own interests as in the interests of its clientele.

How the Commentary Grows

Most commentators "write their own stuff." They choose their sub-
jects, decide on their attitudes, write their copy, and broadcast it them-
selves. Cases crop up in which commentators have ghosts who do their
real work, leaving to them the glory of microphone appearance, but
they are rare.

This is as it should be. Commentary is nothing if not personal, and
the "commentator" who does no more than parrot analyses prepared
for him by a hack no matter how competent a hack not only is a
parasite and a fake, but is also pretty sure to lack conviction in presenta-
tion. In a day when the trend is toward making newscasters their own
writers and research men, it is doubly important that commentators
be the real thing.

Commentary to repeat is a highly personalized business. No two
commentators approach problems in just the same way, nor work in the
same mental or physical environment, nor turn out the same kind of
copy. Each man, if he is to maintain the individual flavor that is so im-
portant a factor in his effectiveness, must write copy that is distinctly
his copy copy that would be less effective (and perhaps nothing but
hash) in any mouth other than his. For this reason, precise and abso-
lute rules for the writing of commentary copy cannot be laid down.

Here, then, are general suggestions rather than specific precepts.
Though Raymond Swing and Gabriel Heatter produce widely differing
broadcasts, they have some of the same starting points. What is said
here is not intended to shape the individual commentary, but rather to

The copy of a commentator who here shall be nameless has for years been
the despair of other writers in his newsroom. Sample sentences from one of
his wartime broadcasts: "We have been subjected to a series of rude shocks,
militarily, and, as a result, on the homefront. Now, increasingly disturbed,
the American people are buckling down, but, even so, are starting to inquire
the reasons for mounting casualties, and a situation that presages a war
barely begun/' Nobody but the man who wrote them could put such rhetor-
ical monstrosities over. But this man somehow made them both meaningful
and forceful.

Making the News Meaningful 319

present the broad, common aspects of the commentator's task.

What are the common starting points?

First, long and thorough grounding in public affairs. Most commonly
such grounding is that of the newspaper man. Most of the commen-
tators who were big names during the war were former newspaper men
Godwin, Sevareid, Lewis, Pearson, Swing, K^ltenborn, and a host of
others. These are men who have for years been deeply concerned
with the understanding and evaluation of news; men, too, who ap-
proach news with respect for it and with a passion for making it mean-
ingful to a public that hasn't their background.

Work directly with news, however, is not the only avenue. George
Fielding Eliot was a professional soldier and a pulp-magazine writer
before he became a military commentator. Edward Murrow was an
educator and a youth worker; Upton Close was a world traveler and
student of Far Eastern affairs. Many commentators, especially those
allied with individual stations, are university professors or specialists in
social science fields. After V-J Day there was a swing toward the employ-
ment of prominent political and governmental figures: Sumner Welles,
Harold Ickes, and Fiorello LaGuardia are examples.

A second starting point is constant access to latest news reports. Most
commentators work in intimate contact with network or big-station
newsrooms, where printers chatter twenty-four hours a day. Heatter has
printers installed in his Long Island home, his Connecticut farm, and
his New York apartment. Many commentators, in addition, have their
own personal news channels. The modern commentator is a "big
name," and he can usually gain access to important news sources by
picking up a telephone. Some, like Pearson and Winchell, capitalize on
what they say are private sources "men in high position/' "authorita-
tive voices on Capitol Hill" who, they would have their listeners believe,
open their hearts to Pearson or Winchell alone. It goes without saying
that every commentator draws heavily on his own experience and
knowledge, and that he has at his right hand many shelves of reference
material.

Finally, the commentator must have certain special skills. He needs
to be able to turn out effective radio copy effective either in the sober,
orderly manner of a Swing or the flashy, sentimental style of a Heatter.

320 News by Radio

He must have a presentable radio personalitynot necessarily one
characterized by golden voice and broadcast glamour, but at least one
that carries conviction and has the ring of authority.

And it doesn't hurt if he has a touch of the crusader, and at least a
modicum of showmanship. Commentators who draw largest audiences
are those who can, on occasion, get excited. Though commentary is a
serious business, it can be made more effective by the impassioned voice
(if it isn't worked to death) and by the use of the showman's devices
of suspense and color.

All of this suggests that the commentator works hard at his job. He
does. Most commentators do no more than one show a day, and no
more than five a week. They ordinarily put in a full day's work at each
show. Typically, a commentator rises in the morning along with the
rest of the world, has breakfast by 8 o'clock, and starts his day's routine.
This means reading a variety of newspapers (the New Yorfe Times is a
"must" for most commentators) and news and discussion periodicals,
perhaps "catching" several news broadcasts, checking the printers for
late news developments. It also involves going through a mass of "hand-
outs," bulletins, special pleas, and other such material which comes by
the mailbagful some bidden and welcome, some routed direct to the
fireplace. By noon (supposing that his show goes on the air in the eve-
ning) , a commentator will usually have decided what subject or sub-
jects he is to treat.

After lunch the commentator may start to work on his copy; or he
may need to do some reporting, some additional fact-finding and re-
search and opinion-sampling. At any rate, he will need to have put him-
self before his typewriter four or five hours in advance of broadcast time.
No two men work at the same speed. One political scientist who has a
three-times-a-week evening commentary of ten minutes clears all the
time after noon on broadcast days for his job. Another who writes his
copy longhand allows five hours for the actual writing.

This discussion deals with the commentator whose work is essentially
confined to news in the term's broad sense current social, political, and
economic developments. There are also specialized commentators: Men
like George Fielding Eliot and Hanson Baldwin in military matters, Clifton
Fadiman on books, Jimmy Fidler on movies.

Making the News Meaningful 321

In any case, the commentator must make sure that he has ample time
for final polishing, and for checking again the latest news developments
before he goes on the air. Once in a while he may find such develop-
ments completely altering a situation, so that he will have a thorough
revamping job to do. If he's a Kaltenborn, perfectly at ease in an ad-lib
broadcast, his problem may be simple. If he isn't, there may be a
hectic hour just before air time.

Organization of the commentary is, and should be, simple. Ordi-
narily a five- or ten-minute show deals with only one or two major sub-
jects, and a fifteen-minute with no more than three. The commentator
chooses topics of wide interest, or importance, or preferably both.
Since his job is to illuminate, to explain, to show values, rather than
merely to report (though at times he may choose to do nothing beyond
report relevant facts bearing on a subject in the news) , he needs at least
several minutes for each topic. Consequently his main organization
problem is to decide which topic will make his opening most effective,
and perhaps how to move smoothly from one topic to another. If his
show carries a mid-commercial, he needs to devise a convenient break
either a pause in the discussion of a single topic, or a shift to another
subject.

Most of what there is to say about the actual writing, the rhetorical
form, has already been said. Though the commentary is a special type
of news broadcast, it is still a news broadcast. Therefore it needs to have
the qualities of informality, of directness, of simplicity, and of color
that characterize any effective news show. Within this generalization,
however, there are several specific requirements:

L The news peg the current news on which the comment is to
hang must appear early in the script. Unless the news is of transcend-
ent importance and interest the death of a President or of a price con-
trol system, for example the commentator must write on the principle
that many among his audience will not be intimately conversant with
it. He must therefore show in his opening remarks precisely the occa-
sion for his choice of topic, and present enough of the current factual
news so that no single listener will be puzzled.

2. The commentary must get a running start. Commentary audi-
ences are never large most radio listeners vastly prefer a Jack Benny

322 News by Radio

to a Joseph Harsch. The commentator has to take hold of the dial-
twisters in his first sentence, or forever lose them. Use of a vital news
peg in the opening sentence is often effective. Posing a question to
which thousands want to know the answer "How high are food prices
going to go?" is another. An anecdote may do the job: "Here's a story
that will interest you. . . ." Or a personal experience: "I heard two
housewives in the corner grocery talking about the price of butter to-
day. . . ." Promise of something striking may do it: "What happened
to the price of butter in a little Southern town today, thanks to short-
ages, scares the life out of me. . . ." These and other devices have a
number of common characteristics: they talk in listener-terms; they
show immediately that the subject is of current and broad interest;
they promise something to come.

3. Most scripts should be plentifully larded with specific facts. The
listener can tie his imagination and his attention to specific facts; but
he is puzzled and often bored by generalization or by philosophical
rumination. The use of incident, anecdote, concrete example or illus-
tration, moreover, is one of the sure methods of putting life and color
into a broadcast. Finally, much of any commentary normally consists of
the presentation of factual background behind the news of the day.
Though the commentator is picked for his job because his opinions are
competent and trustworthy, he is expected not merely to offer think-
pieces to his audience but rather to show that the facts add up to what
he considers a logical over-all view of a news situation.

4. The commentator has responsibility like that of the newscaster to
avoid sensationalizing, sentimentality, and overemotionalism. Not that
all do: Pearson and Winchell glory in sensationalizing, and Heatter
gives sentimentality and emotionalism (as much in his fervent, dedi-
cated voice as in his words) high standing among his wares. On the
other hand, Swing with his Olympic calm seems to make a fetish of
avoiding any suggestion of excitement about the news or what it means.
The ideal, doubtless, is somewhere between the extremes. The point is
that a commentator who depends on overcoloration, either in voice or
words, is gaining audience but rendering it a disservice and, in some
cases, doing it positive injury; one who consistently understates, orally
or verbally, loses audience and may also be guilty of disservice.

Making the News Meaningful 323

5. The commentary must "come out right." The newscaster, with an
eye on the clock, can pick and choose among short news stories as he
nears the end of his air time so as to bring his show to a close within a
few seconds of his allotted period. The commentator usually has no
such handy adjusting device. Since his comment on a subject is in the
nature of a brief essay, its organization demands that the conclusion
often the most important part of what he has to say be timed down to
the last period. ABC boasts that Swing, working with a stopwatch in
his hand and the knowledge that thirteen lines on his typewriter ac-
count for a minute on the air, invariably comes to the end of his last
paragraph on the nose. Most commentators have not figured it so fine;
but all must give serious attention to timing.

Radio commentators have come in for a lot of attention from American
magazine and book publishers in recent years. Two books dealing with them
are The Columnists by Charles Fisher (Howell, Soskin, 1944) and Molders
of Opinion, edited by David Bulman (Bruce, 1945). Fisher's book, though
it is concerned with newspaper as well as radio commentators (many men
are both) , is the more complete and revealing.

Among magazine articles on commentators *(in addition to those cited
earlier in this chapter) :

"Edward R. Murrow" by Robert J. Landry, Scribner's, December, 1938
"Fadiman for the Millions" by John Chamberlain, Saturday Evening Post,

January 11, 1941
"The Crier" by Philip Hamburger, a Profile on Gabriel Heatter, New

Yorker, January 20, 1945
"Radio's Public Opinionators" by Jessyca Russell, Magazine Digest, July,

1945

"You're on the Air" by Cesar Saerchingcr, Free World, April, 1946
"The Role of the Radio Commentator" by Hadley Cantril, Public Opinion

Quarterly, October, 1939
"The Voice" by R. O. Boyer, a Profile on Raymond Swing, New Yorker,

November 14-21 (two parts), 1942
"Pugnacious Pearson" by Jack Alexander, Saturday Evening Post, January

6, 1945
"Kaltenborn Edits the News" by Giraud Chester, American Mercury,

October, 1947
"The Shortage of News Analysts" by Charles A. Siepmann, Nation,

January 24, 1948

324 News by Radio

6. The commentator who likes his job must avoid becoming a special
pleader.

7. The commentator ought to try to avoid confusing himself with
God.

The Professionals at Work

Through the good nature and courtesy of H. R. Baukhage, Gabriel
Heatter, Eric Sevareid, and Raymond Swing, readers of this book are
here given an opportunity for line-by-line examination of several of
their actual scripts.

First, there are two by Baukhage, for years a member of the ABC
Washington news staff. Baukhage works from a triple-spaced script
which he types himself. He is an inexpert typist, and there are many
errors with penciled corrections. Since he reads his own copy, he permits
some errors that won't mislead him to go uncorrected, and he pays no
attention to the standard rule that sentences or words must not break
from one page of copy to another he is so familiar with what he has
written that he can deliver it smoothly. To the script that follows,
broadcast from Washington on September 9, 1946, he has appended
his own comments. His preface:

Many people express surprise at the answer to one of the most frequently-
asked questions about broadcasting: "How long does it take you to prepare
your script?"

It takes as long to prepare most good broadcasts as it does to prepare
for the painting of a good picture. Whistler said that took him a lifetime.

Working on a single script, if you simply count the time which has
elapsed on the day you do the writing, would be from about 7 A.M., when I
reach my office, to 1: 15 P.M., when I leave the microphone. However, all my
working day except the time devoted to the preparation of a weekly column
and the writing of a few articles and lectures is spent on the broadcasts.

Now the script,* with Baukhage's comments where they apply:

'The script starts with a descrip- Baukhage talking,
tion of the weather, which required

a perusal of the weather map. Fre- If I had my way this morning I'd

quently I call up the Weather Bu- be talking about the weather and

reau and consult them when there nothing else. It isn't unusual or un-

* By written permission of H. R. Baukhage, September 17, 1946.

is some unusual meteorological phe-
nomenon worthy of comment."

Making the News Meaningful 325

expected it is just Washington
showing us what I told you it would
that these delightful pre-fall days

didn't mean we weren't going to have a post-summer. 90 is predicted for
this afternoon. Yesterday it was hotter here than it was in Miami or New
Orleans. Somewhere in between those two cities a lot of hot air pushed
north out of the Gulf of Mexico, and I understand that it pushed clear up
into the Susquehanna Valley. It looks as if the chilly spot was Reno, which
is more or less advantageous to the city's leading industry.

"The second paragraph takes up
the question of strikes and, while it
is more or less factual reporting, it
reflects a long interview I had the
previous d*y with a member of the
Labor Department, dealing with the
machinery of conciliation, and also
opinions garnered from various offi-
cials on the current situation per-
haps two or three separate conversa-
ations."

Strikes are the chief topic of the
day again, and the pessimists who
warned us to look for another round
seem to have been right. As far as I
have been able to learn at this hour,
it looks as if the Maritime people
had the government where they
wanted it, right out on a limb, and
the prediction is that they'll have to
saw themselves off. And when the
stabilization bough breaks, up will
go wages and prices and all.

I suppose there will be more than the 30 lines which the Russian papers
gave to the Byrnes speech in Germany, devoted to our internal troubles.

I'm sure most of you blame the governmental labor machinery for the
present dilemma. What would you have done? The CIO maritime workers
on the west coast struck and the government stabilization board okeh'ed
a minimum wage raise. Meanwhile the AF of L was negotiating on
its end. The ship owners granted a higher rate to them than CIO won.

The government had named its
limit and so the workers struck
against the board's decision. That is
one of the disadvantages of having
two rival union organizations which

"I mention 'the disadvantages of
having two rival union organiza-
tions/ Views stated there are based
partly on an interview I had with

Secretary of Labor Perkins when she have to holdjheir membership^ by
was in office and also on a telephone
call confirming the fact that the

breach between the two organiza-
tions is as wide as or wider than
ever."

competing. Today there is less
chance of amalgamation than ever,
if we can judge from some of the
choice remarks CIO head Murray
made about AF of L head Green,

326 News by Radio

That isn't the only obstacle in the government's path when it comes to
labor disputes. There is a breach between the White House and the labor
department. It is no secret to Secretary of Labor Schwellenbach that Pres-

< <rrn . , . . ., ident Truman has been valiantly

This paragraph mentions the , . ., . -, ,.

,.- *\ * ^ n , ,, , v seeking some other nice iob for him.

differences between Schwellenbach Schwe | enbach is not ^ to it if

and the President. My comment on he undr ^ fte J ^

this situation is the result of at least president answered a tion ^ his

half a dozen recent mtemews with conference last week H made it p i ain

people who reflect the attitude of thattheMaritimestrikewasent i r el y
theWhiteHouse,theUborDepart- Labor Secret - s hot ta j

ment Schwellenbach and his ^ ^ ^^ /

fnends. Among the interviews is .. r . r . , , . r .-, ,

T , , .? . tl _ c , it was mst a straw but one that
one I had earlier with Schwellen- . . ', , , , , .,

, , ^ , L . .., was intended to break the camel s

bach hvo long conversations ; with Qthers sgid ;t wQu

one of his intimate friends, the re- make Schwellenbach hum

port of a very reliable source con- , , . r

r ., J , . . , . , and keep on going.

cernmg the advice given him by r D

another of his counsellors. On that r^, . ., . . , *...

,. . , . . -L v The strike is no ioke. If it starts a

is predicated my view of the policy , . . . J n ,-, , ,.

r chain reaction, Paul Porter won t

^ " " have to resign as OPA head as

Broadcasting Magazine said he was going to and the President said he
wasn't. There won't be any price control. And the stabilization board will
find it's no use to try to lock the stable after wages have stolen another up-
ward march.

As John Steelman, chief stabilizer, says in the current American Maga-
zine (I'm quoting it and him), "Before winter sets in it will be apparent
whether those old forces supply and demand can operate quickly enough
to stabilize our economy with the controls which we now have available.
If we are to avoid a riotous price and wage chase ending in a crash, we must
cooperate with the government agencies . . . Business and industry must
police themselves and refrain from seeking bigger mark-ups and high-priced

lines. Labor must seek higher

'Two articles are quoted one wages only in cases of obvious hard-
from Fortune and another from the ship. . . ."
American. I read both at home, out-

side of office hours/* There is more advice to bankers

and farmers and buyers. But the

boom is on, and the consumers are the craziest of all. As Fortune Maga-
zine remarks, there seems no bottom to the American purse. Mink coats at
fifteen thousand and men's wrist watches at a thousand dollars all sell just

Making the News Meaningful 327

about as fast as egg beaters, table radios and pork chops. They're off, and
you might as well try to stop a bandersnatch.

As Fortune comments, there are more people in insane asylums than ever
before. Maybe, what with the housing system, THEY are just crazy like
Reynard R-E-Y-N-A-R-D (Hie class can look up the allusion for to-
morrow) .

The latest embroidery to the labor situation is the assumption of the
duties of the State Department by the International Longshoreman's
union. They have decided to amend our foreign policy toward Jugoslavia.
Joseph Ryan, president of the organization, says no more ships carrying
supplies to Jugoslavia will be loaded. La Guardia says there are 37 UNRRA
ships now unloaded how many are bound for Jugoslavia he didn't say.
While mari^ people will think it's at least rough justice to amend the ancient
saying and cease feeding the mouth that is biting you, after all, it would
seem proper to let Mr. Byrnes do his job until we decide to make Mr. Ryan
secretary of state.

One thing it is well to remember. UNRRA is not an American organ-
ization. It is an international or-

"On the question of UNRRA ganization. All of its employees,
and America's relation to it, no regardless of nationality, are working
authorities are mentioned. But the for it, not for the country of which
opinions expressed are based on they are citizens. The United States
three long and intimate talks with has made certain pledges to deliver
one of my friends who at the time certain supplies. If we don't want to
held a position in UNRRA very live up to our pledges we can get
close to the Director General." out of the organization, I suppose.

But we can't change the rales arbi-
trarily. In any case, we won't spite Tito or his bosses.

We'll just starve some poor Slav who doesn't even know we had a plane
shot down and who perhaps has been kind to his mother.

With the speech of Secretary Byrnes still echoing over Europe, some
saying it is a challenge, others saying it's an invitation to Russia, the Peace
Conference pursues its weary way. And may still pursue to the point of
postponing the meeting of the assembly of the United Nations in New
York set for the twenty-third. Molotov managed to get through a resolution
to poll the UN members as to whether they would be willing to wait a
month. The United States didn't vote. Some of the delegates are said to be
already en route.

328 News by Radio

Criticism of the Peace Conference swells into a bitter chorus. Even the

more conservative observers are be-

\ r M. c 1.1- j. r J.-L -L j i. ginning to grow a little bit cynical.

Most of the rest of the broadcast f A ^ - ^ T^- ,

, , L , n , . j I note the magazine Corps Diplo-

is purelv factual. Reference is made .. . A * v *.

. r o : , .. , ., matic quotes an Austrian journalist
to a third article on the peace con- , . v j

fercnce, late news developments on

phich' I got from the Associated ^ . $ &e ^ intemational

conference which I have covered/'
he says, "and it's always the same;

the debate is only for the gallery. There are only two worlds, a capitalist and
a non-capitalist one, which are trying to make a temporary truce." Well,
I'm glad our Austrian friend feels it's a TRUCE. But from where I sit, it's
a truce stranger than fiction.

I am afraid that there isn't much more unanimity on the question of for-
eign affairs in the peace conference than there is here at home. Unless you
whole-heartedly approve of a sentiment you are a fanatic. I was highly
amused by two letters that arrived at the same time, one from Ohio, one
from New York. The Ohio lady accused me (I'm quoting) of "red-baiting,
labor-hating and being a Roosevelt-smearer." She explains that fairness and
justness have colored all of her living.

Which reminds me of the swain's lament: "If you be not fair to me,
what care I how fair you be?" That goes both ways.

However, this is mild compared to the New Yorker, who signs his card
with a not-too-modest pseudonym. He calls me a New Deal pundit and
accuses me and rny horrendous ilk of the following: 1) Unleasing the
atomic bomb in spite of the fact Japan had made peace moves; 2) selling
out Poland, Finland, China, Korea and Mihailovitch et cetera ad nauseam
ad insomniam.

As I have remarked, I have long since learned that good and evil, black
and white, are to a large extent in the ear of the listener.

There was good and bad in the Byrnes speech according to the private
interests of the listeners, too. France was frightened at the thought of a
stronger Germany; Poland sent angry crowds screaming at the American
Embassy in Warsaw.

A rumor immediately spread that Russia, in order to outbid Byrnes for
German cooperation, was about to offer her Silesia, a part of the now-occu-
pied Russian zone lying between the present Polish border and Germany.

Making the News Meaningful 329

What the Russians seemed to consider the important thing in the Byrnes
speech and it WAS the important thing was that he made clear that
any power, including Germany, that thought we were going to fold our tents
like the Arabs and silently steal away from Europe had better revise its plans.

The Soviet-controlled Berlin radio announced that with half the pre-
cincts heard from, the communist unity party was running ahead of its
two conservative opponents in the communal election of yesterday. That
was for Thuringia only. Yesterday it looked, in Saxony at least (from which
there is no report today), as if the anti-communist votes were higher.

As Greece welcomes back her king, Bulgaria ousts hers. The Bulgarian
plebiscite established what they call a Republic, and little nine-year-old
Simeon the Second will go into exile. He helped his mother pack, and
expressed his formerly royal pleasure that he was going to see his grand-
daddy, ex-King Victor Emmanuel, and all the other exiled Italian royalty.
He is interested in botany. He was popular, personally, with his former
subjects, but his best friends probably feel that it will be better for him to
study his daisies and other flowers from the top, looking down, than to run
the chance of difficulties that might enforce a root's eye view of them. His
head will doubtless rest much easier than the crowned one of his neighbor,
King George. Already there is thunder on the left in Greece. The initials of
FDR, in sky-writing half a mile long over Athens, okey'ed the Greek verdict,
but they have gone with the winds and the Aircraft Carrier Franklin Roose-
velt, out at sea, has long since beheld dock-lights die.

The British cabinet discusses the Palestine problem preparatory to the
forthcoming conference, which dispatches say may have to include the
Jewish Agency on its own terms those terms are statehood for the Jewish
state and adequate territory.

It was learned today that under Chiang Kai-shek's orders a translation
of the New Testament had been completed last February, but kept secret.
The translator, Dr. WU, noted Chinese jurist, worked closely with the
Generalissimo on the translation. The other news from China said govern-
ment troops were fighting through the defenses of Tsining.

Now Baukhage adds general comments on his news sources and his
characteristic methods of operation:

News sources are broadly divided into three classifications: 1 White
House press-radio conference, which I never miss; others held by govern-
ment officials which I attend if possible; and those held by private persons
of importance or representatives of non-governmental organizations. 2

330 News by Radio

The hand-out or mimeographed statement written by the publicity staffs
of agencies in and out of government. I read many of these personally, and
have others digested by my assistants. 3 Perhaps the most important, the
personal interview. Many such interviews dealing with late news are con-
ducted over the telephone, and they are quite as satisfactory as personal
visits if one has sufficiently intimate acquaintance with the individuals
interviewed.

Comment, interpretation, explanation, and background in a single broad-
cast might call upon data assembled years before. For instance, material
which I gathered while covering the Versailles Peace Conference after
World War I is of value in reporting similar international gatherings today.

As to use of the script, once it is prepared, I might say that I believe the
commentator must look upon radio as a medium requiring a style of writing
and delivery of its own. To attempt to apply the technique of the printed
word or the platform is wrong. The style must be informal and conversa-
tional, for the listener is in an informal atmosphere. The speaker is a visitor
in a home, not a lecturer on a rostrum. You can't talk the way you talk,
either, unless your script is 'written the way you talk.

Another factor: The listener is blind. Therefore, the speaker must substi-
tute for gestures and facial expression, special phrasing and inflection which
convey the desired impressions without distracting the thought.

A broadcast can, of course, be too informal. Personally, except when I am
describing some event happening before my eyes, or one so recent there is
not time to prepare a text but whose scene or facts are deeply etched on my
brain, I want a script in front of me. But in reading (I use the word as it is
used on the stage) the art must, as in the theater, conceal the art. There is
nothing so "spontaneous" as the speech that has been carefully prepared.
Commentators can't and shouldn't memorize, but I want to be familiar
enough with what I am going to say so that I know exactly how a sentence
is going to end when I start it.

Examination of Baukhage's script reveals a number of characteristics.
It opens "soft," with a weather story of wide interest; it closes with sev-
eral short stories so that Baukhage can adjust his closing to the clock. It
discusses only three main topics: the current economic situation, the
meaning of the Byrnes speech, and an aspect of the Balkan situation.
But it embroiders each of these with what Baukhage views as their im-
portant ramifications. It strives throughout for a light, informal tone

Making the News Meaningful 331

both in the language employed and through the use of frequent quips
and puns.

In his general comments above, Baukhage speaks of the situation in
which he may broadcast ad-lib. The script * that follows is of this
nature. It won a Headlined Award for 1945, and was given an accolade
in the Congressional Record, where it was reprinted, as "one of the
classics of the several programs" describing its subject President
Roosevelt's funeral ceremonies. Of the script, Baukhage says: "It was
taken from notes I put down while the Roosevelt funeral services at
Hyde Park were going on, using the fender of a Signal Corps truck
parked in the rose garden for a desk. There was no time between the
end of the ceremonies and the broadcast itself to prepare a script. The
transcript was taken down in shorthand from the broadcast as re-
corded."

Baukhage talking from a little house down the Boston Post Road a bit
from Hyde Park where I've come, following the President's funeral. A little
way from the rolling farmland, the woodland and hedgerows, and stone
fences, and plowed fields, the old home behind the trees where Franklin
Roosevelt first saw the light over the hills of the Hudson, and where I've
just left him in the midst of his own acres, taking his last long rest.

I'm not going to talk about the death of the President today because I'm
thinking of something else. I'm thinking about an American like others
who fell at Lexington, Appomattox, at San Juan Hills, and Chateau Thierry,
on the Normandy beaches, on Guadalcanal, at Aachen, and now at the very
gates of Berlin. I am thinking of Franklin Roosevelt that way because of the
last broadcast I made from Hyde Park on September 8, four years ago on a
mellow autumn day. On that day thousands in America were not thinking
of the most thought-about man in the country then in terms of politics or
policies or rank or title or achievements or failures. But they were thinking
of him humanly, and vainly trying to share the grief that a son alone must
bear when he repays with the anguish of parting, the debt for the travail
of her who bore him. That was the day when Sara Delano Roosevelt passed
away. And that is what I said then then, not a President but a man mourn-
ing for his mother.

And today a Nation mourns not for a President but for a loss made the
more poignant by the sorrow of the mothers all over the Nation whose sons

* By written permission of H. R. Baulchage, September 17, 1946.

332 News by Radio

have been lost on the wide battlefields of the world. To me there is no ques-
tion whatever but that Franklin Roosevelt died in the service of his country,
a service grown too great for any single man to bear, just as other mothers'
sons have died for their country, the ones who gave their lives in action. To
me, this ceremony that I have just witnessed is part of the great panoply of
sacrifice that men since time began have made, giving their life to preserve
an ideal which lived on because they were willing to exchange their own
lives for it. A part of the eternal miracle of nature when earth takes back her
seed only to return it in the rich harvest, in flower and stalk, to be the nour-
ishment of others that mourn.

I have come, as I say, from Hyde Park where in an ancient old-fashioned
garden, protected by the high walls of a hemlock hedge, another American
has gone to rest on the acres where he was born, the acres he loved. He
chose this spot among the old-fashioned blooms, now only brown shoots I
noticed before me, brown and unobtrusive compared to the mountain of
riotous color heaped above the grave. But those were plucked flowers they
will fade. The others, they will bloom again in this eternal miracle of spring.
Over the boxwood hedge the old red barn looks down. Thousands of those
red barns are on America's farms. Beyond and hidden by the great trees is
the old home; and beyond the Hudson River is flowing gently to the sea.

And now, as I have taken the notes down, I'll give them to you:

First there was the roar of planes overhead and then the sharp order
"Attention/' the salute, and then echoing over those deep hills of the Hud-
son, like Hendrick Hudson's bowling balls, came the salute of 48 guns.
And between those shots all was so silent that you could hear bird songs
everywhere. And then "Present arms," and then the planes coming back.
And then last in the distance, the low tap of the muffled drums from the
West Point band and then the sound of the slow rhythm of the dead march
which grew louder and louder as they entered the grounds. And now they
come in before us, and the West Pointers follow at that strange slow march,
and finally the caisson is outside the hedge you can hear it. It halts just
beyond the little entrance where I am standing. The bombers soar over
and now the colors are advanced the Stars and Stripes, the gold of the
Presidential flag. And now "Order arms/' "Present arms/' and the bugles
sound off, the Star Spangled Banner, and at that moment the cool wind
from the Hudson River blew and whipped out the flags. "Order arms/'
"Parade rest," and now softly the band began "Lead, Kindly Light." And
now a choir boy with the crucifix comes in, behind, in white surplice, the
white-haired minister, and then the coffin with the pall bearers, soldiers and
sailors and marines, and next the wife and the daughter and the son,

Making the News Meaningful 333

Elliott, and men President Truman. The coffin rests, a flag upon it the flag
is raised and held above it. And now, the minister speaks, there comes a
prayer, and then the poem that he reads with this refrain: "Father in Thy
gracious keeping leave we now Thy servant sleeping/' And then, after the
silence, bird songs again. And then the sharp order to the firing party: "Fire
three volleys," "Ready," "Aim," "Fire." The shots ring out three times
the volleys are shot over the grave and after each the bark of a little lonely
dog. And then that sweetest and saddest of all music the bugle sounds
"Taps." There is a pause as the echoes die and the coffin is lowered into the
earth. The sergeant, with military precision, marches over and lays the flag
that decked the coffin in the hands of Mrs. Roosevelt. And so, an American
has gone to rest in the green of the garden, in the shadow of the old red
barn, and his spirit, like that of all his fallen comrades on the battlefields,
rolls on like the eternal river flowing softly to the sea.

o

The following broadcasta wartime Sunday afternoon program
(January 7, 1945) by Eric Sevareid of CBS in London may be ex-
amined in light of the CBS distinction between "analyst" and "com-
mentator." In the script Sevareid reports late news; he offers related
facts, or background, to give the listener points of reference for the
news. All of this comes within the frame of the CBS definition of anal-
ysis. But few would argue that Sevareid does not also present his own
personal views of the meaning of the news. Note, for instance, the two
paragraphs at the middle of the script beginning "Mr. Archibald
MacLeish. . . ." "A beginning [of freer flow of news]/' says Sevareid,
"will have to be made in some high places ... it is not so much be-
cause information was stopped, as because bad information has been
issued . . . apparently our aviation experts have been the worst of-
fenders." Sevareid is considered one of radio's most careful and thor-
ough reporters, a man scrupulously careful of his facts; when he makes
statements like those just quoted, he usually presents dependable facts
to back them up. But he does not merely present the facts and leave all
conclusions to the reader; he suggests or states flatly the conclusions he
has reached* Is this analysis? or is it commentary?

And what about the remarkable essay to which Sevareid devotes the
second half of his broadcast? It is well documented, with specific factual
examples and with generalizations for which it would be easy to pro-

334 News by Radio

duce factual basis (for instance, "generals and journalists use big,
standard words like 'teamwork 7 or 'soldierly behavior' ") . But is it not
essentially the speaker s attempt to aid the listener to see what war
means as he, from his vantage point, sees it? Whole paragraphs are
strictly, and peculiarly, personal.

Analysis or commentary?

Aside from this question, other points in the script may be noted. Its
opening paragraphs offer the latest news, not in the detail that a straight
newscast would present, but packed into a few sentences (note the
eleven-word paragraph on a bombing attack the straight newscast
might devote a paragraph to this). As it moves through the following
paragraphs, each new subject is introduced by brief reference to current
news, and each is developed with material to show how it looks in
London.

Note, also, certain mechanical peculiarities. In the first half of the
script, Sevareid uses semicolons to separate closely related sentences,
suspension points ( . . .) to separate closely related subjects, paragraph-
ing for sharper breaks.

The script*:

This is Eric Sevareid in London.

The news reaching London from the Western Front this afternoon
shows no decisive change in any sector, though there have been local gains.
The most important, in the German salient, has been the cutting of the
road between Saint Vith and Laroche, accomplished by our Third Armored
Division; this is important, because the whole struggle in this area is bas-
ically a battle for the network of roadways; and now Von Rundstedt is
reported to be left with only two minor routes with which to supply the
central and western part of the salient; the Saint Vith road was cut yester-
day, details of the fighting since are sparse but the First Army offensive was
still moving on, however slowly and painfully, at last report this afternoon
... all that one can say is that the battle of the Salient has not yet been
won or lost; it just goes on and it is very hard; there are no authoritative
reports of any big scale German evacuation of the salient indeed one story
today puts the German strength there at a new total of thirty divisions. . . ,
The big German attack in the Saar, which appeared dangerous at first, has
apparently made little general progress in the last day, but more Germans
have crossed the Rhine.

* By written permission of Eric Sevareid, August 1, 1946.

Making the News Meaningful 335

From England, hundreds of bombers went to west Germany this morn-
ing.

Today, millions of British people were reading the President's speech to
Congress; in its confident tone, there was tonic for all those depressed about
the turn of battle; in his plea for unity there was relief, to all those who are
tired of Transatlantic bickering; his generalities about American foreign
policy were at least the right kind of generalities and a sedative, to all those
upset about isolationism in America.

More and more British people understand that the President can accept
the political responsibilities which follow in the wake of battle, only in the
measure the Congress allows; they do not understand that when a Congress-
man makes a reckless attack upon an ally at a critical moment in the war,
he may be just acting a part for a home town audience and the headlines;
here, voters are accustomed to a legislative system which permits lawmakers
to think of national duties first and local obligations second; the American
Congress bewilders them. . . .

And so this country waits to see how far America will follow the Presi-
dent's lead; people wait for the Big Three meeting, which may include
General DeGaulle before it is ended; there were hints here today that the
meeting will occur early in February, that none of the three leaders will be
host at home, but that all will have to travel. ... In Britain, the public
attitude has changed about these conferences; the mere fact of meeting
will no longer satisfy people; general declarations at adjournment that all
sides agree upon all matters will not be enough this time. Upon all but
the most secret military plans, people here will insist upon knowing what the
principles of agreement actually are. . . . Too many people agree with the
British Journal, which writes of Teheran, Quebec and their aftermath:
"The fruits of secret diplomacy are gathered even before they have ripened,
and the taste is already bitter in the mouth." .

Most of those here who write and speak are convinced the Big Three
must make at least two major decisions. One is purely military how to find
and send the tremendous reinforcements now obviously required in West-
ern Europe; military commentators here claim the German offensive and
our reactions to it show clearly that we had no strategic reserve behind the
line; that those reserves are in the Far East, committed there by the Quebec
assumption that we could go at full steam against both Germany and Japan
at the same time; the other necessity is military and political: Solid agree-
ment upon a truly allied policy for Germany; men still talk of unconditional
surrender of Germany when Germany already knows some of the condi-
tions uprooting of millions in East Prussia; loss of the Rhineland and

336 News by Radio

Silesia; these at least are the conditions being announced by the French.
Russians, British unilaterally and piece-meal.

Mr. Archibald MacLeish calls for a freer flow of news among the Allies.
A beginning will have to be made in some high places. Interlocking agree-
ments among governments for political censorship have developed all over
the world. The Chinese, with the concurrence of the American War and
State Departments, stopped nearly every attempt to tell the truth about
internal China and so the public was surprised and shocked by the Stilwell
affair; from New Delhi it was impossible to tell the whole truth about
India; in Cairo, by connivance of various authorities, Americans included,
no reporter could tell the political truth about Egypt, Syria, Greece or Yugo-
slavia for a long time; and so people were shocked to find liberated Greece
actually in a state of civil war, and puzzled over the disappearance of
Mihailovitch. There was, and is, political censorship in Italy and Belgium;
it is called military censorship and the stock excuse in all these places is that
military and political affairs are so intermingled that news about politics has
to be bluepenciled. . . .

If people are also shocked by present military events, it is not so much
because information was stopped, as because bad information has been
issued; nearly every important general and admiral has been seriously and
publicly wrong in his estimate of enemy resistance; which means that our
intelligence, about German morale, manpower, oil reserves, aircraft produc-
tion, has simply been bad intelligence; apparently our aviation experts have
been the worst offenders; and perhaps there is some explanation in this fact:
that the people whose mission it is to smash German plane production are
the very same people who estimate the results, for government and public;
there is no independent judge in the picture. . . .

A great many people here have a maddening sense of having been led up
the garden path; and at least one paper calls for a purge among the ex-
perts. . . .

* # #

We began this broadcast by describing what the war is like, this Sunday
afternoon.

That's what all those called correspondents or commentators, analysts or
observers will be saying it's like; they believe it, the listeners and readers
understand it and what we say is true enough but only within our terms
of reference; in the unreal language of standard signs and symbols that you
and I must use. To the soldier, in the line, that isn't what tie war is like, at
all. He knows the real story, he feels it sharply, but he couldn't tell it to you,
himself. If I plucked one from his foxhole now and put this microphone

Making the News Meaningful 337

before him, he would only stammer and say something like this: "Well, uh,
I was lying there, and uh, I saw this Jerry coming at me with a bayonet, and
uh, well . . ." That's how most of them would talk. I know because
I've tried them. If the soldier can't tell you what happened to his stomach
at that moment, what went on in his beating heart, why the German's belt
buckle looked as big as a shining shield if he can't tell you, no onlooker
ever can.

The army treats all men alike, but the war does not. Not this war. It's
too big and far flung. It has a thousand faces and a hundred climates. It has
a fantastic variety of devilish means for testing a boy's brain, for stretching
his nerves, for making him ashamed or making him proud; for exposing his
heart, or for burying his heart. It treats no two exactly alike; and so, even
two soldiers from the same front sometimes don't understand what the
other is talking about.

Generals and journalists use big, standard words like ''teamwork" or
"soldierly behavior," which are like interchangeable parts and can be fitted
into the machine without thinking. But the soldier's handbook gives little
guidance on such matters as how to learn the patience of a saint, how to
quench bitterness when your officers make a costly mistake, or how to
master the homesickness that comes at Sunset.

Who is to relate these things, which make up the real but secret story of
the war? Who is to reconstruct, in scenes and acts, the drama of that Amer-
ican on the desolate airfield in the gulf of Aden? The one who sat three
hours, unmindful of the crashing heat, his eyes fixed upon a stone. He had
been at that airfield eighteen months, and he didn't talk to his comrades
any more.

What about the soldier with the child's face, who stumbled from the
exploding wheatfield near Anzio, with not a mark on his body, but his eyes
too big, his hands senselessly twisting a towel, and his tongue darting in and
out between his teeth?

What was it had expanded in the soul of a young man I first knew when
he was a press agent lieutenant three years ago; then, he was rather silly and
talked too much and his men smiled behind his back. I met him next in a
French forest; he had learned control and dignity; he was a Major com-
manding a fighting battalion, and the General was silent while he spoke.

There was a regimental Colonel at Anzio who received notice one night
that he could go home next day to Des Moines, where his business was
prosperous and his family large. His division had been decimated, but this

338 News by Radio

man's life was now assured. Why, at dawn, at his regular hour, did he risk
the mortar shells, and crawl on hands and knees from foxhole to foxhole,
not missing one, just to speak a confident word to his men?

Who could redly explain about that young Corporal with the radio post
deep in the Burma jungle; the one who rose suddenly from his bunk in the
night and walked straight into the woods walking westward?

Only the soldier really lives the war, the journalist does not. He may share
the soldier's outward life and dangers, but he cannot share his inner life,
because the same moral compulsion does not bear upon him. The observer
knows he has alternatives of action; the soldier knows he has none. Their
worlds are very far apart, for one is free the other, a slave.

This war must be seen to be believed; but it must be lived to be under-
stood. We can tell you only of events, of what men do. We cannot really
tell you how, or why, they do it. We can see, and tell you, that this war is
brutalizing some among your sons, and yet ennobling others. We can tell
you very little more.

War happens inside a man. It happens to one man alone. It can never be
communicated. That is the tragedy and, perhaps, the blessing. A thou-
sand ghastly wounds are really only one. A million martyred lives leave an
empty place at only one family table.

That is why, at bottom, people can let wars happen, and that is why
nations survive them and carry on. . . . And, I am sorry to say, that is also
why, in a certain sense, you and your sons from the war will be forever
strangers.

If, by the miracles of art and genius, in later years, two or three among
them can open their hearts and the right words come, then perhaps we
shall all know a little of what it was like. And we will know, then, that all
the present speakers and writers hardly touched the story.

o

No two commentators could be much farther apart than Gabriel
Heatter (MBS) and Raymond Swing (ABC). The two scripts that
follow, broadcast two days apart and dealing with some of the same
news configurations, show the contrasts. (The contrasts in the attitudes,
methods, and personalities of the two men are vividly portrayed in tie
two New Yorker Profiles cited earlier in this chapter.)

Heatter thinks of himself as a kind of people's evangelist. He is ready

Making the News Meaningful 339

to comment on virtually everything. Not that he talks about everything
what he calls "Heatter stories" are those high in human interest, in
opportunity for sentirnentalization. Note in his script that every news
subject to which he gives more than a line or so is treated emotionally;
that his comments are largely emotional and opinionated rather than
the outgrowth of careful logic (and that they frequently raise the
specter of impending doom). He uses a baseball story as an avenue to
annoyed ruminations on the lack of "a reasonable and decent civilized
old age pension payment" (his audience of somewhere near fifteen
million each night is heavily rural, and a high percentage of it is of an
age to which the Townsend movement appeals); after mentioning the
desire of small nations for majority rule in the peace conference, he
does not analyze the meaning or eff ect of the movement, but expresses
his opinion with a hearty "more power to them." Note the ominous
admonitions of his closing passage on the atom bombeffective soap-
box oratory but hardly factually supported reasoning. Note the charac-
teristic "good news" passage just before the mid-commercial, one
predicting nirvana largely because Heatter foresees it; and the copybook
transition to the commercial itself (included in the script because
Heatter writes and delivers it himself) .

Note all these things. But don't miss the simplicity, informality, and
directness of Heatter's style, the homely and effective figures of speech,
the easy popular diction. Whether or not one likes what Heatter says,
his skill and craftsmanship cannot be denied.

The script * (opening and closing commercials, voiced by an an-
nouncer, omitted) :

Good evening, everyone. Here's an echo of last week's underwater atom
bomb explosion at Bikini. The Japanese battleship Nagato has gone down.
It went to the bottom in Bikini Lagoon five days after the underwater atom
bomb went off. The Nagato weighed 32-thousand tons, one of the heaviest
armored ships in the whole world and the third largest capital ship sent to
Davey Jones' Locker by that one underwater explosion.

Here's a prediction. The cost of nearly everything men and boys wear is
going up ... way up.

* By written permission of Gabriel Heatter, March 18, 1948.

340 News by Radio

And here's another. The war profits investigation has only begun. Presi-
dent Truman tonight gave full authority for the inspection of all tax returns,
income and excess profits filed by war contractors.

A third prediction. If and when war comes again, cost plus on war con-
tacts will be a thing of the past. Washington is shocked tonight to hear
that government officials and Army officers were fraternizing with war con-
tractors. That many who handled settlements of war contracts running into
untold millions of dollars later went to work for the same companies cov-
ered by those settlements . . . shocked to hear that cost plus made it
possible to tack on entertainment bills which will cost John Q. Taxpayer
plenty. All this while GI Joe was sweating it out in foxholes.

Well, the new decontrol board is in OPA the new board approved
tonight by the Senate. Perhaps you've wondered how high can prices go.
Here's one a watermelon brought $2.25 recently. The man must have
had a tremendous yen for watermelon.

We're waiting for new prices on new cars. Tonight's indications are
about $85 more on the popular priced models.

The Big 4 domination of international affairs may be over. Dr. Herbert
Evatt, representing Australia, opened a real fight in Paris today to give
smaller nations a real voice in the Peace Conference. I once heard a diplo-
mat say that when you come out of a conference with Mr. Molotov you get
more perspiration than you get negotiation. Well, now 17 smaller nations
have determined to make Mr. Molotov experience perspiration. They want
majority rule. More power to them.

One thing is plain tonight. The French are going to lose again. Great
Britain is going along with the United States to merge both their zones in
Germany into one economic unit. France has been holding out for inter-
nationalizing the Ruhr where the coal, iron and blood make wars. You
remember France fought for that in 1919 and lost. She'll lose again. And
so we get the amazing paradox Trieste internationalized but the Ruhr
where war is born the Ruhr remains intact.

Another paradox. Finland, Rumania, Hungary, Bulgaria are probably
done for. They're completely behind the Russian iron curtain. That's
where they're likely to remain. And Germany is to come out strong and
intact.

Well, they're hunting for Martin Bormann tonight. Bormann,, Hitler's
party leader. Munich is alive with rumors saying Bormann was seen a few
days ago. Put me down as saying if they find Martin Bormann alive, they
may find Hitler too.

Making the News Meaningful 341

Well, here's some good old fashioned figures. 10-thousand head of cattle
delivered to mid-west markets today. You can have meat for breakfast, meat
for lunch and meat for dinner now.

Here's some figures of another kind. Farm land up 65% in cost over pre-
war figures in Illinois. 55 in Iowa. And a late report reveals farm land gen-
erally over the entire country is now selling at 60% over the figure of 7
years ago.

For any man who wants a brand new field with a future, here are some
figures. Total sales of frozen foods are now nearly 10% of all the grocery
volume business in the entire country, and they're going up every day.
Frozen food there may be a real future in that for a man who wants a
new deal.

The men who want a new deal in baseball may get it. The conversations
began today. 26 men representing 480 players began their talks with the
management. What do they ask for? A minimum salary somewhere between
$5000 and $7500 a year. 10% of whatever money they bring when they're
traded. 50% of all money brought in by exhibition games. And most im-
portant of all they want old age pensions. Yes, a few men who made big
money were in good financial shape when their playing days were over. A
few could move into other good paying jobs. For the most part ball players
are old at 40. For the most part it isn't easy after that. We'll hear more
about that phrase old age pensions in a good many other fields. We're a
hundred years behind on that matter. We look upon old age pensions as
charity or a crackpot scheme. We forget how many millions of elderly per-
sons whose toil and whose very lives are poured into a given industry are
forced to depend on their children when they want and need and deserve
the dignity of independence which old age has certainly earned. They put
billions of dollars into appropriations of all kinds and never worry about the
cost. Mention a reasonable and decent civilized old age pension payment
and we look upon anything over a pittance as a crackpot idea.

Now here's some really good news. I want to emphasize it good newsl
We've made the turn and here it is. For the first time since VJ-Day we're
turning out as many tons in steel, we're loading as many freight cars, we're
using as much electric power and this may be the most important of all
we are finally building as many new cars as we did in a really good week at
any time before the war. We're on our way at last. If we can avoid rocking
the boat now, if we'll just be good to ourselves long enough to let the tide
roll along for, well, a year or even half a year, we'll fool everyone who is
waiting for the next American depression. You know we've been fooling
people that way for a long time. In '76 we put out a new trade mark and

342 News by Radio

called it Liberty! They'll never make a go of it, said the broken down royalty
in Europe. Well, you know what we did. In '64 we had a war at home. There
they go, breaking up, said the tumbled down chancellories of Europe. We
came out united and fooled them again. In '39 Hitler said the war would
be over before America could deliver a plane. Did we fool Hitler? Now the
gentlemen in dark glasses say we can't make it without another depression.
We've made the turn the biggest and most important turn of all. We're
back to prewar figures in production for the first time! Let no man rock
the boat now and we're away. Figures never lie and they tell an eloquent
and heart-warming truth tonight. Department store volume up again for
another week, up again for the entire month of July when it generally falls
off. The profits [sic] of gloom point to disaster the figures point to better
business, more jobs and an amazingly healthy national economy and better
living for millions of American homes. . . .

.... There's bound to be more room now for the men who are deter-
mined to plug and get ahead.

You know the right appearance helps a good deal. And Kreml on your
Hair is a good password to better hair grooming. No, water don't [sic} do
it, can't do it. Kreml Hair Tonic will. Kreml to help keep your hair soft and
smooth in appearance. Keep it well groomed for every occasion. Thousands
upon thousands of men everywhere know it and rely on it, and use Kreml
every day. They know there's a treat to look forward to every day and they
feel all that quiet inner confidence a man feels when he knows his hair is
well groomed . . . looks his best and he feels it and knows it. I know you'll
like Kreml. I'm sure you'll look forward to it every day. Will you begin
tomorrow? Thank you very much.

Well, Congress is preparing to go home, possibly by Friday. . . .

.... And tens of thousands of men who fought the war can't find a
home. The Housing Bill seems to be dead for this session. Divorce is setting
all time records. One reason they are forced to drift apart they can't
live together they can't find a home. Children are in trouble. We've never
had so many children in trouble before. The/re without the great American
influence a home. Congress is going home. There are millions of homes
where they've been waiting two and three years for the 65# an hour mini*
mum in pay, where they can't live on less. Congress is going home and the
bill remains pigeon-holed. Yes, Congress is going home and blind children
are waiting for the appropriation which makes life bearable and the ever-
lasting dark in which so many are compelled to live.

Old friends of Hitler, now masquerading as friends of America, they have
their hands out. We don't seem to have the money for our own people.

Making the News Meaningful 343

Hitler's old friends, they have their hands out. I know what I'd like to put
in those hands and you would too, I'm sure.

Ladies and gentlemen the greatest race in all history is on tonight. A
race between man and the atom bomb. For the first time in thousands of
years man has finally built a weapon which makes mass suicide possible
for the entire human race. Will it be suicide or will it be the end of war?
The end of fear, the end of violence, and that dream that golden dream
of peace on earth. The race is on to a finish. There can be no halfway vic-
tories in this race. Man or the bomb will win. You know other forms of
life have lived on this earth and vanished completely. Is it man's turn to
blow himself out of existence now? Are we going back to the cave, to the
deepest, darkest kind of cave to live in fear and trembling fear of atom
bombs? Or will man live with the dignity with which God has endowed
him? This is it last call. This conference in Paris and the others to come.
Let the little men all over the world who think this is the time to say my
way or else think well and think hard. We are racing against time and
we're late. The odds are on the bomb. In the past four thousand years man
had only 265 years without war. The drunk who could barely stand but had
to have just one more the one that finally finished him off he would fit
the role of any man who was mad enough to think we can handle just one
more war. The dead move in their sleep tonight. They move silently and
come together and ask each other will the living keep faith? The mothers
of all the dead have taken up their vigil and they wait, and the mothers of
all living children pray and wait. Watch out for the man who would tell
everybody where they get off now . . . whatever his nationality . . .
watch out for him. Watch out for the man who can't speak with the
humility we all need in this fateful hour for he's like a man reeling and yet
demanding just one more. Well, which will it be, the atom bomb or peace?
It can't be both. This is last call . . . the very last.

Half a minute, please, your good friend and mine, Frank Waldecker, . . .

Now contrast to this the Raymond Swing commentary of two days
later (July 31, 1946) . Swing's script is more nearly "pure commentary"
than any of the others reprinted here. He gives no news as news he
uses news pegs, such as the Paris conference and Secretary Byrnes 7 com-
ments, but he appears to assume that his listeners already know the
news-facts involved (not often a valid assumption, especially when the
news is "difficult"; it may account in part for the fact that Swing's audi-
ences have never been large). He makes no concession to anecdote,
wisecracks, homely allusions, sentimentalization, or folksy language.

344 News by Radio

Instead, he subjects the news to calm and almost cold analysis, mar-
shaling his comments into a carefully unified construction really a
single essay on intimately related subjects. Note the painstaking transi-
tions from paragraph to paragraph. Note, too, that when he talks of the
desire of the smaller nations for more voice in international affairs, he
does not stop, like Heatter, with a mere expression of approval (though
he does express approval), but rather shows exactly what he believes
the desire means and what its chances of achievement are. This is com-
mentary at its most meaningful.
Swing's script*:

Two observations need to be made about the Paris peace conference. One
is that it is not really a peace conference at all. The most accurate name for
it is a peace discussion. It is not writing the treaties, it cannot change the
drafts already written. It cannot prevent the treaties as written from being
adopted. It is a debating club. It will debate the treaties as already drafted,
and it will make recommendations on these and on the portions of the
treaties not yet agreed to by the Big Four. In the course of its deliberations
it will come to vote on what it recommends. But that vote is not binding
on the Big Four, who are pledged only to give the recommendations of the
Paris conference their consideration.

Never before has such a conference of nations been held. It is unprece-
dented that many nations, members of the coalition which won a world
war should have so little authority. But they did not win the war, it was
won for the coalition by the great powers. And the peace will be made by
those who won the war. Therefore, the peace conference, socalled, is not the
proper address for the prayers which a hopeful world is sending up for the
writing of a real peace. This is not a second Versailles which might learn
from the mistakes of the first Versailles. This is a second-class conference,
with considerably less than second-class authority.

One must go on from there to say that it also is making recommendations
on what are in fact no better than second-class peace treaties. And that is
the other observation that needs to be made.

An editorial in the current issue of the Free World pleads eloquently
for a peace treaty that will establish true peace. It must, it says, "put an
end to the tragic cycle of history: war, defeat, agitation against conditions
of previous peace treaties, and again war; must break up the endless chain

* By written permission of Raymond Swing, August 2, 1946.

Making the News Meaningful 345

of elements of hatred which have brought so much sorrow on humanity,
and must open up new vistas. In other words it must not be like the Ver-
sailles Treaty or like the other treaties of the past, all of which were fifty
years or more behind the times it must be a truly twentieth century
treaty."

But the draft treaties laid before the twenty-one nations do not come
within hail of the world as it is, as is shown by the single fact that they do
not even mention atomic energy. The defeated powers, so far as the drafts
cover the problem, are quite free to make atomic bombs. They are not listed
among the banned weapons, though there is a loophole which permits the
addition of other banned weapons at a later date.

But mention of atomic energy is not what distinguishes the atomic era.
That can be done only by making peace that leaves no chance whatever of
war. The Paris treaties have no such objective. They have arisen from a
war and are drawn up with the possibility of another war in view. The
treaties are punitive, the territorial changes are strategic or mainly represent
conquest. In a world of war, a peace treaty is bound to express the terms of
victorious power. And the terms of victory have never yet been the tenns of
permanent peace, nor are they this time. Such a peace will not be under
discussion by the twenty-one nations at Paris. Indeed the conference is
dealing with only one nation, Italy, which fought against the Western
powers, and with four which fought only against Russia. So most of the
treaties are drawn up in the interest of Russia, and nothing said or done
at the Paris conference is likely to change that aspect of them.

Moveover, the Paris conference does not deal with the central peace
problem, Germany, or with the Austrian treaty, on which an end of military
occupation in that country, and in Hungary and Roumania, depends. What
is done with Germany will set the pattern for the Europe of the next decade
or more, not what is done with Germany's satellites. Hence the conference
in Paris is not only limited in scope and without any authority, it cannot
be expected to lay foundations for a world of law and justice, which alone
can sustain the world of peace.

Seen in this perspective, the doings of the conference are hardly of
remarkable importance. And the mere fact that holding this conference was
counted a great victory for American diplomacy should not lead us to
attribute undue significance to anything taking place there. It is, of course,
good that the small nations should be meeting and lifting their voices. But
that they are doing so does not make their meeting a peace conference,
and it is inaccurate, if not dishonest, to call it one. Everything happening
in Paris has to be understood in these terms, Thus it is not a revolution in

346 News by Radio

diplomacy that all sessions of the conference are to be open to the press,
not only the plenary sessions but commission meetings as well. If that
happened at a real peace conference, it would be realizing the Wilson
aspiration of "open covenants openly arrived at". But at Paris, no covenants
are being arrived at. What is to be open will be discussion, recommenda-
tions and voting. The treaties then go back to the Big Four, who are utterly
free to reject any and all recommendations.

Nor is it of great promise that Mr. Molotov for the Soviet Union today
bespoke equal treatment at Paris for all nations, great and small. That
sounded almost like Mr. Evatt, the Australian delegate, with his resumed
campaign to break the dictatorship of the Big Four. But equality of all
the nations at Paris means only equality in discussion and recommenda-
tion.

An issue has arisen over how the conference should vote whether by a
two-thirds majority or a simple majority. If a two-thirds vote is required,
eight states can defeat a decision by the conference. If a majority vote is
enough, it will take eleven states to defeat a decision.

The two-thirds rule was recommended by the Big Four, and Secretary
Byrnes has duly backed it, as he was bound to do as one of the authors of
the recommendation. A two-thirds vote was more liberal than Versailles,
where there was unanimity on substantive matters. Mr. Byrnes seemed to
be modifying the Big Four unanimity by a promise he made in his speech
before the conference yesterday. In this he said that he would undertake to
back any recommendation made by two-thirds of the conference powers.
That looks like taking the small powers into peace treaty making so far
as the United States is concerned. But closer examination gives Mr. Byrnes'
promise a much narrower effect. Since it takes only eight votes to prevent
a two-thirds majority from forming, four of these eight can be supplied by
the Big Four themselves, and the other four could easily come from the
Soviet bloc, consisting of Poland, Czechoslovakia, WTiite Russia, the
Ukraine and Jugoslavia. The Big Four are pledged to stand by the parts of
the treaties they themselves have accepted. And Russia can be counted on
delivering all her satellites on demand. So the Byrnes promise cannot
change what already has been agreed, unless he and the British or French
change their minds about standing by the decisions already reached, which
would be a breach of faith.

As to the parts of the treaty on which agreement has not yet been reached,
the Soviet Union still can muster six of the eight votes needed to prevent
a two-thirds majority going against Soviet interests, and it is quite possible
that Russia in many cases will be able to pick up two more votes. So it is

Making the News Meaningful 347

no foregone conclusion that Mr. Byrnes has pledged himself to back up
much in offering to support all decisions by a two-thirds vote.

Most Americans probably have sympathy with the determined fight of
Mr. Evatt of Australia to whittle away from the power of the Big Four and
get more power for the smaller allies. But it is one thing to have sympathy
for what appears to be a move toward greater democracy, and quite another
to believe that what Mr. Evatt wants is practicable or even desirable. It
is to be doubted that Americans as a whole would approve of settling ques-
tions affecting their own rights by a majority of sovereign nations. They
would hardly give the final say over United States rights to a majority or
even a two-thirds vote of sovereign nations. There would be no freedom in
that for us. Just now it is popular to wish to see Russia outvoted, but to this
the Russians object, as should we if we found ourselves outvoted in vital
matters.

If there are to be unlimited sovereignties, there can be no hope for inter-
national agreement by which a great power is overruled in what it considers
vital matters. Moreover, the basis on which the Russians were brought into
the United Nations was the maintenance of sovereignty with a veto in all
matters of vital importance to the great powers. So the small powers are
trying to talk their way into sharing power which is not theirs and will not
be given to them, since power is not something that nations can be talked
into giving away.

The one way to obtain a really democratic rule of international affairs is
the subordination of national sovereignty to a world sovereignty. In this
naturally there could be no veto. But in this, decisions would not be reached
by diplomacy and conferences but by the enactment of laws, which would
be enforced. But until there is a system of enforced law, the veto is the
only 'final assurance of the freedom of the states which might otherwise
be outvoted.

Even if there were a world parliament to enact world law, that could not
function by the formula of a simple majority vote of nations for that would
permit the small nations to dominate the big ones. Such a parliament
would have to be chosen, too, by some other criterion than the democratic
basis of population. Otherwise, the countries with the most people would
become the strongest lands politically, which in fact they are not. India
and China, with more than 800 million inhabitants, would never be per-
mitted to outvote the United States and the Soviet Union with fewer than
half that many. That is just as obvious as that the United States and the
Soviet Union would not permit any three small nations to outvote them.

348 News by Radio

So what the small powers propose would not work in the world as it
exists, nor would it in the world one must hope is going to exist. And the
small powers are not greatly serving the cause of the peace in asking for
more power for themselves, even though the diffusion of power is something
devoutly to be desired. For the present, the one thing that keeps the peace
is good relations between the United States and the Soviet Union. So long
as "they agree there can be no world war. The longer they disagree, the more
probable world war becomes. Nothing the small powers can offer will
change that truth. No majority of nations conceivable can enforce its will
on either us or the Russians.

The Discussion Program

The discussion program the show in which a group of "experts"
talks and argues about a topic current in the news is ordinarily not a
concern of the newsroom. Radio's two top discussion shows, the "Chi-
cago Round Table" and "America's Town Meeting/' are both pro-
duced independent of newsrooms. Nevertheless, this kind of program
has as its main function the topic of this chapter: the backgrounding
and illumination of significant current subjects. As such a program, it
may well become a newsroom function, especially since the FCC dic-
tum of early 1946 increasing its emphasis on public service program-
ming.

Consider the structure of the "Round Table" and the "Town Meet-
ing."

"The Chicago Round Table" described as "a cooperative enterprise
of the University of Chicago and NBC 7 " though NBC's share consists
only in providing broadcast time is strictly an ad-lib program.- But
this fact does not mean lack of preparation. Advance work before the
show takes the air at midday Sundays is arduous and lengthy. Here is
the procedure:

Some ten days in advance of the date of broadcast the staff of the
University of Chicago radio department selects a topic for discussion-
one that will remain newsy and, preferably, controversial ten days later
and chooses three experts to discuss it. Men or women with differing
points of view are picked when possible. If the topic involves labor
and management, participants are likely to be a CIO official, a United
States Chamber of Commerce representative and, perhaps, a professor

Making the News Meaningful 349

of economics who may be expected to be "disinterested."

The radio department's research staff goes to work, assembling data
on the topic, making bibliographies, briefing and digesting pertinent
material. The result of this work is provided to each participant, three
or four days before the broadcast.

Saturday evening the participants meet at dinner in the University's
Quadrangle Club. There they sit from 6 o'clock often until midnight,
arguing, planning, discussing many phases of the subject. The director
of the radio department makes notes; then he prepares a detailed out-
line, showing major topics on which the participants have put their
fingers and offering an orderly plan for the program.

At 10 Sunday morning the three meet around the triangular "round
table" there is no moderator for this program and, using their out-
lines, proceed to go through a half-hour discussion. A transcription is
made, and immediately played back. From it the participants discover
their errors in manner, in under- or overemphasis, and so on and
make plans for the final presentation. At length, after all this prepara-
tion, they go on the air.

It has been argued that a show with such elaborate rehearsal and
planning cannot be spontaneous. Perhaps. But it has the effect of spon-
taneity; and it is unquestionably a sounder and more effective discus-
sion than it would be were any of the preparatory steps omitted.

Few radio station newsrooms are equipped to undertake anything so
elaborate as the "Chicago Round Table" plan, though simpler modifi-
cations of it are part of the broadcast schedules of many stations.
"America's Town Meeting," of different format, is also a model on
which stations may base presentations.

The "Town Meeting," though younger than the "Round Table" (it
started in 1935, the "Round Table" in 1931), is better known. This is
largely because more ballyhoo and showmanship have been exerted on
the show it tours the country, uses New York's well-known Town

On occasion, careful advance plans may be discarded to permit the
"Round Table" to take up a "hot" subject. When Germany invaded
Czechoslovakia, ten days of preparation were thrown out the window and,
on twenty-four hours' notice, Dr. Edouard Benes, former Czechoslovak
president, was substituted.

350 News by Radio

Hall as its base of operations, is an audience-participation show. It is
broadcast at an evening hour, and it has at times been sponsored.

Unlike the "Round Table," it is only in part an ad-lib program. Its
format employs from two to four authoritative speakers, representing
opposing views of the topic under discussion; George V. Denny, Jr.,
owner and director of the show, serves as moderator. The program
opens in a large theater or auditorium about half an hour before broad-
cast time. Mr. Denny explains to the audience the plan of the show,
gives essential background on the topic, starts discussion. When broad-
cast time arrives, he introduces the speakers, each of whom has been
admonished to use his few minutes and no more. After their formal
speeches, which may be from script, Mr. Denny propels them into in-
formal debate and discussion the more spirited the better. Before the
hour closes, a number of questions from the audience are read and
answered by members of the discussion panel. After the show goes off
the air, the discussion continues for fifteen minutes or half an hour
this to carry out the structure of the program as a version of the old
New England town meeting.

Sponsorship of the "Town Meeting" by Reader's Digest, in 1944,
aroused anxiety among a good many listeners that the nature of the
program would change that it would suffer from dictation, censor-
ship, and "packing" on the part of the sponsor. Vigorous among such
worriers was George Seldes, whose concern stemmed from his opinion
that Reader's Digest was a "native fascist" organ. Mr. Denny has just
as vigorously denied that any such influence existed. The sponsorship
increased the show's broadcasters from 120 to 181 stations, he says, and
gave it additional income that enabled it to set up a research depart-
ment to provide factual material to speakers in advance of programs.
But it gave the sponsor, he says, no control of any sort over selections

Transcripts of the "Chicago Round Table" programs, with bibliographies
and discussion questions, are offered at low price by the University of
Chicago radio department. Transcripts of the "Town Meeting" programs
appear in the Town Meeting Bulletin, published by the American Educa-
tion Press, Inc., Columbus, Ohio. Both enterprises provide manuals for
speakers manuals jammed with useful hints for planners of discussion
programs.

Making the News Meaningful 351

of topics or speakers, and in no way affected the conduct of the pro-
gram.

Mr. Seldes was also concerned about the fact that Mr. Denny, be-
fore each broadcast, "plants" a number of questions in the audience.
Mr. Denny, however, explains that this is not an ideological but a show
manship device that its purpose is to make certain that there will be
questions at the proper time. Unplanted as well as prearranged ques-
tions are always included in the programs, he says.

Directors of both programs offer suggestions as to qualities vital in
such shows. Sherman H. Dryer, for a number of years director of the
"Round Table/' says that "in the long run, the audience of any (dis-
cussion) program will grow in size and loyalty in proportion to the
efforts of the program to provide three things, in this order informa-
tion, clarification, stimulation." Mr. Denny, speaking of techniques of
interesting audiences, says in his Discussion Leader's Handbook that
vital qualities are conflict (divergent views as to methods of meeting
common problems), suspense (""anything may happen at these meet-
ings"), and fair play ("questions must relate definitely to the subject,
and no personal or libelous attacks may be made") .

How these elaborate and costly network discussion programs may be
scaled down to fit the limited budgets, production and research facili-
ties, and time of the individual station is a problem for each individual
station to solve. It is not always easy. But it is being done, and effec-
tively, by an increasing number of local broadcasters.

12

The Law Says . . . .

Most of the books that would fill a long shelf titled Radio Law are yet
unwritten. When they get into print, a heavy majority of them will
concern license applications, frequency allocations, and similar com-
plex subjects subjects that gray the hair of station managers and own-
ers, but that trouble the boys in the newsrooms little.

Radio law as it affects the newsroom is no more formally codified
than are its other aspects. An NAB Radio News Clinic in Minneapolis
in mid-1946 petitioned the NAB to prepare a "workable treatise" on
libel and slander in broadcasting, but to date no such compilation has
appeared. Let's look first at this matter of defamation on the air the
area of law that harasses newsmen more than any other.

Libel or Slander?

No one, be he a Supreme Court judge, a justice of the peace, a cor-
poration counsel, or an LL. D., can tell you whether defamation by air
is clearly libel or slander. Indeed, it has been declared libel in some
situations, slander in others. Libel is defined as defamation in writing
or print; slander, defamation by word of mouth. But defamation in a
radio script is written, and when it's broadcast it is oral. Which does
that make it? Or is it both?

No, because each is a separate category of law, and you can't be put
in jeopardy twice for the same offense. It has to be one or the other.
Which?

The safest approach to this ticklish question is to consider it libel.
Here's the reason: The law considers libel the more serious offense

A discussion of "Defamation by Air: Libel or Slander?" appears in the
QuiU for May- June, 1946. Its author, Norris G. Davis, presents a number
of relevant opinions and decisions some pointing one way, some the
other and arrives at the conclusion that radio defamation ought to be
made a "new and separate class of offense with its own penalties/*

352

The Law Says . . . . 353

(since published defamation is judged more permanent and more
damaging than oral defamation) and it carries heavier penalties.
Radio defamation is of course oral, but court opinions and decisions
have pretty well established the legal fact that to broadcast is, in effect,
to publish. Consequently, to guard against committing libels is the
smart thing to do. By guarding against the greater danger, you're help-
ing to protect yourself against the smaller.

To establish a Statement as actionable under the libel law, three ele-
ments are necessary:

1. That the statement is published.

2. That it is defamatory.

3. That it refers to an identifiable person.

If you broadcast it, you publish it. No proof is required.

What makes it defamatory?

Defamation, says the law, is holding a man up to "contempt, oblo-
quy, scorn, hatred, or ridicule/' Some defamatory statements accom-
plish this per se on the face of it; others per quod by insinuation or
"extrinsic circumstance/* In the first category are wo-ds like "burglar/'
"corrupt/' "drunken," "prostitute" words or phrases that impute
characteristics that are socially or professionally unacceptable. In the
second category are such statements as one that such-and-such a man
is "not qualified to hold a teaching position" (if the man is a teacher)
or that he "has been known to participate in business deals with the
convicted embezzler." These references to the man are not defamatory
in their actual words; the questionone for the jury to answer is, are

By Illinois law, radio defamation in the state is definitely libel rather
than slander. A New York state court decision in 1947 supports this view.
But the California Civil Code makes such defamation slander rather than
libel.

The courts have held that to call a man "Communist" is to libel him
per se.

And they also are inclined to the opinion that a kind of "statute of
limitations" sometimes operates on certain truthful libels. They won't let
you speak of a man as a Communist or an ex-convict, for example, if the
truth is that the man -was a Communist some years back, or if his conviction
dates back some years, but that he has in more recent years lived a life to
which such terms do not apply.

354 News by Radio

they accepted by a reader (or listener) in a defamatory sense?

The third element, identification, means this: Is a specific person
called to mind by the defamatory statement? When a name, or name
and address, or other such specific information is presented, there is no
question about identification. When no such highly identifying in-
formation is given, however, identification may still be present. Sup-
pose a broadcast says, "A well-known local lawyer was seen among the
mob of drunks." This doesn't name the lawyer, and there may be any
number of lawyers who are well-known locally. But if one of them can
produce evidence that, rightly or wrongly, he was believed by some of
the listeners to the broadcast (or even by one listener) to be the man
so indicated, identification is established.

What does all this mean?

That any broadcast of a defamatory story applying by any stretch
of the imagination to a specific person may be actionable.

But not that any such broadcast will necessarily open the broad-
caster to payment of damages.

For there are a number of defenses for the publication of libelous
material. Some of them are absolute; others serve only to "mitigate
damages."

The absolute defenses, in most cases, are:

1. Truth of the libel.

2. The doctrine of qualified privilege.

3. The laws permitting "fair comment and criticism/*

The first defense, truth, means that whenever the accuracy of the
defamatory statement can be established, the defamed individual can-
not be successful in a suit for damages. A man may safely be called a

Since many libelous statements may safely be broadcast, the news editor
needs to be doubly on his guard. He becomes so accustomed to handling
safe libel that he is likely in a moment of relaxation to let dynamite slip
through something that is indefensible, and that may cost his station
money (and, perhaps, deprive him of gainful employment) . The best rule
for any news editor or reporter is this:

Loo& on anything defamatory as potentially actionable libel.

If he thus schools himself to see every red flag, then examines the flags
to see whether they are in the safe or the unsafe category, he's fairly sure
to avoid trouble.

The Law Says .... 355

burglar if proof is available that he is a burglar. You can call a woman
unchaste if you can show a court without cavil that she is unchaste.

But don't take a chance if you can't prove what you say. There may
be a lot of reason to believe that Joe Doe is the guy who poisoned seven
pet dogs; but don't put mere belief on the air unless you can produce
the evidence. Don't broadcast news telephoned by volunteer informers
unless you have checked it.

"Qualified privilege" is the legal doctrine that gives anybody the
privilege of reporting fairly and accurately the proceedings of judicial
and legislative bodies, without liability for any libel such reporting may
contain. This means that anything that is an official part of the proceed-
ing in a courtroom of any kind, or in Congress, a state legislature, or the
city council, may safely be broadcast, as long as the broadcast remains
factual and strictly accurate and fair reporting. But everything in it
must be relevant to the proceedings; it must contain nothing that has
been officially erased from the record or that has been officially ordered
nonpublishable; it is not "fair 7 ' if it reports, however accurately, only
enough of the proceeding to give a one-sided picture. Moreover, com-
ment, insinuation, or deduction is likely to destroy the privilege; and
inaccuracy destroys it as, for example, describing a criminal charge
by anything but its formal title (if the formal charge is "breaking and
entering in the night-time," call it that not burglary, or robbery, or
anything else). In Atlanta, substitution of the word "Academy" for
"College" in a damage suit story got a wire service into trouble.

Under this doctrine, you may safely report a trial in which some of
the statements turn out to be untrue. If a man charged with d-unken-
ness is found by judge or jury to be innocent, you may report the charge
and the trial without fear of liability, even though the charge is later dis-
proved. You may also report that one city councilman, without proof,
calls another a liar, if he does it in the course of regular council proceed-
ings. But beware of putting it on the air if he makes the charge while
talking with you in the washroom. Beware, also, of reporting a libclous
outbreak by a spectator in a courtroom it isn't part of the proceeding,
and it isn't privileged. Beware especially of such an outbreak if your
mike is in the courtroom; you're responsible if it goes on the air.

Remember that in most states privilege does not apply to court pro

356 News by Radio

ceedings until they have somewhere been acted upon by a judge. That
is to say, preliminary papers filed with a clerk of court are usually not
privileged merely because they have been filed; they do not become a
formal part of judicial record until a judge enters the case. Grand jury
reports similarly are usually not privileged until they have been re-
turned in court.

Another caution: Don't assume that because a policeman makes a
statement to you, you have privileged material. A cop, even if he's a
captain, is neither a judicial nor a legislative officer. A few states have
statutes making police statements and police records, such as the police
blotter, privileged; most don't. The best rule is something like this:
Use what a policeman says if you are convinced that its truth can be
proved. Otherwise, watch your step.

Most states do not have specific laws relating to defamation by radio.
Where laws or judicial interpretations and decisions exist, they vary from
state to state, and from state to Federal jurisdictions. The descriution of
laws, practices, and precautions given in Chapter 12 is generalized for
general use. But every radio newsman needs to check the laws under which
he practices to ascertain the areas in which they are the usual ones, and
the areas in which they depart from the usual.

The NAB in 1947 proposed a standard radio defamation law (calling it
libel) in an effort to strengthen and make uniform the state laws in this
field. This law providing protection to stations which exercise due care
has been adopted by Colorado and Wyoming, and a similar one by Virginia.

A Utah law limits liability where malice is absent, and offers certain
other protections. A Florida law eliminates liability unless lack of due care
can be proved. In Illinois stations are relieved of liability when neither
station nor employes have advance knowledge of broadcast defamation,
or opportunity to prevent it; defamatory statements by candidates for
public office are not liable. Indiana and North Carolina laws eliminate
punitive damages if retractions are made. Iowa has a law similar to the NAB
standard law, as has Oregon. Montana law says that recovery can be had
only when actual malice is proved. An absolute defense is provided in
Washington if a retraction is broadcast promptly upon written request
and if the station can show that the defamation was made without its
knowledge and "against (his) wishes by one without authority" to broad-
cast it. California provides that recovery may cover only damages to prop-
erty, business, or occupation if a retraction has been properly broadcast.

Other states appear not to have special protective laws for radio.

The Law Says .... 357

Moreover: Don't make the mistake of thinking that you're freed
from responsibility because you attribute a libelous statement to its
source, or because you call a man "the alleged burglar." Such devices
may serve to show that your motives are good, and so to reduce penal-
ties. They won't do more than that, if the libel is false. You're still
liable.

The doctrine of qualified privilege has been extended to the pro-
ceedings of "quasi-judicial" and "quasi-legislative" bodies such as
committees, standing or special, of legislative bodies, as well as to ad-
ministrative bodies like the Federal Trade Commission. But, again, be
sure the proceedings you report are official and open, if you need to rest
your security on the doctrine.

"Fair comment and criticism/' the third absolute defense, is absolute
only under carefully restricted circumstances. It means that anybody
who is offering himself or his performances or creations for public ap-
proval may be criticized. An author's writing, an actor's acting, a radio
commentator's speaking and opinions may all be criticized, however
scathingly. But criticisms must be directed strictly to the public per-
formances. You can't criticize an actor by saying that he beats his
mother-in-law (unless you stand ready to prove that he does beat his
mother-in-law). You'd be safest not to take a raucous middleaged
movie comedienne to task on the ground that you think she would act
Ophelia badly. If she does act Ophelia, and you think she has done it
badly, you can say so.

Allied to the principles of fair comment and criticism are those of
comment and criticism on public officers and candidates for public
office. Your latitude for adverse comment on such individuals is wide.
Again some cautions, however: Be certain that the facts on which you
base your criticisms are true and that your criticisms are reasonable
deductions from the facts. Be sure that there is no ground for accusing
you of malice of having reason other than the public benefit for mak-
ing the criticisms. If it can be shown that you once threatened "to get

The remarks in this chapter refer to actions in civil libel the type in
which an individual who considers himself damaged seeks redress from
the libclcr in a civil suit. The provisions of criminal libel laws, except in
a few states with special statutes, do not apply to radio.

358 News by Radio

the so-and-so because his son hit my son with a shillelagh/' and this
appears to be the prime reason behind your criticism, you're in trouble.

The principles of fair comment and criticism apply not alone to indi-
viduals but also to businesses seeking public patronage or enterprises
desiring public support.

A measure of protection to radio stations broadcasting political
speeches is suggested by an FCC report of mid-1948. "It would ap-
pear/ 7 says the FCC, "that a station is not liable under Federal law
for libel in such broadcasts." This interpretation grows out of the con-
troversial case of WHLS-Port Huron, Michigan, charged with libel
after a 1945 speech by a supporter of a candidate for city office. Because
of the libel charge, WHLS withdrew permission for further speeches
for the same and opposing candidates. The FCC found WHLS guilty
of violating Section 315 of the Communications Act, which forbids
station censorship of political speeches: 'The most effective means of
censorship is complete suppression. . . . Licensees . . . having once
exercised their discretion to carry such programs, may not censor."

In other words, if a station grants a request for time for a political
speech, it may not retract the grant; it may not censor the speech; and
it must grant time for broadcast of opposition views. Since the station
may not censor, it cannot ask for deletion of libelous material, and this
might put it in unreasonable jeopardy. Therefore, says the FCC, "it

It is impossible, within the limits of this chapter, to present all the
shadings of the laws of libel and slander. To the newsroom man who wants
more detail, the following sources are recommended:

W. R. Arthur and R. L. Crosman, The Law of Newspapers (McGraw-
Hill, 1940)

Paul P. Ashley, Essentials of Libel (University of Washington Press, 1948)

R. W, Jones, The Law of Journalism (Washington Law Book Company,
1940)

J* G. Moser and R. A. Lavine, Radio and the Law (Parker & Company,
1947)

F. S. Siebert, The Rights and Privileges of the Press (Appleton-Century
1934)

Warner, Harry P., Radio and Television Law (Matthew Bender & Co. ?
1948)

The Law Says .... 359

would appear that the station is relieved by operation of Federal law
from any responsibility for libelous material."

But there have been court decisions one upheld by the United
States Supreme Court that question this interpretation. The state of
Texas, through its attorney general, has served notice on the FCC that
it will continue to hold stations liable, under state law, for libel in
political broadcasts. Other states may do likewise. So the FCC inter-
pretation is not a foolproof safeguard. Newsrooms should note par-
ticularly that in any case it applies not to all political broadcasts (such
as political news), but only to material originating outside the station.

Liability

Who is "liable" in cases of indefensible libel who foots the bill
when an actionable libel leads to assessment of damages? The answer
in broad terms is that anybody who may be considered responsible for
the libelous material may be called upon to pay. This means the owner-
ship of the station; the station manager; the newsroom director; any
newsroom employe who has worked on the material (as reporter or
editor); and, possibly, the announcer. The source of the information,
too, if he has knowingly given false libelous information for broadcast.

Not that all these must be named defendants in the suit. When a
playwright felt himself defamed in a 1947 "America's Town Meeting
of the Air" program, he asked damages from Town Hall, Inc., the
program's "packager"; from the speaker who had called him "Com-
munist" during debate; and from six individuals described in the suit
as having aided the speaker in the preparation of the offending script.
The 226 network affiliates and the cooperative sponsors were not
named in the action (a California slander rather than libel case) .

But in a New York libel suit at about the same time, an account
executive of a New York advertising firm asked damages from a net-
work, from an advertising agency, and firom a radio producing firm that
had prepared the show for broadcast. The suit charged that the plaintiff
had been libeled in the course of his impersonation by an actor in a
dramatization of certain North African operations in World War II.

The knottiest problem of liability in broadcasting arises in the case

360 News by Radio

of the libelous ad-lib statement thrown in by a performer in spite of a
carefully prepared, pre-read, nonlibelous script. Al Jolson, in a 1939
network program, threw in an ad-lib remark that such-and-such a hotel
was "rotten." The hotel sued; a lower court awarded $15,000 damages,
but the Pennsylvania Supreme Court reversed the decision on the
ground that the network had exercised due care in preparing a libel-
free script, and that it could not be held for Jolson's unrehearsed and
unforeseen remark. The difference in opinion of the two courts illus-
trates the fluid state of the law on this point; there seems to be a
tendency to hold as did the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. Davis, in
his Quill article cited earlier in this chapter, elaborates on this subject.

Watch Out for Lotteries

When Congress passed the Communications Act in 1934, it told
broadcasters, "Keep anything about lotteries off the air." That's a flat
and all-inclusive mandate. You'll be violating the law if you tell your
listeners that a lottery is to occur, or that it did occur with such-and-
such results. Avoiding the word "lottery" won't help. You may offend
if you so much as mention, for example, an Irish Sweepstakes winner.
(This doesn't alter the fact that many radio newscasts do mention
lottery news; but it's risky.)

What is a lottery?

The law says that, to constitute itself a lottery, an event must present
three elements: prize, chance, and consideration.

For many years the Post Office Department has had a regulation for-
bidding newspapers their customary mailing privileges if they contain
news of lotteries. Until 1947 this regulation was interpreted strictly in
the same terms as Section 316 of the Communications Act, forbidding
broadcast of lottery news. When a news story involving a lottery in a
subordinate relationship became of national interest, however (the story
of a Negro in North Carolina denied a prize he had won in a lottery), the
St. Louis Star-Times won a fight to liberalize the regulation. According to
the 1947 Post Office ruling, stories containing "incidental" mention of
lotteries will not bar newspapers from the mails.

The Communications Act provision has not yet been so liberalized.
Action to bring it into line with the Post Office attitude, however, may
be anticipated.

The Law Says .... 361

The meaning of "p^ ze " eas Y- M somebody gets out of the event
something he didn't buy a Cadillac or a penny pencil, a movie pass or
a trip to Calcutta the element of prize is present.

"Chance'' is also simple to define. "Chance" means that the prize
went to its winner in a manner completely outside his control in a
manner that he had no power to affect. If there is competition present,
or if the element of skill enters, you may be fairly sure there's no legal
chance. If the prize goes to somebody who throws a beanbag farther
than other competitors, or who writes a better last line to a limerick, or
who stands on his head longest, there's no "chance" it's skill. But if
his name is drawn at random from a hat, or by random choice from the
city directory, or if his winning ticket is designated by a whirling spin-
dle on a movie stage, chance is present.

"Consideration" is a little more difficult to pin down. It means some
kind of effort on the part of an individual to make himself eligible for
the prize: the payment of money, the purchase of a ticket or filling out
of an entry blank, the rendition of a service. If his name is drawn at
random from the city directory, and he can do nothing to aid such
drawing, there's no consideration. But if he buys the raffle ticket that
goes into the hat, there is.

Some examples:

A woman attending a movie fills out a card and puts it into a box
along with others like it. Her card is drawn, and she gets the turkey.
Verdict: a lottery, because prize (the turkey), chance (random draw-
ing), and consideration (buying the movie ticket and filling out the
card) are involved.

A man walking down a street strictly on his own business is pointed
out at random and given a $5.00 bill. Verdict: no lottery, because
there's no consideration (the man had made no effort to make himself
eligible) , though there are prize and chance.

A child at a church supper has his name read off as the first drawn
from a box containing names of all those present, but receives no other

In response to inquiries from its members, the NAB in 1947 issued a
"General Guide on Lottery Law in Day-to-Day Station Operation." The
"Guide" appears in NAB Reports for June 9, 1947, page 459.

362 News by Radio

reward, Verdict: no lottery, because chance and consideration (the
child's presence) aren't supplemented by prize.

A man is given a pair of boxing gloves for having named more dead
prize-fighters than anybody else in the room. Verdict: no lottery, for
there's prize and possibly consideration, but no element of chance.

In 1948 the FCC proposed tightened regulations to drive from the
air the fabulous "giveaway programs 7 ' that had become so popular. The
proposal had hardly been made public when it was discovered that
Congress had removed from the Communications Act the sections
covering lotteries, and transferred them to the Criminal Code. The
FCC, undismayed, announced promptly that it intended to see that
the law was respected, whether it lay in one statute or another. It held
firmly that most "giveaway" shows are lotteries.

As for Censorship ....

Radio is protected against governmental censorship by the First
Amendment to the Constitution, and the Fourteenth, just as are all
other avenues of communication. And the Communications Act says
that the FCC shall exercise no censorship over what is broadcast by
the stations it licenses. As has just been pointed out, the Act forbids
lottery news; it also denies the right to broadcast obscenity, indecency,
and profanity. This is censorship of a sort. But it is a sort that fits with
American mores, and laws of this kind are not disqualified by American
judicial practice or opinion.

The radio industry has more than once leveled the "censorship!"
charge at the FCC. It did so in 1946 when the Blue Book was issued,
and again when the FCC held extensive hearings on an application for
a license by the New York Daily News to listen to allegations that
some of the News's editorial opinions rendered it unfit to broadcast.
Every time the FCC examines a station's or an applicant's program
content the cry is raised. The FCC has, however, stayed pretty clear of
dictation of content. It has insisted that a broadcaster devote a portion
of his time to programs "in the public interest," and it has emphasized
balanced programming programming consistent with the Communi-
cations Act provision that no station may be a special pleader, that
balancing time must be provided for divergent controversial views.

The Law Says .... 363

But this provision does not restrict views or statements it says only
that if Jones gets time to say black is black, Brown must be given equal
opportunity to say it is white.

The Communications Act also provides specifically that stations
may exert no political censorship on scripts. The FCC interpretation
of this provision is discussed earlier in this chapter.

Radio is about as subject to internal and external, but unofficial, non-
governmental, extralegal censorships, as other communication agen-
cies. The officials of a network, the manager of a station, may and do set
up restrictions on the types of matter that may be broadcast. They may,
if they are unwise, even lay down dicta as to what views and opinions
may go on the air. Sponsors are entirely free to put into their programs
commentators who espouse their attitudes, and to remove, or keep off,
those who see things differently. (But the station over whose channel
a sponsored commentator presents one-sided views may have to provide
equal time for opponents to have their say.) Women's clubs, churches,
political parties, fellow-travelers may bring all the pressure they can
command to persuade radio to say this and not to say that.

But don't confuse this kind of censorship with that contemplated,
and guarded against, by the First Amendment. They are cats of quite
different breeds.

A word about "indecency." Indecency (blasphemy and obscenity,
too) is what each day makes it. Values on which judgments are based
change constantly. The Communications Act does not say that specific
words or ideas may not be broadcast, but merely that obscene words
or ideas are barred. But to the Victorians no one had 'legs"; today
they're practically universal. As broadcasting has grown a bit beyond
adolescence, and as its listeners have altered attitudes, a great many
ideas and words once spoken only in Pullman smokers have been ac-
cepted as socially permissible. This subject has already been treated in
Chapter 3.

So the rule is, simply, that of good taste good taste that takes into
account the particular mores of the listeners to be served and the social
values of the news. Often it's more desirable to omit entirely news that
may be offensive if it's not of real importancethan to present it with
verbal disguise that enhances rather than covers its saltiness.

364 News by Radio

What Is "Privacy "?

The man who comes up with a thoroughly workable definition of
the "right of privacy" and a suggestion as to how, in a democratic so-
ciety, to enforce it will have the blessing of the law book writers. Most
such writers agree that whatever the "right" may be, it's difficult to
make it meaningful. Some fifty years ago the chief justice of the New
York Court of Appeals said that "the so-called right of privacy is ...
founded upon the claim that a man has the right to pass through this
world, if he wills, without having his picture published, his business
enterprises discussed, ... or his eccentricities commented upon
whether in hand bills, circulars, catalogs, periodicals, or newspapers."
But ten years later a court in Seattle said that "unless controlled by
some independent consideration, it has been generally held that there
is no such right. Not so much because a primary right may not exist,
but because, in the absence of a statute, no fixed line between public
and private character can be drawn."

Boiled down, this means that every citizen has the inherent right to
live his private life as he wants to, without finding himself in a fish
bowl. The apparently insoluble problems are: Exactly how, except in
the broadest of general terms, can the right be defined? Where does a
man step from the private to the public? Where can the line be drawn?
What is the damage when an indubitably private act or situation is
laid before the public?

Many of the relatively few suits that have been brought for com-
pensation for invasion of the right of privacy have yielded verdicts of
"no recovery." Courts have more than once declared sympathy for the
offended plaintiffs, but have pointed out, in effect, that definition of
the tenuous line might result in as much injustice to individuals, or
as much infringement on society's right to know what is going on, as
does the shadowy status quo.

Broadcasters have not often been charged with overstepping the line.
In one California case, involving a radio dramatization of an auto acci-
dent seventeen months after its occurrence, a chauffeur characterized
in the play sued and was awarded damages. Most cases in this field,
however, have grown out of newspaper publications a high percentage

The Law Says .... 365

of them involving photographs of individuals only secondarily con-
nected with news events.

In short, invasion of the right of privacy is not a common radio
newsroom headache. This is partly due to the fact that radio has not
gone in elaborately for sensational news, or for personal news; and to
the additional fact that it has stuck fairly close to the major facts of the
news, and has not embroidered them with peripheral "angles."

Good taste, again, is a first-rate bulwark against offense. News that is
properly news accounts of events the knowledge of which keeps the
public informed rarely invades privacy. For both law and common
sense hold that a man who by will or accident becomes involved in an
event of interest to a considerable number of listeners has lost his in-
herent privacy insofar as the ramifications of the event are concerned.
One caution : You're safe and justified in reporting that a man has been
charged with drunken driving, or that he has been struck by a street cat.
But neither fact gives you the right, moral or legal, to inform the public
that he hasn't kissed his wife in ten years.

The Right to Report

Public business is public business. Most facts that are a matter of
public record are open to the public; and courts have held that news-
papers have a special pecuniary and social interest in access to public
records. (This question has not arisen specifically with regard to radio;
but there is no doubt that the same principle would hold.) This means
that almost all activities of government are legitimate news for radio's
reporters: court proceedings, legislative action, official city actions, and
so on. It means not only that the records are open to inspection, but
that the proceedings themselves are ordinarily open to attendance and
coverage.

The rule is not absolute. Any judge may close his court and seal
records. Most legislative bodies may go into executive session. Grand
jury proceedings are held in private. Quasi-legislative and quasi-judicial
bodies such as the FCC or the National Labor Relations Board, as
well as Congressional and similar committees, usually hold hearings in
public, but conduct deliberations behind closed doors. Executive rec-
ords are not open to inspection except by executive order. Records of

366 News by Radio

such public agencies as mental hospitals and the state fire marshal's
office are ordinarily closed, in the public interest. Reporters may not
hamper the activities of peace officers by reporting news of prospective
arrests, unless the officers themselves release the information.

But all these exceptions constitute only a small percentage of the
sources of public news. The general rule holds in a vast majority of
cases: Public business is properly the business of the public, and the
accepted agencies of news dissemination have a special right, in the
public interest, to report it.

As for unofficial news that coming from private sources rather than
public radio's right of coverage is precisely that of any other news
service. The president of General Motors doesn't have to tell anybody
that his corporation is going to increase wages; but the radio reporter
is prevented by no law or principle from trying to get him to talk. It's
the right of a Kansas farmer whose hog was sweepstakes winner at the
International Livestock Show to keep to himself the secret of his suc-
cessand equally the right of WWWW's farm editor to attempt to
persuade him to change his mind.

The obverse of the right to report, of course, is the right not to re-
port. No radio station is obligated to broadcast any news it doesn't
want to. Neither the mayor, the local utilities magnate, nor the press
agent for an aldermanic candidate may direct a radio newsroom how,
when, or whether to use a story. (But when a station permits broadcast
of views on one side of a controversial issue, it must grant equal time
to the other side.)

Who Owns the News?

Anybody may "own" all the news he wants to.

Anybody has the right to gather whatever news his energy, facilities,
and desire make available to him, and to publish it by whatever
medium he chooses. There is no legal or moral monopoly on the news
business.

Radio reporters have not always been given an even break with news-
papermen in access to public information, as has been shown earlier in
this book. But the difficulty here is not one of law, but rather one of con-
vincing those who make news, official or unofficial, that radio should
receive the same treatment as the other news agencies.

The Law Says .... 367

But does he own it after he gets it?

The answer is "yes/' but in a qualified sense. The fact that he has
gathered the facts of an event but has not yet published them does not
hinder anybody else from getting them and beating him to publication.
But no one may take from him the facts he has gathered and publish
them without his permission. The law of ownership is one of fair com-
petition: He has the right to whatever profit may accrue from his own
efforts, and the right to control the use of the product of his own efforts.

The radio news law, in general, is exactly that applied to newspaper
ownership or news. No afternoon newspaper may "lift" a story from a
competing afternoon newspaper and publish it immediately. The
courts have held that such news is the property of the original paper
during the period of its commercial value usually considered the
period from the paper's publication time to the appearance of the next
succeeding morning paper. Under the same principle, a radio station
may not record a competitor's news show and rebroadcast it; the first
station owns "quasi-property" rights as long as the news is fresh. And a
radio station may not lift news from a newspaper, nor a newspaper
from a radio newscast, under comparable circumstances.

The idea for a storythe tip on which it is based is another matter.
A radio station may and most alert newsrooms do take a tip for a
story it has missed from a competitor's newscast, or from a competing
newspaper, send its own man out on it, develop its own story, and
broadcast it. In this case it has expended its own time and effort, and
has full rights in its own story.

Note this point: Ownership of a story lies not in the reporter who
has gathered it for his station, but in the station. News is the property of
the ownership of the organization which develops it, not of the em-
ployes who do the actual work.

The fact that radio "may not" lift newspaper news does not always
prevent it from doing so. In one American metropolitan center a news-
caster made a practice of taking a handful of clippings from the latest
edition of the city paper to the mike with him until the newspaper called
the station on the practice and let it be known that ownership rights would
be legally protected. Most radio newsrooms, however, stand on their own
feet both as a matter of legality and as a matter of pride.

368 News by Radio

What about copyright and the ownership of "literary style" the
precise rhetorical form in which news goes on the air?

Copyright laws, designed to protect writers against plagiarism, pro-
tect literary style. When a script has been properly copyrighted, it may
not be published or broadcast in its copyrighted form except by per-
mission of the copyright owner. This prevents any except brief verbatim
quotations from it. But copyright does not protect the subject, facts,
ideas, or substance in the script. These may form the basis for any
number of other broadcasts, provided they are rewritten or paraphrased
so as not to follow the original literary pattern.

Radio scripts are given broader protection in one direction than
newspaper material. Uncopyrighted material published in a newspaper
becomes public property after its commercial or news value has van-
ished. It may be republished in its original form without penalty. But
uncopyrighted radio material, even after broadcast, is not "in the pub-
lic domain" its literary form remains the property of its owner. There-
fore the rule that a newscast may not be recorded and rebroadcast
without proper authorization applies not only during the life of its
news value, but also to any later period.

NAB Reports for May 19, 1947 (page 406) offers a general state-
ment on the copyright law as it affects radio broadcasters.

The Last Word

Radio kw as summarized in Chapter 12 is a societal development a
two-way bulwark built up for the protection of society and the pro-
tection of the broadcaster in his service to society. The radio newsman
who observes its suggestions and precautions, and who fortifies himself
with knowledge of the peculiarities of the laws of his state, is likely to
be able to steer clear of legal involvements. He may add to its protective
value by adopting the precept, "When in doubt, move slowly and talk
to a lawyer."

But no radio newsman worth the name will be as much concerned
about the letter of the law as about the fulfillment of the high responsi-

Copyright on a radio script is obtained by filing a complete copy with
the Register of Copyrights, Library of Congress, Washington, together
with copyright application Form D-2 and a money order for $1.00.

The Law Says .... 369

t>ility he has assumed. The law's protection implies the newsman's
obligation: to inform the public as fully, as lucidly, and as promptly as
his facilities and his judgment permit; to look on broadcasting not as
a private perquisite but as a social instrument; to make accuracy and
impartiality the touchstones of his profession; to clarify where the
stream of the news runs muddy; to accept the social responsibilities of
radio news service as a privilege supported by courage as well as com-
petence; to make the public interest his necessity.

Appendices

A

Codes for Self -Regulation
by News Broadcasters

A Codes of the National Association of Broadcasters

1. The NAB adopted a "standards of practice" code in 1939 contain-
ing the following paragraphs relating to news broadcasting:

News shall be presented with fairness and accuracy and the broadcasting
station or network shall satisfy itself that the arrangements made for obtain-
ing news insure this result. Since the number of broadcasting channels is
limited, news broadcasts shall not be editorial. This means that news shall
not be selected for the purpose of furthering or hindering either side of
any controversial public issue, nor shall it be colored by the opinions or
desires of the station or network management, the editor or others engaged
in its preparation or the person actually delivering it over the air y or, in
the case of sponsored news broadcasts, the advertiser.

The fundamental purpose of news dissemination in a democracy is to
enable people to know what is happening and to understand the meaning
of events so that they may form their own conclusions, and therefore,
nothing in the foregoing shall be understood as preventing news broad-
casters from analyzing and elucidating news so long as such analysis and
elucidation arc free of bias.

News commentators as well as all other newscasters shall be governed by
these provisions.

2. In 1948 the NAB adopted a revised statement of standards of
practice. The passages of the statement dealing with news broadcasting
are as follows :

NEWS

News reporting should be factual, fair, and without bias. Commentary
and analysis should be clearly identified as such.

Good taste should prevail in the selection and handling of news. Morbid,
sensational, or alarming details not essential to the factual report, espe-
cially in connection with stories of crime or sex, should be avoided. News

373

374 Appendix

should be broadcast in such a manner as to avoid panic and unnecessary
alarm.

Broadcasters should exercise due care in their supervision of content,
format, and presentation of news broadcasts originated by them; and in
their selection of newscasters, commentators, and analysts.

Broadcasters should exercise particular discrimination in the acceptance
and placement of advertising in news programs. Such advertising should
be appropriate to the program, both as to content and presentation, and
should be distinctly set apart from the news content.

In programs of news, news commentary, and news analysis which are
less than ten minutes in length, no more than two commercial announce-
ments should be used,, and they should be given at or near the beginning
and end of the program.

Agricultural and market newscasts should be governed by the same
general standards applicable to news broadcasts.

POLITICAL BROADCASTS

Political broadcasts, or the dramatization of political issues designed to
influence an election, should, if accepted, be properly identified as such.
(Because of the present confusion concerning the laws with respect to
political broadcasts, broadcasters are advised to consult their lawyers in
all cases where they have the least doubt as to the proper method of
handling.)

PUBLIC AFFAIRS AND ISSUES

A broadcaster, in allotting time for the presentation of public questions,
including those of a controversial nature, should use his best efforts to
insure fair presentation. Such time should be allotted with due regard to
all other elements of balanced program schedules, and to the degree of
interest on the part of the public in the questions to be presented.

Discussions of controversial public issues should be presented on pro-
grams specifically intended for that purpose, and they should be clearly
identified as such.

The presentation of controversial public issues should be made by
properly identified persons or groups.

Freedom of expression of opinion in broadcasts of controversial public
issues should be carefully maintained, but the right should be reserved to
refuse them for non-compliance with laws such as those prohibiting
defamation and sedition.

Codes for Self -Regulation 375

GENERAL

Sound effects and expressions characteristically associated with news
broadcasts (such as "bulletin," "flash," etc.) should be reserved for
announcements of news, and the use of any deceptive techniques in con-
nection with fictional events and non-news programs should be unaccept-
able.

The regular and recurrent broadcasting, in advance of sports events, of
information relating to prevailing odds, the effect of which could be
expected to encourage gambling, should not be permitted.

Simulation of court atmosphere or use of the term "court" in a program
should be done only in such a manner as to eliminate the possibility of
creating the false impression that the proceedings broadcast are vested
with judicial or official authority.

TIME STANDARDS FOR ADVERTISING COPY

The maximum time to be used for advertising, allowable to any single
sponsor, regardless of type of program, should be:

Program Between 6:00 All Other

Length and 1 1 :00 P.M. Hours

Five-minute 1:00 1:15

Ten-minute 2:00 2:10

Fifteen-minute 2:30 3:00

Twenty-five-minute 2:50 4:00

Thirty-minute 3:00 4:15

B Codes Adopted ty Associations of Radio News Men

A number of associations of radio news editors at national, state,
and local levels have adopted codes of practice for their members'
guidance. Following are three such codes:

"STANDARDS FOR RADIO NEWS" ADOPTED

BY THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF RADIO NEWS DIRECTORS, 1947

1 The basic function of radio news presentation is in the public interest
and, therefore, the news director's first responsibility is to the people.

2 The news director should be responsible (within the station organi-
zation) only to the station manager, as recommended by NARND and
NAB.

3 The news director should be consulted in all station programming
pertaining to news and special events for the purpose of attaining sound
news program balance.

376 Appendix

4 Only the news director should be granted authority by the manager
to accept or reject news.

5 Adequate coverage of his own area is the primary obligation of every
news director.

6 The minimum essential for every station is one trained news man.

7 Commercials should be separated definitely from the news content,
and NARND recommends that a different voice be used.

8 Selection and presentation of news should be unbiased, accurate,
factual, impartial and in good taste.

**A CODE OF STANDARDS" ADOPTED

BY THE OHIO ASSOCIATION OF RADIO NEWS EDITORS, 1947

Radio news broadcasting is a particular type of journalism. Therefore,
the basic principles of journalism shall apply to the operation of a radio
news department. Because of its nature, certain other principles also
should apply to radio news broadcasting.

The standards which shall govern the members of the Ohio Association
of Radio News Editors are:

1 Radio news must always consist of material of good taste, inasmuch
as the radio enters the family circle in the home. Material on the border-
line of good taste shall not be broadcast except in cases in which the
material is of such nature that honest journalism requires its use. In such
cases, lurid details which in themselves add nothing basic to the report
shall be omitted.

2 Material for news broadcasting shall be judged for its newsworth-
iness alone and shall not be reported for the special benefit of any private
group or individual,

' 3 All news reports from private sources shall be broadcast only after
tiiey have been confirmed as to source, accuracy and truthfulness.

4 Radio news reports shall be honest, sincere, accurate, truthful and
unbiased, and none of these attributes should be sacrificed for brevity.

5 Freedom of speech as guaranteed by the First Amendment to the
Constitution means freedom to speak the truth. The freedom to speak
the truth implies the freedom of the listener to hear the truth. The responsi-
bility for safeguarding these two freedoms is primarily the responsibility
of the executive head of a radio news department, subject only to the
authority of the licensee and/or his representatives -in management. The
news executive should be endowed by management with the authority
to determine content of news programs in line with station policy. Edito-
rializing should be clearly labeled in context as such. Commentators and
news analysts should be identified and labeled in context to distinguish
them from the straight news reporter.

Codes for Self-Regulation 377

6 News broadcasts must not violate the rights of privacy unless such
an invasion is of definite public interest and not merely public curiosity,
and is otherwise legally permissible.

7 A news editor should make every effort to be fair, to present equally
both sides of a controversy and to give each individual an opportunity to
reply to any news story which represents him to the public unfavorably.

8 Every radio station should have the services of at least one full-time
news editor.

9 Radio news reporters are entitled to equal access to news sources,
and shall be recognized as having the same privileges, legally and other-
wise, as representatives of other news media. Radio equipment necessary
to broadcasting shall be given equal consideration to equipment used in
reporting by other news media.

"STATEMENT OF STANDARDS" ADOPTED

BY THE HOLLYWOOD (CALIFORNIA) RADIO NEWS CLUB, 1947

A well-informed public in our own country and in all parts of the
world is the greatest single hope for peace in an atomic world. Presenta-
tion of the news and of other matters of public interest is the greatest
contribution in the interest of the public performed within radio broad-
casting schedules. As such, it is also the most forceful single answer the
broadcasting industry has to its critics who proclaim that radio has been
subverted into the sole function of a merchandising mart. Since presenta-
tion of the news occupies this position of importance in radio broadcasting,
it logically follows that the means of presenting the news is a matter of
primary concern to ownership, management and sponsorship, as well as
to those in the profession. Therefore, those of us engaged in the profession
submit the following recommendations as goals to which radio broad-
casters should aspire in the interest of further improving this vital means
of public information.

1 Newscasts, special events, news commentaries, and news analyses
should be plainly labeled as such.

2 Programs of a feature type based on events in the news involving
such production devices as dramatization or impersonations are logical
adjuncts to news programming, but should be clearly disassociated from
newscasts, special events, commentaries, and analyses by being labeled
for what they are.

3 Each story should be presented in proportion to its total significance
in the news, and never for the purpose of advancing a special selfish
interest. The implementation of this objective will depend on the measure
of responsibility and integrity of the news man or news staff.

4 It should be borne in mind that the news editor's job does not end

378 Appendix

with the teletype. It is his responsibility, whenever possible, particularly
on regional or local stories of a controversial nature, to secure first hand
facts.

5 The line of demarcation between commercial copy and the news
content should always be clearly defined. An ultimate goal in this respect
would be that the newscaster, analyst, or commentator not read the com-
mercial message. Lead ins to commercials should include no reference to
subsequent news.

6 Joint air credits in the case of news broadcasts prepared and delivered
by different persons are a desirable professional standard.

7 News is a special medium and as such demands specially trained
personnel. In staffing radio newsrooms close attention should be given
to the news background and training of news writers, editors and broad-
casters. In order to insure an accurate and impartial presentation of news,
station management must exercise unusual care in the selection of a radio
news editor. He must be competent and capable of accepting full responsi-
bility for the content of all news programs and such content must continue
to be based entirely on his judgment, without interference by sponsor or
any outside agent. Continued vigilance against any relaxation of this policy
is urged.

8 The radio audience is more diverse than the press audience and hence
more rigid standards of good taste should apply in the case of crimes of
sex, violence, and the coverage of accidents of a gruesome nature.

9 Those who prepare and voice the news should constantly bear in
mind the power for "slanting" material which rests even in the tonal in-
flection employed in delivery. Objectivity in material and voicing should
be at all times the goal of good radio news presentation.

10 Minimum news staff standards for all stations should be estab-
lished. It is recommended that at least one experienced news man be on
duty at all times during the hours of broadcasting operation.

C "Radio News Recommendations"
by the NAB Radio News Committee, February 28, 1945

News is the industry's No. 1 public service obligation. It commands
the eager interest of all ages, all classes.

News broadcasts have come to be a "must" in 33,100,000 homes with
their 120,000,000 listeners.

Since each news program must be acceptable to all groups and all ages,
broadcasters are obligated to exercise meticulous care in the handling of
all matters concerned with their commercial sponsorship.

It is the hope of the NAB Radio News Committee that recommends-

Codes for Self -Regulation 379

tions which follow will prove helpful to those engaged in the specialized
field of radio news.

PART I HANDLING SPONSORED RADIO NEWS PROGRAMS

Acceptable Sponsorship of News Programs In the light of the industry's
obligation to the public, is every type of business acceptable for sponsoring
the news?

It is the belief of the Radio News Committee that to a greater extent
than is the case with any other type of radio program, the type of sponsor-
ship must be given careful consideration. What might be acceptable
sponsorship for one type of program might very well be questionable
sponsorship for a news program.

It is suggested in all sincerity that the type of sponsorship of radio news
programs be determined with the same judgment of good taste and seri-
ousness which governs the preparation and presentation of the news itself.

Commercial Copy and Length of Commercials It is felt that better
over-all service would result if commercial copy used in radio news programs
were prepared in a simple, clear, concise, and straightforward manner to
match good news writing. The commercial message should be live copy;
the use of the transcribed musical jingle and other novelty types should
be discouraged with the idea of ultimate elimination.

Length of the commercial in news programs should be severely limited,
with particular attention given to shortening the opening. After specifying
limitations in the NAB Code, the Code Committee recommended
"further restrictions by individual stations" so far as 5-minute news pro-
grams were concerned. This policy is endorsed by the Radio News Com-
mittee with "further restrictions, etc." applying to news programs of
5, 10, and 15 minutes in length. Short commercials build good will for
both sponsor and station.

Simply as a guide it is suggested that stations think in terms of 1 50 and
250 words of commercial, respectively, for 5- and 10-minute news programs,
these figures to include open and close.

Stations which may sell three 1-minute cbmmercials to three different
.sponsors, in one "unsponsored" 5-minute news program, are violating
the NAB Code as amended April 28, 1943. Such practice is also incon-
sistent with Radio News Committee recommendations. On 5-minute shows
a short open and close is an ideal arrangement.

Identification of Sponsor's Message Commercial sponsor identifica-
tion and the commercial message should in no way be made an integral
part of the news. Sponsor message should not employ tie-ins with news
copy nor other artificial devices to attract listeners 7 attention.

The use of a separate announcer is helpful when commercials are given.

380 Appendix

This is not considered mandatory as long as a clear-cut identification of
the commercial segment of the broadcast is given.

Placement of Commercials in News Programs In common practice
there are variations, predicated on local conditions, as to whether news
commercials are given before, after, or within newscasts. The manner in
which the commercial is placed is more important than mere mechanical
arrangement. The position of a commercial with respect to its proximity
to certain subject matter of the news is of utmost importance, particularly
in wartime.

When placed within the newscast, the rommercial may be delivered
at the conclusion of any news item, but there should always be a clean-cut
line of demarcation between the news and commercial copy. An individual
news story should never be interrupted for the sponsor's message. It is
equally important to guard against improper placement from the stand-
point of the nature of the news immediately preceding the commercial.
For example: the commercial should not immediately follow reports of
casualties, ship sinkings, domestic disasters, etc.

The number of stations reporting elimination of middle commercials
is increasing. A station which embarked on such a policy reports that its
news sponsors are now adhering to this plan and are finding it completely
successful.

PART n PROPER IDENTIFICATION OF MEN AND NEWS SOURCES

Commentators and News Analysts Describing staff announcers and
other personnel as "commentators" or "news analysts," unless such an-
nouncers or other personnel are, in fact, qualified to write and deliver
legitimate news commentaries or analyses, should be eliminated. Long
continued, such practice would tend to break down the public's confidence
in the integrity of news broadcasts.

It is urged that all prepared commentaries, analyses, or other news
features, furnished by news wires or other sources, be unmistakably identi-
fied as to source, as a simple matter of honesty and information. For
example: "Here is John Smith with a news commentary by Global News."
The Radio News Committee urges credits so full and frank that there
can be no doubt as to whether a commentary or analysis is actually written
by the speaker, or whether it is prepared by some other plainly identified
source and merely delivered by him.

Identification of Radio News Sources In peace or war it is indispen-
sable to accuracy and clarity to identify fully the source of all news (partic-
ularly unconfirmed reports) even at the expense of a few extra words.
For example: "The Russian armies today reached a point 150 miles from
Berlin, the Berlin Radio announced this afternoon in a broadcast which

Codes for Self-Regulation 381

has not been confirmed by Moscow." Identification should always be
specific and complete since this very identification of the source may be
a major factor in evaluating the news it gives out. (Although most stations
and the networks already follow the above principles, there are some
stations which in the past have not exercised care in these respects, and
it is to them that these recommendations are directed.)

PART III RADIO NEWS EDITOR MUST BE SOLE JUDGE OF CONTENT

The NAB Radio News Committee re-affirms the principle of presenting
as completely as possible, within the time limitations of news broadcasts,
an unbiased and factual account of events as they occur in the world, in
the nation, and in the locality of the station originating the news program.
In order to insure an accurate and impartial presentation of news, station
management must exercise unusual care in the selection of a radio news
editor. He must be competent and capable of accepting full responsibility
for the content of all news programs and such content must continue to
be based entirely on his judgment, without interference by sponsor or
any outside agent.

Continued vigilance against any relaxation of this policy is urged.

In a restatement of "Radio News Recommendations 7 ' on Septem-
ber 17, 1948, the NAB Radio News Committee repeated its 1945 stag-
gestions, with alterations to conform to the 1948 NAB Code (see A, 2
above), and added two paragraphs: One urging the expansion of local
news operations in all radio stations; the other supporting the NAB
position in the Mayflower case that stations should be permitted to
editorialize.

D Codes of Individual Stations

Most broadcasting stations that operate newsrooms guide their prac-
tices by codes more often informal than formal, sometimes written
and sometimes tacit. Such statements of standards, when they are
codified, vary little in general form or in detail from those presented
earlier in Appendix A, Their principal variations lie in adaptation of
broad principles to specific applications to the specific conditions
their stations must meet.

An example of the precepts set up to govern individual station prac-
tice is shown below excerpts from the mimeographed statement pro-
vided by William R. McAndrew, director of news and special events

382 Appendix

of WRC-Washington. WRC is the NBC outlet in Washington, and
originates many network shows; as such, it is not "typical." But its
statement of standards is typical in two directions: It uses carefully-
worked-out network standards as a starting point, and it incorporates
some of its general standards of practice in its style "book (presented in
Appendix C).

Its broad policies are described in the following paragraphs:

News Policy of WRC The station news policy is governed by the
"NBC Program Policies and Working Manual/* regardless of whether the
show is sponsored or is sustaining. Here are the introductory guiding
principles from the Manual:

"Those who exercise a stewardship over the broadcast facilities of this
nation have the duty to bring to radio listeners a full and impartial presen-
tation of news and public affairs, and of men and events important to
public understanding. The fundamental purpose of news and opinion in
a democracy is to enable the people to know what is happening and to
understand events.

"The editorial responsibility of the National Broadcasting Company in
its service of news, commentary, and public discussion is to maintain
freedom of expression, but to guard against inaccuracy, unfairness, and
partiality; to see that all important phases of opinion are reflected in its
broadcasting services; to cooperate in every way with public authority and
government in the interests of national defense and civilian morale; ami,
finally, to eliminate from the current day-by-day news and commentary,
the slanderous or the malicious."

Policy on Rewriting News The general policy provides that the news
editor writing a show shall read the various wire service stories, together
with what information may be provided by special NBC coverage, and
then evaluate this information. Tack-ups [paste-ups direct from a radio
wire] are permitted on certain daily 5-minute newscasts because the spon-
sor has a contract with United Press Radio to provide news for these shows.
UPR runs a special report of date-lined one-paragraph items which are
used for this purpose. On other news shows, tack-ups are not used unless
the news editor is so pressed for time that he does not have room to re-
write last-minute items.

Policies on Special Events The policy of WRC is to carry as many
worthwhile public events as possible, subject to schedule limitations. WRC
carries all the President's radio addresses and also devotes much time to
carrying talks by cabinet members, other government officials, and nation-
ally known leaders.

Codes for Self -Regulation 383

The general policy on this is governed by the NBC Manual, which has
the following to say about "Discussion of Public Issues":

"The requests of all individuals, groups, or organizations for time to
discuss public issues of a controversial nature shall be considered in the
light of the contribution which their use of time would make to the public
interest and toward a well-balanced program structure. Each such request
will be considered solely on its individual merits without discrimination
and without prejudice because of the identity of the individual, group, or
organization desiring such time.

"The policy of the NBC on public issues of a controversial nature is
one of open-mindcdness and impartiality. In connection with its own
sustaining programs, the Company attempts at all times to give fair repre-
sentation to opposing sides of every controversial question which materially
affects the life or welfare of any substantial group. The NBC does not
censor the opinions of speakers who have been given time on the air. It
must, however, check for violations of the law and for inaccurate, defama-
tory, and seditious statements, as the courts have held broadcasters respon-
sible for damaging statements over their facilities."

In addition to carrying such talks of national and international interest,
WRC makes every effort to present purely local District of Columbia
issues to the public,

Special Rules for Handling Important Bulletins Each news break or
bulletin is judged on its own merits. If the bulletin is of sufficient impor-
tance, WRC notifies the NBC newsroom in New York and arrangements
may be made to interrupt a program in progress in order to announce the
news. If the news is of lesser importance, the network may delay the start
of the next following program to read the bulletin. Or if the bulletin is
only of local interest or is minor in nature, it will be read at the next
available "break" between programs, either at the quarter-hour, half-hour,
or hour. There is a standard NBC introduction and close for these bulletins.
Special arrangements are provided for announcing tragedies and the deaths
of prominent persons, so that the next thing heard by listeners will not be
considered frivolous or otherwise be offensive to good taste.

B

Standards for Education
for Radio Journalism

The Council on Radio Journalism was established in January, 1945,
by joint action of the National Association of Broadcasters and the
American Association of Schools and Departments of Journalism. Its
purposes, as defined by its constitution:

1 To coordinate education for all fields of radio journalism with the
expanding requirements of this rapidly-developing industry for trained
personnel.

2 To bring together for counsel and advice representatives of the educa-
tional institutions and the industry to the end that the educational pro-
grams of the institutions shall result in the adequate preparation of per-
sonnel for radio journalism.

3 To study and investigate such problems in the field of education
for radio journalism as may be referred to it by the educational institutions
or by the industry, or as may be proposed by the Council or its individual
members.

4 To define and, insofar as possible, gain acceptance for minimum
standards for, education for radio journalism.

5 To establish itself eventually as the voluntary accrediting agency
'for education programs in the field of radio journalism.

Council membership consists of five members appointed by NAB
and five elected by the AASDJ.

In its first several years, the Council prepared the statement of stand-
ards for education for radio journalism given below; it prepared and
published two bibliographies on radio journalism; it established a con-
tinuing program of "internships" for teachers of radio news, whereby
journalism teachers might serve in carefully-selected radio newsrooms
and gain the experience necessary for effective teaching in the field;
it provided material for a "radio news number" of the Journalism
Quarterly (June, 1946); it made a national survey of the nomen-

384

Standards for Education 385

clature and content of college and university courses in radio journal-
ism, and made recommendations for their strengthening. Headquarters
of the Council are in the office of Arthur Stringer, secretary-treasurer.
at NAB, 1771 N Street N.W., Washington 6, D.C.

The statement that follows comes from a booklet issued by the
Council in October, 1945.

This statement of minimum standards for education for radio journalism
is intended as a guide to colleges and universities offering curricula to pre-
pare young men and women for employment in radio newsrooms and in
other forms of radio journalism. It is not the purpose of the Council on
Radio Journalism to lay down detailed requirements for individual courses,
nor for departmental jurisdiction. The Council contends, however, that
any program of education for radio journalism should be designed to con-
form effectively to the general principles and specific goals here presented.

I The basis of all education for radio journalism is sound general educa-
tion that will provide a foundation for an understanding of the
modern world in which radio is a vitally important means of com-
munication.

Preparation for radio journalism should be offered as part of a
curriculum of not less than four academic years, leading at least to a
bachelor's degree.

At the completion of such a curriculum, the student should have
gained a comprehensive background in the social studies govern-
ment and political science, economics, history, geography and soci-
ology; a grounding in natural science and in psychology; a reading (and,
when possible, a speaking) knowledge of at least one modern foreign
language; and a broad knowledge of English and American literature
and composition. It is urged that this background of general educa-
tion constitute the major portion of his academic work.

II Students should be provided opportunity to acquire an understanding
of the importance of radio as a social instrument and of its relationship
to government, industry and the public.

The student should be thoroughly grounded in the broad field of
communications, especially radio and the press. Such grounding should
include the history of communications; government regulation and
the relationship of radio communication to government in the United
States and in the major foreign countries; radio's social and legal
responsibilities, its influence in the formation of public opinion, its
position as an implement of business and as an advertising medium;

38O Appendix

standards of practice in broadcasting; and the attitudes of the public
toward broadcasting, together with an introduction to the techniques
of radio audience measurement and other pertinent survey methods.

III Students should be provided training of professional quality in the
skills and techniques of radio journalism, together with an adequate
understanding of other aspects of broadcasting.

Essential among these skills and techniques are:

The handling of news (news sources; news gathering and news
writing; news editing); the structure and operation of the news
services; the operation and use of newspaper and radio wires.

Handling news for radio; radio news style; news broadcast
patterns; gathering and writing local news for radio; special events
and on-the-spot coverage; the commentary; the interview; news
dramatization.

Microphone technique fundamentals of the actual broad-
casting of news.

The student should also have the opportunity to obtain basic
knowledge and training in other aspects of radio broadcasting. These
include:

Radio production, radio programming and allied subjects.

Radio advertising its economics, script forms, merchandis-
ing, marketing, servicing and sales.

Station operation, management, public relations, and promo-
tion.

Elementary electronics; control room and studio operation; the
development of television, frequency modulation and facsimile.

IV Teachers of radio journalism should be soundly equipped, by practical

experience, by education and by broad understanding of radio's
special values and implications.

Members of faculties engaged to teach courses in radio journalism
must have had adequate professional experience to enable them to
present courses at the professional level. They should be fully qualified
by college or university training and professional experience to deal
competently and understanding^ with their subjects. Those responsi-
ble for instruction in graduate courses should have had sufficient
advanced academic training or professional experience to equip them
to teach such courses on the level of competency existing in other
disciplines.

V A college or university, to offer, acceptable preparation for radio
, journalism, should possess or have access to adequate laboratory
, . equipment and library and other facilities.

Standards for Education 387

Courses in radio journalism can be effectively offered only where
adequate laboratory facilities provide opportunity for realistic practice
and experiment. Such facilities should include standard radio studios,
record libraries, sound equipment, record-cutting and playback
equipment, etc. Arrangements for students to broadcast their work,
and to hear it broadcast, are recommended. For students of radio
news, a regular wire news service is considered minimum equipment.
Arrangements with radio stations for "internships" are strongly rec-
ommended.

There should also be available library facilities with radio materials
comparable to those available in other disciplines. These should in-
clude an extensive collection of the books on radio journalism, the
press and communications; a collection of radio scripts; files of the
principal trade and technical publications dealing with broadcasting;
files of governmental and radio industry reports, brochures and like
material in the field; and readily-available reference and background
material necessary to provide practical experience in radio news work.

c

A Radio News Style Book

The WRC- Washington "Style Book/' a seven-page mimeographed
statement, was prepared in 1945, and contains a number of suggestions
for handling war news. These have not been deleted because, though
they are specifically out-of-date, they suggest rules or policies for editing
other types of news.

WRC Style Book

. This is a list of do's and don't's in the writing of WRC newscasts. It's
impossible to lay down a set style for radio news writing, because that would
defeat our primary purpose: to write shows that sound as naturally conver-
sational as possible. That word "sound" is the most important thing to
remember. Good radio writing may read poorly, but if it sounds the way
people talk, then you've done your job well. You don't even have to use
full sentences. You can disobey many of the rules of grammar and still do
a good job.

Keep it simple Forget the obscure language and the technical data.
If you can't explain it in everyday language, you're in the wrong business.
Don't use too many large figures. Make them round wherever possible. You
can say "about four hundred B-29s" rather than ''four hundred and 32
B-29s."

Watch those subordinate clauses Take them out of the middle of
sentences and make them separate ones. Never begin a sentence with a
subordinate clause. You can't lead a listener's attention in through the back
door.

Avoid people and places which are not an integral part of the story Say
"the Paducah police chief rather than "Police Chief Amos J. Winterbot-
tom of Paducah." Say "a suburb of Tokyo" rather than "Mitsubishihan-
san," But once a place becomes vital to the day's news, so important that
it cannot be ignored, start using its name, so that the public can become
familiar with it.

WRITE a show! Any Vassar girl can process a news wire. Don't take
the wire services' literary style as gospel. Make your copy alive. Write the
way people talk. Write for the ear instead of the eye. And be accurate. Re-
member here in Washington a lot of the people who are in the news

A Radio News Style Book 389

listen to your shows. Get their names correct. And their titles. But you can
abbreviate a few of their jobs: Make cabinet members the War Secretary,
Labor Secretary, etc., but it's always the Secretary of State. The Chief is al-
ways President Truman, Mr. Truman, or the President. He's seldom the
Chief Executive. Only his wife calls him Harry.

Cut out first names of persons, if they're famous enough. But some celeb-
rities' names sound better with first and last, as Clement Attlee, Anthony
Eden or Cordell Hull. Only if they wear five or four stars are officers called
simply "General" or "Admiral,"

^ When speaking collectively of members of Congress, you may call them
Congressmen. Individually, members of the House are Representatives;
members of the Senate are Senators.

- Don't say Senator O'Mahoney, Democrat of Wyoming. Say "Democratic
Senator O'Mahoney of Wyoming" or "Senator O'Mahoney, the Montana
Democrat." Watch the cliches, the slang and the gobbledy-gook. It's
better to say "order" than "directive" and "infantryman" than "doughboy/'
Occasionally use "just about" instead of "virtually." And they're always
Russians, Soviet forces or ofEcials or Reds. They're never Soviets. A Soviet
is a collective village.

There's no such abbreviation as "there're."

Keep your copy clean. In this job you're combining the duties of a writer,
editor and printer. The final draft of your show has to be read by somebody
else. Don't forget to copyread your shows.

*~ As an editor, sift out the trash from among the day's news. Qualify a
story if it doesn't look too reliable. NEVER, NEVER put a flashof major
importance on the air, until a bulletin has moved to back it up.

Here arc the opening and closing times of all our wires: AP is a 24-hour
service, on both duplicate printers. UP wires also run 24 hours. INS day
wire opens at 2:00 a.m. and closes at 6:00 p.m. Before the night man
leaves, he should strip all printers, turn off the INS night wire and turn on
the INS day wire.

UPR is a 24-hour service. We use the latest World in Brief for a 5-minute
tack-up, but sometimes these are poorly written, so supplement the World
in Brief items with other UPR copy.

Five-minute tack-ups run 55 lines including local and weather. This is
the proper length for announcers' ease. Local usually is one story, but that's
not the limit. Use more if they're good. Remember that you can't judge
local news on the same bases as national or international items and that our
criteria for a good local story differ from a newspaper's.

Always check the 'Washington City News Service local copy carefully
and look over the late Star.

Try not to use more than two similar datelines in a row, but if this inter-

390 Appendix

feres with orderly presentation of the news, forget it. Keep datelines as
short as possible. UPR has a habit of running datelines almost as bad as
"Aboard Admiral Turner's fast carrier task force off Honshu." That's a story
in itself. The dateline is for quick mental identification by the listener.
^ Dateline Radio Tokyo items "San Francisco." Dateline European radio
stories "London" or the city in which the station is situated. If it's been
heard by NBC, make it New York.

Keep 5-niinute show stories short. A six-line item is the maximum. Two
sentences is enough to get the idea across.

Keep the weather concise. Delete "the weatherman," He doesn't exist.
It's a bureau, like everything else in Washington these days.

The midnight news runs approximately sixty lines locally and seventy
lines on network. The network announcer gets the top copy; the local man
the carbon. Don't cut the ten lines piecemeal out of the entire show.
Usually there will be one domestic item running ten lines.

The proper introduction for network news shows is "From the NBC
Newsroom in Washington." The sign-off is "That's the news from the
NBC newsroom in Washington. This is the National Broadcasting Com-
pany."

,< It's important to put a new top on the midnight show. Most of the day's
news will have been wrung dry by the evening commentators. Don't blow
up some insignificant item just to get a new lead. Hit one story hard. If it's a
few hours old, but important enough, start it with a new slant.

Since the midnight show is a Washington origination, national news
should get a slightly heavier play. Try to make your second lead story a big
domestic piece. Give it the works for about twenty or so lines. Then a few
short domestic items. Then, if possible, a cutie.

The big morning show goes on at 7:00 a.m. weekdays and Saturdays.
It's a 15-minute shot and runs about 180 lines. It opens and closes with a
headline summary of the late news, but not one written in the headlines of
a newspaper. If you like to leave out articles, get a job on Varietyl About 50
lines of each show are foreign; 125 domestic. Washington isn't the only
domestic news source. There are a lot of good stories breaking all over the
country these days. Don't let the second half of the fifteen minutes sag.
Cet some color into it. Make 'em laugh and cry.

The domestic portion of the 7:00 a.m. show is written by the night desk.
The overnights can't be stale. They, too, must cover all national news, not
only Washington. Get that "today" angle into your overnights, but don't
fake it. A story about the House passing a tax bill should read: "The Senate
takes up the tax bill today, now that it's been passed by the House." Not,
'The House passed the tax bill yesterday. It goes to the Senate today."

Occasionally you can use a very good foreign feature on the overnights, if

A Radio News Style Book 391

you're certain it won't be duplicated in the morning in the show's first
section.

, - The purpose of the 8:30 a.m. show, like all 5-minute shots, is to sock one
hot story hard and brush off the rest of the news briefly. The 8:30 is a fea-
ture writer's dream. You're surrounded by morning music and the audience
wants the lighter stuff. Don't ignore big news, just because it's serious, but if
there is none, here's the place for those domestic stories, features and an
extra helping of local news. The 8:30 runs about 50 lines.

One danger in working with more than one news wire is that they some-
times are contradictory. Make sure all your stories agree, and corne in se-
quences on different shows.

If you have to begin with "It is rumored in authoritative circles that the
Ankara radio has a report from Berne that . . .," call it an "unconfirmed
report from Berne" or else be smart and throw it out.

Don't put a bulletin into a network show until you've checked with New
York by phone. When you put a bulletin into a local show, hand it to the
announcer on duty, not the talent. If it's a bulletin about a tragedy, a serious
one, tell the producer about it in advance and he'll order up some music.
A bulletin should be slugged locally "A bulletin from the WRC newsroom
in Washington." The word "flash" is never used on the air.
*s Don't use "hell" and "damn" unless they're in a quote by some appro-
priate authority or unless it's some usage like "the Second Armored *Hell on
Wheels' Division."

mt Never call the Japanese "Sons of Heaven," "The Mikado's men/'
"Nips," "Nipponese" or "yellow." Call them Japs, the Japanese or the
enemy.

- Watch the army slang. Beware of snafu, SOP and Sad Sack. GI is OK.
If you say General Vandegrift went to his CP, the average person will think
he went to the John.

Frequently our own correspondents in Washington and abroad have
good stories. Use them with name credit and an NBC plug.

Slug each page of your copy this way:

wrc the date your initials the time

Don't slug each page with a description of the story. Save that informa-
tion for the show itself. Keep your copy concise. It's what it says that counts,
not the number of pages.

_ Be polite on the telephone. The guy on the other end may be an NBC
vice president. When something big breaks, call McAndrew. When some
news regarding the FCC or the radio industry breaks, call McAndrew or
Mrs. Borras.

.. Change the teletype paper and ribbons occasionally. Don't get dignified
just because you're now a member of the Congressional Radio Galleries.

392 Appendix

Keep the schedule board up to date. Get your shows out fifteen minutes
before air-time.

Once again: Write the way people talk, if not your kind of people, then
those with education. Keep it simple. Keep it concise. Keep it accurate.
Keep it clean.

D

A Check List
for Radio Newsroom Self -Analysis

This check list is designed as a guide by which most newsrooms may
analyze the adequacy of their news handling and presentation. Posi-
tive answers to the questions posed by the list count in the news-
room's favor.

PERSONNEL

Is the newsroom director qualified, by training, experience, and judg-
ment, to meet the responsibilities of his position?

Are his staff members qualified to carry out their assignments in news
evaluation, news gathering, and news writing and editing?
Are there enough members of the newsroom staff to meet all ordinary
demands? Is there "personnel-leeway" for emergency situations?
Is the personnel varied enough in abilities to meet differing types of de-
mands (editing and writing straight news, news gathering, dramatiza-
tion and other special script work, on-the-spot coverage, etc.)?
Are members of the staff qualified to broadcast news?

NEWSROOM FACILITIES

Is the newsroom provided with wire service adequate for all needs?

Is the newsroom provided with adequate library and reference materials?

Is the newsroom provided with adequate working facilities (typewriters,

desk space, broadcasting equipment, monitoring equipment, recording

devices, remote lines, etc.)?

Is the newsroom budget adequate?

RELATIONSHIP TO MANAGEMENT

Is full authority for newsroom operation vested in the news director?
Has the news operation the full and sympathetic , support of station
management?

Do other departments of the station (production, programming, engi-
neering, promotion, sales, special services, etc.) understand the news-
room's necessities and cooperate in meeting them?
Does the newsroom offer full cooperation to the station's other depart-
ments?

393

394 Appendix

4 NEWS COVERAGE

a Are significant local and regional news sources covered fully and regu-
larly?

b Is the regional coverage system (correspondents, etc.) adequately de-
veloped?

c Does the newsroom pay proper attention to special events, on-the-spot
coverage, special occasions, etc.?

d Does the newsroom, either with its own staff and facilities or in coopera-
tion with other station departments, give adequate coverage to news of
special fields such as agriculture, sports, etc.?

e Are recording devices, remote lines, and like facilities used to ad-
vantage?

f Is full use made of the wire news available, especially in localizing wire
stories?

g Does the newsroom pay adequate attention to nonroutine coverage,
"enterprisers," background of the news, etc.?

h Does the newsroom or the station conduct audience surveys to provide
reliable, adequate audience information?

5 NEWS WHITING AND EDITING

a Is wire news edited, or rewritten if necessary, to achieve concision,
smoothness, balance, and full comprehcnsibility?

b Is copy handled in the newsroom made to conform to accepted prin-
ciples of effective radio news presentation?

c Is newcast copy written and edited to suit the individual needs and
characteristics of the announcers who present it?

d Is the newsroom deadline schedule such that newscasts go to the micro-
phone only after adequate opportunity for final editing and checking?

e Are precautions taken to insure that sources of information are ade-
quately described and that rumors and unauthenticatcd reports are
adequately labeled?

Is editorial opinion kept scrupulously out of newscast copy?

g Are both sides of controversial questions fairly and accurately presented?

h Do news scripts avoid sensationalism and undue emphasis on minor

news?

i Do news scripts observe accepted canons of "good radio taste"?
j Axe the laws governing libel, slander, and other matters affecting news
practice kept in mind in writing and editing newscast copy?

A Check List 395

6 NEWSCAST PATTERNS

a Are newscast scripts logically constructed?

b Is there sufficient variation in newscast pattern and content from show
to show through the day to provide variety?

c Is due attention paid to patterns of competing newscasts?

d Are newscasts, of whatever pattern, smoothly knit together, with ade-
quate (but not too much) attention to transitions?

e Are "commercials" used with newscasts placed with due regard for
established principles of good taste and effective practice?

7 NEWS PROGRAMMING

a Are newscasts scheduled in number and length to meet both the inter-
ests of the audience and the program needs of the station?

b Are newscasts scheduled at hours to take advantage of the periods when
news audiences are largest?

c Are newscasts for audiences with special interests (such as agriculture
and sports) scheduled at most effective hours?

d Does the newscast schedule pay adequate attention to differing needs
and interests of local and regional audiences?

e Are commentary and analysis shows given due attention in news pro-
gramming?

f Does the schedule of newscasts of local origin take into account net-
work news programs?

g Does the schedule of newscasts take into account the news offerings of
competitive stations?

h Does the news schedule include a wide enough variety of shows of dif-
fering nature straight newscast, commentary, dramatization, inter-
view, background, etc.?

8 NEWS PROMOTION

a Does the newsroom give adequate attention to legitimate methods of

calling audience attention to its news services?
b Does the newsroom give adequate attention to informing news sources

of the services it offers?
c Docs the station's promotion department aid in publicizing news

services?

9 NEWS BROADCASTING

a Are announcers who broadcast news qualified to present it understand-
ingly and effectively?

Radio Station Index

CNKW-New Westminster, British Co-
lumbia, 247

8MK-Detroit (WWJ), 1, 3, 265

KABR-Aberdeen, South Dakota, 181,

249

KALE-Portland, Oregon, 290
KATE-Albert Lea, Minnesota, 250
KATL-Houston, 264
KCRC-Enid, Oklahoma, 279
KDAL-Dulnth, 316
KDKA-Pittsburgh, 3 ff., 265
KELA-Centralia, Washington, 263
KFAB-Omaha-Lincoln, 9, 285, 290
KFAM-St. Cloud, Minnesota, 250
KFI-Los Angeles, 317
KGA-Spokane, 289
KGKO-Fort "Worth, 33
KGKY-Scottsbluff, Nebraska, 262
KGLO-Mason City, Iowa, 289
KGVO-MissouIa r Montana, 241
KILO-Grand Forks, North Dakota, 280
KJR-Seattle, 123

KLZ-Dcnver, 190, 281, 289, 295, 307
KMBC-Kansas City, 58
KMPC-Los Angeles, 9, 19, 68, 236, 245
KNEI^-Brady, Texas, 261
KNX-Los Angeles, 20
KOIN-Portland, Oregon, 182 "
KPO-San Francisco, 263
KPQ-Wenatchee, Washington, 250
KPRC-Houston, 279
KRKD-Los Angeles, 253
KRMD-Shreveport, 242
KRNT-Des Moines, 317
KRSC-Seattle, 290
KSD-St. Louis, 281
KSIW-Woodward, Oklahoma, 264

KSL-Salt Lake City, 236
KSOO-Sioux Falls, South Dakota, 16-

17

KSTP-St. Paul, 20, 259, 262
KUOM-Minneapolis, 162-177, 255,

277, 299

KVOA-Tucson, 121
KVOO-Tulsa, 263

KVOS-Bellingham, Washington, 16 f.
KWK-St. Louij, 20
KWKH-Shreveport, 242
KWNO-Winona, Minnesota, 250
KXOK-St. Louis, 282
KYA-San Francisco, 246
KYSM-Mankato, Minnesota, 236, 249

WAAB-Boston, 310
WABC-New York, 240
WBAP-Fort Worth, 33
WBNY-BuFalo, 261, 317
WCAR-Pontiac, 282
WCAU-Philadelphia, 317
WCBM-Baltimore, 121, 185
WCBS-New York, 264
WCCO-Minneapolis, 58, 66, 220, 249,

257, 268-277 passim., 287, 317
WCPO-Cincinnati, 280
WCSH-Portland, Maine, 237
WDAY-Fargo, 255
WEAF-New York, 240, 250
WFBG-Altoona, 280
WFBL-Syracuse, 262
WFIL-Philadelphia, 37
WFOY-St. Augustine, 236, 259
WGHF-New York, 37
WGN-Chicago, 21
WHCU-Ithaca, New York, 307, 312
WHIZ-Zanesville, Ohio, 251, 260

397

398

Radio Station Index

WHKC-CoIumbus, 67
WHLS-Port Huron, Michigan, 358 f.
WHO-Des Moines, 181, 237, 255, 289
WHOM-Jersey City, 240
WIGM-Medford, \Visconsin, 249, 263
WILM-Wilmington, 259
WIND-Chicago, 121, 259, 263
WING-Dayton, 261
WINR-Binghamtown, 36, 260, 262,

316

WIZE-Springfield, Ohio, 261
WJR-Detroit, 280
WJTN-Jamestown, N. Y., 261
WJ2^-New York, 240
WKBH-La Crosse, Wisconsin, 259,

264

WKRC-Cincinnati, 280
WLAC-Nashville, 32
WLBR-Lebanon, Pennsylvania, 262
WLIB-Brooklyn, 34, 240, 262
WLOW-Norfolk, Virginia, 264
WLS-Chicago, 20
WMAQ-Chicago, 245, 293, 295
WMA-Macon, Georgia, 251, 260
WMBD-Peoria, 236, 241, 251

WMIN-St. Paul, 259
WMRN-Marion, Ohio, 249
WNAC-Boston, 19
WNBC-New York, 250, 252
WNDB-Daytona Beach, 248
WNEW-New York, 240
WNYC-New York, 240
WOAI-San Antonio, 279
WOL-Washington, 248
WOR-New York, 21
WOW-Omaha, 261
WPAY-Portsmouth, Ohio, 240, 251,

260

WQXR-New York, 240
WRBL-Columbus, Georgia, 249, 260
W r RC-W r ashington, 182, 381 ff., 388-

392

WROL-Knoxville, 281
WRRN-Warren, Ohio, 290
WSB-Atlanta, 317
WSLB-Ogdensburg, New York, 261
WSTV-Steubenville, Ohio, 317
WSYR-Syracuse, 36, 244
WTMJ-Milwaukee, 281
WWJ-Detroit (8MK), 1, 3

Subject Index

Accuracy in radio news, 60, 61 ff., 93,
116 f.

Advertising, radio, 4-10 passim., 23 ff.,
29, 68 ff.

Agricultural news director, 285 f.

American Association of Schools and
Departments of Journalism, 35,
384

American Broadcasters News Associa-
tion, 19

American Broadcasting Company, 16,
34, 121, 195, 266, 277, 281, 289,
303, 309, 323

"American Farmer," 289

American Ncwscasting Association, 19

American Newspaper Publishers Asso-
ciation, 4, 7, 11, 14 f., 17, 21-25,
28, 33

"America's Town Meeting of the Air/*
348-351, 359

Associated Press, 5-18, 21, 25, 28-31, 36,
38, 62, 67, 73, 82 f., 112 f., 120,

125, 128 ff., 131, 163, 203, 238, Close, Upton, 319

Broadcasting stations in United States,

6

Broadcasting's economic status, 63-67
Brown, Cecil, 29, 66, 312 f.
Frown, Robert W., 238 f.
Bureau of Applied Social Research, 53
Burke, Frank, 235

Canadian Press News, 125

Carter, Boake, 12, 15 f. 7 311

Casey, Ralph D., 32

"CBS Views the Press," 36

Censorship of news, 24, 34 f. ? 63-71,
362 f.

Chicago Radio Correspondents' Asso-
ciation, 248

"Chicago Round Table," 348 L, 351

Chicago Tribune, 13, 18, 21

Church, Wells, 85

Churchill, Winston, 30, 42

CIO-PAC study of radio news bias, 315

Clinics, radio news, 235, 285, 316, 352

240, 293

A. T. & T sports ticker, 74, 132, 291
Audience, radio news. See Radio news

audience

Backgrounding the news, 301-307

methods of, 303-307
Backhand, Ralph, 220, 269, 271, 273
Barnouw, Erik, 204
Barrett, James W., 19, 24
Baukhage, H. R., 324-333
Bellingham Herald, 16
Bickel, Karl, 12, 17
Blue Book, 237 ff., 362
Blue Network Company, 16, 30, 34, 64
Brisbane, Arthur, 13

Cochran, Harry M., 317
Codes for self-regulation by news broad-
casters, 373-383
"Colorado Speaks," 190, 307
Columbia Broadcasting System, 7, 12-18
passim., 26 f., 48, 53, 66, 76 f., 79,
132, 277, 303, 309-315
Columbia News Service, Inc., 15, 17 ff.
Commentary, 308-348

"analysis" of news, 309-315
by the individual station, 315-318
methods and techniques, 318-348
nature of, 308-315

Congressional press galleries, radio ad-
mitted to, 26, 247
Consolidated Press, 11, 15

Broadcasting Magazine, 25, 28, 31, 34, Controversial subject matter, 65 f., 309-
36, 37, 46, 72, 132, 237, 259, 317, 358 f.

283 ., 311 Cooper, Kent, 12, 17

399

400 Subject Index

Cooperative Analysis of Broadcasting,

46 f. f 53, 235
Corwin, Norman, 277
Council on Radio Journalism, 35, 78,

237, 304, 384-387
Criticism of radio, 36, 65-69 passim.,

237 ff.

Davis, Elmer, 47, 49, 94, 303, 309
Davis, Norris G. y 352, 360
Daytona Beach News-Journal, 248
De Forest, Lee, 2 f .
Denny, George V., Jr., 350 f.
Detroit News, 1, 3, 258
Dill, Clarence C., 19, 32
Discussion programs, 348-351
Don Lee Network, 21
Dramatization of news, 203-234
Dryer, Sherman H., 351

Edisto Broadcasting Company, 240

Editor 6 Publisher, 16, 85, 236, 264

Editorializing, 309-318

Education for radio journalism, 35, 79

Eliot, George Fielding, 319 f.

Enid Morning News, 279

Ethridge, Mark, 28

Facsimile, 37

Fairley, Harry, 14

"Farm and Home Hour/' 289

Farm news. See Special fields

Federal Communications Act, 16, 32,

65, 310 f., 358, 360, 362 f.
Federal Communications Commission,

6, 21, 24 ff., 32-39 passim., 65-74

passim., 237-240, 293, 310 ff., 317,

358 f., 362 f.
Federal Radio Act, 7 f., 32
Federal Radio Commission, 7 ., 17, 21
Flaherty, Pat, 279 f .
Fly, James L., 32
FM, 39

Foreign news broadcasting, 26 ff., 29 f.
Fortune, 50 f .
Frequency modulation, 39

Goddard, Don, 252
"Graf Spee" broadcast, 29

Haeg, Larry, 269-274 passim., 287
Hammer, Haakon H., 24
"Harbor We Seek/' 317

Hardy, Ralph W., 236

Harris, E. H., 14, 17, 19, 22

Headliners' award, 331

Heatter, Gabriel, 12, 47 f., 309, 318 f.,

322 ff., 338-344
Heslep, Charter, 239
Hicks, George, 30, 277
High-speed news transmission, 37
Hill, Edwin C., 12
Hogan, John F., 236
Hollywood Radio News Club, 377 f.
Hooper audience ratings, 42, 47, 52
Hutcheson, Ken, 289
Hutton, Burton, 290

Ickes, Harold, 66, 248, 319
Impartiality in news broadcasting, 64-

68, 307-318
Institute for Education by Radio. 237,

254
International News Service, 6, 8 f., 12-

25 passim., 31, 38, 62, 67, 73, 82 f,

125, 129, 132, 236, 238 f.
Interviews, 190-202

Jolson, Al, 360

Kaltenborn, H. V., 15, 19, 26 f., 66,

241, 309, 313 f.
Kansas City Star, 4, 11
Kobre, Sidney, 302

LaGuardia, Fiorello, 240, 319
Law of radio news, 352-369

copyright, 368

defamation, 352-360

defamation by radio, state laws re-
garding, 356

defenses against defamation charges,
354-359

fair comment and criticism, 357 f.

"giveaway programs" as lotteries, 362

liability for defamation, 3 59 f .

libel, 352-360

libel, elements in, 353 f.

lotteries, news of, 360 ff,

ownership of news, 5 f. r 7-17 passim.,
366 ff.

piracy of news, 9, 13 f., 16 f., 367

qualified privilege, 355 E

right of privacy, 364 f ,

right to report, 19, 26, 247 ff., 365 f.

slander, 352-360

Subject Index

401

Lawrence, David, 11

Lazarsfeld, Paul F., 41, 53, 298

Lewin, George, 24?

Lewis, Fulton, Jr., 26, 47, 248, 312

Lindbergh, Charles A., 12, 308

Lippmann, Walter, 1 3

"Living room audience," 40-45, 57-61

Local and regional news coverage, 9, 19,
59, 132. See also Local news

"Local live" news, 238 f., 278

Local news, 235-264
and promotion, 258-260
coverage methods, 242 ff., 247, 249 f.,

254-258,260-264
'local angle" news, 252 f.
'local live" news, 238 f , 278
local newscaster preferred, 241
postwar development of, 235-241

MacDonald, Bill, 290
"Man-on-the-street" broadcasts, 278 f.
"March of Time," 48, 203-220
Martin, John Bartlow, 302
"Mayflower decision," 310 ff., 317
McAndrew, William R., 381
Meine, Frederick J., 298
Mencken, H. L. T 94
Miami Herald, 37
Mickelson, Siegfried, 257 f., 268-277

passim.

Milwaukee Journal, 13
Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce

special events script, 268-277
Monopoly ownership investigation, 34
Moore, Herbert, 19 ff., 23
Mosse, Baskett, 118, 136
Multivoice news patterns, 184-234
Munich crisis, 26 ff.
Murrow, Edward R., 27 r 29 f., 77,

1 02 f, 241, 248, 313 f, 319
Mutual Broadcasting System, 16, 21,

266

NAB Reports, 361, 368

NAB Radio News Committee, 235 f.,

244, 378-381
National Association of Broadcasters, 17,

28, 35 ff., 50, 63, 65, 78, 235 f.,

310, 312, 316, 373 ff., 378-381,

384
National Association of Manufacturers,

312

National Association of Radio Farm Di-
rectors, 287

National Association of Radio News Di-
rectors, 236, 375 f.

National Broadcasting Company, 7, 12,
15, 17 f., 26 f., 34, 38,48, 64, 82,
121,132,245,248,277,289,317,
_348

National Opinion Research Center, 48,
50 f.

National Press Club, radio newsmen ad-
mitted, 26

"Neither Free nor Equal," 66, 317

Networks, affiliation with, 1 5 f .

New York Daily News, 33 f., 362

New York Post, 34

New York Times, 12 f., 34, 240, 307

News in early broadcasting, 1-5, 265

News, nature of facts, 61 ff.

News services for radio, 9-18 passim. f
19-26, 32, 72, 124-133, 250, 296

News, sponsored evening; network, 46 ff.

News teletype service, 25, 31

News time on networks, 31

Newscaster, 136, 236, 237

Newsmen as broadcasters, 70

Newsorn, Phil, 85

Newspaper attitude toward broadcast-
ing, 4, 5-26, 28-34, 36, 240, 250

Newspaper circulation, radio news ef-
fect on, 10

Newspaper-Radio Committee, 33

Newspaper-radio comparisons, 49 ff.,
55 ff, 283

Newspaper-radio ownership investiga-
tion, 32 f.

Newspapers as broadcasters, 1-34 passim.

Newspapers served by Transradio Press,
21

Newsroom, check list for self -analysis of,
393 ff.

Newsroom, description of, 72-83

Newsroom, equipment, 72-75

Newsroom organization and cost, 79-83

Newsroom personnel, 70 f., 76-79, 244,
283 f., 304

Newsroom, reasons for, 73 f ,

Newsroom, reference materials, 74 f.

Newsroom, salaries, 78, 81 ff.

Newsrooms, early development, 9, 19,
29

402 Subject Index

Noble, Edward J., 34

"Northwest News Parade," 220-234

Office of Censorship, 35, 239, 279
Office of Radio Research, 51, 53, 59
"On a Note of Triumph/' 277
"Open Letter to the American People,"

66

Opportunities in radio news, 76-79
"orchestrated hell . . . ," 102

Parker, George B., 13

Peabody award, 314

Pearson, Drew, 309, 319, 322

Plambeck, Herb, 289

Portland Qregonian, 6

Press Association, 25, 31

Press-Radio Bureau, 17-20, 22-26, 28,
106

Press-radio conflict, 4, 5-26, 28-34, 36

"Press-Radio War," 15-26

Price, Byron, 35

Printer's Ink, 10

"Processing" as radio news term, 63

Promotion, news broadcasting in, 3 f.,
258 ff., 290

"Public interest, convenience, and ne-
cessity," 8, 18, 63, 65, 310

Publishers National Radio Committee,
14, 17 ff.

Radio Corporation of America, 4, 38
Radio Correspondents' Association, 248
Radio Daily, 235, 259
Radio logs in newspapers, 4, 11, 17, 28,

36

Radio News Association, Inc., 21, 25
Radio news audience

analysis of, 36, 40-54, 286

"coincidental" study method, 52

"instantaneous audience measure-
ment," 53

methods of audience study, 51-54

Nielsen mechanical recorder, 52

studies of, 36, 41 ff., 47 f., 49 ff., 241,
298

study by individual stations, 53 f.
Radio News Committee, see NAB
Radio news-days, typical, 181 ff.
Radio news, nature and characteristics

of, 55-71, 250-258
Radio News Service of America, 9, 19

Radio news techniques
editing techniques, 133-181
bulletins, 122, 128 f.
flashes, 128 f.

length of radio newscasts, 1 36
mechanics, 113-116, 177, 388-392
transitions, 135, 177-181
format of newscasts, 119-124, 299
departmentalized format, 119-122
dramatization of news, 202-234
headline format, 122 f., 186
interviews, 190-202
multivoice news patterns, 184-234
transitions, 135, 177-181
gathering news for radio sources and

techniques
court news, 13, 248
features, wire service, 112, 128, 130,

293 ff.

"personal" news, 251 f., 294
public attitude toward radio news,

247 ff., 317
recording devices, use of, 244-247,

248,289,292,295
regional coverage methods, 249 f.
sources of news, 124 f., 132 f., 283-

300, 329 f.
strikes' effect on local radio news,

240 f.

telephone, use of, 244, 330
weather news, 254 f.
writing radio news
bromides, 96

conversational style, 84-93
ear, writing for, 60, 84 f., 93
feature story writing, 110-113, 255-

258

interviews, 190-202
leads, 105-108, 134 f.
mechanics of copy, 113-116, 177,

388-392
rewriting the newspaper wire, 133-

162

rhythm, 100
sensationalization, 61
sentences, 96-99
simplicity in style, 93-100
story organization, 108 ff.
style book, 388-392
taboos, 58 i, 251
transitions, 135, 177-181
vitality, 100-103

Subject Index

403

Radio Showmanship, 259, 285

Radio Washington, 133

Ray, William, 245, 295

Reader's Digest, 350

Recording devices, use of, 244-247, 248,

289, 292, 295

Reference materials in newsrooms, 74 f .
Regional news. See Local news, also

Local and regional news coverage
Reuters, 73, 125
Roberts, Clete, 246
Roosevelt, Franklin D., 10, 13, 30, 42 f.,

129, 265 f., 282, 331 ft

Saam, Byrum, 292

Saerchinger, Cesar, 314

Sf. Louis Star-Times, 360

Salaries, newsroom, 78, 81 ff.

Saroyan, William, 101

Saturday Evening Post, 69

Schechter, Abe, 15,26

Seattle "Post-Intelligencer, 16

Seattle Times, 16

Seldes, George, 66, 68, 350 f.

Sevareid, Eric, 29 f, 324, 333-338 .

Shelley, Jack, 237

Shirer, William L., 27, 29

Siepmann, Charles A., 238, 316

Sigma Delta Chi awards, 281, 317

Sinclair, Upton, 66, 68

Special events, 5, 13

methods and techniques, 267-282,
292 f.

nature of, 265 f., 277

network handling of, 277 f.

relation to news, 265 f.

script, 268-277
Special fields, news in, 283-300

agricultural news, 285-290

business news, 297

children, news for, 298 ff.

political news, 295 f., 358 f.

religious news, 298

sports news, 5, 13, 290-294

women's news, 294
Specialists, radio news, 283-300, 320
"Sports stations/' 290
Standards for education for radio jour-
nalism, 384-347
Stanton, Frank, 41, 298
Stout, Allen, 281
Stringer, Arthur, 385

Style of radio news. See Radio news tech-
niques

Swing, Raymond, 94, 309, 318 f., 322 ff.,
338, 343-348

Taylor, Don M., 32
Television, 38 f.
Texas City disaster, 279 f.
Thomas, Lowell, 16, 47 f.
Transradio Press Service, Inc., 20-25, 31,
63, 73, 106, 125, 130 f, 238, 293
Truman, Harry S., 42, 93, 98

Ultrafax, 37

United Nations organization meeting,
coverage of, 280

United Press Associations, 6, 8 f., 12-25
passim., 31, 37 f., 62, 67, 13, 16,
82 f., 85, 112, 120, 125-128, 131,
t 203, 238, 293

United Press Radio News Style Book.
85, 115

United States Department of Agricul-
ture, 286, 288

Vadeboncoeur, E. R., 36, 244
Van Voorhis, Westbrook, 205
Verstraete, John, 259

War news, censorship of, 34 f.

Watson, Brooks, 241

Watts, Lowell, 289

Weather news, 254 f.

Wecter, Dixon, 69, 314 f.

Welles, Sumner, 319

Westinghouse broadcasting operations,

White, Llewellyn, 314

White, Paul, 15, 26, 118, 204, 309,

312 ff.

White, Robert, 289
Wile, Frederic William, 12
Willard, A. D., 316
Williams, Earl, 285, 288
Winchell, Walter, 47, 49, 66, 309, 319,

322

Wire news show, editing of, 162-177
World War II, radio's service in, 65
Wylie, Max, 94, 204

Yankee Network, 19 f.