BROADCASTING IN AMERICA.

Press, Volume LXVII, Issue 20178, 5 March 1931, Page 7

BROADCASTING IN AMERICA.

LOW LEVEL REACHED. • ■ . (rnoat ova special cokbksfondknt.) VANCOUVEB, February 4. | The "business" of radio broadcasting I in United States and Canada has I now touched its lowest level-r-a | standard of high-power 'salesmanship, r set by advertisers, .whb hWe /acquired Bole control of the.air. ( monopoly is based on the principle* that, tfopuri pose of broadcasting, is.' listener to buy this or, that ; of commodity or service, .frcfnr or banana oil to freO'-dentisjbry 3 . In its everyday programme, the situation in United States andiCanada is now at its worst/ ''Whatever is done i by way of education will read!. only a fraction of the radio public,, and fill only a minute part, of radio time. Advertisers pay now as much as £4OOO an hour for a coast-to-coast broadcast of their wares. The vprico ,is to be, increased. !

There have been protests, by the .Press and leaders of public education, but |t is now' generally felt there is no possible, recovery. The public shows no sign of protest. Ten years 'have made them accustomed to what the adI vertisers have served up to them.- 1 . ,■' Canada is in a parlous state, as the air is dominated for hundreds of miles north of the border, by the big American stations, Canada is at last beginning to< show signs of revolt. At the next sitting of the Dominion Parliament, a big effort is to be made to recover the air from the tentacles of the advertising octopus, and invest it in the people, on lines similar to the British Broadcasting Corporation. But with no Bign of co-operation from the United States, the difficulties in the way are appalling. We can only hope for the beßt.