Broadcasting Programmes

Radio Record, Volume VI, Issue 2, 22 July 1932, Page 5

Broadcasting Programmes

British Expert's Warning N appeal to Australians not to encourage monopolistic control of broadcasting was made recently by Captain P. P. Hickersley, formerly chief engineer of the British Broadcasting Corporation, in a broadcast address over station 2BL. Captain Eckersley explained how the tadio enginéers of Burope had succeeded in devising a plan’ which gave each natidbn sufficient broadcasting channels without too severely interfering with each other. Unified control on the technical side had proved of great advantage, but monopolistic control of programmes was perhaps not always in the listener’s best interest. It was a mistake to think that because in Britain the best singers, the best orchestras and the most erudite spéakers were heard over the air, the pro‘grammes must be transcendentally the \ best. That was not so, because the spirit of the programme was just as important. ‘The right spirit was lacking in a bureaucratic organisation, be cause the controllers of the latter were more intent upon keeping their jobs than in trying new-experiments which might seem to them dangerous. On the other hand, programmes arranged by private enterprise were designed to capture public interest and to please the listeners, even though at times a certain amount of vulgarity might creep in. , "Hang on to your B class stations," urged Captain Eckersley. "A monopolistic nationalised system tends to mediocratise everything. It is a mistake to suppose that the British Broadcasting Corporation is the complete success which a statistical analysis might indicate. The B class stations will help you to avoid the danger of standardisation of programmes. Tf broadcasting exists for anything outside entertainment, it exists to make people think." cement