Evening Star Newspaper, July 20, 1930, Page 71

s S “Washington, Nation’s Radio News Center The Day of the “Newspaper of the Air” Has Arrived—A Radio City Editor Has Been Avvointed and Washington, Center of the Nation’s News, Has Become Chief News Source o Radio—Television Will Bring the Capital Within View of American Radio Audience. President Hoover delivering his Me- morial day address at the Amphithe- ater in Arlington National Cemetery, a year ago last May. \ An application for a license to broad- cast television programs originating in Station W2XBS, through the National Broadcasting Co. network, which was filed with the ‘Federal Radio Commis- sion on the 8th of this month by the Radio Corporation of America, is seen as the first definite step toward bringing television into the homes of American radio listeners in the near future. BY HUDSON GRUNEW ALD. . PEAKING to you from the Nation’s ¢ f\, Capital—" That phrase, familiar to the American radio audience since the earliest days of chain broadcast- tng, is gaining a new meaning of importance. with broadcasting companies centering more attention on news events and features of timely interest, Washington, center of the Nation’s news, is becoming the chief news source of radio. The day of the “newspaper of the air” has arrived. The first “radio city editor” has been appointed. And there’s a steadily increasing de- mand for programs from Washington. Washington’s two principal broadcasting sta- tioris—WMAL, a link of the Columbia network, and WRC, local key station of the National Broadcasting Co.—report & marked increase in interest in radio features originating here, and officials of the N. B, C. say that business has nearly doubled at their Washington office in the past six months. Now, with television actually in the near off- ing, the voice of Washington will no longer be speaking in the dark, but the Nation's Capital will be brought within the range of vision of the American radio audience whenever a big news event is broadcast. NEWS is becoming the order of the day in radio. That does not mean that it will supplant the program of entertainment, but when a big news story goes on the air today the program of pure entertainment steps aside. News of the City of Chicago endurance plane this month was put on the air at hourly inter- vals as the flight was nearing its end. Realiz- ing the demand for news, advertisers are will- ingly allotting time for the broadcasting of im- portant events whenever they occur. News of national importance is given precedence, and Washington chimbs to the front rank among the key cities of radio. The broadcasting of news brought about the firsi interconnection of stations on a chain sys- tem: and may be said to be responsible for the network idea. In 1922 a station in New York was interconnected by telephone wire to a sta- tion in Chicago to broadcast simultaneously a world series base ball game. Following this, the first regular interchange of programs by wire was initiated between a Washington station (WCAP) and Station WEAF in New York, and later other stations tied in to this “chain.” For special news events of national importance, large groups of stations were temporarily inter- connected, and from this beginning there grew the red network, the blue network, the Pacific Codst nebwvork-ythie resent, coast-to-coast net- work system of today. THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, JULY 20, 1930. Television will bring the wonders and beauties of the Nation’s Capital into the front parlors of homes throughout the 43 States and in foreign countries. . 'I‘HE first great news event ever to be broad- cast by a Nation-wide chain of stations went on the air from Washington. This was the memorable welcome to Lindbergh upon his return to his native country after his epoch- making New York-to-Paris flight, Covering this event for the air, which was broadcast by 50 stations to millions of listen- ers from coast to coast and from border to border, represented a feat never before at- tempted by radio and established a record in the handling of news such as had never been accomplished by any news-gathering agency. It served to demonstrate the value of radio as the quickest means of disseminating news. It gave to practically the entire country the news of this big event at the very moment it was hap- pening. It brought virtually the whole Nation within earshot of its Capital and gave to this vast audience an opportunity of “listening in™ to history in the making. From that mcment on radio's place in the fleld of news was established. For over three consecutive hours Washington was on the air. No detail of the vast celebra- tion with which the whole Nation was in sympathy and to which, through the magic of radio it was in tune, was overlooked by the re- porters of the air, the corps ot announcers sta- tioned at every focal point of activity. News was being covered from a new angle. Side by side with the men of the press was this new corps of news gatherers. No waiting presses paused to transcribe their description into printed words. No newsboys stood in line to deliver to a waiting public, within a limited radius, their reports, minutes or hours later. The voice was their medium of communication and the voices of these men would reach their audiences instantly, whether they were a mile or a thousand miles away. From the Washington Navy Yard, Graham MacNamee; star reporter of the air, told his listeners of the arrival of the cruiser Memphis, bearing the home-coming colonel. Many who were listening on that day will recall his words: “There has been no such excitement in the air since Armistice day; Lindbergh is coming down the gangplank, walking slowly, his medals on. Again we see the greeting of the Secretary of the Navy. This is the most terrific broadcast- ing I ever took part in. The Roman emperor never received a more enthusiastic welcome.” From the top of the Washington Monument, 555 feet above the ground, an announcer de- scribed all he could see of the crowds and the parade coming up Pennsylvania avenue, and of the arrival later of Lindbergh and his escort at the official welcoming stand on the Monu- ment Grounds. An announcer stationed at the Capitol told of the passage of the parade at that point. At the Peace Monument, at the foot of Pennsyl- vania avenue, an announcer described the army of troops that joined the escort at that point. Another announcer stationed at the Treasury Building gave a word picture of the triumphant march up the avenue, and then MacNamee came back on the air at the Monument Grounds, and from this point the radio audience heard the President’s welcoming message and listened to the voice of Lindbergh in reply. Seven microphones stationed at these vari- ous posts, the announcers all in communication with one another through special telephone con- nections, were used to describe the event. The radio audience heard the guns firing over the Potomac in salute; they heard the bands, the cheering; they even heard the tramp of the soldiers’ feet on the march; they heard every tribute and every speech made. Vivid impres- sions reached the invisible American radio audi- ence, who were able to picture the whole event as though they had actually stood in Washing- ton with the welcoming crowds. That was news service, the beginning of a service that in its short span of existence has included an inauguration ceremony, the funeral of a former President, a Washington's birthday pageant, Memorial day observances, numerous other events of national interest and speeches by the Nation’s leaders and the Nation's great on matters of timely importance; a service that was to bring the American radio audience into the library of the White House, into the private home of Woodrow Wilson, onto the floor of the Senate and over the roofs and streets of Wash- ington in airplanes; a service that was to reach out to listeners across the seas in foreign coun- tries; a service that has brought the Nation’s Capital to the forefront of radio interest. ~ Setting up the “mikes” for the first big news event to be broadcast on a na- tional network, the welcome to Col. Lindbergh. This photo shows engineers ¢ 1~ of thes Natienal Breedeasting Co. installing apparetus an thei steps of the Treass ury at the head of Pennsylvania avenue. 5 President Coolidge accepting the Re blican nomination in Memorial Con. tinental Hall in Washington. T the inauguration of President Hoover, not only the whole United States, but the whole world, was virtually brought to the front door of Washington. From WMAL and WRC the story of this event was sent out over an ex- tended network to more than 120 statioms in the United States, and was rebroadcast by the short-wave route to Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa, New Zealand, South America and othe? foreign countries, even reaching the far Ant- arctic camp of Admiral Byrd at the bottom of the world. It was estimated that 50,000,000 listeners in the United States heard the event, and mil- lions of others in foreign countries. An infant news service extended on a far-flung frontier!l No other news agency had ever reached so wide a territory as radio had done at a single stroke. No man had ever spoken to the whole civilized world before, and this was accomplished by the President of the United States, speaking from the Nation’s Capital. In order to “cover” this event for the air, hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent and months were required in perfecting the un- precedented hook-up and in completing the intricate installations in Washington. The National Broadcasting Co. had a force of 20 operators and announcers stationed at various points in the city in addition to its regular local staff, at that time numbering 30; and the Co- lumbia System augmented its Washington per- sonnel with a large staff of extras, thus bring- ing to the Capital the most prominent an- nouncers and the most skilled mechanical ex- perts of the two companies. It was on this occasion that microphones were located in the Senate chamber for the first time in history, and these were placed at the Speaker’s desk, in front of which Vice President Charles Curtis took his oath of office. Micro= phones also were located in the box in front of the Capitol where Mr, Hoover stood while tak< ing the presidential oath of office and while de= livering his inaugural address. Additional mie crophones were placed at other points on the Capitol Plaza, in the bandstand, at the Peace Monument, at the Treasury Buliding, in a sen- try box within a few yards of the front door of the White House, where the Nation was given the first news of the personnel of the new cabi< net; at the President’s reviewing stand on Penn~ sylvania avenue and at other strategic points along the line of march. Still another micro- phone was carried above the city streets in an Army blimp, through which a bird’s-eye-view description of the inauguration event was given, News covering by radio had passed the ex- perimental stage. It was an accomplished and an astonishing fact. The broadcasting come panies were awake to its tremendous possibili- ties and to the possibilities of Washington as a future source of big news. “Speaking to you from the Nation's Capital” was beginning to mean something in radio. “Il-!‘lrfld ::efl funeral services for William How- were held, Washington again the center of an epoch-making ::m which made it possible for the first time in his- tory for an entire Nation to listen to the tribute paid to a departed former Chief Executive. When the Graf Zepplin, on its first a salute to the Nation, the news was broadcast fmmsroottop.mdwhenmeut.Appob Soucek recently made the - world's altitnde Fase soct 1w I %oy Nivead ¢ Jrn Continued on Ninoteguth Page