PROGRAMMES AGAIN

Evening Post, Volume CXVI, Issue 65, 14 September 1933, Page 21

PROGRAMMES AGAIN

IS EVERYBODY DISPLEASED?

A 'short letter published in this column last week, signed "Low-brow," has- brought forth what might have been expected—a small flood of letters from correspondents who both agree and disagree with the complaints of the writer. The letters are so many anil in some cases so long that to reproduce them all is t owing to space limitations, quite impossible; moreover, they are mostly on quite familiar lines. In order, therefore, not to make any distinctions, none 'of them will be published, and a "blanket" apology to the writers is-hereby-extended. "Grid Bias," nevertheless, does not withhold his-respectI 'for.,the opinions, -of both sides.' It is an indisputable fact that there is a class* of'listeners to whom broadcast items of a light, humorous, and Sporting., character appeal .very strongly,! and another-class which takes little or no,interest in sporting items, and prefers its, music to be of , the sort that appeals to musicians. There are some who are so disgusted by what they" do 'not like that they call the programmes ''intolerable rubbish" (this was the phrase of "Low-brow")—and they are in both classes. ' The problem of programme building for the public at large is exactly as old as broadcasting. It 4s. noc experienced by tija entertainment experts who conduct theatres and music halls, because they have only to choose a typo of programmo and those who care for that sort of thing come along. No matter how it hurts, the fact remains that th'o population—and this means, in these days, the community of radio listeners—comprises two important groups, thoso who have a liking for leaLinusic, and those who have not. Between them, and merging into both, is a third division, who neither greatly like nor greatly dislike it. Similarly we have those who like sporting events and those who do ,not, and an intermediate group; and unfortunately the second classification dses not coincide with the first. As it is utterly impossible for anyone to produce a'programme which will, Dlease everybody in a; community which; has so wido a range of tastes, .broad-. casters must •either cater for a relatively restricted range,of opinion,-or endeavour to satisfy- everybody by. means of• a very extensive diversity, of; items." The New1 Zealand Broadcasting Board is endeavouring to cover the whole ground. ,1 have already pointed.out that,programme policy has so far not shown any great influence upon the popularity of radio as an entertainment. The. most astonishing fact about broadcasting all over the world is its steady mcrcaso in popularity, whether, the broadcasters cater for "lowbrows" or 'highbrows." In-tho United States ■■ tho' programmes are moulded very largoly by tho evidence of the so-called "fan.mail,'.''and —with due apologies to th'o anti-clas-sicists "who have written , to/'.The p os t "—this "fan mail" does not "urge a heightening of the cultured standard. In England, tho 8.8.C. does not pay any attention to. .deteriorative influences. ■ Yet in Britain, no less than in America,-, listening grows ni popularity. There is,'however, a very great air-. fcrence between broadcast entertainment in'■ Now Zealand and in Europe or -Vmerica.- V In- the Continental areas,, any listener-(unless ha is; asrhe is very rarely now,, handicapped by using a hopelessly inefficient receiver) can dsop. one -station- -for another, and: find some-; ttiin§# his; taste. The air is full ot, powerful' carrier waves, each bearing its musical'or spoken message, with a strength and clarity to which we are complete; strangeis. Here we are virtually restricted; to such stations as may be in our immediate neighbourhood for' ■.programmes' unblemished by external noises, and to a few more distant, usually: marred by ' 'static, 'and in any case available only to those with powerful receivers. Such powerful receivers are .now owned in New, Zealand in very large- numbers, but; overseas reception is usually anything, but a genuine pleasure to thoso in search of first-class hearing. : We have, therefore, to- realise, and accept tho fact, .that we live to a country of limited / radio possibilities. With comparatively few stations to listen-to, and with a controlling authority that endeavours to cater lor • all tastes it is certain that most of _us -will-have frequent, cause to be dissatisfied. ' Wo may count ourselves iortunate if, taking the week .through, onefourth of tho programme items are just what we like. There is a strong argument for forbearance on. the part : ot listeners when they find they are tuned; in to one of those awful symphonies, or one of those boring sporting broadcasts, «r that rotten .jazz. Somebody enioys them—presumably. With the taking over of 2ZW by_the Post Omce, the board, so far as Wellington is concerned, is now faced with the 3 problem of providing listeners here with alternative programmes. lne existence of divergent tastes renders the offering of a choice of local stations imperative—as the 8.8.C has long ago recognised—and it, is to be hoped that the board will .not lose any time in announcing- that it will make'suitable provision for such, : a ; choice. One of tho board's .stations should be set apart to cater, definitely, for the listeners, possibly a minority, but .a very important minority,, who JUko the best fare that the radio channel can bring to them. It may-be that the majority of listeners prefer to be. classed as musically unintellectual, and not particularly interested in mental uplm: Let 2YA, with its big reach, cater for them. The others would be well satisfied with a lower-powered transmission if it carried a programme of first-class music and informative talks.