NO BAN ON POLITICAL BROADCASTS

Evening Star, Issue 21630, 27 January 1934, Page 4

NO BAN ON POLITICAL BROADCASTS

While in New York recently, the director of the British Broadcasting Corporation (Sir John Reitli) said he was surprised to learn that Americans believed a ban existed on political broadcasts in England. He pointed out that the present (November) political series was bused in a general way on the number of votes cast in the last general election. Each party was on a ratio. For example, the Government was entitled to five broadcasts, the Opposition Party to three, and the Liberals to one talk, over a nine-week period. From politics he turned to education, but he said the word “ education ” must be used guardedly on the air. It was better to refer to education as “ popular talks.” For example, he said Sir James Jeans talking on the stars is a “ best seller ” in educational broadcasting. But in listing the talk it is not labelled “ education.” And Sir John said it was highly important that men delivering snch_ talks be well versed in the art of microphone technique. The professor who attempted to broadcast a lecture as he would deliver it in a classroom was not a success on the air, and that applied to all countries.

“ Americans seem to have the opinion that we broadcast more education than entertainment,” he said. “ That may he true, but it is not education in the sense of being dry material. That is not so. The talks arc popular.”