EMPIRE'S YOUNGEST OPERATOR

Evening Star, Issue 22026, 11 May 1935, Page 4

EMPIRE'S YOUNGEST OPERATOR

The youngest child in the Empire to hold a transmitter’s license is the 12-year-old Madeline MacKenzie, of Wynnum Central. Not only can she send Morse signals, but she can receive them arid take them down in writing at the rate of 20 words a minute. She can operate her father’s short wave amateur station with complete efficiency, and recently she passed the amateur operator’s efficiency test and gained 98 per cent, for sending and 96 per cent, for receiving. In addition she qualified in a theory test in all phases of short wave broadcasting. Her interest in the mysteries of radio began at the age of eight. Madeline’s father has been a keen student of wireless for 15 years, and in 1932 his station, .VK4GK, was adjudged by the Radio Society of Great Britain to be the best station in Australia in the second annual British Empire Radio Union contest. Madeline's brother, ■who is,three years her senior, gained bis., certificate as a radio broadcaster iaJtjyear. .

.AN ENTHUSIASTIC BROADCASTER SUDDEN DEATH OF MR A. E. CLARKE By the death of Mr A. E. Clarke last week, Duhedin lost one of its most enthusiastic radio officials. It was on, June 13, .1931, that Mr Clarke first became active in the field of broadcasting, for on that day he opened a B class broadcasting station under the call, 4ZW, and from then until the time of his death he provided regular daily programmes for listeners. The deceased had unbounded faith in the future ,of radio, and,-even when the Government disallowed sponsored programmes from B stations, Mr Clarke carried on at a personal loss, always optimistic entfugh to believe that his station would sooner or later receive financial assistance from some influential source. , Not long-before his death Mr Clarke told the writer that he would like to shift his broadcasting plant to some town not already served by a " local," Timaru being a suggested new site for the station. It is understood that Mr Clarke had already commenced negotiations to .have the 4ZW jjlant taken to •another quarter. At present located in a building in Manse street, 4ZW was to. be shifted from there to another position in town in the meantime. Listeners generally will . regret the sudden closing of 4ZW, as it was undoubtedly one of the most popular littio stations in Dunedin, broadcasting programmes of a varied nature that were enjoyed by quite a fair section.of tho public. 8.8.G.'S PRINCIPLES STATEMENT BY SIR MHH REITH • * ■ After a visit to South Africa to report on its system and its future, Sir John Reith, director-general of the 8.8. C., has .published a statement. He lays stress on the importance of a good, broadcasting service to South Africa. He points out that there is no instance in the history of civilisation of a new cultural medium coming so rapidly into use as broadcasting. The microphone can achieve what the printed word and the philosophic formulation], of doctrine have failed "to bring about. Moreover, broadcasting can, it is claimed, supply the integrating element which is required by modern democratic government, whose systems of liaison, although highly developed, B aro separate and unrelated. A conscious social purpose (without prejudice to the essential' function of' liealthy and satisfying entertainment) should be given to the_ exploitation of medium. After paying a tribute to the work of the African Broadcasting Company, the report goes on to state that the present service is capable of immense improvement. The Broadcasting Company, he suggests, must be financed by the State, since no commercial company, whose first aim was to earn ijrofits for its shareholders, could be expected _to follow a sufficiently comprehensive coverage and programme policy, or to be able \o reduce listeners' fees to a rate which would bring broadcasting within the reach of large sections of the pppulation. Moreover, tho Post Office, whose close co-operation was essential, could better supply a public enterprise than a private one. Sir John ltcith, therefore, recommends the formation of a public corporation to take over and carry on the work of the African Broadcasting Company. He points out, however, that tho new broadcasting system would not bo controlled by the Government. Its major policy would be under public control, but its management would bo subject to no public or political interference. It is suggested that the corporation should be created by statute, . and that the PostmasterGeneral should grant it a license. The policy of the corporation would be supervised .by. the Governor-General in Council, and not by any one Minister, while tho control of technical policy would be in. the hands of the Post-' master-General. This ' division of authority would, it is, thought, secure a, greater measure of public confidence for the corporation than if it were the appendage of any one department. The report then suggests that the Governor-General in Council should appoint the first board of the corporation. Its members, who might bo six or seven in number, should have, no definite or active political associations, and might bo appointed for live years. One of .the members should Lie a woman. The whole responsibility should- be ultimately vested in the board, and no executive official should have any statutory authority. Tho members of the board, however, need not be experts iii any particular, branch of tho service; that can be left to tho executive staif.

The object of the service should be to cover the country as completely as possible, so that the greatest number of listeners might be able to receive the programmes on a relatively simple wireless set. ■ v Sir John Reith goes on to say that the headquarters of the corporation must be in some particular city—perhaps Bloemfontein; but the programme resources of all stations should be tapped and used for tlic benefit of listeners elsewhere. To this end the trunk : telephone lines must be greatly improved. In the main regional centres there should be responsible (but subordinate) programme directors. The senior executive officers would' be stationed at headquarters, one of whom would supervise the business affairs of the concern throughout the Onion, and another the compilation of programmes and the activities of different regions. . One short wave receiving apparatus should be installed to render possible periodic relays of interesting events brother countries. The programme policy should be framed on the assumption that a supply of good things well presented will create a demand for them. Without iiimimisiug the purely entertainent obligations it should lie remembered that broadcasting is the royal road to

enlightemncnt ami responsibility. An advisory committee for school broadcasting might be formed, and the cooperation of such Government departments as those of Health and Agriculture should be enlisted. Sir John lays emphasis on the importance of the dissemination of accurate news and on the special services which the wireless may render in broadcasting weather forecasts, fire warnings,- police messages, and so on, ‘ ’ ft'