RADIO BROADCASTING

Manawatu Standard, Volume LXV, Issue 305, 23 November 1945, Page 3

RADIO BROADCASTING

SMALLER FEE URGED. DEPARTMENT’S PLANS. (Press Assn.) WELLINGTON, Nov. 22 A aebace on the Broadcasting Board’s report'was initiated in the mouse of iXepresentatives this afternoon, when jVir A. J. Murdoch (Nat., Marsden) made a plea for the establishment of a broadcasting station to serve 1 North Auckland, me urged a reduction in the cost of the radio license fee.

The Minister of Broadcasting (Mr Jones) : Ninety-five per cent, of the people in New Zealand listen in today. Mr Murdoch: Then why not go further,' 1 reduce the fee and get lud per cent? Mr A. S. Richards (Lab., Roskill) said that listeners in Auckland had reported interference with the Parliamentary broadcasts, which sounded like “someone blowing a very powerful whistle,” and he asked that an investigation be made. He would support a reduction in the license fee only when the equipment of the broadcasting service was modernised. Mr S. W. Smith (Nat., Bay of Islands) hoped the Minister would hasten the -day when broadcasting could be used for the discussion of controversial subjects along the lines of Australian broadcasts and in this manner afford further education of the people. He thought the programmes of the national 'YA stations could be “staggered” and thus avoid hearing the same sort of programmes at-the same times from- different stations.

Mr C. Carr (Lab., Timaru) said it was staggering to him that the programmes were not ‘‘staggered,’’ and he urged the necessary alterations, advocating the use of alternative programmes. One complaint lie made was that the wave-lengths of the ZB stations were too close to those of the Australian stations. He supported freedom of speech over the air in the broadcasting of controversial matters and asked if the switching of the Parliamentary broadcasts to another station could not be obviated. Mr G. R. Herron (Nat., Awarua) pleaded for better radio services for the people of the backblocks, who paid the same fees as city listeners.

PROPAGANDA FOR DOMINION

Mr T. H. (Lab., Lyttelton) urged the inclusion of New Zealand news in the programmes for internal consumption and the use of the radio to propagandise New Zealand overseas as a tourist resort. For this purpose, we needed a powerful shortwave station. We should aspire *to the 8.8. C. standard in shortwave programmes. For a comparatively small cost we could build a shortwave station to broadcast programmes aimed at America, Australia, and other countries. /

Mr H. T. Morton (Nat., YVaitemata) urged that higher fees should be paid to local and visiting artists to enable the best talent to be obtained for the radio. He would like to see the fees at least doubled.

Mr J. B. Cotterill (Lab., Wanganui) said that, on the face of. £1,5.0,000 in reserve, it did appear that the license fee could be reduced. He asked the Minister for an estimate ol the amount required for the replacement of existing equipment and the»modernisation of the service.

Mr Jones said the cost to listeners was less than a penny daily, and when the broadcasting service was compared with what the Press of New Zealand supplied, the people were well off. So far as controversial subjects were concerned, the people had the advantage of lisetning to Parliament and the fact that its proceedings were broadcast was one of the greatest things done to educate the people on the political life of the country.

INTERFERENCE COMPLAINTS. Dealing with the allegation of interference with Parliamentary broadcasts, Mr Jones said it was quite possible that this was due to power leakages. Mr IV. J. Poison (Nat., Stratford) : Or tuning. Hon. C. F. Skinner: Trams are one of the worst sources of interference.

Mr Jones said he was quite prepared to look into the complaint. iRIr R. M. Algie (Nat-, Eemuera): Would anyone be jamming the radio again? Mr Jones: Some members of the Opposition know something about jamming of the radio, but I do not think the member for Eemuera has been jammed yet. Mr Jones referred to several matters which had been brought up when the Estimates were discussed and repeated ' that ever}' encouragement would he given to local talent. He again gave an outline of the broadcasting plans for the future. It was estimated that the cost of the new buildings required would be about £743,000, the replacement of plant £155,000, the provision of relay lines £30,000 and the establishment of two shortwave stations £240,000. He had already given instructions to see if the Parliamentary proceedings could be broadcast without a break. “If we are to give decent programmes, then the people will have to pay for them,” he said. He did not think that people were complaining .about the cost ol the license and believed that the cost of broadcasting to- New Zealand’s population was just as great as the amount required to give service to 10,000,000.