Newspapers / The Alamance Gleaner (Graham, … / March 7, 1946, edition 1 / Page 2
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Radio Fills Economic, Social Needs of Farm 7 Programs Keep Listeners Up on Latest Doings And Aid Work, Marketing; Music, Plays Welcome Diversion. ??????? ? By BAUKHAGE Nmcs Analyst and Commentator. WNB Service, 1616 Eye Street, N.W., Washington, D. C. When farm folk want to cut a rug, via the radio, they'll do it to the strains of "Turkey in the Straw," not "Chickery Chick." Farmers turn a cold shoulder on hot jive. However, both the musical gobbler and the syncopated hen play second Hddle as farm radio fa vorites to the good old-fashioned hymns, like "Rock of Ages," and "Onward, Christian Soldiers." But, down on the farm, the all-time top favorite on the radio hit parade is NEWS. The farmer and his wife prefer the news broadcast to any other type of radio program. These interesting preferences were brought to light recently by a survey published by the department of agriculture?a survey undertak en at the request of the Federal Communications commission to find out if radio was important to rural people, and why; and what pro grams rural people tuned in in hope, and tuned out in despair. Rural people are convinced radio is here to stay. When asked if he would miss his radio set, should something happen to it, nearly ev ery rural radio owner said some thing like this: "It would make an awful dif ference. It would be Just like going back to old-fashioned lights." ' "We need the radio very much?we have a mile of bad road between the bouse and the mailbox, and sometimes get the mail only once a week." "That would be terrible! It'd be Just Uke having a corpse in the house!" Of course there were dissenters. There always are. And the dissent ers weren't bdckward about ex pressing their unflattering opinions of_radio. For example: "It it weren't tor my family, I'd throw tha radio out. It wouldn't bother me a bit." "Makes no difference whatsoev er. All you hear is junk and com mercials and murder mystery." 3 to 1 For Radio I But the radio enthusiasts among farmers vastly outnumber the grip ers. It's radio three to one as they say in a certain radio commercial. Three out of every four rural radio owners attach a great deal of im portance to their radios . . . and only one in eight wouldn't care If Junior took the thing apart and never got it together again. It appears, from this survey, that radio performs a special service for rural people who may live some distance from town and amuse ments, or even from the nearest neighbor, and who may often be without access to daily newspapers or telephones. Rural people have four very def inite reasons to explain why radio is important to them: 1. it's a source of news; 2. a source of in formation, other than news; 3. it provides entertainment; and 4. it's become a habit to listen to the darn thing. Their comments are illustrative: "We would feel terribly isolat ed without the aewa." "Wouldn't know how the oc cupation in Germany is coming. I have a sou over there, and I want to know what's happen ing." "You get the news quicker on tha radio." "I don't have much time to . road the papers or magazines." Commentators, it appears, are the apple of the farmer's eye. Farm audiences are proved by this survey to bo faithful to and enthusiastic about news broadcasts and news broadcasters. As we mentioned earlier, the radio announcement, "Wo now bring you the news" makes fanners sit up and take no tice. Rural radio listeners rate news tops as their favorite program, and alao say it's the type of pro gram they'd miss most. Next comes religious music. Ru ral listeners, especially in the South, could use more of it, and more radio sermons, too. The rea son may be that religious broad casts provide a substitute for at tending church for some inconveni ently located farmers. Old-time musical programs are the farmer's favorite kind of radio entertainment. He eschews "lone-hair" music. . . . opera and classical, saying frankly in many cases that he doesn't understand It. And he turns thumbs down on swing and-sway dance music and the current Juke boa favorites. In the South where this dislike of dance music is most pro nounced, ft doesn't matter whether the person questioned Is a portly Kentucky colonel, or a teen - age southern belle. They'll take the old-time tunes any day of the week. The weather once again proves its durability as a conversational topic ?even on the radio. Naturally, weather reports are "must" listen ing on the farm. It's the same way with farm talks and market reports. Com modity reports are about as fasci nating to city folk as a lecture on relativity, but the farmer says he finds them a definite and practical help In selling his products. In this respect?by giving him weather re ports, farm talks, and market data, radio becomes a sort of junior part ner, advisory capacity, in the farm er's business. There'* Room For Improvement Having read this far in the sur vey, radio executives might be in clined to pat themselves on the back and figure they've done a good day's work. They've "sold" the farm er, haven't they? He likes what they've got to offer, doesn't heT Seems to them the farmer has giv en radio an A-plus, or in radio par lance, "a Fibber McGee Hooper rat ing." We-ell, not exactly. There are some radio programs some farm ers don't like, and serial stories are one of them. It is surprising what a hearty dislike 29 per cent of the farmers (AND their wives) express for some of the so-called "soap op eras," which city folk seem to adore. mere is no other type ol program toward which there is such divided feeling among rural radio owners as the serial program or soap op era. While one-fourth of the rural listeners say they dislike serials, calling them "fooliah" or "silly," many of these same people (par ticularly the women listeners) say they'd miss the hero and his matri monial mishaps or the heroine and her troubles. It seems that although, in many instances, the listeners don't enjoy or aren't entertained by these programs, they've become used to listening to one or another, and they feel they just have to And out what's going to happen next. It's interesting to note, too, that the people who dislike serials value radio more for the specific informa tion they get from it, and depend less on it for "company" ... or to "keep from getting lonely." Also, the critical ones who turn up their noses at the serial story tend to be somewhat older and to have had more education than those who like soap opera. Most farmers shy away from the up-and-coming radio mys tery meller-drammer. They dis like finding corpses in their own living rooms, so to speak, and being forced to sit through har rowing screams; creaking doors, booting owls, and the spooky collection of sound effects which is apt to accompany micro phonic mayhem. Some farmers, explaining why they dislike such programs, say it's because of moral, not morale, reasons. As is usually the case, the survey revealed more likes and dislikes than suggestions. Not even the ones who don't care much for radio at all had any Ideas on how to im prove the programs. More than half the rural people who have radios cannot think of any type of pro gram they'd like to hear more of than the ones they listen to . . . and when suggestions are offered, they are scattered over such a wide field, it's hard to put a finger on any one type of program which is be ing neglected. In other words, there don't seem to be any important specific discrepancies between what the rural listener wants and needs . . . and what he's getting. | BARBS*. . by Baukhag* Is Germany really changing heart? I don't know but I know they have had to change one thing, their daily bear. There is no beer (or Germane today. e e a ?? The Twentieth Century Fund eayi it costs as mnch to raise a child and put him through college as it does to buy a house but children are The plight ot many Americana today is that they can't get a car tor their spare parts. ? ? ? Congress seems ready to send the homes-for-veterans bill to the floor with no ceilings on the homes. The administration thinks this will mean veterans may have roofs to stop precipitation, but not lnfle- ' ttoo. UNITED STATES DELEGATES TO UNO RETURN . . . Arriving at LaGuardia field, New York, the Amer ican delegation to the United Nations organisation expressed high hopes for the organisation when it next meets in the United States. Left to right as they leave the UNO Clipper are Sen. Arthur Vandenberg, Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt, Edward Stettinins, head of the delegation, John F. Dulles, New York international finan cial advisor, and Sen. John Townsend. They all seem encouraged by progress made at the first meeting. NATION'S BIGGEST SURPLUS GOODS SALE . . . Square miles of surplus war roods, ranging from spools of thread to giant road scrapers and derricks, are being readied at the Port Hneneme navy depot, California, for what will probably be the biggest surplus goods sale in the nation. Shown in photograph are some of the traetors which will be sold to the civilian market. Only one kind of goods will be offered for sale in one day. JAPANESE SILK TO THE RESCUE . . . The drastic nylon hose short are fat the U. 8. may soon be remedied. In part, by the shipment of silk or silk hose from Japan. Pbotofraph shows plant at Mimata vitiate, as manager checks the stacks of "books" of raw silk awaiting shipment. > ' LONESOME G.I. ... As the first snowfall of the year hits the dismal city of Tokyo, this U. S. soldier, far from home, with no knowledre of the language, looks like he would rather be some other place. ?' INVESTIGATE ESPIONAGE . . . Justice R. Tascbereaa. left, sad Justice R. L. Kellock, right. members of the Supreme court of Cauda, who hare been appointed bp the dominion rorernment to act as members ef a com mission to hoar evidence en the espionage Hag that disclosed wartime secrets to a foreign mission ta Ottawa. United States officials hare stated that material information en the atomic bomb could not hare been re vealed. CHINA'S BEST FRIEND . . . Often referred to as China's best friend. Lt. Gen. Albert C. Wedemeyer has been active as chief of staff to Gen eralissimo Chianf Kai-shek. and fac tor in industrial development of WALLGREN AND LUMBER WASHINGTON. - Lumber price ceilings topped the agenda of the President's conference the other day with his old friend Gov. Mon Wallgren at Washington. However, Wallgren also took oc casion to invite Truman to spend a vacation this summer in the north west aboard the presidential yacht. "The people of my state would be delighted to have yon as a guest, and you can also take a trip up to Alaska on the Williamsburg," Wallgren told him. Truman accepted tentatively, saying he would go if be could possibly make it. Wallgren's main business, how ever, was to strongly urge an in crease in the price ceilings on lum ber. He maintained that this was necessary in order to increase lum ber output for the housing program. "We are facing a serious Job crisis in our lumber mills, Harry," said the Washington governor. "We have a model unemployment compensa tion law in my state, but many un employed workmen are swiftly us ing up the 26 weeks they are en titled to draw as compensation. Both from the labor standpoint and the housing shortage, inventories in our mills must be built up as quickly as possible." IDLE WAR PLANTS Governor Wallgren also urged the sale of government-owned light metal plants, now itjle in his area, to private operators as another means of increasing employment. Two idle plants in question are the Aluminum Rolling' mill and the Aluminum Ingot companies at Spo kane, operated by Alcoa during the war. Henry Kaiser wants to buy the former for the production of aluminum-built automobiles and pre fabricated housing. Wallgren told Truman that the lumber situation has been aggra vated by a neat little device of certain big timber outfits, including the Weyerhauser interests, which, calculatedly or otherwise, has been stifling competition. Under the Washington constitution, the state government ipust sell timber to the highest bidder, but some big out fits have been bidding over the price ceilings. This causes all bids to be thrown out. The President said he would talk to the RFC about the plants, but suggested that Wallgren thrash out his lumber price problems with price control boss Chester Bowles. BUTTER BLACK MARKET The office of international trade, now under the commerce depart ment, is planning to ask U. S. cus toms officials to investigate some strange shenanigans in the re-sale of butter this country has been ex porting to Mexico. Despite the serious butter shortage, which has caused the American housewife to turn to substitutes and jam for her table, we sent 5,500 pounds of butter to Mexico in the last quar ter of 1945. Some of this is now winding up at Tiajuana, the Mexican resort town across the border from San Diego, where the butter is being sold to American tourists for the fabulous price of $1.25 a pound. Under export price ceilings, en forced by the OPA and the depart ment of commerce, this same but ter was sold to Mexican dealers at from 47 to 49 cents a pound. The price varies a couple of cents a pound, depending on the type of packaging. In other words, we are now buy ing back American-made butter from Mexico for triple the price Mexican dairy dealers are paying us for it. Commerce department of ficials can only guess how much smuggled butter may be involved in this cross-border black market, but the customs office will be asked to make a thorough probe. NOTE?Mexico is also one of our biggest purchasers of ex ported nylon stockings. Out ot a total of 9,110 down pairs of nylons exported in November ?the last monthly figures avail bio?Mexico bought 5,010 dozen _ pairs. Cuba received 2,003 doz en pairs. CAPITAL CHAFF One reason for the current inter national food shortage is that Leo Crowley, when FEA boss, refused to heed the warning of Secretary of Agriculture Anderson last summer, when Anderson argued that FEA should help increase plantings of winter wheat, cereals and proteins in South America The South Ameri can crop was hit by drouth, or it might have been larger. Sen. Tommy Hart, the only ad miral on the senate military affairs committee, recently asked commit tee members If there were a dicta phone in the walls. He complained that the Washington Merry - Go Round had quoted him all too ac curately when, at a secret session, he defended the war department re garding demobilization. . . Rep. Clare Hoffman of Michigan, who considers himself an expert at anti labor legislation, was miffed be cause be was not coosulted in the writing of the harsh Case bill passed by the houre recently. webBB That Settles It "Was I going west or north when I met you?" asked the absent-minded professor. "North," answered his friend. I "Good! Then I've already been to lunch!" One difficulty about abolishing unemployment altogether la that you'll always have some men looking for work where they know they can't find it. Full Use! Mrs. Green bought a sundial and had it erected in her garden. She called in the builder and instructed him to move it to a more suitable place. "Where would you like me to put itf asked the builder. "Under the electric lamp in the porch " she replied. "We shall then be able to see the time when it is dark." What Then? ' A film star met a producer on a Hollywood boulevard. "How's business?" asked the star. "Why," cried the producer, "it'a stupendous, it's colossal, it's dy namic, it's unprecedented . . . it'll be better next week." Classified Department HOME FURNISHINGS A APPIX LIFETIME CLOTHES PINS. Hold in strongest wind. No snagging or soiling. Mail SI.00. Fifty pins. Marshall Plasties, 411 E. Shiawassee, Lansing 12, Mich. You Can Be a Partner Buy U. S. Savings Bonds! f Enjoy the feeling of energetic well-being I Take good-tasting Scott's Emulsion right away, if you fed tired, rundown, unable to throw off worrisome colds? because your diet lacks natural A AD Vitamins and energy-build ing, natural oils I Scott's helps build energy, stamina, resistance. Buy at your druggist's today I SALES PEOPLE-TEN SALES net you $16.50 Easy to double this amount in one day, Selling HISTORY OF WORLD WAR II at popular pric es. No local competition. P. O. Box 1267, Roanoke, Va. /MEaznaai m tbftoioitow much: 9 JO D.om/oM, 1 i ? 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The Alamance Gleaner (Graham, N.C.)
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March 7, 1946, edition 1
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