The History and Development of WSAZ-TV Channel 3, Huntington, West Virginia
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This dissertation has been 63-39 microfilmed exactly as received BUELL, Stephen David, 1910— THE HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF WSAZ-TV, CHANNEL 3, HUNTINGTON, WEST VIRGINIA. The Ohio State University, Ph.D., 1962 Speech-Theater University Microfilms, Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan COPYRIGHT BY STEPHEN DAVID BUELL 1963 THE HISTORY AMD DEVELOPMENT OP WSAZ-TV CHANNEL 3, HUNTINGTON, WEST VIRGINIA DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University Stephen David Buell, B. S., M. S x x -x x x -x The Ohio State University 1962 Approved by Adviser Department of Speech PREFACE This dissertation will cover the history and development of WSAZ-TV, Channel 3, Huntington, West Virginia, from its first broadcast in 19^9 to the end of i9 6 0. Some of the data to be found in this work cannot be found elsewhere. While WSAZ-TV is not typical of the average station in the United States, its experiences are typical of other stations. Oils is a changing civilization, changing from the ox-cart era, through the railrood-autamobile-jet plane era to an age of space travel. Bae change is so rapid that man is hard pressed to keep up with it. The last decade, for instance, has seen the astonishing development and improvement of the electronic device. These devices are altering the normal life of man at a pace never before known in the history of civilization. As recent as five years ago, most educated men would have thought it the mad ravings of a lunatic scientist to be told that man would soon be traveling in space at the rate of once around the earth in eighty-eight minutes in a satellite space-ship. Yet the Russian, Gherman Titov,'*' did just that for more than twenty-four hours. Electronic devices were an important pent of that flight. It was about five years ago that the newspapers began articles on the Geophysical year, during which time objects were to be thrown into the air by rock ets at such speeds that they would go into orbit and stay there for long periods of time. Then, men laughed at the idea; today few question News item in The Coffeyville Dally Journal, August 7, 19&1. ii iii the prediction that man will reach the moon during the current i960 decade or early in the 1970’s. An article on such a trip sets the cost to place teams of cosmonauts, with materials to live there and materials to build rockets to return to earth. This estimate given by experts at General Electric is $7-9 billions at present prices, and a further prediction is that the moon colony station can be maintained for only $920,6 0 0 ,0 0 0 each year.^ The field of electronics is many-sided, while the above para graph shows some of its scope, the part which has made considerable change in our way of life may be observed in the area of telecasting. We are concerned only with the materials sent from a television station to the American heme by way of the electronic device. This paper will deal with the telecasting by one station WSAZ-TV, Channel 3, Huntington, West Virginia. It will enccspass the history and development of this station and its Impact on a small segment of the United States. This topic was chosen because the writer has had close and friendly association with the station since September 1955, while serv ing as Director of Educational Radio and Television at Marshall Uni versity in Huntington. The writer further feels he is uniquely qualified to write such a history because he has had unusual oppor tunities to become familiar with different phases of the operation of WSAZ-TV on a personal basis a& an employee of the station during the summers of 1956, 1957* and 1953* During these summers of work the author was given complete freedom of movement about the station and 2 "On to the Moon," Time, UCVIII, No. 5> August 4, 1961, p. 62. iv all fellow employees were generous in explaining their duties. This subject should be of interest because of the rare oppor tunities of WSAZ-TV to expand in a market free of competition. The station was the last one in the nation to be granted a construction permit before the television freeze by the Federal Communication Commission on September 28, 19^8. It was unique in that it was the only station in as small a market as Huntington as early as 19^9* It, also, was the only station in West Virginia. Its nearest com petitors in Ohio were located in Columbus and Cincinnati. The nearest station in Kentucky was in Lexington. Thus, because of its location in West Virginia, and the nearness to Ohio and Kentucky, it has been called the Tri-State Station. The size of the market, the freedom from competition, and the steps taken by management to expand the market and increase availability of sets should be of interest to any other group proposing to start a television station in as small a market elsewhere. Questions arise Immediately: How did the station create enough listener appeal to persuade the public to buy television sets? How does a station pro gram to fill the day in a limited market? How did a new station obtain sponsors in its early(days? How could a small station, isolated far from the large cities, make use of network programs? How can a station located in a small market increase the size of the narket to compete with stations in large markets for national spot sales? The solution of these problems and many others should be of Interest to other stations, proposed or established. Lawrence H. Rogers, Jr., fanner President and General Manager V of WSAZ stated: "In our early days there vas no guide or precedent to help in making decisions to further the interests of the station. Ve had to depend entirely on our own Judgment. Ho other historical research has been done an WSAZ-TV; hence this work will serve to present the special problems in growth en countered by this station in growing "from modest transmitter-studio facilities on Eight Street Hill to its present $500,000 plant at Hinth Street and Second Avenue." From this modest beginning the station grew until the Goodwill Stations paid more than $6,000,000 to acquire full ownership. This topic is important because telecasting has changed the hab its of millions of Americans and influenced the economy of other media of comnunl cations. This station, being first in the state, was in a posi tion to initiate some of the many changes which television has made in the United States. The buying customs of the public have been changed as commercial advertisements shortened the Interval between the inventor and the purchase of his new creation. The sale of products have been greatly stimulated by the viewer seeing them advertised on television. This led to a greatly expanded economy in this nation; business and manufacturing boomed in a manner never experienced before. Proof of the influence of telecasting is aptly demonstrated by the "Buy How" campaign launched by the advertising agencies to aid automobile manu- L. H. Rogers, Jr., Statement In Interview, September 1959- k Custer Holliday, "WSAZ-TV Marks Tenth Tear; Oldest in State," The Herald Advertiser (Huntington), Hcrvember 1 5, 1951, p. 14. vi facturers when the economic slung) of 1 9 5 8 backed up the stockpiles of new cars. The canpalgn, mostly over television, cleaned out the back log and aided economic recovery. So enticing are television programs today that the national average for viewing is five hours and fifty-five minutes per home each day.** This altering of family habit has kept individuals at home in stead of going to church on Sunday evening, but of more immediate interest to industry economically, television has kept them from attending the movie theatres. Millions of former theatre-goers have stayed at home, causing great loss of revenue for the movie industry. Theatres continue to go out of business. Only three downtown theatres and two or three drive-in theatres remain in the Huntington area. From the above statements it may be seen that television has already had tremendous Influence in the coaaamlty. How this has re acted on Huntington and the Tri-State area is of Importance. The subject will be limited to WSAZ-TV with little, if any, comparison to WHTH-TV, Channel 13, Huntington, West Virginia, or to WCHS-TV, Channel 8, Charleston, West Virginia. The latter stations cover about the same area, limited by the highness of frequency as well as by terrain. The material for this dissertation has been obtained mainly from the personnel of WSAZ-TV. Some has been obtained from the files ? • "TV viewing per home per day," Broadcasting Yearbook, i9 6 0 , p. F-78, of the station which were not complete when the investigation was begun and were farther greatly depleted by the discarding of materials by employees. Two large folders of network correspondence used by the author, some of which were saved by notes and some by duplication, were destroyed by a clean-up spree of station employees. Other in formation, such as program listings for the early years was obtained from the local newspaper files as the station retained program logs only for the three years required by the Federal Communication Com mission. Program ratings have been obtained from rating services subscribed to by the station, although many of the years' ratings were discarded.