MARCH,$3 PER YEAR 1946 .WMIT: ATOP CLINGMAN'S PEAK, N. C. FACSIMILE:APPLICANTS WHAT FOR NEW IT CAN FM BROADCASTINGDO NOW by liohn STATIONS V. L. Hogan federals an111111111mN111111=1111111111111111111 NEW HIGH-PERFORMANCE TUBES FORFMTRANSMITTERS Federal's notable achievements over the years in the development of high - power tubes to operate efficiently in the upper portions of the radio spec- trum ... now is reflected in the design and production of new power tubes for FM application. Employed in the power amplifier stages of FM transmitters ... these air-cooled, high efficiency vacuum tubes assure long life, dependable per- formance and stable operation. In focusing its vast tube -making expe- rience on FM... Federal adheres to all the eminent standards it estab- lished and has maintained during more than three decades of contribu- tion to the art. For the finest in FM tubes... specify Federal... because "Federal always has made better tubes." Federal Telephoneand Rao'OrPOral1011 Export Distribut Internation tandard Elect-ic Corporation Newark 1, N. 1. IN OR ATION STATION NEW YORK WI 3 THE IN OR AT STATION NEW YORKVlf YO THE IN OR ATION STATION NEW YORK YOR THE IN OR ATION STATION NEW YORK A YORK THE IN OR TION STATION NEW YOR EW YOR THE IN 0 TION STATION NEW YO 4EW YOR E IN 0 TION STATION NEW Ys NEW YOR HE IN ORre-T1ON STATION NEW 4 NEW YOR THE IN 0 ION STATION NEW /N NEW YOR THE IN 0 TION STATION NE% ON NEW YORK THE IN TION STATION NE rION NEW YOR THE TION STATION N kTION NEW YORK THE HON STATION TATION NEW YOR THE I TION STATION STATION NEW YOR THE:I ATION STATIO STATION NEW YORK THE IN OR ATION Pi STATION NEW YORK THE IN OR ATION ST :$N STATION NEW YORK THE IN OR ATIONS ION STATION NEWYOR HE IN OP AT TION STATION NEW YOR HE IN OR ATION ATION STATION NEW YOR HE IN OR ATION MATION STATION NEW YOR THEIN. tMATION STATION NEW YOR RMATION STATION NEW YO ORMATIO YORK THE IN 0 FORMAT' YORK THE IN 0 N THE IN Owned and Operated hy Metropolitan Television Inc. 654 Madison Ave., N.Y. New Blood and Old ...An Opportunity THERE'S a certain smugness, an THE JOURNAL OF FREQUENCY inertia toward change, that may account for the fact that, though MODULATION the FM allocations permit of sev- eral thousand new stations, some- VOLUME 1, NUMBER 2 MARCH, 1946 what lessthan 800 applications have been filed thus far. Only a little more than half of the existing Features 1,000 AM broadcasters have applied FACSIMILE: WHAT IT CAN DO NOW-by John V. L. Hogan 5 for FM. Around 30% of the appli- A status report and prospectus for FM broadcasters cants are newcomers to radio. This, despite the vast amount of publicity FM has received, the en- A NEW SLIDERULE FOR FM RATES-by Capt. P. K. Leberman 8 thusiasmithasevoked among A plan to base radio rates on listenership those already operating FM sta- tions,thefaith expressed inits THE COMMUNITY FM STATION-by Ewell K. Jett 10 future by radio's business as well as An FCC commissioner cites its business advantages engineering authorities, the eager- ness of manufacturers to promote APPRAISING FM's ADVERTISING POTENTIAL-by John Southwell 14 the sale of FM combinations. An advertising man evaluates this new medium This, too, despite the fact that the 800 applicants have indicated THE COBRA TONE ARM 20 that they are ready to invest up- Zenith's innovation for greater record fidelity wards of $40,000,000 in FM. FCCofficials,whoseoriginal WMIT: A STATION PROFILE-by George M. Hakim 22 thought was to encourage existing A case history of one of FM's pioneer stations broadcasterstodevelop FM be- cause of their technical and pro- APPLICANTS FOR NEW FM STATIONS 33 gramknow-how,confessthem- Complete list of prospective FMers selves puzzled by the slow pace of FM applications. To a man they say FM will eventually displace at Departments least the regionals and locals; yet theanomoly is thatforemost EDITORIAL 2 PICTORIAL 32 among the FM proponents are the clear channel operators who have WASHINGTON 17 OPINION 48 least to fear from FM. Very few of MODULATIONS 26 CARTOON by Steinitz . 48 these have failed to apply for FMs. Now we find official Washington inclined to encourage if not favor Offices:Editorial, advertising and executive, 103 Park Avenue, New York 17, N. Y. newcomers to the radio field, news- Publication, Lebanon, Pa. Washington, D. C., TV -FM Bldg., 1519 Connecticut Ave., N.W. papers or otherwise; and especially to encourage veterans to start their Executive:Martin Codel, president and publisher; Edward Codel, vice president; Norman R. Glenn, executive director.Editorial:George M. Hakim, managing editor; Patricia own new businesses of FM broad- Murray, associate editor; Earl Abrams, Washington; Robert S. Lathrop, art director. casting. That is as it should be, for Advertising: Edward Codel, director; Harold Becker, assistant to director; John Iraci, the infusion of new blood into the sales; Robert Irving, production; M. Hadad, auditing.Circulation:Roland Ball, manager. industry can have nothing but a salutary effect over the long haul. There's no doubt that FM will boom once sets capable of tuning ON THE COVER:On Clingman's Peak, in the rugged in its superior signals start moving Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, 6,571feet into the home. Meanwhile, a lot of above sea level, stands the transmitter installation of Gordon Gray's FM station, WMIT, the site for which existing broadcasters may miss the was literally blasted out of the side of the mountain. boat or else find the choice berths Withits foundation anchored insolid bedrock, the already occupied by strangers when mastofthestation'sthree -bayturnstileantenna they do decide to book passage. towers 200 feet above adjacent Mt. Mitchell, highest point east of the Mississippi. (See Profile on page 22.1 THE JOURNAL OF FREQUENCY MODULATION is published monthly by Telecasting Publications, Inc., with publication office at Lebanon, Pa., U.S.A., and editorial, advertising and executive office at 103 Park Ave., New York 17. Subscription price, $3.00 a year; Canada, $3.50; foreign, $5.00. Entry as second class matter at the Post Office at Lebanon, Pa., under Act of March 3,1879, applied for. 2 FM JOURNAL "LOTTA FOLKS InWORKLIVE FM its still ANDthe HERE"listener that counts. RichestaudiencesWHNFislocated withMarket. in 20,000 justAmerica's right watts Biggestto at capture 99.3mc. and WHNF99.3mc. -Channel No. 257 20,000MGM PICTURES WATTS,AFFILIATED AND WITHLOEW'S NEW WHN THEATRES YORK In Baltimore MV T\\ H operates the only FM station in this 6th largest city W3XMB It's another first for the successful independent TOM TINSLEY, Represented Nationally by President Headley -Reed 4 FM JOURNAL MARCH, 1946 FACSIMILE WHAT IT CAN DO NOW By JOHN V. L. HOGAN RELATIVELY few people under- unfortunate. Most of the public has stand the possibilities of a com- heard it only in the phrase "a reason- mercial facsimile broadcasting service, able facsimile thereof," which means for facsimile has been a "sleeper" dur- that you don't have to send in the box ing the war. Of course, during pre- top, but just make a copy of it. Before war days, there were some fairly ex- commercial home broadcast facsimile tensive efforts to explore the broadcast becomes the industry it is destined to applications of a "magic typewriter" be, many people will have to learn or ''home printing press." Those ex- that this new service and advertising periments, under the normal condi- medium has little to do with box tops. accomplished tionsofbroadcasting, A Fair Appraisal the very useful purpose of establishing service requirements that would have What can facsimile do that cannot to be met before facsimile could be be done by any other facility? That integrated into broadcasting. question must be answered before the One may well ask: "What place does potential value of facsimile in broad- facsimile have in broadcasting today?" casting can be appraised. The answer The easy answer, and the one which isnotdifficult.First,ascontrasted most broadcasters would giveafter against AM or FM aural broadcasting HOME INSTALLATION of a pre-war fac- looking over the FCC's insignificant of speech or music, facsimile can de- simile receiver suitable for use with FM or AM. list of stations now licensed to trans- liver printed words and pictures to mit experimental facsimile tests, would the home. It can leave a record of with television. Television can deliver be: "None." That answer might be words or pictures that can be looked the moving scene which appears be- correct as of today, but if the question at, at any time, for the facsimile user fore its camera,but it makes no record. were modified to ask "What place will need not be looking at or listening to Facsimile cannot show motion, for it facsimile have in FM broadcasting?" his radio at the time the recordis isa printing device. Television has the an accurate reply would be very differ- made. Educators, entertainers and ad- advantage when motion is important, ent. It would take account of what vertisers have long been hunting for but since it leaves no record, it cannot facsimile has done during the war, and a broadcasting service that would offer be of service except at the time that of what it can now do. these two features. the programs are being transmitted. Of course, the word "facsimile" is Second,letus compare facsimile Finally, how does facsimile broad - POINTING to the great mass of individuals who are generally fa- argument for a favorable review of this new medium at the present miliar with broadcasting, but who know relatively little about what time.