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C       1 0  More Challenges from Commercial Stations Future generations will consider our times as simply crazy, insane with commercialism when they view such proceedings. From radio’s earliest days through the early 1930s, educational stations were at a disadvantage in the broadcast marketplace. With no channels reserved for educational broadcasting, commercial broadcasters coveted their frequencies and argued before the Federal Radio Commission that the educational stations were not making full use of their spots on the dial. During the Depression cash-strapped colleges and universities found that their radio frequencies were an asset that they could easily sell to commercial interests, and dozens did. Armstrong Perry, director of the Service Bureau of the National Committee on Education by Radio, contacted WHA whenever any action was being considered that concerned the 940 kHz frequency. Stations on both coasts and in Kentucky, Michigan, North Dakota, and Oklahoma were among those applying for more power and would therefore have the potential of interfering with the Wisconsin station’s signal in fringe areas. WHA had endured numerous conflicts with commercial stations over the years, but the managers of the university station were unprepared for what transpired in the summer of 1933, when two of the state’s large commercial stations petitioned the Federal Radio Commission to eliminate both WHA and WLBL. The first threat came from the owners of WIBA-Madison, the Badger Broadcasting Company; 67 percent of the stock in this company was held by Madison ’s Capital Times. The company applied to the Federal Radio Commission on June 16, 1933, to increase the station’s power to 25,000 watts and for halftime rights on 720 kHz, the clear-channel station operated by WGN-Chicago. Part of the application requested the discontinuance of both WHA and WLBL. WHA had filed a routine application to renew its license, and the commission 120 wrote back to inform WHA managers of the challenge and designate the matter for a hearing. Part of the hearing was devoted to determining whether the continued operation of WHA would serve the public interest, convenience, and necessity.1 In its application WIBA claimed that it could provide “radio listeners in Wisconsin in particular and surrounding areas in general unique programs which will originate at the seat of government of Wisconsin, and the seat of the University of said state, such as educational, governmental, and agricultural information and instruction; athletic and other University and State events; that the service to the State and the University will be far superior to similar service now rendered by any existing station.”2 The proposed programming was much like that already being offered by WHA. This application may have been a strategic move to eliminate competition from WHA and thereby increase the profitability of WIBA. To add to the uncertainty at the time of the application, the state legislature was nearing adjournment and had not yet taken up the appropriation request of $18,000 for WHA. Fortunately, Wisconsin governor Albert Schmedeman supported the station and secured its funding for the next two years from the state’s Emergency Board. While WIBA was challenging WHA, WTMJ in Milwaukee, owned by the Milwaukee Journal, opened an attack on both WHA and WLBL. On June 27, 1933, the Journal Company filed an application to operate a station of 2,500 watts at 900 mHz, WLBL’s frequency. The filing also called for the facilities of WHA and WLBL to be consolidated into one station located in Madison, which was similar to the original 1930 merger plan. However, two weeks later WTMJ submitted a new application for 5,000 watts at 670 mHz, the frequency at the time held by NBC-owned WMAQ in Chicago. The application called for the elimination of not only the Chicago station but also WHA and WLBL. In an interesting twist WTMJ proposed to build its new station near Stevens Point and offered to provide the university with free airtime. McCarty pointed out that this was a renewal of a proposition from two years earlier and would offer the state and the university only two hours of airtime a week.3 Adding to the uncertainty that summer, Schmedeman signed a measure sought by a legislator from central Wisconsin to protect the state’s ownership of WLBL. The plan called for the state to lease WLBL to another operator for two years until the state could provide sufficient funds to resume its operation. The state would retain the...

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