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Every time AF'T'V shows an opera, some
one turns to his neighbor and says,
"Why don’t they get Yogi Bear? That
TV station just doesn’t want to show
good programs!"
So, every few months, we feel obli
gated to tell our TV audience: We
have no choice over what programs we
are given to telecast.
First, perhaps you should know
something about how AFTV receives its
filmed programs. The "home office"
at Los Angeles sends us a package of
filmed TV programs for just enough
time to fill 55 of the 58 hours we
are on the air. That’s it. ve can—
and do—comment on some of the pro
grams to give AFRTS-Los Angeles an
idea of how we like them. But we
cannot just select any program; we
have to take what we get.
Now, a word of defense in behalf of
the home office: AFRTS-LA has a lot
of problems in procuring these pro
grams for us to show. Each time it
wants to procure a show for AFRT3,
the home office must get the permis
sion of the writers, the producers,the
sponsors, the networks and the
film companies. Then, it can start
negotiating on its limited budget..
Some programs require the agreement of
advertising agencies and stars. To
get permission to telecast the World
Series, for example, AFRTS-LA had to
get fifty-four authorizing signatures
to buy the films.
There’s a lot involved here. For
instance, the private companies aro
rightfully worried about royalties...
They make ^V shows for profit, not
for pleasure, and they’re sacrificing
profits every time they make filmed TV
available to AFRTS. In turn, AFRTS
agrees that it will give its stations
only the films it gets from the in
dustry in this manner; that it won’t
show TV programs in competition with
private stations; and that it won’t
make any private deals with adver
tisers. If AFRTS were to violate
this gentleman's agreement with the^^
TV industry just once, it would hdQP
unable to negotiate for any progams.
There’s a very thin wire when you're
dealing with five to ten different
agencies for just one program.
So, most of the programs are sever
al months old when AFRTS gets permis
sion to use them. They're even older
by the time they are sent through the
circuit to Adak. We think most of
them are pretty good. Some are ex
cellent. Some are terrible. But
this isn’t New York, with CBS, NBC
and .ABC and millions of dollars to
spend. This is AFRTS, with agreements
to uphold and negotiations to honor
for every program. And not ever
private TV production company is wij_-^
ling to sell its rights to its pro
grams. So, we can't show Yogi Bear
on CHANNEL 8.
The same is true with recordings.
We must use records sent to us by AFR
TS-LA. Otherwise, we’re treading on
the thin line of negotiations. If
that line breaks, we won’t get any
records. And no station in the Navy
has the money, the time or the busi
ness to make 1,001 deals with private
record distributors, either.
Now, when electronic equipment is
in good working order, we supplement
our regular programing with live
broadcasts. Some of you have seen
nSbudio A,” "Miss Marie,” ’’Walt Kil
lian’s Hobby Show” and others we've