Did the FCC ever actually require that radio and TV stations play the National Anthem at Sign on and Sign off?
Did the FCC ever actually require that radio and TV stations play the National Anthem at Sign on and Sign off?
I was told by a broadcaster that was on the air during WWII that stations had to do a legal ID every 30 minutes.
Nope. In fact, during the 50's and even into the 70's quite a few southern stations signed on and off with "Dixie".
As previously observed, the practices were more societal than regulatory.
I have even heard Sousa's Stars and Stripes Forever used. Seemed like it would fit well for a morning sign on.
At one point in time, it was every 15.
The requirement dropped to hourly sometime in the mid-1970s, IIRC.
I have even heard Sousa's Stars and Stripes Forever used. Seemed like it would fit well for a morning sign on.
I believe the requirement dropped to every three hours by the mid-70s. The main station I worked for did them every two hours, as to not miss any. I can't remember anyone doing it every hour and I started in 1973 but it's been a long time.
I believe the requirement dropped to every three hours by the mid-70s. The main station I worked for did them every two hours, as to not miss any. I can't remember anyone doing it every hour and I started in 1973 but it's been a long time.
I worked a couple of stations that had you take transmitter readings hourly. These were non-directional AMs. In each case the owner knew we'd sometimes forget, that if a problem was happening we could discover it quicker and they felt hourly readings in lieu to every 3 hours showed the FCC the station was run by an owner that was serious about being a good broadcaster. Neither aired the National Anthem when I worked for them, just a 15 to 20 second sign on and sign off.
I believe the requirement dropped to every three hours by the mid-70s. The main station I worked for did them every two hours, as to not miss any. I can't remember anyone doing it every hour and I started in 1973 but it's been a long time.
True about the legalese of the FCC but when you get the visit and go beyond the minimum, the FCC tends not to look quite as hard at everything and be a bit more lenient if you might have slipped up somewhere as in telling you how to correct it versus slapping a fine on the station...at least that's my experience.