Saltus Grammar School - Yearbook (Hamilton, Bermuda)

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The Debating Society You can ' t buy culture was one of the opinions voiced in the course of a debate on the motion, This House is opposed to commercial broadcasting. For this debate, held on March 2i6th, we were fortu- nate to have as gues(t speakers Mrs. Terry Tucker and Mr. J. R. Plow- man, and there was a stimulating exchange of ideas. Proposing the motion, F. R. Snape disclaimed any intention of making a slashing attack on Bermuda broadcasting. In fact he felt that for such a small island Bermuda had quite a good station, but he would like to see it maintained by means of a tax rather than by the sale of advertisement time. If that didn ' t yield enough money, they might have recourse to commercial broadcasting, buit to a limited extent only. He estimated that one-fifth of b roadcasting time was given up to the advertisements, interspersed thrpugh the programmes; and he felt that it was a great pity to break up good programmes in that way. Also he believed that the value of radio advertisement was over- rated. What had the sponsor to gain by it? Newspapers cQuld pro- vide all the advertisement required, and the radio listener tended to get so exasperated with thei dunning of radio advertisement that in- stead of being persuaded he was repelled by it. J. M. Berridge, Opposer, maintained that without recourse to ad- vertisement revenue Bermuda wouldn ' t have the financial resources to keep its two radio programmes going. The annual sum of £2,500 was required to run the news broadcast alone, and the Government shouldn ' t be expected to shoulder such a burden. If big progressive countries like the U.S.A. and Canada recognized the need for commercial broadcasts, why should Bermuda not tolerate them? As to the value of radio advertising, it had been proved beyond doubt that it was an effective method of increasing sales; and it should also be borne in mind that Z.B.M. gave up some part of its time gratis for the benefit of such public activities as the Rotary, the Lions, and the Twenty-five Club. Mrs. Terry Tucker, speaking third, said she fully realised that a broadcasting company must have an adequate revenue, but it need not necessarily come from advertisemeints; the B.B.C., for instance, got its revenue from licence fees and from the publication of radio magazines, and apparently it had no difficulty.

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Foreword May 1st. Three years ag ' O today the ground was broken for the erection of the gymnasium. This signalled the commencement of a long overdue pro- gramme of building, and, since that time, we have gradually obtained the following additions to the School: a gymnasium and changing room, a new Assembly Hall, [the old Hall providing three much needed cl ss rooms] a lunch room, equipped with tables and benches by the Old Boys ' Association, an Entrance Hall with staircase, additional tankage, and a very great improvement in the general appearance of the building. Externally, no further changes to the School are anticipated, but it is hoped that during the summer holidays certain interior alterations will be made, which will provide another class-room and a more convenient arrangement from the point of view of organisation. When these alterations are completed, we hope to have a formal opening. The grounds surrounding the school are receiving attention. The yard has been surfaced and in the near future trees, shrubs and hedges will be planted, which in a few years should relieve the bleakness of aspect and enhance the impressiveness of the building. Two members of the Staff will be leaving us at the end of this term in the persons of Mr. Bower and Mr. Maundrill. They will be greatly missed at School, especially in our extra-curricular activities, where they have both been a valuable help to the School. We wish them the best of luck for the future. We are now within a few weeks of the Coronation of our beloved young Queen, and accounts of the preparations for the ceremony with all its splendour, and of the evidence of love and loyalty towards her from all corners of the earth, stir the hearts of all of us, who are proud to be her subjects. This is a good time for each one of us to rededicate ourselves to the service of our Motherland and to endeavour to be worthy subjects of such a gracious Queen — Long may she reign in peace and happiness.

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6 ' But she was not really concerned with the question of ways and means. Her objections to commercial broadcasting might be consid- ered under four main heads. First came aesthetic considerations: advertisements were often presented in a way which amounted to an insult to the aesthetic sense. Next came the time element; in commercial broadcasting time meant money; you couldn ' t deprive the next man of one second of his advertising time, and so programmes tended to be rigidly cut up into short periods, and were produced against a background of hurry. Then there was the question of juxtaposition: commercial broad- casting was apt to produce an unsuitable sequence in the programme, one was hurried in a disconcerting manner from a guitar solo to a re- ligious service. And this brought her to the fourth point: in commercial broad- casting constructive policy was lacking because every other considera- tion gave way to that of publicity; it was the advertising tail that wagged the radio dog. Mr. J. R. Plowman speaking fourth, said that the alternative to commercial broadcasting was the virtual dictatorship of state broad- casting, and in this connection it might be pointed out that the financial position of the B.B.C. was not quite so simple as had been suggested, for its revenue was subject to the control of the Government, who might at any time divert some part of the revenue to some other uses. He would not deny that commercial broadcasting had its faults, but they were outweighed by the advantages. It provided greater variety for the listener: In New York there were twenty different programmes, catering for all tastes, which was impossible in London, confined to its three B.B.C. programmes. It was a more flexible system because it had more money with which to achieve its aim of giving the public what they really wanted; the public didn ' t want to be forcibly educated, but to be entertained. If broadcasting in Bermuda got into the hands of the Government there would very soon be only one pro- gramme, continually subject to the criticism of economy-minded Assemblymen. Radio programmes should provide for as many different tastes as possible; the more programmes there were, the more likely it was that tliis objective would be reached, and it was commercial broadcasting that multiplied the number of programmes. Advertisement announce- ments were of course a necessary part of it, but these took up only a few minutes of each hour, and the listener had ready protection against them — a turn of the switch.