We are here just past the first anniversary of your assuming the NAB presidency, and I'd like to start off by asking what your own assess- ment is of that first year. I think it's been a very good year. There have been lots of ups and downs but, on balance, I think it's been a very positive and construc- tive year. I think we've accomplished a lot. Could you name some of the positive accomplishments? Well, go back to where we started, back with our futures committee report, which was adopted by the board in August 1982. It started with a strategic and long range plan, which is well on track. We've conducted a number of senior staff meetings outside the building to develop our strategic and operational plan for the future-a five- year, 10 -year model of where the association is going. That will be out - probably in December -in time for fine tuning by the executive committee, and ready to be presented to the board in January. That's one thing. Other things. We've made progress in reorganizing the broadcast department, which was part of the futures committee recommenda- tions, by greatly upscaling the scope of the television department, with Dick Hollands as the new senior vice president. He is in the process of assessing his needs and assembling his staff -and we've given him pretty much carte blanche to develop the staff that he needs to address the needs of the television side of the industry. Coincidental to that, Wayne Comils has been elevated to a senior vice presidency, and also is assessing his needs to address the radio side of the industry. The area of government relations was one that the futures commit- tee spoke to-to reorganize the government relations department, to strengthen it, to add to it, which has been done, to a large extent. There are still some openings. Also we have reorganized TARPAC -the Television and <strong>Radio</strong> Political Action Committee -and we think we are well on the way to becoming a mature political action committee for the first time. Also as a part of the government reorganization, to develop and strengthen a grassroots legislative liaison program, we now have 984 broadcasters across the country who are involved in the program, who are committed to being more responsive to the needs in the Congress and to working closely with their elected representatives in Congress. You mentioned a five -year plan. Could you sketch a broad outline of what that plan instructs? Well, the research and planning department has that and they have not yet come forward with their first draft. They have assimilated ideas from the staff to talk about. For instance, one of the things that we could do, on a more systematic basis, would be to have a for - profit subsidiary, which would allow the association to offset spiral- ing dues income by generating revenues from other sources. Most associations generate a great deal of revenue out of various confer- ences that they hold. Historically, we have not tried to do that with the exception of the major convention -we just try to break even, and to provide the services. What Is your own concept for the future of the NAB? I think the first year has sort of set the tone, and that we intend to be much more aggressive than before. This is part of a process of positioning for the future, if you will, to analyze on a continuing basis what the changes are going to be in this industry. There's a shakeout process in the new technologies. I don't think there is a shakeout process in the broadcast industry, and I think that the broadcast industry five years from now will be strong and healthy, very vibrant -and still the principal medium serving the populace of this country. Do you incorporate direct broadcast satellite into that vision of the broadcast industry? I think so, yes. How about low -power television? AT LARGE <strong>Broadcasting</strong> <strong>Oct</strong> <strong>31</strong> 1983 44 That's certainly a part of the mix that will impact on the industry in the future. But here again, it hasn't yet made its mark. It's been authorized but not many of the stations are on the air-and it will have to prove itself as a viable medium. For instance, in this area, there are seven Arlington, Va., access channels on the cable system -and none of them programed on a full -time basis. If that is the case, I can't see that there is a niche for low -power television to serve if you've already got seven channels in that community that are not being programed locally. Is there room to incorporate LPTV Into the NAB membership? I think so, yes. That's before the membership committee now-to determine what kind of a rate structure should be applied and what type of services should be offered. How is the radio membership reacting to the thought of having low power join the association? Well, I don't think there is any concern about low power being a member of the association. I think that LPTV would compete most directly with radio for dollars because of its lack of coverage areas and its inability to charge high prices for commercials. It would mean they would compete with radio in the pricing scheme of things. But in no way would low power ever have the reach of radio. Moreover, I don't think there would be a concern internally because, currently, the radio board has <strong>31</strong> seats and I don't see that changing dramatically. Are you committed to the effort that is being made by the structures committee to examine the Peter Kenney [former NBC vice president, Washington] proposal for reordering NAB into what might be called a "federation" structure? Is it part of your five -year planning? We're committed to studying the plan. Yes, they are working in concert, and they are on parallel tracks. Our research department has sat in on all of our structures committee meetings, so that they can be apprised of the track that the structures committee is on, and it can be a coordinated effort-not to the extent that research and planning from the staff standpoint would influence what the structures com- mittee would do, but to be apprised of and to be cognizant of that so that if there are changes to be made, that the long -range plans could facilitate that. Would you be surprised if a determination were made that it might be a good idea to change the structure? I don't think I would be surprised; I would certainly not be opposed to it. If, in the study of this committee, it is determined that there should be a change, and that the structure should be reformed, as you say -certainly I would not have any objection to that. One of the misperceptions that's been flying around town is that the staff is resistant to this. I think that's incorrect, at least from my perspective. There are all kinds of rumors flying around, but from this office down, there is no resistance. As a matter of fact, there is a spirit of cooperation among the staff to work with the structures committee, and it helped facilitate the selection of a consultant to come in and work on it. They're taking their job very seriously. Does the study anticipate the possibility that the National Cable Tele- vision Association might somehow be married with the NAB within a federation structure? I would not anticipate that would be one of the options at which they would be looking. I don't think they're looking beyond the broad- casting institution. Looking back over the past year, what would you say were some of your biggest accomplishments and some of your biggest disappoint- ments with the lob? Our biggest accomplishment is that we have -in our opinion - become effective in the legislative process. Historically, NAB has chosen to utilize an approach of stopping negative legislation -or trying to influence changes in negative leg- islation- rather than initiating legislation. In this case we are the
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