9. A booth with broadcast facilities and a closed-circuit televised feed of the floor proceedings would be an important supplement to a commentator in the chamber. It would permit reports to be made for newscasts during a debate on the floor. 10. For radio coverage, the main consideration should be to improve the sound system in the two chambers. The House has approximately ten stationary microphone pusitions to which members come when they wish to speak. This system should be improved or a parallel system set up to assure broadcast quality sound. In the Senate, each member has a microphone but their quality is far below broadcast quality. The entire system should be upgraded. ATTACHMENT 1.—CONGRESSIONAL HEARINGS AIRED BY NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO ..do.. ....do... ...do.. .do. .....do..... June Senate Government Operations Subcom- Intergovernment Revenue Act of 1971 and mittee on Intergovernmental Relations. related legislation (revenue sharing). Urban Affairs. .do 11 .....do... .do. Lochkeed. mittee on Foreign Operations and Gov- -do........... do... ...do. .do.. ...do... ...do... .....do.... Senate Foreign Relations. Mainland China... 21 Senate Small Business, Select Committee of Mood drugs... Subcommittee on Monopolies. ...do... .....do.----------23 Hearings continued Sept. 22 30 Senate Judiciary Subcommittee Constitutional amendment, 18-yr-old vote.. Sept. 22 Senate Small Business Select Committee of Mood drugs..... Subcommittee on Monopolies. Rights. do Nov. Senate subcommittee.. Financial disclosure legislation... Environment, detergents.. Racism in military culture. 29 Senate Select Committee on Aging (field Trends in long-term care.... hearings from Minneapolis, Minn.). Dec. 7 Senate Select Committee on Nutrition...... Nutrition and Human Needs, 1971 (pt 10, micro-nutrient supplements for school lunch programs). 15 Senate Subcommittee to Investigate Juvenil Barbiturate abuse, 1971-72.... Delinquency. ATTACHMENT 1.-CONGRESSIONAL HEARINGS AIRED BY NATIONAL PUBL Radio Continued Time Hours Date Committee Topic 1972 Rights. ....do... on Administration Practices and Proced ures. 29 .....00.......................................00............................... Mar. 1 -...do...... . ..do... Mass media and the black community- Subcommittee on Foreign Operations and Government Information. of TV violence on children. ..do. Aftairs. Hearings ran also 17, 18, 19, and 20... Affairs. Senate Foreign Relations (hearings ran also) Vietnam... 18 .---.do. .do.... House Interior and Insular Affairs. Fuels and energy. -...do.- ...do..... mittee. .....do.. national Environment. do.. Apr. 10 ?). Senate Foreign Relations.. Crime and organized sports. do.. Other hearings June 13-16 National Security Policy and Scientific world power alinement. development. 28 to July 2 on Sundays only at 8 p.m. ...do.. ....do.... organized sports.) ... Ratification of SALT Treaty. SALT Senate), Senator Proxmire chairing. -- SALT. ..do. ..do... July 7 House Select Committee on Crime, field Drugs in School... hearings from Florida. (Doublecheck)...... - Auto safety sional reform. Sponsored by Charles Adlai Stevenson (Democrat, Illinois). ---- ----...do........... ...do....... ATTACHMENT 1.-CONGRESSIONAL HEARINGS AIRED BY NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO_Continued Time Date Committee Topic Hours Minutes mehead........... 1973 ? Feb. 1 Senate Commerce. ..- No-fault insurance.... can do... ...do....... ....do.... ..--...do...-------...do... Energy policy. 20 Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Consti- The people's right to be informed. tutional Rights (other hearings on 21, 22, 23, 27 and Mar. 13, 14). munications. ......do...... Senate Commerce Communications... .. OTP Whitehead.. 23 Senate Judiciary-Constitutional Rights.... People's right.. . ..do. ...00.......... Mar. 7 Congressional Conference on Constitutional The Congress and the Executive... Powers (organized by Senator H. Hughes with many congressional sponsors). --...do..... ....do.......... 13 Senate Judiciary, Constitutional Rights People's right.. House Foreign Affairs... War powers.. 14 Senate Judiciary, Constitutional Rights..... People's right.. House Foreign Affairs.... War powers..... do... 21 Joint Senate Committee....... Legislation for a consumer protection agency. . ..do... ....do..... 28 Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Com- Funding of public broadcasting.. . munications. 29 .-...do...... ...do... ...do... . ..do.... Apr. Senate Commerce Committee No-fault insurance. 10 Joint hearings: Separation of Powers and Executive privilege and Government secrecy. Government Subcommittee on Intergov. ernmental Relations. Executive privilege and Government secrecy.. - Executive privilege and Government secrecy - No-fault insurance... ings, WOI). May Senate Select Committee on 1972 Presi- Watergate. dential Campaign Activities (Watergate). ....do.... ..do onwarciona acominousu WCINA ADiwana on Onwww .do... do... July do.. do ..do... do... ovan ATTACHMENT 1.-CONGRESSIONAL HEARINGS AIRED BY NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO Continued Time Date Committee Topic Hours Minutes 11 1 do Aug. 1 Watergate. Watergate.... ...do.... ..do.. ..do.... ... do... ..do... ...00......-------do... ...do... 9 Senate Armed Services.. Bombing in Cambodia Sept. 7 Senate Foreign Relations... Confirmation on Henry Kissinger as Secre tary of State. 10 .....do.. ..do. 11 do. 14 .....do... lo.... 1974 Jan. 21 Senate Permanent Select Committee for Energy crisis.............. Investigating Government Operations. .......... ....do...................... .. ... ...do... do..... Senate Commerce... . Confirmation of James Quelle... 25 Senate Permanent Select Committee for Energy crisis. Investigating Government Operations. 31 House Judiciary.----- .... Markup session on subpena powers on impeachment. Feb. 20 Joint Committee on Congressional Operations. Congressional communication through the mass media. do.. 7 ----do .. .do... Liberties, and the Administration of Justice. .............00................................. ---.do...-. mass media. a permanent Special Prosecutor. .do. --..do... Subcommittee. ...do...... committee. mass media. 10 .....do.. --- .........do.. 1 The Senate Foreign Relations hearings as result of President's message were sudden on part of Congress and NPR's coverage. Logs must be analyzed. Winter quarter. Public Broadcasting Service PUBLIC BROADCASTING SERVICE, Washington, D.C., May 30, 1974. Hon. LEE METCALF, U.S. Senate, Washington, D.C. DEAR SENATOR METCALF: I read with interest the additional questions you sent to me May 8 regarding Congress and mass communications. They evidence your sensitivity to the problems which confront broadcast journalists in attempting to make the workings of government accessible to the public at large. I have attempted to answer the questions fully and concisely. However, I would suggest that in some areas the views of public television producers such as NPACT, the National Public Affairs Center for Television, would be helpful. Again, I appreciate your interest in this important issue. Please let me know if I can be of further assistance. Sincerely, HARTFORD N. GUNN, Jr. RESPONSE BY PUBLIC BROADCASTING SERVICE TO QUESTIONS FROM SENATOR METCALF 1. Since 1971, PBS has distributed the following programs covering committee and subcommittee activities (See Attachment A for exact date, length and producer of programs): Senate Foreign Relations Committee Hearings on Mainland China, 1971 Troops from Viet Nam, 1972 Kissinger as Secretary of State, 1973 1973 Senate Rules. Committee Hearings on the Confirmation of Gerald Ford, 1973 House Judiciary Committee, Opening Session of Impeachment Inquiry, 1974. 2. To my knowledge, none of our producers has been denied permission for such coverage since the Rayburn Rule was changed. 3. To my knowledge, none of our producers has ever requested permission to cover a conference committee. 4. No. We assume that hearings are always open for broadcast coverage unless such coverage is explicitly denied. 5. In addition to coverage of the hearings listed above, PBS has distributed the following programs concerning Congress as an institution: The Advocates No. 15-"Should the Congressional Seniority System be Abolished?” Jan. 12, 1971 Powers?" Dec. 7, 1971 Money Congress Appropriates?" Feb. 15, 1973 Washington Connection No. 116-on the impeachment process May 8, 1974. 6. I would respectfully suggest that Congress not allow its routines and practices to be in any way upset by the presence of television cameras. It is not our intention to turn Congressional floor debate into an event "produced especially for television." The burden should be on the television journalists to bridge the gaps in understanding that must exist, at least initially, between Congress and the viewing public. 7. We agree with the commercial networks that they and the public television producers responsible for providing coverage should each be permitted the use of one unilateral camera in addition to the broadcast pool equipment on covering floor debates. The task of making the workings of Congress understandable as discussed in question six, is a creative process which cannot be left entirely to the pool. Four unilateral cameras are required so that each pool member may have the flexibility needed to present and explain the Congressional activity in what each considers the most compelling and clear fashion. 8 and 9. For answers for these questions I would refer you to the producers who cover the Congress for public broadcasting, particularly NPACT. As I understand it, these producers do not currently staff the House and Senate Radio and Television Correspondents' galleries. 10. We cannot estimate what would be involved in providing facilities for a limited trial period of broadcast coverage of floor proceedings. We can say, however, that the cost to public broadcasting will be different from the cost to the commercial networks. We would consider any expenditure required by a trial run to be well worth the financial risk, in view of our commitment to educate the public as to both the great issues before Congress and the way our representative system of government works. For any trial run, we would be willing to pool equipment and resources, and we certainly hope that such a trial period would be successful. However, we refer you to our original testimony stating that we strongly urge the installation of permanent broadcast facilities in the Congressional chambers in the same fashion that such facilities are permanently installed at the United Nations. The availability of such equipment would simplify television coverage enormously and put the television camera in the role of spectator and not intruder. |