The Procedure of the Authority

This system of interrelated companies, technical installations and control arrangements operates under the direct control of the Independent Television Authority. The Authority usually consists of a Chairman, Deputy Chairman, and eight Members. The Members of the Authority serve in a part-time capacity, though the Chairman is expected to make the work of the Authority his main interest. Three of the members have as their special care the interests of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland respectively. Members are appointed by the Postmaster-General “from among persons appearing to him to be qualified for the Office”, and the Minister is required to satisfy himself that they have no outside interests likely to affect prejudicially their conduct as members. Meetings of the Authority are held every three weeks, generally at its headquarters in London, but several times a year meetings are held in centres of Independent Television production in other parts of the United Kingdom. At the meetings the Authority’s policy is determined and all aspects of its work are reviewed.

The head of the Authority’s permanent staff is the Director-General, Sir Robert Fraser, O.B.E. The Authority employs a staff of about 550 people, of whom about 180 are headquarters administrative and technical staff, 350 technical staff manning the transmitters and 17 regional staff.

The main formal channel of communication between the Authority and the programme companies is a Standing Consultative Committee (SCC). Senior executives of each company and senior staff of the Authority attend the monthly meetings of ,this committee which sits under the chairmanship of the Authority’s Director-General. Between meetings a constant flow of information and consultation between the Authority’s officers and each company ensures that the Authority’s policy is understood and carried out. Through its Regional Officers the Authority is represented in the Regions. These officers are responsible for the day-to-day surveillance of the Independent Television output in their areas, as well as for liaison with local authorities, voluntary bodies and members of the public.

The Authority is advised by committees of experts in the field of Religion, Children’s and School programmes, Adult Education, and the control of advertisements.

Finance

Independent Television is financially self-supporting. No charge falls on public funds. Under Section 10 of the Television Act the Authority is charged

so to conduct its affairs as to secure that its revenues become at the earliest possible date, and thereafter continue, at least sufficient –

(a) to meet all sums properly chargeable to revenue account (including sums required for the repayment of loans and interest thereon, for provision for depreciation and/or the establishment and maintenance of their reserve fund); and

(b) to make provision towards, and as soon as practicable for necessary capital expenditure.

To enable the Authority to start operations, it was empowered under Section 12 of the Act to borrow from the Postmaster-General, with the consent of the Treasury, up to £2 million initial capital in its first five years. In fact, it proved necessary to borrow only £555,000, and this sum was wholly repaid by the middle of 1959. The Authority’s responsibilities under Section 10 are therefore fulfilled, both its revenue expenditure and its capital investment programme being paid for entirely out of the revenue from the programme companies.

Advertising

A full account of the provisions of the Act regarding the inclusion of advertisements in the programmes and of the Authority’s responsibilities in the advertising field is given in the chapter “Advertising Control”.

Two salient points are:

(i) Sponsorship is not allowed; advertisers are not allowed to supply, suggest or take credit for programmes. They may only buy time in the programmes in the same way as they would buy space in the press.

(ii) The frequency and permitted amount of advertising in the programmes are controlled by the Authority.

The Amount of Advertising

The Television Act does not lay down precisely the amount of advertising that may be allowed: it simply places upon the Authority the duty to secure “that the amount of time given to advertising in the programmes shall not be so great as to detract from the value of the programmes as a medium of entertainment, instruction, and information”. Since the beginning of transmissions in 1955, the Authority has allowed a maximum of six minutes of spot advertising an hour, averaged over the day’s programmes, but a further rule restricts the maximum to seven minutes in any single “clock-hour” (e.g. from 6-7 p.m., 7-8 p.m., etc.).

Control of the maximum amount of advertising by the clock hour has its merits as a tidy statistical device, but of course the rigidity of the clock hour conflicts occasionally with the need for flexibility in the timing of programmes and with the natural incidence of intervals in which the advertisements may be shown. So the Authority is prepared occasionally to allow minor departures from the seven-minute maximum if, for example, an interval of advertising falls just on one side of the striking of an hour instead of another, thus carrying a minute or two of advertising from one clock hour into another. In each case, however, the excess is counter-balanced by an equivalent reduction in the amount of advertising in the adjacent hour.

The following figures show the average hourly amount of advertising for all the Authority’s stations in service during each month of 1962:

Average amount of advertising
Month Average per hour over whole day (minutes) Average per hour between 7 and 10 p.m. (minutes)
January 4.9 6.6
February 4.6 6.3
March 4.7 6.2
April 4.9 6.2
May 4.4 6.2
June 4.4 6.0
July 5.0 6.5
August 4.4 6.1
September 4.2 6.1
October 4.4 6.4
November 4.9 6.5
December 4.3 5.9

Over the year as a whole, an average of 4.6 minutes an hour of spot advertising (about 7½ per cent of the broadcasting time) was transmitted from each station.

The Independent Television Authority allows less advertising in its programmes than is common in comparable self-supporting systems abroad.

Bibliography

GENERAL

  • Anglia Television. 28 pp. Anglia Television, 1961.
  • Annual Report and Accounts of the ITA 1960-61. 77 pp. HMSO, 1961, 5s. 6d.
  • Annual Report and Accounts of the ITA 1961-62. 64 pp. HMSO, 1962. 4s. 6d.
  • A Regional Outlook on ITV. Reprint of a speech by the Right Hon. The Earl of Derby, M.C., in the House of Lords on 18th July 1962. 9 pp. TWW, 1962.
  • A Regional Television Station. 20 pp. Anglia Television, 1960.
  • ATV: The Midlands. 27 pp. Associated Television, 1962.
  • Both Sides of the Camera. ABC Television. A souvenir book of television programmes and the people who make them. 128 pp. Weidenfeld & Nicholson, 1960. 21s.
  • British Broadcasting. Radio and Television in the United Kingdom. Burton Paulu. 457 pp. OUP, 1956. £2 8s.
  • British Broadcasting in Transition. Burton Paulu. 250 pp. Macmillan, 1961. £1 15s. Broadcasting (Sound and Television). Mary Crozier. 236 pp. OUP, 1958. 7s. 6d.
  • Fusion. Bi-monthly company magazine. 36-48 pp. Associated-Rediffusion.
  • Grampian Television—North East Scotland’s own TV Station. A six page information leaflet on the station, its aims and objects. 6 pp. Grampian Television, 1962.
  • Independent Television Programmes — Facts and Figures. 20 pp. ITA, 1962. 1s. 6d.
  • Independent Television Programmes — More Facts and Figures. 16 pp. ITA, 1962. 1s. 6d.
  • New Channels. A report on radio and television. Bow Group. 56 pp. Bow Publications, 1962. 4s.
  • Paper No. 251. Based on the Seminar on Problems of Industrial Administration at the London School of Economics in December 1959, by Sidney L. Bernstein, Chairman of the Granada Group. 56 pp. Granada TV Network, revised edition, 1961.
  • Periodicals. Apart from the programme journals, the following regular publications are devoted to television topics: Contrast (3s. 6d. quarterly), International TV Technical Review (1s. 6d. monthly), Television Mail (1s. 6d. weekly), TV Today (supplement to The Stage, 9d. weekly).
  • Programme Journals. In each area a weekly publication gives details of the available Independent Television programmes, as follows: TV Times (separate editions for London, The Midlands, The North of England, Southern England, East Anglia, The Borders, North-East Scotland); TV Post (Ulster); Television Weekly (South Wales and the West of England); The Viewer (separate editions for Central Scotland and North-East England); Look Westward (South-West England); Channel Viewer (Channel Islands); Wales West & North TV (West and North Wales).
  • Prospects for Television. 27 pp. Political and Economic Planning (P.E.P.), 1958. 3s. 6d.
  • Spotlight on TWW. “Servant of Two Tongues” by Mary Crozier, reprinted from The Guardian, 12th October 1960, and “What Cardiff Does Today” by Alfred Francis, reprinted from Time and Tide, 24th September 1960. 8 pp. TWW, 1960.
  • Taking Television Shows on Tour. 10 pp. TWW, 1960.
  • Teledu. A news sheet in the Welsh language containing information about Independent Television in Wales. 4 pp. TWW, 1962.
  • Television in Britain. 29 pp. P.E.P., 1958. 3s. 6d.
  • The Border Discovered. 23 pp. Border Television, 1961.
  • The Creation of a Regional Station. 16 pp. Anglia Television, 1960.
  • The Local Television Service. 22 pp. Anglia Television, 1961.
  • The New Journalism. 40 pp. Independent Television News, 1962.
  • The Thomson Organisation in Great Britain. 33 pp. Scottish Television, 1960.
  • The Truth About Television. Howard Thomas. 321 pp. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1962. 25s.
  • This Wonderful World. A booklet describing the first three years of this programme series. 14 pp. Scottish Television, 1960.
  • TV: From Monopoly to Competition—and Back? Wilfred Altman, Denis Thomas, David Sawers. 120 pp. Hobart Paper 1$, revised edition July 1962. Institute of Economic Affairs. 7s. 6d.
  • Visual Journalism. 12 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1960
  • Wales Today and Tomorrow. A symposium of the views of members of the Welsh Board of Directors TWW Ltd. 36 pp. TWW, 1960.
  • We Cover the South. 29 pp. Southern Television, 1961.
  • Year Books. The following annuals and reference books contain information about television: Commercial Television Year Book & Directory, Business Publications Ltd. (£1 15s.); Kemp’s Film & Television Directory, Kemp (£2 2s.); International Commercial Television Rate and Data Book, World’s Press News & Advertisers’ Review (£5); International Television Almanac, Quigley Publications (£1 15s.); Spotlight Contacts, The Spotlight Ltd. (3s. quarterly); The British Film & Television Year Book, British & American Film Press (£1 15s.); World Radio TV Handbook, O. Lund Johansen (22s.).

THE ARTS

  • Festival of the City of London. 1962 programme book, edited by Ronald Elliott. 64 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1962.
  • Josh White Sings. Music of the New World. The American Negro and his Music with folksong lyrics. Granada TV Network. 44 pp. MacGibbon & Kee, 1961. 2s. 6d.
  • J. S. Bach: 48 Preludes and Fugues. Performed by Rosalyn Tureck. Notes for viewers on a programme series. 23 pp. Granada TV Network, 1960.
  • Orpheus in the Underworld. Offenbach’s opera performed on ITV with the Sadler’s Wells Company. 4 pp. Granada TV Network, 1962.
  • The Royal Ballet in Cinderella. 35 pp. Granada TV Network, 1960.

AUDIENCE RESEARCH AND ADVERTISING

  • A Description of a Market. A statistical commentary. 24 pp. Border Television, 1961.
  • A Survey of Londoners’ Opinions on Television Advertising Magazines. 44 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1962.
  • Advertising in a Free Society. Ralph Harris and Arthur Seldon. 216 pp. London, Institute of Economic Affairs, 1959. 18s.
  • Copy Research and Television Commercials. Norman Squirrell. 15 pp. Associated Television, 1960.
  • How a Television Commercial is Made. 32 pp. Institute of Practitioners in Advertising, 1960.
  • London Profiles. Research into product groups. No. 1. Motor cars, 113 pp.; 2. Holidays, 75 pp; 3. Grocers and advertising, 67 pp.; 4. Hardware stores and Advertising, 61 pp.; 5. Electrical dealers and advertising, 60 pp.; 6. Confectioners and tobacconists, 75 pp.; 7. Licensed traders and advertising, 72 pp.; 8. Butchers and greengrocers and advertising, 80 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1962.
  • Market Profiles. Subsidiary publications to The Londoner. No. 1. Chocolate covered biscuits and bars, 50 pp.; 2. Cigarettes, 50 pp.; 3. Indigestion remedies, 49 pp.; 4. Beer, 25 pp.; 5. Pet foods, 29 pp.; 6. Cold and flu remedies, 27 pp.; 7. Frozen food, 36 pp.; 8. Tooth and denture cleaners, 38 pp.; 9. Furniture polishes, 26 pp.; 10. Breakfast cereals, 40 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1962.
  • Marketing and Media Handbook. Demographic and media data for the Southern area. 65 pp. Southern Television, 1963.
  • Marketing Survey. Ownership of consumer durables and other goods, and information on individual behaviour in regard to smoking, drinking, holidays, etc. 28 pp. Southern Television, 1962.
  • Media and Marketing Survey of the Midlands Television Area. No. 5. April-June 1960. 195 pp. Associated Television, 1960.
  • Motivation Research and the Television Commercial. Harry Henry. 12 pp. Associated Television, 1960.
  • New Developments in Audience Research Methods. W. A. Belson. 6 pp. London School of Economics, 1958.
  • Notes of Guidance on Television Advertising (Initial Sections). Independent Television Companies Association, 1962.
  • Principles for Television Advertising. 4th edition. 16 pp. ITA, 1961.
  • Research for Programme Planning. W. A. Belson. 15 pp. Associated Television, 1960.
  • Sampling in Television Research. Alan Stuart. 16 pp. Associated Television, 1960.
  • Techniques for Testing the Effect of Television Advertising on Sales. John Downham. 14 pp. Associated Television, 1960.
  • Techniques for Measuring the Effects of Exposure to Mass Media. W. A. Belson. 6 pp. London School of Economics, 1961.
  • Television and Family Life. W. A. Belson. 5 pp. London School of Economics, 1961.
  • Television and Other Mass Media. W. A. Belson. 7 pp. London School of Economics, 1961.
  • Television and the Political Image. A study of the impact of television on the 1959 General Election, by Joseph Trenaman and Denis McQuail. 287 pp. London, Methuen, 1961.
  • Test-Marketing Handbook. Research, merchandising and other services available to advertisers. 22 pp. Southern Television, 1963.
  • The ATV Youth Market. 12 pp. Associated Television, 1960.
  • The Audience for Border Television. Research Services Ltd., September 1961, November 1961, February 1962.
  • The Brand Image and Advertising Receptiveness. Alex Mitchell. 12 pp. Associated Television, 1960.
  • The Effects of Television on the Interests and Initiative of Adult Viewers in Greater London. W. A. Belson. 14 pp. London School of Economics, 1959.
  • The Effects of Television on the Reading and the Buying of Newspapers and Magazines. W. A. Belson. 16 pp. London School of Economics, 1962.
  • The Effect of Television upon Cinema Going. W. A. Belson. 9 pp. London School of Economics, 1958.
  • The Effects of Television upon Family Life. W. A. Belson. 5 pp. London School of Economics, 1961.
  • The Half Decade. An inside story. Leonard Smith. 134 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1961.
  • The Londoner—Explanatory Manual. The background to The Londoner psychological research study. 158 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1962.
  • The Londoner. A psychological study of the London population. Three volumes. Associated-Rediffusion, 1962.
  • The Role of Merchandising in Relation to Television Advertising. 16 pp. Associated Television. 1962.
  • The United Kingdom, an Economic Study. 200 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1962.
  • TV’s Efficiency in Communicating. W. A. Belson. 12 pp. London School of Economics, 1961.
  • Viewing and Readership in the Border Television Area. 16 pp. Research Services Ltd., 1962.
  • Viewership Survey, January-March 1960. 149 pp. Granada TV Network, 1960.
  • What Children Watch. A survey of children’s television viewing. 58 pp. Granada TV Network, 1961.

CHILDREN, SCHOOLS, EDUCATION

  • A Child in our Hands. Programmes for children. 12 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1960.
  • Children and Television Programmes. The report of a joint committee set up by the BBC and ITA. (Committee chairman: Miss May O’Conor.) 47 pp. ITA and BBC, 1960. 3s. 6d.
  • Discovery I. Fifteen talks given by leading scientists in Granada’s “Discovery” science series. 144 pp. Methuen, 1961. 12s. 6d.
  • Discovery II. Eighteen talks by leading scientists in Granada’s science series for sixth forms. 208 pp. Arco Publications, 1962. 12s. 6d.
  • Educational Television. Some suggestions for a fourth service. 32 pp. ITA, 1961. 2s.
  • E.T.V. Conference. Report on a conference at Glasgow University. Scottish Television, 1962.
  • Midnight Oil. A survey on a teaching-by-television experiment. 12 pp. Ulster Television, 1962.
  • Notes on School Programmes. Booklets for teachers and pupils are published each term and may be obtained from the local Programme Company or the Independent Television Schools Broadcasting Secretariat. Series shown during the Autumn Term 1962 are: Art in the Making, Auf deutsch, Chemistry for Sixth Forms, Discovery, French from France, Ici la France, Notre Ville, Romeo and Juliet, Science and Understanding, Story Box, Summing It Up, The Art of Music, The World Around Us.
  • Parents, Children and Television. An opinion survey. 48 pp. ITA, 1958. 3s. 6d.
  • Record of a Conference on Educational Television. Held at the Royal Hotel, Norwich, on Saturday 6th January 1962. 50 pp. ITA, 1962.
  • School Report: The First Four Years. 112 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1961.
  • Television in Education. Report of a conference held at Nottinghamshire County Training College. 50 pp. Associated Television, 1961.
  • Visual Education on Scottish Television. 10 pp. Scottish Television, 1961.

CURRENT AFFAIRS

  • America Abroad. A programme in the Intertel series dealing with Cambodia, South Vietnam, Pakistan and Ghana. 8 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1962.
  • American Viewpoints. Texts of six television interviews in the “Right to Reply” series. 40 pp. Associated Television, 1960.
  • For Richer for Poorer. An inquiry into the business of Britain. 63 pp. Granada TV Network, 1962.
  • Inquiry. Talks in Granada’s current affairs series for schools, by the Earl of Harewood, Professor S. E. Finer, Sir Charles Morris, Cecil McGivern, etc. 122 pp. Manchester University Press, 1962. 8s. 6d.
  • Living with a Giant. A programme in the Intertel series dealing with Canada. 8 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1962.
  • Scotland and the Common Market. An edited transcript of eight weekly programmes. 63 pp. Scottish Television, 1961.
  • Scotland Today and Tomorrow. A special programme on the state of the Scottish economy. 19 pp. Grampian Television, 1962.
  • The Four Freedoms. The background to the broadcasts. 26 pp. Associated Television, 1962.
  • The Idea Called Commonwealth. An introduction to the world’s largest group of nations. 75 pp. Scottish Television.
  • The Long Day. A one-hour TWW documentary on HM Prison, Dartmoor. 8 pp., TWW, 1962.
  • The Pill. One of the “Life in Action” programmes. 22 pp. Granada TV Network, 1961.
  • The Quiet War. A programme in the Intertel series dealing with South Vietnam. 8 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1961.
  • Three Programmes of Topical Importance from Bristol. 5 pp. TWW, 1961.
  • Under or Over. A series of programmes investigating the possibilities of a Channel Tunnel or Bridge. 17 pp, Southern Television, 1962.
  • Will Farmers Survive if Britain Joins the Common Market? Transcript of a programme on the European Common Market. 14 pp. ABC Television, 1961.

DRAMA

  • A Season of Shaw. Folders on the television performances on the “Play of the Week” series: “Major Barbara”, “Misalliance”, “Don Juan in Hell” and “The Apple Cart”. Granada TV Network, 1962.
  • Anatomy of a Television Play. A candid inquiry by John Russell Taylor into the production of Alun Owen’s “The Rose Affair” and Robert Muller’s “Afternoon of a Nymph” (ABC Armchair Theatre). 223 pp. 64 pp. illus. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1962. 25s.
  • Emergency-Ward 10. A descriptive booklet on the occasion of the 500th episode. 16 pp. Associated Television, 1962.
  • Granada’s Manchester Plays. Television adaptations of six plays recalling the Horniman Period at the Gaiety Theatre, Manchester. 310 pp. Manchester University Press, 1962. 25s.
  • ITV and the Theatre in Bristol. Reprinted from Time and Tide, 23rd March 1961. 4 pp. TWW, 1961.
  • New Granada Plays. Six selected plays for television. 222 pp. Faber & Faber, 1961. 18s.
  • No Hiding Place: a Programme Planned for Success. A research report. 29 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1962.
  • Somerset Maugham Stories. 12 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1961.
  • The Armchair Theatre. ABC Television. How to write, design, direct, act, enjoy television plays. 115 pp., plus 64 illus. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1959. 21s.

ENGINEERING AND TECHNICAL

  • About Television. Phyllis Ladyman. How television works explained in colour pictures (for children, but grown-ups may learn from it too). 31 pp. Granada TV Network. Brockhampton Press, 1960. 3s. 6d.
  • An Arabian Night. The programme presented on the opening of Studio 5 and details about the studio. 26 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1960.
  • Elstree Studio Centre. 38 pp. Associated Television, 1961.
  • 405:625. A plan for changing to 625 lines while retaining VHF transmission. 19 pp. ITA, 1961. is. 6d.
  • How TV Works. The technical story for non-technical people. 48 pp. Granada TV Network. Methuen, 1960. 5s.
  • What is a Television Centre? Description of the Granada TV Centre, Manchester. 28 pp. Granada TV Network, 1962.

HISTORY

  • Once a Kingdom. A six-part inquiry into the story of East Anglia, its land and people. 4 booklets. Anglia Television, 1962.
  • Southern Heritage. Historic events in the South of England. 13 pp. Southern Television, 1961.
  • Ten Years a Queen. Transcript of a programme transmitted in 1962. 20 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1962.

PRACTICAL AND OUTDOOR

  • Farm in the South. Describes the regular series of programmes for farmers. 12 pp. Southern Television, 1962.
  • The Border Television Cook Book. Recipes from “Focus About The Home”. 40 pp. Border Television, 1962.
  • The Other Man’s Farm. Franklin Engelmann in collaboration with Jack Hargreaves of The Farmer’s Weekly describes 26 of the farms visited in the last three years by ABC Television. 256 pp., 32 pp. illus. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1962. 25s.

RELIGION

  • About Religion. Five years of religious broadcasting. 26 pp. Associated Television, 1961.
  • A Man Dies. A dramatisation for our times of the Passion and Crucifixion. 2 booklets. 10 pp., 41 pp. ABC Television, 1961.
  • A New Pulpit. An inaugural course of training in television for clergymen. 6 pp. Scottish Television, 1961.
  • For All to See. The enthronement of the 100th Archbishop of Canterbury. 14 pp. Southern Television, 1961.
  • Journey of a Lifetime. The Ven. Carlyle Witton-Davies retraces the pilgrimage to Israel and Jordan by Anne Lawson and John Bonney on behalf of ABC Television, and tells the story of the two film series. 144 pp. 60 pp. illus. Arthur Barker, 1962. 12s. 6d.
  • Laudes Evangelii. A miracle play inspired by Byzantine mosaics, the paintings of Giotto and the Canticles of thirteenth- and fourteenth-century Italy. 26 pp. Associated-Rediffusion, 1961.
  • One Church. Transcript of a discussion on Church Unity. 12 pp. Westward Television, 1962.
  • Religious Programmes on Independent Television. 64 pp. ITA, 1962. 3s. 6d.
  • Television and Christianity. A report on a two-day course for junior clergy. 10 pp. TWW, 1962.

SCIENCE AND NATURAL HISTORY

  • At the Zoo. A report on the Granada TV and Film Unit at London and Whipsnade Zoos. 8 pp. Granada TV Network, 1961.
  • Borneo Jungle: Another World. Three programmes on Sarawak, made by Tom Harrisson, D.S.O., O.B.E., and his wife Barbara. 23 pp. Granada TV Network, 1961.
  • Communication in the Modern World. The British Association/Granada Guildhall Lectures, 1961. Contributors: Sir James Gray, Professor Hermann Bondi, Sir John Wolfenden. 80 pp. University of London Press, 1961. 4s. 6d.
  • Pegasus Overland. A real-life adventure series. Folded brochure. TWW, 1960.
  • S.O.S. Rhino. A programme in the “Survival” series. 14 pp. Anglia Television, 1960. Space. Three programmes devoted to information and opinion on space research. 20 pp. Southern Television, 1961.
  • Tomorrow May Be Too Late. A programme in the “Survival” series. 22 pp. Anglia Television, 1960.

SPORT

  • Golf on Scottish Television. 6pp. Scottish Television, 1961.
  • Seeing Sport. By Pitkin Pictorials Ltd., for Desmond Lloyd Publications Ltd. 128 pp. illus. September 1962. 15s.