Journal article
Cynthia B. Meyers
Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, vol. 31(3), 2011, pp. 355-372
Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, vol. 31(3), 2011, pp. 355-372
View PDF
Click here for PDF on Internet Archive
Cite
Cite
APA
Click to copy
Meyers, C. B. (2011). The Problems with Sponsorship in Broadcasting, 1930s-50s: Perspectives from the Advertising Industry. Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, 31(3), 355–372.
Chicago/Turabian
Click to copy
Meyers, Cynthia B. “The Problems with Sponsorship in Broadcasting, 1930s-50s: Perspectives from the Advertising Industry.” Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television 31, no. 3 (2011): 355–372.
MLA
Click to copy
Meyers, Cynthia B. “The Problems with Sponsorship in Broadcasting, 1930s-50s: Perspectives from the Advertising Industry.” Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, vol. 31, no. 3, 2011, pp. 355–72.
BibTeX Click to copy
@article{cynthia2011a,
title = {The Problems with Sponsorship in Broadcasting, 1930s-50s: Perspectives from the Advertising Industry},
year = {2011},
issue = {3},
journal = {Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television},
pages = {355-372},
volume = {31},
author = {Meyers, Cynthia B.}
}
Sponsorship, or advertiser control of programming, was the predominant form of program financing in American commercial broadcasting in the 1930s; by the end of the 1950s, only a minority of programs were sponsored. Factors such as television's higher programming expense and the networks' increased interest in program control undoubtedly contributed to sponsorship's decline. However, another important cause, arising from within the broadcast industry itself, has not been well analyzed in broadcast historiography. Although reformers blamed sponsorship for overcommercializing broadcasting, some broadcasting industry insiders also were critical of it, believing it undermined broadcasting not because it was too commercial but because it eroded broadcasting's commercial effectiveness. Sponsored entertainment might serve advertisers' needs, but if audiences were alienated by heavy-handed sponsorship, broadcasting would not be able to sell them things.
