Roundup

For a year that ended in war talk, bitter arguments about color TV, and shortages of vital materials, 1950 was not so bad. Radiomen were cheered by the 16th annual report issued in Washington last week by the Federal Communications Commission. With a record $415 million revenue, radio showed a 1.7% gain over the previous year and a surprising ability to hold its own against television. In the first six months of 1950, more radio sets (3,850,712) came off the assembly lines than did TV sets (2,413,145). And, for the first time, U.S. radio stations passed the 2,000 mark, with 155 new stations boosting the total to 2,118.

TV, as usual, made its biggest news by turning in a record-breaking deficit: telecasters managed to lose more than $25 million. Since most TV stations are owned by radio broadcasters, a big part of the loss came out of radio's pockets.

More important to the future than either commercial radio or TV was the flourishing status of amateur radio operators (hams), who form a pool of technicians on which the U.S. can draw in wartime. The FCC reported that there are now almost 87,000 U.S. hams broadcasting to each other and to the world, a healthy boost of 6,000 over last year.

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