Regulation of Radio Advertising

RADIO broadcasting has become a very important factor in our social, political, and economic life. It takes into the remotest homes throughout the land the voices of the great leaders of thought, and a wide variety of music and other forms of entertainment. On occasions a large portion of our population are brought into a single radio audience. In England and other countries the cost of radio programs is met by charges to the owners of receiving sets. In the United States most programs are paid for by advertising sponsors. I am advised that for the twelve months ending last June the radio advertising bill of the United States exceeded $65,000,000. Yet the radio art and the radio industry are still in their infancy, and their potentialities are scarcely explored. I mention this to emphasize the importance of the subject. Before specifically discussing the subject of radio advertising, I wish to call attention to the authority and the duty of the Federal Trade Commission under the law, as well as to outline what the Commission has done to regulate and improve the character of other forms of advertising. The Federal Trade Commission Act of September 26, 1914, declares methods of competition in commerce to be unlawful, and empowers and directs the Federal Trade Commission to prevent such methods. The courts have uniformly held that false or misleading advertising constitutes such unfair methods within the meaning of this act. RESTRAINT OF MISLEADING ADVERTISING