JL MC Test 2

Which radio program panicked listeners on Halloween eve in 1938?

"War of the Worlds" by Orson Welles

American studios were able to gain control of the world film industry around World War I.

True

As a result of the number and diversity of cable offerings, the major networks (ABC, CBS, and NBC) have lost a significant portion of the viewer base they had in the 1960s and 1970s.

True

Between 80 and 90 percent of new movies lose money during their theatrical release.

True

By the 1960s, most radio listening was done outside the home.

True

Comcast is the nation's largest cable TV system operator.

True

Concerned that cable television would undermine broadcast television, the FCC enacted rules limiting cable's growth.

True

During the 1920-30s, the United States was the only country that allowed commercial interests to control broadcasting.

True

Examples of genres include comedy, drama, romance, and action/adventure.

True

Few children's programs are aired on network television because most advertisers aren't interested in reaching that audience.

True

In its entrepreneurial phase, radio was marketed as a ship-to-shore communication device.

True

In the landmark Midwest Video case, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the cable industry was a form of electronic publishing with the rights to control content.

True

Internet radio stations are those that either stream or simulcast a version of their on-air signal over the Web, or create a station exclusive to the Internet.

True

Many of the program conventions in television actually came from radio.

True

Movie studios can earn significant profit by distributing their films in foreign markets.

True

Network radio helped modernize America by deemphasizing local in favor of national programs.

True

One strategy of the television networks to pull program sponsorship away from single sponsors was to invent longer format shows.

True

Only one person at a time watched the first motion pictures.

True

RCA delayed the deployment of FM radio for many decades because it was more concerned with the development of television.

True

Six studios dominate the U.S. film business.

True

Some U.S. cities are challenging privately owned cable giants by building competing, municipally owned cable systems.

True

The Radio Corporation of America (RCA) was formed after World War I to give the United States an early worldwide monopoly over radio broadcasting.

True

The first entrepreneurial vision of wireless telegraphy was as point-to-point communication and not as a one-to-many mass medium.

True

The movie industry has largely embraced the Internet's ability to distribute new films and rentals to consumers.

True

The narrative situation and complications in a sitcom are typically resolved by the end of the episode.

True

The quiz-show scandals of the 1950s led to a loss of faith in the truth of TV images.

True

The rise of pirate micropower radio stations in the United States in the 1990s led the federal government to approve a new class of noncommercial low-power FM radio stations.

True

Third screens typically function as "catch-up services" allowing consumers to watch TV shows or movies that played earlier.

True

Three-dimensional (3-D) movies did little to stem the drop in movie theater attendance in the 1950s.

True

To become a mass medium, the early silent films had to offer what books achieved: the suspension of disbelief and stories that engaged an audience's imagination.

True

Which of the following accurately describes the difference between the U.S. and U.K. models of broadcast media in first half of the 20th century?

UK: gov't owned and supported with taxes; US: owned by private enterprise, supported by advertising

VHS outsold the technically superior Betamax videocassette format because

VHS has more tape space and could record longer programs (supported pornography business)

The _______ was important to radio technology because it allowed radio signals to be amplified permitting wireless telegraphy.

audion vacuum tube

The Hollywood Ten are famous for

being accused of being communist sympathies and displaying unpatriotic messages in their films and refusing to testify

Programs that are in off-network syndication are

reruns that are no longer on primetime - essential for making up deficit financing

The best way to erase the losses of deficit financing for a TV show is

selling program into rerun or off-network syndication

What is a typical characteristic of independent films?

small budgets, shown in auditoriums/small film festivals, rely on real-life situations and documentaries, non studio locations/inexpensive

Nonprofit radio today is

struggling to survive government funding cuts

What time period is considered the "golden age" of radio?

1930's-40's

Which event sparked the then FCC Chairman to declare television a "vast wasteland?"

Quiz Show Scandal

Which of the following technologies caused major changes in the radio industry?

Television

Which film was the first successful talking motion picture?

The Jazz Singer

The computerized nerve center of a cable system is called the

headend

_____ demonstrated the Justice Department's attempts at breaking up monopolies within the film industry.

the Paramount Decision

Let's say there are about 100 million TV households in the United States. On a given Wednesday night, about 50 million of those households have their TV set turned on to a program. Of that 50 million, 25 million are watching American Idol on Fox. What is American Idol's share (not rating) estimate?

(25 million watching Fox/50 million households using TV) = 50%

Which of the following time blocks are the most important to radio stations today?

6-9 AM; 4-7 PM (drive times)

Which radio program introduced the concept of continuing story lines?

Amos n Andy

What is the difference between a common carrier and an electronic publisher?

Common Carrier: providing services that do not get involved in content; must offer part of its service on a first-come, first-served basis; Electronic Publisher: can pick and choose its channels and content

While the Radio Act of 1912 tried to address the problem of interference, it wasn't until the Communications Act of 1934 that the government had the power to revoke licenses of stations that did not comply.

False

With television capturing suburban audiences by the mid-1950s, movie producers made only family-friendly films to lure that audience back to theaters.

False

Some of the advantages and disadvantages of FM radio over AM were the following:

FM had a cleaner sound and better music quality, but traveled less distance

After completing its first five television episodes, an independently produced TV program no longer requires deficit financing to fund its production.

False

Because of high equipment and operating costs, digital technology is not expected to benefit independent filmmakers for many years.

False

By law, nonprofit broadcasters are allocated 25 percent of all the broadcast frequencies in the United States.

False

Corporate sponsors are now funding 90 percent of public television's annual budget.

False

Documentaries generally avoid controversial or unpopular subject matter.

False

Due to competition among media, radio became obsolete after the arrival of television.

False

For creative reasons, film studios have generally resisted making product placement deals.

False

Hollywood was the international center of cinema from the very beginning.

False

Most TV series from the 1950s have survived, and that is because they were originally shot on film.

False

Movie palaces looked beautiful on the outside, but were often very shabby on the inside.

False

Movie theaters are still the largest single source of revenue for a typical feature film.

False

Ratings refers to the percentage of households watching a given show out of all households watching television at a given moment in time.

False

Reality TV shows cost more for networks and cable to make than sitcoms or dramas.

False

The 1996 Telecommunications Act allows cable companies to offer telephone service, but the phone companies are not permitted to enter the cable TV business.

False

The Hollywood Ten were studio writers and directors jailed for leaking military secrets to the Soviet Union.

False

The Motion Picture Patents Company was established in 1908 to share film technology with independent filmmakers.

False

The Radio Act of 1927 created the Radio Corporation of America.

False

The Radio Corporation of America (RCA) is credited with transmitting the first TV picture electronically.

False

The Telecommunications Act of 1996 has resulted in more competition and less consolidation in U.S. radio.

False

The ability to stream TV shows on devices like smartphones and the iPad haven't changed consumers' viewing habits much.

False

The nation's largest radio network is owned by telephone giant AT&T.

False

The term "evergreens" refers to recently produced TV shows that are popular.

False

Time shifting refers to the delay of broadcast programs because of different time zones across the United States.

False

Under the Radio Act of 1927, broadcasters were allowed to own their radio channels.

False

Which of the following statements is/are true about the relationship between the radio industry and the concept of media convergence?

More amateurs have the ability to start stations, more variation in content, podcasts bring back storytelling and entertainment, portability returns from transistor stages (phones/iPods)

How is the development of radio similar to the development of the Internet?

Neither had previous models to copy

Which of the following is one of the methods used by the Trust to control the film industry?

Pooled patents, withheld equipment if no payment, controlled flow of movies by charging theater owners

The act that first emphasized that broadcasters did not own their channels but were granted licenses provided they operated in the "public interest, convenience, or necessity" was the

Radio Act of 1927

Which event led to the Radio Act of 1912?

The Titanic

What is vertical integration?

control over three levels of the movie business in order to dominate and control: production, distribution, exhibition

When a studio engaged in block booking, it

required exhibitors to rent new or marginal films along with popular films

Which term best describes the financial arrangement that most TV producers and movie studios enter into to make prime-time TV shows?

deficit financing

An effective genre of television program to deal with serious or controversial social issues would be

domestic comedy

Adolph Zukor formed the Famous Players Company in 1912 to

fight the Trust (Edison) and control movie production at all levels

The telegraph was useless as a means of communicating between ships at sea or between ships and the shore because

it requires wires

Which development was a consequence of the quiz-show scandal?

less trust in TV, ended sponsor's creative control, undermined democratic TV forever

The very earliest uses of Marconi's wireless radio were for

military and commercial shipping

One of the ways cable channels are successful is by

narrowcasting: finding and catering to the needs of a niche audience with specific interests

Mary Pickford was

one of the most powerful woman in the movie industry, "America's Sweetheart", forced producers to pay her a higher salary (elevated the financial status and professional role of film actors), first woman to earn $1 million in a year

Despite new technologies like personal MP3 players and music online, traditional radio continues to see billions of dollars in advertising money because

over 90% of US teens and adults listen to the radio in a given week, 10% of media dollars go to radio, revenue has dropped but # of stations has rose, only spend 20% of budget for programming (music is cheap)

The transistor made radio receivers

portable

Which of the following is not an element of vertical integration in the movie industry?

production, distribution, exhibition

In 1965, the FCC established must-carry rules, which

required cable operators to carry all local TV broadcasts

In commercial filmmaking, who is considered the "author" of a film?

the director

In a situation comedy

the recurring cast deals with a narrative situation that is resolved by the end of the episode; all about plot

Nickelodeons and the silent films they showed were very popular with turn-of-the- century immigrant populations because

there was no language barrier and they provided an inexpensive escape

In the TV freeze of 1948-1952

there were no TV licenses given

Which of the following statements about the three traditional major broadcast networks (NBC, CBS, ABC) is true?

they still remain a good business investment even though cable and online competitors have gained control of some of their audience

Anthologies were replaced by other types of programming in the 1950s because

they were too expensive and controversial, economic changes in audience (lower-middle class rise), and complexity didn't fit well with ads