TELECOMMUNICATIONS - RADIOFICATION

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00809A000600240465-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 6, 2011
• Sequence Number: 465
• Publication Date: July 22, 1949
• Content Type: REPORT

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CLASSIFIr-CTLON GONFIDENTIAL
SUBJECT
HOW
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY REPORT
COUNTRY USSR
Telecommun1catlons - Radiof5cation
PUBLISHED Monthly periodical
WHERE
PUBLISHED Moscow
DATE
PUBLISHED Dec 1948
LANGUAGE
"IN DOCUIDNT CONTAIN$ INYOHNATIOB ArrICUMO THE NATIONAL DRUIDS
Or TN[ DNIT[D [TAT[N WITNIN. TI'S NBANIND OF [BYIONAB[ ACT B0
D. B. C.. EI AND [[. AM AMENDED. ITS TBANBMIBBION ON lMB la-M.
UT Il[ COAT[NTB IN ANT NANKIN' TO AN UNAUTNOBIE[D -ft"' I: NNO.
MIBITND AT LAW. MDPNODDCTION Of THIN POOR IB INOMI^IT[O.
DATE DIST. ?y'daui 1949
NO. OF PAGES 4.
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
SOURCE Vestnik Svyazl - Pochta, No 12, 1948.
B. Kapralov, Director
Leningrad Oblast Radio Broadcasting
Radio broadcasting has undergone tremendous development `n the Soviet
Union. Tens of powerful radio-broadcasting stations have been constructed,
thousands of public radio-reception syetems have been put into operation,
and millions of controllable loud-opeakers have been set up. The Soviet
Union is first in the world in the capacity of its radio-transmitting network.
Radio reception is very efficient in our country. The use of wires in
radio broadcasting perL,itc the saving of millions of cubes, batteries, and
other parts necessary in the production of radio receivers. This system
is extremely simple in construction and use.
Radio broadcasting plays a major role in disseminating information,
culture, end politic..l training. Although the radio-broadcasting system
suffered major destruction during the war, it now has been largely rebuilt.
However, to fulfill the tasks of the Five-Year Plan, considerable further
develc,,ment is necessary. Radio-broadcast reception is lagging behind
the rapidly developing national economy of the country, and behind the
growing demands of the workers, especially in the villages.
In Leningrad Oblast, for example, there are rayons which average only
a few controllable loud-speakers per 100 inhabitants. Only 10 percent of the
kolkhozes of the oblast have radios, whereas every family in Leningrad has
a controllable loud-speaker.
Likewise, the radio audience particularly in rural areas in not satisfied
with the quality of the work of the radio-receiving network. A significant
number of iural public radio-reception systems and radio-receiving sets are
silent because of poor maintenance of equipment, and unreliable supply of
spare parts, etc. The Section of Cultural and Educational Work of the Leningrad
Obl.aat Soviet of Workers' Deputies installed over 500 loud-speakers in Leningrad
Oblast in 1946/47. Most of these loud-speakers are not being used because
of unsatisfactory material and teckiical servicing.
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CLASSIFICATION
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. What is hindering the development of radiofication, especially in rural
areas'? A major aifficu;,ty is that Vaetrura- areas haveiow popaintion lousily
in comparison with the city population. The sources of supply of electricity
are still unreliable in many rural areas. Installation of public radio-reception
systems and networks require substantial material and monetary outlays, The
speed of radiofication of the villages is still slow because the Ministry of
Cc unications Equipment industry and ministries of regional industries are
not giving sufficient attention to the needs of radlofication. They have
not yet organized mace-scale manufacture of cheap, efficient radio receivers,
electric batteries, radio tubes, detectors, insulators, etc.
Although all these obstacles are important, they can be overcome if
organizational shortcomings in radiofication of rural areas are eliminated,
The lack of a single responsible director of radiofication is the chief
cause of the above-listed shortcomings.
Radiofication of our country is being undertaken by several ministries,
namely, the Ministries of Comasinicaticns, Agriculture, State Farms, and
also the All-Union Committee on Radioficaticn and Radio Broadcasting, the
Union Radio Engineering Office, the Committee on Cultural and Educational
Institutions under the Soviet of Ministers PFSFR, and many other agencies.
Only the Ministry of Communications has a sufficiently sound productive
and technical base and the necessary personnel for the widespread construction
and utilization of many thousands of public radio-reception systems. However,
the Ministry of Communications limits its activities in radiofication to republic,
kray, oblast,and rayon centers and populated p,;inte within 8 10 kilometers of
these centers. Who then will be responsible for radiofication of the over-
whelming number of other populated points?
The Committee on Radiofication and Radio Broadcasting under the Soviet
of Ministers USSR is only responsible for the organization and provision
of radio programs. Under the existing setup it cannot provide for the develop-
ment and utilization of the technical equipment of the radio-broadcasting
network. This committee does not have the necessary personnel and equipment
at its disposal for any such additional work.
The Leningrad Radiu Committee, for example, was not even provided with
workers for radiofication. After the war the Leningrad Committee never
raised the problem of radiofication before the oblast Party directors or
the Soviet state organization. All its antivtty van turned to the problem
of radio broadcasting, and to the collection of inf r-motion )n the development
of radio networks.
The Union Radio-Engineering Department, which was set up under the All-Union
Radio Committee, constructs public radio-reception syeteme depending on the
orders of various departments, but is not responsible for utilization of these
public radio-reception systems, particularly, radio sets in state farms and
kolkhozee.
The Ministries of Agriculture, State Farms, and other departments do
not have the necessary productive base, experience, personnel, or supply
organization.
At present, radiofication is characterized by the absence of a unified
technical policy, of a unified development of the radio network. As a
result, personnel, money, and equipment are being poorly utilized. Taking
Leningrad Oblast as an example again,we find that in 1947 an affiliate of
the Scientific Research Institute of the Ministry of Communications drew
up a general plan for the radiofication of the oblast. The number, capacity,
and distribution of a network of public radio-receptirm systems, which were
to be installed, was determined by technical and economic analysis. However,
actual radiofication in accordance with this plan proved impossible because
of organizational shortcomings.
C AL
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in two adjacent kolkhnzes. However, because of a lack of organizational
have'solved this problem by using electricians or telephone linesmen in their
spare time. Public radio-reception systems in kolkhozes and village soviets
generally do not have any maintenance personnel, and are serviced haphazardly.
Breakdowns are usually left urettended.
At totel'nich and Pustomerzha village soviets of Kingiseppakiy Rayon,
the Leningrad main office installed 500-watt public radio-reception systems,
each capable of servicing 2,000 controllable loud-speakers. However, these
systems can operate only when someone from the main office comes out to
service them. Similar conditions prevail in the systems of Zaruch'evskiy
village soviet of Os'minskiy Rayon, of the Rudno and Begunitsy Machine-Tractor
Stations, of the villages of Pulkovo and Torceovo, and many other places.
The absence of direction and official supervision of departmental public
radio-reception systems often results in the fact that the program and quality
of radio broadcasts depend on the whims of the maintenance personnel. Far
example, if the man on duty likes music, concerts are transmitted with a
lose in social and political broadcasts, and in the ideological guidance of
the kolkhozes and village soviets.
In every oblast communications administration there is a special inspection
section for maintenance and development of public radio-reception systems of
the various departments. However, experience has indicated that the inspection
section chiefly performs the functions of registration and simple technical
supervision.
Within the Ministry of Communications there are obstacles to the
radlofication of rural localities. The directors of many republic and
oblast administrations, and especially the office of communications, often
ccasider radiofication of secondary importance, ignore it, and even actually
discriminate against it. In Leningrad Oblast in 1947, many chiefs and
assistant chiefs of commmications offices proved in examinations that they
did not even grasp the elementary concepts of radiofication.
AMMU
kTIAL
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COMML
of communications offices in the over-all. direction of public radio-.reception
eyetems. However, the basic activities ;f these directors (postal, telephone,
and telegraph) do not permit them to give sufficient attention to radiofieaticu.
tad
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and development of radiofication in the city and the village, must be set
up. This organization, operating in~ependently, would make concrete demands
on our industry, inspect existing methods of radiofication of the villages
from the standpoint of new technical and organizational possibilities, and
set up more flexible forms of maintenance and development of radio-receiving
note. The organization must have at its dispoeal studios, radio-broadcasting
equipment, all the technical equipment of wire broadcasting, scientific
research inetitutes,,construction and installation offices, etc. This
organization can effectively adopt the progressive technology for radio
broadcasting which our industry Is increasingly producing.
The direction of radiofication and radio broadcasting must be reorganized.
Why then is radiofication, a spaclalized branch of he economy, no sepa
from the Ministry of Communications and set up as an independent coat-accounting
organization?
Experience proves that radio, which technically has little in common with
electrical communications, gains little from union with it. In t.>e early
stages of radio's development such a union was expedient, but now, since radio
has expanded, its separation into an independent cost-accounting organization
is far more expedient,
Fqr the development of rural radiofication, problems of organization
must first be solved. A big organization, responsible for the maintenance
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