Memorandum on Jurisdiction over Radio Stations

[1] This request, no doubt, was prompted by the Committee’s ruling—at its 5/27/44 meeting in a case involving the Dallas Morning News—that “newspapers of general circulation are not ‘war industries.’” Nevertheless, the Committee voted to submit the question to the attorney general with a request that he assist in coordinating such issues in keeping with EO 9346. HqR1, Summary Minutes of Meetings.

Drawing a very fine line between the First Amendment activities of radio broadcasting systems and their actions related to war employment practices, which were covered by EO 9346, the Committee established the following policy: “The news dissemination and entertainment services of radio systems are not within the scope of FEPC’s jurisdiction. On the other hand, radio communication services are subject to FEPC jurisdiction.”

The attorney general evidently upheld the Committee’s position, because in the same 10/27/44 memorandum, Johnson listed it as one of several jurisdictional issues handled by the legal department. In the same memorandum, he also provided the Committee’s ruling on discriminatory advertisements:

The committee deems that for an employer within its jurisdiction to publish advertisements for employment which specify that only workers of a particular race or color or creed or national origin are desired, or in any way specifies a particular race, color or creed or national origin, is discriminatory with respect to hire and employment, and as such violates Executive Order 9346. Such publication is no less a violation because the employer involved employs members of the particular race that the discriminatory advertisement seeks to bar. (HqR5, Office Files of George M. Johnson. [H–Telephone Company], Maceo Hubbard.)

See also the headnote on Jurisdictional Issues.