| The Brinkley Act is the popular name given to Section 325(b) of The Communications Act of 1934;
United States Public Law 416, 73d Congress, June 19, 1934. Sec. 325(b) was written into legislation by the
government of the United States of America to
prevent the use of broadcasting studios in the USA from being connected by live telephone
line or other means to a transmitter located in Mexico.
The Brinkley Act
The Brinkley Act evolved prior to the advent of World War
II from the practice of Dr. John R. Brinkley who invited
fascist speakers to use USA studio facilities to
connect by telephone land line to super-power transmitters in Mexico that were under his control. These transmitters were used by
stations popularly known as border-blasters and they dotted the
international boundry line on the Mexican side of its border with the United States of America. It was passed into law on
June 19, 1934 by the 73d U.S. Congress.
Rebroadcasting: Studios of foreign stations
Section 325(b) says:
No person shall be permitted to locate, use, or maintain a radio broadcast studio or other place or apparatus from which or
whereby sound waves are converted into electrical energy, or mechanical or physical reproduction of sound waves produced, and
caused to be transmitted or delivered to a radio station in a foreign country for the purpose of being broadcast from any radio
station there having a power output of sufficient intensity and/or being so located geographically that its emissions may be
received consistently in the United States, without first obtaining a permit from the Commission upon proper application
thereof.
British footnote
In order to stop Radio Luxembourg from beaming a live
signal which had originated in the London studios of the station back into the British Isles from the continent of Europe, the British General Post Office which had control of British telephones, enacted similar regulations.
Consequently Radio Luxembourg, like the Mexican border-blasters, had to either use studios at the station in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, or record information in
London on a transcription
disc which could then be flown to Luxembourg for replay.
American Graffiti trivia
In the George Lucas movie American Graffiti, Wolfman Jack is shown
broadcasting live from a radio studio in California via a border-blaster
station in Mexico. Although there were infractions of Section 325(b), the law
was enforced and it has been upheld by U.S. courts of law. Consequently the scene depicted in the motion picture is more artistic
license than a depiction of an every day occurance.
Reference
The Communications Act of 1934 - Sec. 325(b); United States
Public Law 416, 73d Congress, June 19, 1934.
External sources
Federal Communications Commission (http://www.fcc.gov/)
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