The History of Radio and Television (Part 1)

From Principles of Electronic Media (Davie & Upshaw, 2006)

The History of Radio

Principle #1

In the United States, government may fund electronic-media experiments, but it’s up to business to apply the results.

The History of Radio

• The 1800s: Earliest Broadcasting• Maxwell (Theorized the existence of

electromagnetic waves as “luminous ether.”)• Bell (Transmitting sounds by telegraph in 1877.)• Hertz (Invented the “spark-gap detector” which

verified the existence of electromagnetic waves.)• Marconi (Invented radio in 1895. First radio

company in London, 1897.)

The History of Radio

Principle #2

The key to telecommunications is that electromagnetic energy can be transmitted between two points.

The History of Radio

1900-1930: The Industry Gets Started– Who Was First? (KDKA in 1920).– RCA’s Risk (Sarnoff, NBC, 1922 World Series).– CBS’s Move (New York Philharmonic and

Philadelphia Symphony orchestras join with the Columbia Phonograph Company).

– William S. Paley (the “Tiffany Network”).

The History of Radio

Principle #3

The early stage of media development is a process to which many people contribute.

The History of Radio

• Communications Act of 1934: Federal law bringing most telecommunications under oversight of one agency and board of commissioners.

The History of Radio

1930-1945: Pivotal Historical Period– “During the Great Depression that had

descended in 1929, with more than one-third of the work force jobless, a growing number of Americans tuned in their radios for relief and psychological support.

– Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “fireside chats”

The History of Radio

1930-1945: Pivotal Historical PeriodWar of the Worlds• “Actor Orson Wells narrated a 1938

Halloween tale of Martians landing in New Jersey, based on H.G. Welles’ War of the Worlds. The show’s disclaimer failed to register with Americans already primed for disaster on the eve of world war.”

The History of Radio

Principle #4

History shows that broadcasting’s nature is to follow social trends, leading them only rarely.

The History of Radio

Principle #5

A heady “golden age” of explosive growth in the mid-twentieth century is a constant and influential reference point in broadcasting.

The History of Radio

1945-1960: The “Golden” Age

• AM Radio – Still Thriving

– 78 and 33 1/3 RPM Records

– Transistors Make Radios Smaller

– Formats – Rotating Blocks to “Top 40”

The History of Radio

1960-1980: Radio’s Transformation

– FM Increases Popularity

• April 1961: FCC approval of Zenith-GE standards

for FM broadcasting. The FCC mandates that

stations needed to generate new content for FM

bands.

The History of Radio

1960-1980: Radio’s Transformation• Public Radio Act of 1967

– “After the adoption of the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967, the FCC licensed more than 1,500 radio stations as “noncommercial educational”…. Many of these stations would receive federal money distributed through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting – a fact that annoyed commercial broadcasters envious of such subsidies.”

The History of Radio

1980-Present: Radio Challenges

• Talk Radio• A Chance to Talk Back

• Personalities

– Relaxed Rules on Ownership• 1980 Deregulation

• More Stations per Owner

• Localism and Profits

• Satellite Radio

The History of Radio

The Digital Future• Radio

– Digital Broadcasts

– Internet Streaming

Terms

– Electromagnetic Wave: Wave produced by accelerating an electric charge, manipulating the charge by changing the intensity of nearby electric or magnetic fields.

– Spark-gap detector: (Hertz) Device that revealed electromagnetic radiation by making a spark jump a gap, emitting waves that triggered another jump some distance away.

Terms

– Hertz: A cycle of a radio wave (e.g. kiloHertz = 1,000 waves per second).

– Broadcasting: Originally from agriculture (distribution of seed); redefined by the Communications Act of 1934 as dissemination of radio communications to the public.

Terms

– Crystal Set: Early radio receiver that makes use of a silicon crystal connected to a wire coil, antenna, and headset. Used primarily by early radio “hobbyists.”

– Call letters: Broadcast station letters of identification. Stations west of the Mississippi River have call letters beginning with K; those east of the river begin with W.

Terms

– Frequencies: Means for counting electromagnetic waves by counting the number of times per second they pass a particular point.

– Network: Group of radio or television stations (affiliates) connected by contract to a central source of programming.

Terms

– AM: Amplitude modulation; a way of adjusting radio waves to carry sound by changing their height and depth but not their width.

– FM: Frequency modulation: a way of adjusting radio waves to carry sound by changing their width.

Terms

– Spectrum: The array of electromagnetic “airwaves” (identified by wavelength) that broadcasters harness to transmit radio signals.

Terms

– Transistor: (William Shockley) Wafer-thin silicon crystal that amplified radio signals. Transistors replaced tubes and let to the portable radio and later digital revolution. Transistors have special importance in terms of their role in “personalizing” electronic media. Before transistor radio, families gathered around large radio sets and listened to the same content.