The History of Radio
Davie & Upshaw, 2006
Straubhaar & LaRose, 2006
General
• In the United States, government may fund
electronic-media experiments, but it’s up to
business to apply the results.
• The key to telecommunications is that
electromagnetic energy can be transmitted
between two points.
• The early stage of media development is a
process to which many people contribute.
History
• The 1800s: Earliest Broadcasting
– Bell transmitted sounds by telegraph in 1877.
– Hertz invented the “spark-gap detector” which
verified the existence of electromagnetic
waves.
– Marconi invented radio in 1895.
– De Forest invented the vacuum tube allowing
for sound, voice, and music transmission.
History
1900-1930: The Industry Gets
Started
– KDKA was the first broadcasting station in 1920.
– David Sarnoff of NBC broadcasts the World Series in
1922.
– The New York Philharmonic and Philadelphia
Symphony orchestras join with the Columbia
Phonograph Company to form the Columbia
Broadcasting System.
– William S. Paley is the head of CBS.
Early Regulation
• The Radio Act of 1927 created the Federal
Radio Commission (FRC) to assign
frequencies and issue liscences.
• Communications Act of 1934: Federal law
bringing all telecommunications under the
oversight of the Federal Communications
Commission (FCC).
Early Regulation
• The FCC issued a chain broadcasting
rule in 1941 that prevented networks from
forcing affiliate stations to air network
programs.
• In 1943, the FCC forced NBC to sell off
the “NBC blue” network, which became
ABC (American Broadcasting Company).
Depression & War
1930-1945: Pivotal Historical
Period
– “During the Great Depression that had
descended in 1929, with more than onethird 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”
Media Effects!
War 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.”
Media Effects!
• Why did the War of the Worlds broadcast
caused about one million people to panic?
– People had faith in radio broadcasts.
– The broadcast took place as war World War II
raged in Europe.
– The program was extremely well produced
and acted.
– Many people tuned into the broadcast late
and missed the narration at the start.
The Golden Age
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”
Frequency Modulation
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.
Public Broadcasting
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.”
Modern Times
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
Modern Times
• The Telecommunications Act of 1996
deregulated ownership rules and permitted
large companies, such as Clear Channel
Communications to purchase thousands of
small stations across the country. The
effect has been a reduction of content
diversity, loss of jobs, and massive profits
for Clear Channel Communications.
Modern Times
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.
– Syndication: Licensing out programs to other
stations.
– Public Broadcasting: Stations that serve the
public interest with news, talk, and culture
without advertising sponsorship.
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.
Terms
– Vacuum Tube: Amplifies and modulates
signals by controlling the flow of electrical
charges inside a glass tube.
– Affiliates: Stations that contract to use network
programming.
– Format: Content aimed at a specific audience.
– Top 40: Radio format that constantly replays
the top 40 hit songs.