History of American
Journalism- The 1930’s
Rebecca Sessions
Media 301
February 15, 2012
“Age of the Columnists”
• Regular editorials became
popular
• 35mm photography and
photojournalism became
widely used
• Newsreels began to peak
America’s interest
• Radio journalism became
the primary way in which
news and entertainment
were delivered
Media Personalities
• Walter Lippman- editor of The
New Republic, helped President
Wilson write his Fourteen
Points
• Edward R. Murrowbroadcaster, most famous for
his radio report from Vienna
discussing the annexation of
Austria
• Walter Winchell- gossip
columnist, radio personality,
“Good Morning, Mr. and Mrs.
America and all the ships at
sea.”
• Henry Luce- creator of the
business magazine, Fortune, in
1930
• Dorothea Lange- photographer,
most famous for her photos of
the Dust Bowl, Great Plains, and
rural America
• Margaret Bourke-White- one of
her photographs was used as the
cover for the first Life magazine
• Huey Long- politician from
Louisiana, used journalism to
build up his support system, shot
in 1935
1930’s Politics
• Franklin Delano
Roosevelt was elected
as president in 1932
• Roosevelt introduced
the New Deal, which
was supposed to help
stimulate the American
economy
• He was elected as
president four times
• Adolf Hitler’s
European domination
became more known
to Americans during
the early 1930’s
• Hitler’s goal was
German world
domination
Society during the 1930’s
• The Great Depression was
full blown during the 1930’s
• One in four American
workers had difficulty in
making ends meet
• Roosevelt’s New Deal
created new jobs to help
stimulate the economy and
employment
• It was during this time that
John Steinbeck wrote the
novel The Grapes of Wrath
• Amos ‘n’ Andy, a
popular radio show,
provided Americans
with African-American
comic relief during a
time of hardships
• Victor Fleming directed
The Wizard of Oz and
Gone with the Wind
which were released in
1938.
Important Media Moments
• President Roosevelt had “fireside”
radio chats to help promote his New
Deal
• The German airship Hindenberg
crashed while landing in Lakehurst,
N.J. on May 6, 1937. Herb Morrison
was the radio reporter from Chicago
that was covering this story as it
happened right in front of him.
• Edward Morrow and William Shirer
reported about Austria’s annexation
on March 13, 1938. This was the
beginning of broadcast news
correspondents. They were referred
to as “Murrow and his boys”.
Journalism Trends
• Charles Lindbergh Jr. went
missing on March 1, 1932.
The infant was found dead a
month later. Richard
Hauptmann was convicted of
the murder and was executed
in 1936. This was said to be
the “trial of the century”.
• Telegraph and Telephone lines
were added to the list of
responsibilities help by the
Federal Communications
Commission in 1934.
Sources
• Article- History of American Journalism- The
1930’s
• http://www.infoplease.com/spot/hindenburg
1.html
• http://www.museum.tv/eotvsection.php?entr
ycode=amosnandy
• Google Images