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Introduction to
Communications Media
Ch 7 Radio
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Birth of Commercial Radio
 After WWI, RCA
(Radio Corporation of America)
formed
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Radio was originally thought of simply as “wireless
telegraphy”
David Sarnoff saw its potential as a “radio music box”
Early radio stations were often built by department stores
(paved the way for mixed entertainment/advertising
format we’re familiar with today)
In early 1900s, department stores were usually “early
adopters” and where people often first experienced new
technologies such as electric lights
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Commercialization of Radio
 Early
stations originally did without
advertising
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As broadcasting became more expensive, station owners
needed to generate revenue
Early ideas included asking listeners to donate money,
others wanted a tax on radio tubes, AT&T eventually
decided to sell time on one of its stations to anyone who
wanted to broadcast a message
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Networks
 Networks
 By
developed as a cost savings idea
linking together, stations could save money on
producing programming
 Networked stations also could reach a wider
audience and charge more for advertising
 1926 -- NBC was the first broadcasting network
(turned into two RCA’s original stations and then
AT&T’s stations when the phone company got out
of the radio business)
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Networks (cont)
 CBS
 By
started up the next year
1937 NBC had 111 affiliates and CBS 105
 Advertisers were spending more than $27 million
a year on advertising
 Increased revenue meant networks could hire
“name” talent
 Top programs developed a national audience
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Government Regulation
 In
the 1920s, so many new stations were going on
the air that interference became a problem
 Congress
passed the Radio Act of 1927 creating
the FRC (Federal Radio Commission)
 The
FRC issued licenses, defined the AM
frequency band, standardized station channel
designations and abolished portable radio stations
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Shaping the Industry
 By
the end of the 1920s, radio’s framework
was in place
 Commercially
supported
 Federally regulated
 Network dominated
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The Great Depression
 Advertising
stayed high, so the radio
industry suffered little hardship
 FCC
(Federal Communications
Commission) developed via the
Communications Act of 1934 (consolidated
regulatory functions of several government
agencies
+ The Depression Years
 1930s
FM (frequency modulated radio)
introduced
 Programming
changed to reflect the need
for hope and diversion (action/adventure,
soap operas)
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Post World War II
 Development
of FM suffered as it competed with
Television
 FCC
gave TV frequency spectrum FM had been
using and moved FM to 88 to 108 Mhz band
making many FM radios obsolete
 Emergence
of television challenges radio’s
primacy in mass entertainment
 While TV
didn’t reduce radio advertising revenues
it did lead to a decline in the number of radio
affiliates
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Payola
 More
airplay a song gets, the better it sells
 Record
promoters began paying DJs to air
certain records more frequently (this
practice is eventually outlawed)
 Promoters
find new, legal ways of paying to
promote airplay (“legal payola”)
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Growth and Stabilization
 From
1955 to 1990 number of stations grew
from 3,343 to more than 7,000
 Top
40 format becomes popular
 Favorite
of young people (who happen to have a
lot of disposable income)
 FM
gains popularity in part because of its better
sound quality
 Number
of FM stations triples from 1960 to 70 and
many AM stations switch to News/Talk format
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Consolidation and Specialization
 Telecommunications
Act of 1996 allows
companies to own more stations and more
stations in the same market
 This
change allows for a major industry
realignment
 Giant
radio conglomerates form as big
companies buy up stations
 Radio
programming becomes more specialized
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Radio in the Digital Age
 Radio
stations use their web sites to:
 Stream audio
 Help listeners become more familiar with station
on-air personalities
 Publish schedules, and movie and album reviews
 Sell ads to generate additional revenue
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High Definition (HD) Radio
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Improved signal quality
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Stations can broadcast multiple programs at once (one on
analog signal, one on digital signal)
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HD radio is free (need an HD receiver) unlike satellite radio
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As of 2007 about 1,200 radio stations were broadcasting an
HD signal with more going digital every month
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Problems Facing HD Radio
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Receivers are expensive
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HD radio only results in better quality, not new capabilities
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HD radio has not broken new ground
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Only a small percentage of listeners have HD receivers
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HD radio uses more power than analog draining batteries
much faster