Chapter 4

“We are skirting dangerously close to taking the public interest out of the public airwaves.”
—Michael Copps, FCC commissioner, 2004

 1. Telegraph (1840s) and telephone
(1870s)
 2. Marconi :
– Invented wireless telegraphy (1894) —used code, not voice
– Built upon the work of Hertz
– Established British Marconi (1897) and
American Marconi (1899)

 Ham operators use whatever frequencies they wish
 Develop their own technology
 Eavesdrop on private-sector messages
 Same with government messages

 Radio Act of 1912
– Limits amateur radio operators
– Standardizes radio procedures in crisis
 WWI: Congress gives radio to Navy
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Navy drafts/hires young technicians
Consolidates patents
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Controls frequencies
U.S. domination
 Formation of RCA monopoly

 5 stations in 1921
 600 in 1923

– 550,000 sets
1922 WEAF (NYC) operates “toll” station
–
An “ad” is the first income-producer
 Herbert Hoover decries
 But nobody wants to pay a license fee
 In 1923 AT&T broadcasts simultaneously to
WEAF and WNAC (Boston).
–
Creates first “network”
 By 1924, AT&T has 22 stations linked and denies rival RCA phone rights.

“I believe the quickest way to kill broadcasting would be to use it for direct advertising.”
—Herbert Hoover

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David Sarnoff
First network as we know it (affiliate contracts)
Network:
– Moves radio from point-to-point to mass media.
– Creates programming cost effectiveness.
– Makes news national, not local.

1927: 30 million hear Lindbergh’s triumph on one of 6 million radios.
– Larger budget buys better talent.

 First attempt at CBS failed.
 William S. Paley bought CBS.
 New concepts and strategies
 Option time lured affiliates
 Paley hired PR guru Bernays.
 By the 1930s, CBS competitive with NBC

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1927 Radio Act defines broadcast regulations.
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Too many stations and poor reception
Act created commission to monitor airwaves for “public interest, convenience, or necessity”
1934 Federal Communications Act
–
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Federal Communications Commission (FCC) monitors radio, telephone, and telegraph.
Today FCC covers television, cable, and the Internet.


Shapes television’s programming future
– Sitcoms
–
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Anthology drama
Quiz shows
– Soaps
 Radio pioneers single-sponsor programming.

 War of the Worlds , Welles’s radio broadcast
1938
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Radio version of H. G. Wells’s novel
–
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Shows power of radio to compel
 Created mass panic along the Northeast coast
 NJ citizens shot up a water tower thinking it a Martian weapon.
Welles forced to recant before Congress

 AM vs. FM
 Niche marketing
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Programming specialization
 Talk radio
 Format music (Top 40)
Deals with record companies
Better, cheaper technology
–
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Portability
Efficient network alliances

 Pay-for-play very similar in effect


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Most programming locally produced
– Local deejays are the stars.
– Some national personalities
 Ex. Howard Stern, Rush Limbaugh
Secondary, or background medium
Specialized stations with particular formats
– Ex. News/talk, adult contemporary, country
Heaviest listening hours drive time
– Americans tune in more than three hours weekdays and six hours weekends.

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Established by Public Broadcasting Act and
Corporation for Public Broadcasting in 1960s
Nonprofit, heavily government subsidized
NPR: distinctive niche in radio news
PBS: educational and children’s programming
Under constant attack from conservatives


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Telecommunications Act of 1996 eliminated most ownership restrictions in radio.
Clear Channel Communications
– By 2006, owned:
 More than 1,190 radio stations
 40 television stations
 More than 820,000 billboard displays
 Interest in 240 stations internationally

 Internet radio
– Small and nonprofit stations pay smaller royalty fees.
 Satellite radio
– XM and Sirius
 Podcasting
– Anybody can become a deejay.
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Free content
Mostly spoken word

“Just as TiVo ensured that there’d always be something to watch when you get home, [podcasting and] podcasters fill your computer with interesting music and radio-style talk shows from around the world.
Unlike TiVo, though, podcast subscriptions are still free, and anyone with an Internet connection can create a show.”
—David Battino, Electronic Musician , 2005

Will consolidation of power restrict the number and kinds of voices permitted to speak over public airwaves?