The Radio's Effect On American Society

In 1922 the first radio station was created in Pittsburgh. It was a great success. The radio created a way for people to convey information and interact with each other. This was one of the most important inventions of the 20’s because it brought all the nations together. (Inventions: Radio)

The first commercial radio broadcast was the results of the Harding-Cox election race on November 2, 1920, Was transmitted by the KDKA radio station. The fact that sound waves could travel through the atmosphere to a location hundreds of miles away must have seemed magical to the people in the 1920s and before. This was a historic event, even though very few people have heard the broadcast at first since not a lot of radios were owned at the time. The radio soon caught the public’s attention and demand skyrocketed for radio receivers. Between 1923 and 1930, sixty percent of American families purchased radios. It then became American tradition where families gathered around a glowing box for night-time entertainment, forever changing our own

With advancements there was headphones, so one could listen alone (1). Before the owner could tune into the radio they had to string a one-hundred-foot string outside to pick up the signals (1). Radio sales boomed, by 1923 there were around sixty million dollars in sales and by 1929 the sales skyrocketed to a bold eight hundred and forty-two million dollars. Owners could tune into radio programs such as; theater, sporting events, symphony, jazz and religion. Stations had people talking and hosting “radio shows” that created radio personalities like Vaughn DeLeath one of the first bold women to have a “show” (1).

At the beginning of the decade the nation was still groggy from waking up to a new decade after fighting in World War I. In 1921 President Harding took office and set the course for economic prosperity and a self-propelling nation. The decade of 1920 presented many national shifts of aspects in economy and culture that would include outrageous activity in the stock markets, the use of the radio as a mass media tool, the artistic movement known as the Harlem Renaissance and the age of prohibition. With such changes occurring on a national level the decade became known as the Roaring 20’s.

The radio in the 1920s was a very big part of lives of Americans. The radio had become sort of like a ´norm´, where almost everyone had one. According to American Radioworks, more than 40% of American household owned radios, and then later in doubled to 80% a decade later. Americans soon depended on the radio for everything. The radio typically coated Americans $150 according to 1913-1928: WW1 & Prohibition.To finding out what's going on in the US and to just passing free time. Surveys found that listeners in the 1930s spent an average of more than four hours a day listening to radio broadcasts(American Radioworks). This means the radio shaped society on how they spent their time and money, and how the radio took over their lives.

The advent of television also caused a great impact in the American society that brought huge changes in the economy. American families during the 1950s started to replace radios, newspapers, and magazines as the leading media entertainment with televisions. They became common for families to unite and watch TV shows at noon. “Television as a product itself influenced the economy, creating what quickly became an essential household item. By 1957, over 40 million TVs were in American households”. Fundamentally, television altered how Americans utilize their free time, but economically there was even a major impact. Businesses around the country started to use the TV for advertising and marketing to sell their products easier. TV commercials

Television is one of the most popular ways to consume media. However, television wasn’t always the way it is today. Many changes took place in the television industry during the 1980s. Some of the important changes that took place in the 1980s were the new types of programming, the increase in the popularity of cable television, and new technology that was invented such as the remote control. Television had a huge effect on society through the way if affected the ways children could be educated and what people watched. It impacted technology through changes in how people watched television and what people could record and watch on television. It also had an enormous effect on the economy through changes in competition in the television industry and how musicians and their music could be made popular. Television in America in the 1980s affected society, technology, and the economy.

The radio was almost in every household all over the Americans, Great Britain and a majority of Western Europe during the beginning of the depression and on the eve of World War 2. By the middle- to late 1930’s, the information that was broadcast over the radio influenced not only public opinion but politics. The voice of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the 32nd president of the United States, was heard all over the American public radio stations during the early 30’s and into the early 40’s. His now famous fireside chats were created by Roosevelt as a way of informing the people of the issues plaguing either the economy, the general public, the world and how his administration intended to fix these issues. The British government utilized the radio

Radios, railroads, and records played a big role in the layout of jazz music. As audiences became accustomed to radio, they demanded a variety of new and entertaining programming, and before long, radio stations were under growing pressure to find enough material to fill each broadcast day. Unlike America's musical venues and bandstands, the airwaves were not strictly segregated. So it was radio that helped to spread jazz to all the major cities. Throughout time, jazz spread via railroad by artist traveling to towns like New Orleans, Chicago, Kansas City, New York City, and the West Coast. The phonograph record became the primary method of disseminating music, surpassing sales of sheet music and piano rolls. Toward the end of the decade, radio

One monumental advancement was launched on November 2nd 1920 when “The first Commercial radio station was born, and a new era had dawned”(Radio). The radio became the fastest way to share important information and connected

In the short story by John Cheever called "The Enormous Radio" it begins with Jim and Irene Westcotts appearing like the perfect American family. Cheever describes them as "the kind of people who seem to strike that satisfactory average of income, endeavor, and respectability" (Cheever 1). What is ironic about this story is the Westcotts are far from being the perfect family and the community they try to conform to is just as imperfect as the Westcotts themselves. A way the Westcotts try to live up to their society is by keeping secret the fact that they listen to the radio and attend musical events. This is because these activities were not something members of their community did. For example, Cheever says the "Westcotts differed

They also allow us to learn things that would’ve never been possible eighty years ago. Innovation in communication is something that has completely changed our world, and it’s important to look back to its roots so we can realize how far we’ve come. So let’s begin, let’s peer into how the American radio phenomena first began. The idea of radio transmission manifested itself in the late 1800s.

Throughout its history, music has permeated the significant events of American history. Its effect on American society and the way the American people cope with each event has only grown as popular music evolves and new genres reach more and more individuals. People can remember where they were and their exact surroundings to amazing detail when asked about life-changing events in history. Older generations will remember the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Their children will remember when Kennedy was assassinated and when man walked on the moon. Their grandchildren will remember much of the turmoil of the ‘70s and ‘80s and their great grandchildren grew up in the world impacted by the events of September 11, 2001. Even one’s surroundings during the start or end of a relationship or personal events such as graduation, getting a driver’s license, or getting married can all be paired with the music that was popular at the time.

For decades, National Public Radio has maintained a legacy as a successful worldwide news organization. However, the news produced tends to be consumed mainly by an older audience. It has a reputation among millennials as one of the less entertaining news outlets. It is essential for news to be exciting in order to capture the attention of this millennial audience, and NPR tends to lack the excitement value it needs to fully reach this massive demographic. In order for the station to better attract and maintain millennial readers, viewers and listeners, the organization needs to cater to their lifestyle habits and preferences. In a constantly changing and developing world, NPR needs to be ahead of the game in technological advancements.

The radio had humble beginnings with the early adopters who were hobbyists of what the radio provided as the first means of broadcasting. These hobbyists were mostly students of the new technology who used headphones and crystal headsets to listen to the early broadcasts and contribute to the programming as well. The American students and other interested men who came from the middle, urban class and were predominately white had the opportunity of free time and the means to become more invested in the radio. The early adopters started tuning in and soon the technology expanded through their households.