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First "Live" Radio Broadcast
Reginald Fessenden, a Canadian physicist, sings and plays the violin "live." The broadcast is heard as far away as Virginia.
Photo Source: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aso/tryit/radio/earlyyears.html -
First wireless "station," WHB
The New York Herald uses the WHB antenna and studio to "broadcast news to ships twice a day" (Arceneaux 161). The Navy takes legal measures to keeep the newspaper from publishing information gathered from the wireless feed. In 1917, the Navy forcibly assumes control of the station.
Photo Source: http://daytoninmanhattan.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-lost-new-york-herald-building.html -
Act to Regulate Radio Communication
In response to amateur broadcasters "clogging" the airwaves and blocking distress signals from the sinking Titanic, the federal government assumes control over the radio waves. To eliminate "interference," the government mandates station licensing.
Photo Source: https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/archaeology/a44951352/us-government-fighting-titanic-expedition-2024/ -
KDKA Pittsburgh
The first station receives a license, transmitting from the Pittsburgh Westinghouse Electric building. The station broadcasts 1920 election results, reaching 1,000 listeners ("Golden Age").
Photo Source: https://www.radioworld.com/tag/kdka -
First scheduled newscast
The first "scheduled" newscast is delivered by the NBC Blue Network. NBC directed most of its resources towards the entertainment segment of the Red Network, trying to sell the less-profitable, news-oriented Blue Network in the 1930s.
Photo Source: https://fadedsignals.com/post/109931476073/heres-a-history-of-the-blue-network-which -
Radio Act of 1927
This act has provisions for a Federal Radio Commission, with the power to fine stations and revoke licenses. The act defines the broadcast spectrum as public property.
Photo Source: https://firstamendment.mtsu.edu/article/radio-act-of-1927/ -
Lindbergh baby kidnapping
The kidnapping, search for the child, and trial of the accused kidnapper captures public interest from 1932-1936. Overnight, radio becomes a "news-gathering organization" and covers an event on a 24-hour cycle. Unlike print media's strict schedule of morning and evening issues, radio's immediacy earns it positive public response. WOR is granted an "exclusive higher level of access" (Howell 135-36).
Photo Source: https://guides.loc.gov/chronicling-america-lindbergh-baby-kidnapping -
Establishment of correspondent system
Licensed stations begin sending correspondents to cities in the US with populations exceeding 20,000. By 1933, 25% of the American public relies on radio news rather than newspapers ("Golden Age").
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Communications Act of 1934
This act establishes the Federal Communications Commission and comprehensive regulations for all communications media. By 1934, NBC and CBS are aggressively lobbying for commercial broadcasting, squeezing out "non-profit broadcasters." They command a 70% broadcast share, earning $72 million in profits (Gregory). The act also establishes AT&T as a legitimate, regulated monopoly.
Photo Source: https://www.cybertelecom.org/notes/communications_act.htm -
First television broadcast in US
NBC televises the opening of the New York World's Fair, including a speech by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. RCA manufactures its first commercial television set, with sales beginning the day after Roosevelt's speech. The first sets sell for $445 (Gregory).
Photo Source:https: //www.earlytelevision.org/worlds_fair.html -
Edward R. Murrow in London
Murrow is sent to London to provide live daily reports of German bombing. He is housed in the basement of BBC's Broadcasting House and is filmed live in Trafalgar Square for "London after Dark." His style is narrative, with vivid images, and listeners often hear bombs falling and explosions. By this time, 80% of Americans own radios.
Photo Source: https://www.americanheritage.com/london-murrow-during-blitz -
Anti-trust investigation
The FCC launches an anti-trust investigation, ruling that companies are allowed to own only one radio network. Two years later, RCA finally sells the NBC Blue Network to the owner of the Life Savers Candy Company, effectively founding the American Broadcasting Company.
Photo Source: https://ethw.org/RCA_%28Radio_Corporation_of_America%29 -
Meet the Press
NBC transitions this weekly radio news program to television. It remains the longest-running show on American television, initially funded by General Foods. Running for 30 minutes, it is twice as long as the nightly news. No longer the "bastard child of radio," television news comes into its own (Saltzman).
Photo Source: https://eyesofageneration.com/november-6-1947-meet-the-press-debuts-nbcthis-is-ame/ -
News for television
In 1948, the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company sponsors Camel Newsreel Theater, with radio's John Cameron Swayze reading the news. Edward R. Murrow's radio show Hear It Now is remade for television. See It Now opts for on-location filming and unscripted interviews. Sponsored by Alcoa, the show owns its equipment and uses 35-mm cameras in the field (Simon).
Photo Source: https://www.poynter.org/newsletters/2015/today-in-media-history-edward-r-murrow-examined-joe-mccarthys-methods-on-see-it-now/ -
The broadcast of the Kathy Fiscus tragedy
Networks televise 27 hours of coverage as rescue crews rush to pull four-year-old Kathy Fiscus from an abandoned well (D'Urso). "Breaking news" becomes a television moneymaker as nearly 70% of viewers are able to identify both sponsors and advertised products after seeing a broadcast.
Photo Source: https://www.latimes.com/visuals/photography/la-me-fw-archives-three-year-old-kathy-ficus-falls-into-abandoned-well-20190328-htmlstory.html -
Golden Age of Television
The Today show begins, and networks televise both the Democratic and Republican conventions live (over 120 hours of programming and the first time conventions reached a large audience). By 1955, 50% of Americans own a television set; however, only 20% of rural Black families own a set, as inequality of access and representation continue to plague the medium ("Golden Age").
Photo Source: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/07/04/conventions-primaries-and-the-presidency -
Standards for color television
The National Television System Committee updates the 1941 standards for black-and-white broadcasting to add "extra bandwidth" for the new color technology (Gregory). The first live color broadcast is NBC's coverage of the 1954 Tournament of Roses Parade.
Photo Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/video/remembering-a-date-which-will-live-in-infamy-82580035550 -
Television in transition
By 1959, fewer shows are live, and production (except for the news) shifts to Hollywood. Nearly 86% of American households have a television. More people are watching more television each day, averaging 5 hours per household. As radio localizes and reduces costs to remain competitive, television becomes the most influential mass media product.
Photo Source: https://www.ebay.com/itm/363798057854