1. Radio

2. Pre-Radio Telegraph Invented in 1840’s by Samuel Morse
Sent electrical transmissions via cable to a receiver
Morse Code

3. Pre-Radio Guglielmo Marconi Father of Radio
Invented wireless telegraphy
1901 relayed first wireless message across the Atlantic
Used mostly for ships

4. Lee De Forest Invented the audion tube
Saw radio as a means to broadcast

5. Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the transmission of Radio or TV signals to a wide audience
Agricultural term
Narrowcasting is the transmission of signals person-to-person
The telephone

6. Wireless Ship Act of 1910
Required all major US seagoing ships with more than 50 passengers to have wireless equipment
Titanic sank in 1912
1500 died but 700 were rescued due to the wireless equipment

7. Radio Act of 1912 Enacted due to the Titanic
Mandated that all radio stations in the US be licensed by the Federal Government
Also mandated that ships continuously monitor distress frequencies

8. History 1920 - first commercial radio station KDKA Pittsburg
US Commerce Department officially licensed 5 radio stations
more than 600 in operation
million radio sets were in operation and radio had become a true mass medium

9. Network Radio 1923 AT&T created the first Network
Interconnected 2 radio stations via telephone wire to share programming
By 1924 AT&T had connected 22 stations known as the Broadcasting Corporation of America(BCA)

10. Breakup 1925 the government redefined some patents
Gave AT&T a monopoly on the wires
Forced to sell BCA to RCA
At&T group would become NBC red
RCA Group would become NBC blue

11. Radio Act 1927
Stated that radio stations do not own signals and instead licensed them from the government
As long as they served a public interest
Created the FRC which would later become the FCC

12. Golden Age of Radio Early 1920’s to 1950’s Radio wasn’t portable
Characterized by the dominance of radio shows
Birth of the soap opera
Called soap operas because sponsored by soap companies

13. Radio show example

14. War of the Worlds Most famous single broadcast 1938 Halloween Eve
Orson Welles produced, acted, and hosted
For those that missed the initial disclaimer, many thought is was a real news broadcast
Created a panic

15. Edwin Armstrong Invented FM radio in the early 30’s
FM was a better and clearer signal
David Sarnoff hindered FM due to the dominance of RCA’s AM networks
Armstrong tried to establish FM on his own
Between 1946 and 1949 there went from 48 to 700 FM Stations
FCC moved the FM band making many FM radios obsolete
FM would not become the dominant format until 1979

16. Format Radio Before format radio, DJs controlled the content
In format radio, management controls the playlists
Rotation means playing the top songs many times per day
Top 40 format gets its name from the number of discs a jukebox held
Came to mean top 40 hits

17. Payola
The practice of DJs taking money from record companies to play certain songs
Rampant during the 50s
Format radio helped stop this

18. Pay for Play Current way to get around Payola
Record companies pay stations to play songs
Station has to run a disclaimer
Like an infomercial

19. Today Many large markets have 40+ stations
Most programming is locally produced and feature music
Radio has become a background medium
Over stations in the US
94% of American’s will listen to the radio in an average week

20. Drive time Highest number of people listening 6-9 AM and 4-7 PM
When people are commuting

21. Formats News/Talk Adult contemporary Country Urban Contemporary hits
Hispanic
Oldies

22. Radio Ownership 1996 Telecommunications act
FCC eliminated most ownership restrictions
stations switched ownership
Between 1996 and 2000, more than half of radio stations changed ownership

23. Before 1996
Owner could not own more than 7 AM, 7 FM, and 7 Television stations nationally
Also not more than one radio station per market
1996 Telecommunications act said you can now own unlimited stations
Large markets (45+) you can own up to 8 stations

24. Clear Channel Communications
Formed in San Antonio with 1 station
1996 – 36 radio and 10 TV stations
2002 – 1225 radio stations and 37 TV Stations
Grew too fast and had to sell off about 400 stations

25. Radio Convergence
Internet Radio
Satellite radio