The Broadcast Century and Beyond

The Furious 40s

In 1940 more than 80% of American households had radios and there were more than 50 million sets in use. Radio was an immense success.

The growing tension in the war in Europe made news important. William Paley hired Edward R. Murrow to build a news organization to cover the news. As CBS News began to gain importance on the radio schedule, Murrow became an important source of news for millions of Americans. Radio covered growing war including Chamberlain’s address as Britain declares war on Germany for the invasion of Poland. London received the brunt of Germany's attack. EyeWitness to History.com details the terrible London Blitz. Be sure scroll down the page to listen to the sounds of a bombing raid on London. (World War-II.net provides a very complete chronology of the world that cost 60 million lives.) Women correspondents and photographers played important roles during the war. Click here for Women Come to the Front.

The Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931 destabilized the Asian region and the United States, with important economic interests in the region put an oil embargo on Japan. The attack on Pearl Harbor brought a new reality to America. This site provides excellent coverage of the attack, including oral accounts and a link to information about Ship’s Cook Doris Miller (from the Naval Historical Center), who played a prominent role in the Disney movie, Pearl Harbor. The Internet Archives’ Bombing of Pearl Harbor is good for understanding the importance of the attack. The newsreel from the Naval Historical Center shows the aftermath of the Japanese attack (be sure to scroll to the bottom of the page to listen to the newsreel). Air Raid Pearl Harbor provides before and after photographs of the attack.

There are many excellent sites that depict the events of World War II. For our study, there are some that provide some useful insights into the contributions of broadcasting. Check out Teacheroz.com’s links to media from the second world war. Also, the BBC Archives has an excellent page of sights and sounds, including oral accounts of the war. American entertainers provided programs to entertain the home audience as well as the soldiers. Perhaps no other entertainer did more to help the GIs than Bob Hope. The Library of Congress site highlights some of Hope's radio broadcasts.

Pop music was important to the war effort. Here's a site that details the hits of Bing Crosby and others during this era. Syracuse University has archived some of them for you to hear. Click here to see how many you're familiar with. (Note that Big Band is all the rage!) Many songs have themes related to the war effort.

Propaganda and public relations efforts are important during times of war. The US government used poster art to persuade and to motivate citizens. Check out Powers of Persuasion to see examples of World War II graphic arts. Radio was used extensively by President Franklin Roosevelt. Professor Steve Schoenherr has cataloged FDR’s Fireside Chats as part of a larger collection of history documents. The U.S. government forms the Voice of America in 1941. Check out World War II in the Pacific and World War II in Europe for outstanding collections of photographs related to war.

The business structure of broadcasting changes during this era. In 1943, ABC Radio is born when the FCC forces NBC to divest itself of its smaller 'Blue" radio network. The Digital Deli Online provides a wonderful history of ABC radio as well as some of its programming As the decade and the war ends, another conflict begins. The cold war shows early signs as Soviet Union policies towards Eastern Europe were increasingly at odds with the United States and England. The Truman Library presents an excellent overview on the Origins of the Cold War. Here at home, the House on Un-American Activities focuses on threats within the media. The Hollywood Ten (University of Berkley Library) investigations mark the beginning of the Red Scare.