CHAPTER ONE
THE EARLY DAYS

During the 1920's, radio broadcasting went from being an experiment to become a major American industry, evolving into an important part of daily life.

As the number of local stations grew, radio networks sprang up connecting stations across the nation. The new commercial stations and networks needed programming. Then, as now, music made up the majority of radio schedules. But right from the beginning, the immediacy of radio made broadcasting of breaking news, issues and opinions an everyday reality.

The 1930s were a golden age for radio. Along with movies, radio was the nation's primary source of electronic entertainment. Radio drama, comedies and quiz shows ruled the airwaves. Franklin Roosevelt brought the nation together for "fireside chats" -- intimate conversations with listeners.

A panel discussion program at NBC in the 1930s

Noncommercial "educational" radio stations -- the grandfathers of today's public radio -- typically broadcast classroom lectures, recitals and farm news. Recitals were often heard on educational radio in the 1930s

Panel discussion programs were a popular way to present issues in the 1920s and 1930s. During some of these programs questions called in on the telephone were read aloud for discussion. Telephone audio could not be mixed with broadcast audio for a variety of technical and legal reasons.

Roundtable panel programs were heard on radio stations in many American cities. NBC's panel discussion program "The University of Chicago Roundtable" began in 1931 and continued for almost 25 years. Another NBC program, "America's Town Meeting of the Air" also provided a forum for political and social debate.

Radio network and station owners liked panel discussions because they were inexpensive to produce and seemed to be popular with listeners.

During World War Two the commercial radio networks presented groundbreaking news coverage. Radio dramas occasionally dealt with the most controversial issues of the day. Speeches and panel discussion programs continued to be the main radio programming vehicle for opinion-based discussion.

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