“Salúd,Amigos”: Negotiating Border History in Rural and Farm Radio of the Rio Grande Valley

The southernmost area of Texas, known as the Rio Grande Valley, is largely absent from histories of early radio. The social, political, and economic history of the Valley from 1848 to the 1950s prompts the authors to approach the region’s broadcast history from the context of rural and farm radio. The papers of broadcaster Bradford Smith, housed at the Margaret H. McAllen Memorial Archives at the Museum of South Texas History, provide an entryway for Valley radio to become part of the larger body of rural and farm radio scholarship. Smith’s radio reports emphasize the centrality of localism for remote communities, and they provide competing narratives about the region’s modern identity and its Mexican roots.     

Music and Identity in a Postcolonial World: Radio Airplay of Lusophone Music in Public Service Broadcasting in the Portuguese- Speaking World

With music being one of the key elements of radio, and plurality one of the most important principles of public service, this article’s central argument is that one of the missions of public radio is to foster musical elements produced in the country’s national language. Focusing on traditional musical genres of the Portuguese-speaking countries, we will analyze the role of music in public radio by selecting specific musical shows focused on the Lusophone world. In order to determine the presence and impact of Lusophony in national stations, music will be the common thread for a reflection on how multicultural their programming strategies are able to be.     

(Residual) Public Music Radio in the Streaming Era: Listening for Diversity and Frequency on CBC Music

The aim of this article is to assess whether and how the CBC’s music radio programming reflects the corporation’s mandate of showcasing a diversity of music and culture. I argue that a program logic that privileges an international corporate music industry strategy persists (particularly during the peak morning and afternoon drive time programs) and limits the capacity for public radio to imagine and project alternative musical trajectories. My aspiration is to imagine CBC Music’s over-the-air radio as a residual broadcast service, one that presents novel opportunities at a time when digital and online streaming music is dominant.     

Buying Time to Start Spanish-Language Radio in San Antonio: Manuel Davila and the Beginning of Tejano Programming

This article reveals how Spanish-language radio started in San Antonio, Texas—as blocks of time bought by Hispanics interested in providing music to San Antonio's Spanish-speaking residents. In particular, this study recognizes the contributions of San Antonio radio pioneer Manuel Davila and his role in starting Spanish-language radio and the Tejano format, drawing from a combination of on-site observation at Davila's station, personal interviews, and the collection of historical data. The article also lays a foundation for critically analyzing the political economy and hegemonic process of maintenance of economic and cultural power possible in the early days of radio broadcasting to compare it to the current corporately dominated marketplace.     

“A Uniting Force:” Irish Music on U.S. Radio

Ethnic music of all kinds has had a powerful influence on American popular music throughout history, and this is certainly true of Irish music. For nearly 100 years, radio has been a vital conduit for conveying musical influences of all kinds to listeners and musicians alike. This qualitative study analyzes Irish radio broadcasting in the United States The article is based upon an open-ended survey of U.S. broadcasters of Irish music programs in the top 10 markets and provides a summary of their recent playlists.     

Of “Tomatoes” and Men: A Continuing Analysis of Gender in Music Radio Formats

The 2015 radio controversy “SaladGate” revealed a lack of female music artists gaining airplay. This study expands a previous gender analysis of American music radio into a longitudinal study. A content analysis of 192 stations revealed that airplay is increasing for females. However, most of these gains came from the Top-40 format, echoing concerns about the recording industry’s preference that women become pop stars, leaving all other musical genres to men. The results suggest the existence of a gender order in music radio, one that works hand-in-hand with the music industry to exclude women.     

Educational Radio,Listening Instruction,and the NBC Music Appreciation Hour

This article examines the educational and social impact of an instructional radio program, called the Music Appreciation Hour (MAH), broadcast on the NBC network from the 1920s to the 1940s. Walter Damrosch, who came from a musical family and had previously conducted the New York Symphony, envisioned the possibility to use radio to teach music to American schoolchildren by tapping into its aural and emotional qualities. Through archival materials, including correspondence, teachers’ manuals, student notebooks, and program evaluations, it is argued that while Damrosch positioned himself with a new progressive movement that espoused student-centered education, he instead became an appealing on-air “personality” to student listeners and the network. This research serves as an important example of some of the ongoing tensions between education, entertainment, and the mass media.     

"Short-Term Bursts of Inspiration": The Development of British Women's Alternative Radio

This paper begins with a review of literature and an historical account of the development of alternative women's community radio in the UK. It describes how UK women's radio stations were developed from feminist radio activity in the 70s and 80s. The two short case studies are based on qualitative research in women's community radio stations that have developed in the 90s: Fem FM in Bristol in the southwest and Radio Venus in Bradford in the north of England. Finally it develops a model of alternative women's radio for those who wish to forge a gendered space in a radio environment dominated by male broadcasters.     

Alternative Feminist Media on the Airwaves: Radio and Women's Music

The author examines radio programs produced by women in the U.S. that feature music by women. Women's music programming offers a variety of music genres and presentation styles. Criteria of music selection also vary, with some programs concentrating solely on women's contributions and musical works, and others that play music by mixed-sex groups and even featuring a male vocal. However, the commonality of all these programs lies in their dedication to highlighting women artists and giving voice to those who would otherwise not be heard. As media artifacts, women's music radio programs offer multiple layers of feminist inquiry.     

“Touching the sentiments of everyone”;: Nationalism and state broadcasting in thirties Mexico

This paper provides a historical perspective on the intersection of media, popular culture, and nationalism through a study of the broadcasting policies and programs of one of Mexico's earliest government radio stations. This study analyzes the musical programs that formed the centerpiece of government radio programming in order to evaluate the racial and class ideologies imbedded in the nationalist discourse of state broadcasters. By viewing these government programs through the lens of a broader literature on nationalism in the Third World and among diasporic communities, it is possible to identify a fundamental tension in Mexico's official nationalism between a search for the roots of an “authentic”; ethnic identity, and a need to position Mexican culture within the constellation of Western “civilization.”; Finally, this paper investigates audience reactions to state broadcasts in order to explore the meaning of early broadcast nationalism for Mexico's radio listeners.     

The Evoked Rhetorical Vision of Lake Wobegon: A Textual Analysis of "A Prairie Home Companion"

"A Prairie Home Companion," a live radio variety show produced by Minnesota Public Radio station KSJN, drew weekly radio audiences of 5 million across its thirteen year existence—phenomenal achievement A reprise of the show is presently being broadcast from New York and is heard weekly on over 200 public radio stations. An explanation and textual analysis of the phenomenon is offered using both E. G. Bormann's fantasy theme methodology and Tony Schwartz's resonance theory. 7he analysis concludes that the phenomenon can best be explained by the chaining out of an evoked responsive chord that includes each individual's yearning for the affection, warmth, and support of family and neighbors-perhaps things that each of us, as exiles from different times and places, knows we can never recover.     

The Partnership of Telegraphy and Radio in "Re-Creating" Events for Broadcast

Although historians have explored the effects of telegraphy on the newspaper, little attention has been given the relationship between telegraphy and radio broadcasting. This article explores the partnership between Western Union telegraphers and radio sportscasters in broadcasting sports event "re-creations." Oral history interviewing is used with 10 Western Union telegraphers and 12 radio sportscasters who participated in this early method of providing "live" away-game coverage. Included are sections on Western Union services and re-creation equipment and processes.     

An Intimate Voice from Afar: A Brief History of New York's Chinese-Language Wireless Radio

Based on original oral history and archival research, this historical study details how the development of wireless immigrant community radio has related to the Chinese American experience. It examines (1) the social, political, and economic conditions in which Chinese- language radio emerged in the diaspora; (2) the development of Sinocast, a Cantonese-language station in New York City, as a case study in immigrant community radio; (3) the change and continuity in Sino- cast's radio programming during the past three decades, with a focus on news, community service, drama, and music programs; and (4) a summary analysis of the implications of Sinocast's experience in reference to recent developments of Chinese American ethnic radio at the turn of the 21st century.     

KBOO Community Radio: Organizing Portland's Disorderly Possibilities

Across the radio spectrum, there are relatively few stations in the United States that concentrate on community building and sustainability. One of the country's early community radio stations, KBOO-FM in Portland, Oregon, has been on the air since 1968 and has significantly expanded its signal reach and audience during that time. Preceding National Public Radio, KBOO is the outcome of a Portland grassroots activist movement that initially sought to restore classical music on the local airwaves and eventually concurred on a more radical mission to serve the underserved and to cater to communities at the margins in the metropolitan listening area and beyond. KBOO transmits a potpourri of musical and artistic styles, foreign language programs, and critical news, public affairs, and commentaries—all with a largely volunteer-based governance structure. It also devotes its attention to promoting community-based initiatives. This article focuses on four major community functions served by KBOO community radio: public transmission, radio training, political education and mobilization, and community building and outreach. We conclude with observations about the uses and potential of community radio in developing a rich democratic civil society.     

疫情期间不同传播渠道对公众“自我卷入”程度的影响

实证表明新冠肺炎疫情下公众选择不同传播渠道产生的"自我卷入"程度不一:短视频、微博(或微信)、新闻类APP等移动新传播渠道给公众造成的恐惧感更为显著;电视(或广播)等传统渠道更能影响公众的应急反应,让公众主动采取防护措施,积极进行自我保护和积极应对;但公众在权威信息、疫情进展上对电视(或广播)等传统渠道的期望值更高。主流媒体应从把控信息源头、创新表达形式、布局好舆情监测机制、做好媒体议程设置等四个方面来提高自身公信力,提高公众对主流信息的"自我卷入"程度,以防范可能出现的"信息疫情",维护社会秩序健康稳定。     

Historical Constitution of Public Radio Stations in Brazil

Educational, state, cultural, and university radio stations have already developed over more than 70 years of history in Brazilian radio broadcasting. Currently, there are hundreds of stations transmitting across the country, from the North to the South. Some of them—that in the 1990s included 100 broadcasting stations and among these, the oldest and nationally referenced—up to this decade operated and were referenced as a component of the educational radio system. Mainly from this period on, most of these stations began to call themselves public. And, especially due to their programming, they have been attempting to define themselves within the profile of public radio stations. The purpose of this article is to uncover the historical construction of this group of radio broadcasting stations, by means of a timeframe, from the advent of the non-commercial segment in the 1930s until today. It reconstructs referential models and presents main threads and features of the programming of these stations throughout these seven decades. In this way, it will also evince how Brazil is constructing its model of public radio.     

The “Most Thrilling Invention Since the Radio Itself!”: The Evolution of the Radio Remote Control in the 1920s and 1930s

This article examines the early history of the media remote control, focusing on the technical development of radio remotes in the 1920s and 1930s. Using a co-evolutionary model of technical change, it considers the technical and social conditions that served as the foundation for the first radio remotes. Drawing on patent records, it then examines the development, firstly, of wired radio remotes and, secondly, of wireless radio remotes, offering evidence of a direct patent-based link between the latter and the earliest successful wireless television remote of the 1950s.     

The Public Broadcasting Act of 1967: Radio’s Real Second Chance

This introductory essay serves to frame this special public radio symposium that commemorates the 50th anniversary of the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967, on November 7, 2017. Drawing from his earlier writings on public broadcasting history, the author tells the story of how educational radio got its start and continued to struggle for survival until the fledgling enterprise could be reborn as public radio, a result of what may be the most significant piece of communications legislation of the second half of the 20th century. The author argues that despite the enterprise’s marginalized roots and repeated political attacks that span a half century, public radio, in one form or another, will survive well into the future.     

Valerie Geller,Creating Powerful Radio. Burlington,MA: Focal Press, 2007

This essay explores the phenomenon of community radio in Colombia in light of the ongoing internal conflict. Combining a review of the written materials about Colombia's social-political conflict and the history of its radio industry, both in English and Spanish, with first-hand research on the ground in Colombia, I try to demonstrate how community radio is part of a broader movement to democratize society in the face of extreme violence, political repression, and economic dislocation. By using one youth-led radio station in southern Colombia as a case study, I argue that notwithstanding the many problems and drawbacks they face, community radio is playing a role in creating a public sphere.