meljun cortes history of television part i

8/9/2019 MELJUN CORTES History of Television PART I

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/meljun-cortes-history-of-television-part-i 1/23

History of Television

Electronic media is important because: We spend so much time with it. Only one more

daily activity takes up more of our time. It helps create and support icons of pop culture It provides shared experiences It is the primary ambassador of merican culture

It shapes our lan!ua!e" our values" our political"social and reli!ious beliefs" our fashion sense andour lifestyle.




We need to be media literate to

understand its impact on our livesand to become discriminatingconsumers who can make goodmedia choices.




#ommunication is an essential part ofbein! human. We live to expressourselves" especially to each other. Wehave always found ways to sendmessa!es to each other.

$oint%to%point communication refers toone si!nal sent to one receiver.

&ass communication is sendin! onemessa!e to many di'erent receivers.




Why do we call it broadcasting?

How are television and radio different from

newspapers, books and magazines?




Radio emerged as a maritime service during World War I. Early radiowas simply a means of point-to-point communication.

In 192! "ongress allowed private citi#ens to use radio waves! settingt$e stage for radio %roadcasting to %ecome a commercial andentertainment enterprise. "ongress sanctioned a private monopoly &'E! (T)T! Western Electric and t$e *nited +ruit "ompany to controlradio. T$e five com%ined t$eir patents to form R"(.

,essages could now %e sent to a large num%er of peoplesimultaneously. Radio %ecame (merica/s second mass medium.




T$e Radio (ct of 192 set guidelines for t$e new industry and

esta%lis$ed t$ree 0ey components t$at still eist today

The Spectrum is a national resource – individuals do not own freuencies – they license their use from the federal

government!

"icensees must operate in the public interest!

#overnment censorship is forbidden!




Radio %urst onto t$e scene and eperienced incredi%le growt$. 343( in

5itts%urg$ %ecame t$e first commercial radio station on 6ovem%er 2!

192 -- %roadcasting news of election returns. In 1922! t$ere were 27commercial radio stations. 8ust si mont$s later t$ere were :7. Early

radio stations were often owned %y newspapers or department stores.

Radio entrepreneurs favored t$e ,(merican 5lan over t$e European

,5lan. (merican 5lan proposed t$at radio stations would %e supported %y

commercial revenue & European 5lan relied on government financing as

well as ,control.

(%out 12 million *.;. $omes $ad a radio in 19! nearly $alf of t$e

population. <y 19= t$at figure was 27.> million. "ar radios %ecame

standard e?uipment.




T$e "ommunications (ct of 19= created t$e +ederal

"ommunications "ommission.

T$e concept of networ0 programming emerged wit$ 6<" <lue! 6<"Red! "<; and utual leading t$e way as program providers.

;tars of stage! screen and vaudeville floc0ed to t$is new medium t$at

s0yroc0eted across t$e country.

Early programming consisted of live music! dramas! soap operas!

comedies and news.




Radio networ0s stimulated national advertising! %roug$t

,ur%an entertainment to rural areas and c$anged

(merican politics. Radio provided a diversion to t$e 'reat

4epression.

+ran0lin Roosevelt/s ,fireside radio c$ats ena%led

citi#ens to ,$ear t$eir president on a regular %asis.

Radio continued to t$rive during t$e /s and /=s and

especially during World War II.




Television $ad %een in development since t$e /2s and t$ere wereeperimental %roadcasts in t$e /s. T@ was introduced to t$e pu%licat t$e 199 6ew Aor0 World/s +air! %ut development stalled duringWWII. 4avid ;arnoff! t$e $ead of R"(! and William 5aley! t$e $eadof "<;! %ecame instrumental in t$e growt$ of t$e television industry.

1 television stations were on t$e air in 19=>. <y t$e end of t$edecade! more t$an $alf t$e population $ad access to television.




T@ sets went on sale in 19=B. ( small %lac0 and w$ite set cost C2! aconsole C2>. T$e median income in t$e *nited ;tates was C. T@ grewso fast and t$e demand for station licenses was so great t$at t$e +"" declareda free#e on new stations.

In 19>! t$e +"" issued t$e ;it$ Report and Drder w$ic$ $elped address t$e pro%lems associated wit$ t$e tremendous growt$ of television.

& A table of channel assignments provided TV service to all parts of the UnitedStates

& New UHF channels (14!"# were opened $p to add to the old VHF channels (%1&#

& The 'ommission set standards for color television

& %4% channels were set aside for noncommercial (p$blic# stations



History of Television & T$e +ifties

T$e fifties %ecame t$e golden age of television. In t$e fifties! more T@ sets: millionF were sold t$an c$ildren %orn = millionF.

In 19>2 t$ere were 17 T@ stations. Ten years later t$ere were >=1. Todayt$ere are a%out 1!B stations in t$e *.;.

Early programming included news! sports! game s$ows! sitcoms! c$ildren/s programming! variety s$ows and dramas. ost programming was live.@ideotape was also introduced late in t$e decade.

T$e %ig t$ree networ0s & (<"! "<; and 6<" & dominated programming. Dnany given nig$t more t$an 9 percent of viewers were watc$ing one of t$e

%ig t$ree. T$e first issue of T$ #uide appeared (pril ! 19>! at t$e cost of 1> cents.



History of Television & T$e ;ities

T$e sities %roug$t significant c$anges to t$e television landscape.

Television Gournalism came of age t$an0s to several significant events

in (merican and %roadcasting $istory. & Networs e)panded their nightl* newscasts to &+ min$tes,

& Technolog* enhanced TV-s abilit* to go .live,/

& F'' s$spended its e0$al time re0$irement for presidential and vice

presidential candidates paving the wa* for the fo$r televised .2reat

3ebates/ between ichard Ni)on and 5ohn 6enned*, & 6enned* began televising his press conferences,



History of Television & t$e ;ities

& The .space race/ heated $p and networs ro$tinel* covered eachla$nch,

&

7n 1"!& 8resident 6enned* was assassinated in 3allas, Networs s$spended their reg$lar programming and commercials for fo$rda*s, An estimated "& percent of American homes watched the

president-s f$neral and b$rial, & Americans were presented nightl* images of the escalating war in

Vietnam st$dent demonstrations against the war and theincreasingl* violent civil rights movement,

& '9S anchor :alter 'ronite earned the title .the most tr$stedman in America.



History of Television & T$e ;ities

In 19B1! +"" c$airman 6ewton inow called television ,a vast

wasteland.

"a%le television ena%led residents in outlying geograp$ical areas toreceive television signals and programming.

T$e <roadcasting (ct of 19B: created t$e "orporation for 5u%lic

<roadcasting! w$ic$ c$anneled money into programming and station

development. Two years later! "5< created 5<;.

ate in t$e decade! @ice 5resident ;piro (gnew used a series ofspeec$es to accuse t$e media of a ,li%eral %ias &a tag still used today.



History of Television & T$e ;eventies

H<D! one of t$e first ca%le companies! etended itsservice from t$e 6ort$east to nationwide via satellite.

Ted Turner %egan using satellite to distri%ute t$e signal of$is (tlanta *H+ station! WT''! to national ca%le systemsas a ,superstation.

<roadcasting using satellite tec$nology gave newsorgani#ations t$e a%ility to go ,live from almost

anyw$ere in t$e world. 5resident Ric$ard 6ion/s trip to"$ina was televised live %y all t$ree networ0s in 19:2.



History of Television & T$e ;eventies

"ongress %anned cigarette advertising despite complaints from %roadcasters t$at t$e new regulation would cost t$em more t$an C2

million in revenue. T$e +"" instituted t$e 5rime Time (ccess Rule to try to rein in t$e

networ0s and give independent television stations a %oost.

;yndicated programming continued to epand and t$e num%er oflocally produced television programs fell significantly.

6etwor0 programming continued to dominate primetime. any programs focused on socially relevant issues.



History of Television & T$e Eig$ties

"a%le television %egan to dramatically c$ange t$e landscape of t$eindustry. 6o longer Gust a ,relay service! ca%le operators %egan to

offer alternative programming. In 197 ca%le penetration stood at 2 percent. <y t$e end of t$e decade! B percent of (merican $omesreceived ca%le.

"66 signed on t$e air on 8une 1! 197. Dt$er ca%le networ0s soonfollowed. "a%le networ0s %egan to ta0e a significant percentage ofviewers and advertising dollars from t$e dominate <ig T$ree

networ0s. 6etwor0s faced toug$ financial times and significantly cut staff and

news resources to save money.




Remote controls and @"Rs c$anged t$e way people watc$ed

television.

4eregulation %ecame t$e mode of operation at t$e +ederal"ommunications "ommission.

+o entered t$e fray as t$e fourt$ ,networ0.

5rimetime soap operas riveted large audiences and <ill "os%y single-

$andedly revived t$e sitcom genre.




T$e switc$ from analog to digital transmission

%egins in earnest. Hig$-definition television %egins a slow! %ut steady growt$ in programming.



History of Television & T$e 6ineties

In 1979! Time! Inc. and Warner "ommunications merged to create t$eworld/s largest media and entertainment company. T$at set t$e stage

for more media mergers in t$e nineties. 4isney %oug$t (<""ap"ities! Time-Warner purc$ased Turner <roadcasting and t$en latermerged wit$ (DF and Westing$ouse %oug$t "<; and t$en sold it to@iacom.

T$e +"" raised its owners$ip cap on radio stations from 12 to 17 to2 and allowed duopolies. In 1999 t$e cap was eliminated. ater in

t$e decade t$e +"" removed its cap on t$e num%er of T@ stations anowner can own! %ut instituted a cap on national audience reac$.



History of Television & T$e 6ineties

In 199> t$e W< and *56 %egan offering primetime programming.

T$an0s to deregulation and t$e repeal of financial syndication rules!

t$e traditional %roadcast networ0s! w$ile still losing audience s$are!regained t$eir status as powerful television influences.

6ews programming %ecame a constant presence and programming

source. Entertainment programmers continued to pus$ t$e envelope.

In 199B! t$e Telecommunications (ct eliminated ca%le-rate regulation

and allowed telco-ca%le competition.



Television History & T$e 21st "entury

"orporate mergers continue to reduce t$e num%er of ,voices $eard

in t$e television mar0etplace.

4igital television ,$ig$ defF %ecomes more prevalent. Reality programming %ecomes T@Js favorite programming genre.

T@ programming %ecomes availa%le t$roug$ t$e internet! Ipods! cell

p$ones! etc.

meljun cortes history of television part i

Documents