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Popular Radio |
From its inception in May of 1922 to its sudden end
in May of 1928, Popular Radio was a periodical that
was singularly dedicated to the phenomenon of
amateur radio. With its step-by-step instructions
and sharp-witted editorials, the magazine captured
the fervor and technical prowess of the radio
enthusiasts, while also giving them their own forum,
a place where innovations and discoveries could be
discussed and praised. Led by its long-time editor,
Kendall Banning, Popular Radio would expand into
many areas such as the publication of 'how-to' books
and similar guides; despite its success, the
magazine would come to an abrupt conclusion, ending
a mere six years after its first issue. While the
circumstances surrounding its dissolution are vague
at best, it can only be assumed that Popular Radio,
with its focus on amateurs, could not maintain
itself in an era that was decidedly opposed to the
amateur – thus, the Radio Act of 1927 could be seen
as a direct precursor to the magazine's end.
History
In the early Twenties, radio-based periodicals had a
specific mission: to both familiarize readers with
the technical aspects of radio and to discuss
radio's growing cultural significance. Popular Radio
adheres to these aforementioned guidelines; directed
towards amateurs and specialists, it often resembles
a guide-book or manual, and is averse to any
sensationalized depictions of the radio. When this
periodical was published, amateur radio had not yet
been dismantled; thus, this magazine offers a window
into a particular period, one during which radio was
still a democratic enterprise, operated and
maintained by private citizens. To be sure, this
technological populism was beginning to wane, and
would be effectively crippled by the Radio Act of
1927 – but, regardless, Popular Radio allows a
glimpse at a medium before it became regulated,
perhaps illuminating many issues that affect media
today.
Popular Radio was a periodical that ran from May of
1922 to May of 1928, perhaps the most significant
years for radio-broadcasting, as 1922 is generally
recognized as the start of the “Broadcasting Boom.”
The first issue notes that, while 100,000 issues
were originally intended to be published, they
published 125,000 – this sudden increase is
indicative of the growing interest in radio, an
interest that would multiply exponentially in the
following years (1). The magazine itself was
published by Popular Radio, Inc., a corporation
formed to support both the magazine and the various
manuals and guides the magazine promoted. While the
early issues were fifteen cents, later ones were
twenty-five cents – it is unclear if whether due to
financial instability, economic issues, or greater
circulation.
The editor of Popular Radio, Kendall Banning, is an
interesting figure: as stated in the first issue, he
was the managing editor of System magazine, as well
as Cosmopolitan. He served in the Army for two years
and, at the time of Popular Radio's first issue, was
a Lieutenant-Colonel in the Signal Reserve Corps and
a member of the Executive Council of the Amateur
Radio Reserve. As evidenced by an early issue of
Radio Broadcast, “The Signal Corps is that part of
the United States Army whose duty it is to handle
communications”(2). Needless to say, Banning was
intimately connected to the multiple uses of the
radio. He was also a published poet, and published a
book, Mother Goose Rhymes, which is “dedicated to
the censors – who have taught us how to read naughty
meanings into harmless words” (3). The entire work
consists of common nursery-rhymes with key-words
blotted out; the book illustrates Banning's sense of
humor as well as his slightly subversive character –
both of which are also mirrored in Popular Radio. In
the last two issues of the periodical, an attempt is
made to begin discussing the new medium of
television – unfortunately, the magazine was cut
short, coming to an end in May of 1928.
In terms of content, the magazine contains articles
that directly address the technical aspects of
radio, with titles such as “A Five-Tube Radio
Receiver” ( from Popular Radio ). An important
function of these articles is not to just discuss
the technological elements, but also to instruct the
readers – they act as manuals, offering schemata and
step-by-step directions. For the amateur enthusiast,
these instructions would have been invaluable. In
Popular Radio, the article detailing how to
construct the AC receiver lists all of the necessary
parts, as well as the total cost; it then associates
certain letters with certain parts and specifies
where to attach the parts, using various diagrams.
Popular Radio also contains a “What Readers Ask”
section, in which many questions are asked – some of
them fairly basic, such as “What Is a Kilocycle?,”
while others are more complex, as when a reader asks
for help with his radio connections. This bond
between reader and magazine is a significant part of
these periodicals; rather than constructing its
audience, Popular Radio reflects the interests and
concerns of their audience. Popular Radio also
contains a section, “In the World's Laboratories,”
that acts as an overview of new innovations and
discoveries in the scientific world – perhaps
correctly assuming that radio-enthusiasts would be
equally excited about related fields. Other than
these more specialized articles, however, Popular
Radio also contains editorials that illuminate the
personalities behind the magazine: in “The Broadcast
Listener,” Raymond Francis Yates discusses what is
wrong with broadcasting in Chicago, as well as
criticizing many contemporary announcers for
contributing to “the banality of the Chicago
air-shows”; these comments point to a growing
tension in the world of radio, one that existed
between the amateurs ( who were invested in the
material aspects of the radio ) and the
unspecialized listener ( who was invested in the
broadcasts and the programs ). A good bit of humor
is also evident in Yates' section, such as when he
hints at the existence of a Society for the
Suppression of Radio Sopranos – a direct reference,
and perhaps subtle criticism of, the New York
Society for the Suppression of Vice.
In terms of advertisements, Popular Radio does not
stray from radio-based products, whether they be
vacuum-tubes, smaller parts, or radio-related
furniture. What is significant about the
advertisements is not the products being sold,
necessarily, but the fact that there is no attempt
to sell more popular or commercial products; like
the specialized schemata found throughout the
magazines, the advertisements are gesturing towards
a specific audience, one that is entirely concerned
with the operation and maintenance of the radio.
Worth noting is that Popular Radio is particularly
snide towards the more popular aspects of radio –
the magazine itself is representative of the
radio-elite, those amateurs who separated themselves
by being wholly dedicated to the material elements
of the medium. |
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