Celebrating 100 Years of Commercial Radio Show November 2, 2020, marks the 100th anniversary of what is widely recognized as the first commercial radio broadcast when Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company in Pittsburgh, under the call sign KDKA, broadcast the live returns of the Harding-Cox presidential election. Over the last century, radio transformed from a cumbersome, experimental medium to a mobile, modern format that ushered in new technologies like television and cellular telephones. Within just four years of the initial KDKA broadcast, 600 stations existed in the U.S. and radio’s rapid popularity contributed to our shared national identity by providing syndicated news, sports, and music. For many, radio was the fastest reliable way to receive updates about national and world events. Since 1934, the Commission has worked to ensure that radio regulations remain reasonable and current to make way for innovation and evolving technology. Radio continues to be a relevant form of mass communication and remains one of the few free services to anyone with a receiver. The Commission’s approval of new technologies and revitalization of radio regulations will ensure commercial radio is relevant for years to come. The following timeline highlights major milestones and historic events in commercial radio’s 100-year history from 1920 to the present.
Additional Historical Material Relating to Radio on the FCC Website:Annual Reports of the FCC and FRC
FCC > Media Bureau > Audio Division When was radio first broadcasted?Marconi is credited with being the first person to transmit radio signals, doing so over a distance of a mile and a half in 1895 in Lavernock Point in the Vale of Glamorgan in Wales. He later set up his Wireless Telegraph and Signal Company in Chelmsford, in 1899. His 1920 broadcast took place from there.
What was first used for broadcasting?The earliest broadcasting consisted of sending telegraph signals over the airwaves, using Morse code, a system developed in the 1830s by Samuel Morse, physicist Joseph Henry and Alfred Vail.
What came out first radio or TV?The communication revolution was kicked off immediately with the invention of the radio, which led to the television and eventually everything we see now with satellites and computers.
Where did the first radio broadcast come from?Under the call sign KDKA, Pittsburgh's Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company transmitted the first scheduled broadcast on Nov. 2, 1920.
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