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History Of

Radio
World War 1 and 2
Introduction

What’s a radio?

Radio, sound communication by radio waves, usually through the transmission of music,
news, and other types of programs from single broadcast stations to multitudes of
individual listeners equipped with radio receivers.

Radio during world wars


Radio was the cheapest form of entertainment, and it was the most popular medium during World
Wars. The accessibility and availability meant it fueled propaganda and could reach a large
number of citizens. Radio helped entertain and inform the population, encouraging citizens to
join in the war effort.

Radio During World War 1

At the onset of World War I, radio was still in its infancy.


Army equipment was primitive, and had a very short range.


A 1913 aircraft with a radio, at the time considered cutting-edge equipment, had a maximum
range of 2,000 yards.


Military radio equipment also used vacuum tubes, which were heavy and bulky.

As a result, the equipment was difficult to tote around on the battlefield,
even on mules and horses, which were still the military’s primary mode
of equipment transportation.


The American army made some adaptations with the development of a "horse-pack
set," which used a hand generator and was strapped to the side of a horse. The
Radio During World War 2

Radio was a primary vehicle for the circulation of information, both true and false,
and played a significant role in WWII.


The use of radio as a wartime propaganda tool was made famous during World War II
by broadcasting organizations such as Voice of America and by shows such
as Tokyo Rose and  Axis Sally.
Propaganda in WWII

Propaganda became an important weapon in WWII for the Axis countries like Germany as well
as the Allied countries like Great Britain.


Propaganda served a few purposes. It was used to gain support for a country's war effort among its
own people, and to demoralize the enemy.


In the 1930s and 40s the popularity of radio and film made them major propaganda mediums
because they could reach so many people in an entertaining way. Radio propaganda was often
aimed at demoralizing the enemy while film propaganda was often aimed at boosting the
morale of a country's own people.

HISTORY OF RADIO IN INDIA
• Radio Broadcasting began in June 1923 during the British Raj with programs by
the Bombay Presidency Radio Club and other radio clubs.


According to an agreement on 23 July 1927, the private Indian Broadcasting
Company Ltd (IBC) was authorized to operate two radio stations:
the Bombay station which began on 23 July 1927, and the Calcutta station
which followed on 26 August 1927. The company dissolved on 1 March 1930.
 .
• The government took over the broadcasting facilities and began the
Indian State Broadcasting Service (ISBS) on 1 April 1930 on an
experimental basis for two years, and permanently in May 1932.

It then went on to become All India Radio on 8 June 1936. When


India attained independence, there were six radio stations within
Indian territory at Delhi, Bombay, Calcutta, Madras, 
Trichy and Lucknow. 

FM broadcasting began on 23 July 1977 in Chennai, then Madras.


Radio Act of 1927


The radio act of 1927 was signed into law on February 23 1927 by
Congress in USA. It increased the federal government's regulatory
powers over radio communication, with power vested in a newly
created body, the Federal Radio Commission.


The legislation tried to bring about the equalization of service throughout
the country. 
Thank You

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