The History and Importance of Radio

Throughout the 20th century there were many breakthroughs in technology that have changed the way things are done today. One of these breakthroughs happened very early in the 20th century. The discovery of radio and radio transmissions was one of the first wireless advancements in digital technology.

Beginnings of Radio


Discovered by Guglielmo Marconi in 1901, radio waves were able to be transmitted across the country and messages were first sent in Morse code. Radio became important early on even though speech was not yet a factor. An example of its importance was the Titanic crash in 1912. The ship had radio to signal for help which saved many lives. After this incident it was required that all ships have radio to communicate with authorities on the shore and other ships. This led to an even bigger expansion of radio.


Speech


In 1915, speech was first transmitted across the United States as it was sent from New York City to San Francisco. This was a big step in the history of radio as this allowed radio to be a form of entertainment for people. With speech people could listen to music, talk shows, and even sporting events.


Big Breakthrough


Once speech was invented, their came many different stations and shows one could listen to. So their needed to be a way to separate the stations from one another so you could hear them clearly. In the 1920's AM radio was invented by Reginald Fessenden which intensified radio waves to allow easy listening to music and voice. Later in 1933, Edward Howard Armstrong invented FM radio to separate stations from one another. AM and FM radio are easily the most important part of the development of radio because without it radio would not be what we know it to be; an entertainment platform with a variety of different stations and genres to listen to.

Radio is widely considered a major breakthrough in 20th century technology. Radio was a cheap way of entertainment and it could be taken with you anywhere. Today, radio can be listened to anywhere. In your car, in a restaurant, and even on your phone or computer. Without the invention of radio it is safe to say that the world of communication and entertainment would not be the same today.