Fireside Politics: Radio and Political Culture in the United States, 1920-1940 (Reconfiguring American Political History) [Hardcover]

Douglas B. Craig (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 3, 2000 | ISBN-10: 0801864399 | ISBN-13: 978-0801864391 | Edition: 1

In Fireside Politics, Douglas B. Craig provides the first detailed and complete examination of radio's changing role in American political culture between 1920 and 1940—the medium's golden age, when it commanded huge national audiences without competition from television. Craig follows the evolution of radio into a commercialized, networked, and regulated industry, and ultimately into an essential tool for winning political campaigns and shaping American identity in the interwar period. Finally, he draws thoughtful comparisons of the American experience of radio broadcasting and political culture with those of Australia, Britain, and Canada.

Editorial Reviews

Review

An impressively researched and useful study... Craig subtly winds his interpretive, critical thread of the unfulfilled promise of radio as an engine of a more expansive democracy into a larger narrative about the institutional and ideological sway of commercial radio interests.

(Brett Gary Journal of American History 2005)

Douglas Craig's main goal was to write a political history of radio broadcasting in the United States before World War II; however, he has also succeeded in producing the best general study yet published on the development of radio broadcasting during this crucial period when key institutional and social patterns were established.

(Hugh R. Slotten Technology and Culture )

Fireside Politics is the most complete study so far of the interactions between broadcasting and the U.S. political system during the 'golden age' of radio... Likely to become a leading reference in continuing discussions over communication history, technology, and democracy.

(Stephen Ponder H-Pol, H-Net Reviews )

A fascinating study making good use of archival material as well as prior research.

(CBQ )

About the Author

Douglas B. Craig is a reader in history at the Australian National University. He is the author of After Wilson: The Struggle for the Democratic Party, 1920–1934.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: The Johns Hopkins University Press; 1 edition (October 3, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0801864399
• ISBN-13: 978-0801864391
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,399,382 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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