Notes from Chapter 13: Society and Technological Change

The ideas and examples referenced below are notes compiled by Robert Keel from his reading of Volti, Rudi. 2014. Society and Technological Change. 7th edition. New York, NY: Worth Publishers. They are intended for classroom use.

The Electronic Media

• The printed word was the dominant type of communication after it was invented.
• Toward the end of the 19th century this began to change.

The Invention of Radio

• Telegraph: first device to make use of electricity for sending and receiving signals.
  • Samuel Morse, inventor, The Morse code -- dots and dashes represented words.
  • Used for many things: railroads; news from other regions became accessible; financial data.
  • Limitations: many trained operators required; telegraph wires had to be strung--expensive.
• Wireless communication needed.
  • Heinrich Hertz -- produced radio waves with an oscillator (rapidly generated electrical impulses).
  • Hertz focus was of purely scientific inquiry, but others saw practical application resulting from his work.
  • Guglielmo Marconi (see also) credited with the invention of the radio, but others also contributed (Oliver Lodge and tuning).
  • Sound transmission, versus dots and sashes, required continuous waves--Ronald Fessenden: heterodyne transmission and reception.
  • And, then improved transmission devices--small current (radio waves) used to control larger current (speakers): 1904 by John Ambrose Fleming.

  The Origins of Commercial Radio

  • Rapid development, but application limited.
  • Radio: main use was for ship to shore applications.
  • Transmit messages across oceans--replacing the need for trans-oceanic cables.
  • Used during WWI: logistics and communications. WWI also led to technical improvements in radio transmission and manufacture.
  • 1920s--Amateur radio operators began using radio to transmit personal messages, weather bulletins, musical recordings, etc.
    • Even some activity akin to "hacking."
    • Improved technology--new applications, construction, and expanding potential.
  • Corporations, inspired by profit, developed interest in radio.
    • Westinghouse, 1920, builds first broadcasting station in Pittsburgh.
    • KDKA broadcasts presidential election results, November 2, 1920, to an audience of a few hundred.
    • By 1922: over 500 stations--sporting events, speeches, music, and news.
  • First programs were low-budget -- phonograph recordings had tiny royalties, live performers usually did so for free
  • ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers) began demanding fees, 1923.
  • Other societies, Great Britain, established a national system. USA: free market--commercials
  • Broadcasting continues to expand. By 1930, listening to the radio was part of everyday life, and included a steady stream of advertising.

The Rise of Television

• Radio could only reach one sense -- the desire for a mode of communication that contained sound and pictures was sought.
• The word "television" appears in print (Scientific American) in 1907.
• Early efforts to transmit the pictures electronically depended on the Nipkow Disk (British Broadcasting Corporation in 1929).
  • Disk perforated by holes arranged in spiral, interposed between object and screen containing selenium cells (could activate electrical current when light fell on it).
  • As disk rotated, pinpoints of light moved across the screen, generating a picture. Very slow and inefficient process. Required a great deal of illumination.
• Technological advance--starting in the late 19th century continued. Most important--cathode ray tube: beam of electrons could be deflected by a magnet (Ferdinand Braun, 1897). Boris Rosing (Russia), adds photoelectric cells to be activated by electrons.
• Vladimir Zworykin (Russian émigré and assistant to Rosing), working for Westinghouse (RCA) produced first workable television camera (1928) called the Iconoscope.
• At the same time (maybe even before), a young Philo Farnsworth in Idaho develops a workable TV system. By 1938, he goes broke. Nonetheless, he controlled many relevant patents. In 1935, the courts ruled Farnsworth the "inventor of the television." RCA and David Sarnoff (president of RCA) finally agreed to pay $1 million and royalties, but by the 1940s, the patent expired.
• First "public" TV broadcast by RCA--1936
• 1939 -- Radio Corporation of America (RCA) began the regular broadcast of TV programs to a few thousand receivers in NYC.
  • TVs had a dim picture and 5 inch screens.
  • Still issues in signal relay and antenna design.
  • But, TV was here.

The Federal Government Steps In

• Development of radio and TV was largely a private enterprise, but the federal government played important role.
  • Military contracts and R&D.
  • Unified radio industry--national security.
    • Navy's concern over British Marconi Company's control over international communication.
    • GE buys American subsidiary, transfers to RCA. Other patent holders, Westinghouse and AT&T, receive financial stake for use of patents. End result--a radio monopoly (driven by US government concerns).
• Federal government used its regulatory power to insure an orderly environment for broadcasting.
  • Used licensing and minimum requirements for broadcasting.
  • Broadcasters could only broadcast on a specific frequency.
  • Challenged in court--leads to "anarchy on the airwaves."
• Federal government establishes the Federal Radio Commission (1927), which later becomes the Federal Communications Commissions (FCC) in 1934.
  • 7 person panel, each serving 7 year term; appointed by President.
  • Revokes licenses of some deemed unfit for the public interest, limits access to licenses for others.
  • Essential element in the system of radio broadcasting: licenses for specific bandwidth keep signal interference at a minimum.
  • When TV went into its period of rapid growth in the late 1940’s and 50’s some of its success could be attributed to the uniform technical standards developed by FCC.
    • Standards developed by RCA (early player with total system) became the standards. Other developers had to pay royalties.
    • FCC gives go-ahead for commercial TV broadcasting in 1940, yet pulls back. Resolves issues in 1941, but WWII intervenes.
    • After the war, the uniform standards clear the way for rapid growth.

Problems of Regulation

• 1934 Communications Act: grant and renew licenses based on "public interest, convenience, and necessity."
• FCC typically renews broadcasting license if broadcaster meets minimum requirements. Thus, quality control has often gone by the wayside.
• Issue of government interference in the private sector, but:
  • Reallocation of FM frequencies in the 1930s--benefits RCA, but not FM's inventor, Edwin Armstrong.
  • RCA also benefited in 1953 when its color TV technology supported of that of CBS.
• FCC is often at the mercy of industry, who has technical expertise, whereas FCC does not.
• FCC commissioners often leave FCC to work for broadcasting companies -- Conflict of Interest.
• The FCC, like other regulatory agencies, is independent from other branches of government, therefore often lacks political support--industry under regulation becomes the source of support ("regulatory capture").
• FCC commissioners have "generally opted for the status quo…broadcasting [became] little more than a way of making large sums of money." (Volti, page 249)

• 1950 -- 4.6 hours of TV watching per day.
• 1970 -- 5.9 hours of TV watching per day.
• 1980 -- 6.5 hours of TV watching per day.
• 1988 -- 7.1 hours of TV watching per day.
• 2010-2011--34 hours and 39 minutes per week (4.9 hours per day).
• 2015--2.5 hours (15 years of age and older) (survey by BLS). Nielson reports 5 hours for all americans in 2014 (see data for 2015, 18-34 year olds).
• 1992 -- 192 Million TV sets in America.
• 2012: only 114.7 million! (see also)
• 2015: 116.4 million--why the increase?
• 1992: 98.9% of all American households own at least one TV. In 2012: 96.7% (analog to digital conversion in 2009), 95.% in 2015.
• Qualifications:
• Just because TV is on doesn’t mean it is being actively viewed.
• TV is often in the background of American domestic life, much like wallpaper.
• Better-educated people don’t watch less TV, they watch different TV -- public TV.
• Children watch less than adults and those over 65 watch the most.

Violence on Television and Its Consequences

• 12 year old will have seen 8,000 murders on TV.
• 18 year old will have seen 200,000 violent acts on TV
• 61% of TV programs have some violence (down for 80% in the 1990s).
• 75% of violent acts on TV entail no immediate consequences.
• Does violence on TV cause aggressive behavior in its viewers? Hotly debated issue.
  • 1960s: Bobo the Clown experiment.
• Children are more likely to play with toy guns after seeing filmed aggressive acts, even if gunplay did not appear in the film.
• Laboratory experiments that study this relationship are NOT real life. Issue of immediate versus long-term effects.
• "Naturalistic" studies link viewing "normal" violent programming with aggressive behavior
• Studies of actual viewing habits: positive correlation between watching violent TV programs and aggressive behavior.
• Violence cannot be entirely linked to TV violence. The social world is far more complex than to be explained by a simple relationship.
  • Violent behavior is a product of complex motivations and inhibitions.
  • Perhaps those aggressively inclined prefer to watch violent TV?
• We do not commit an act of violence because:
  • We have learned that such actions are likely to result in retaliation (yet most TV violence--no consequences).
  • We know that they usually do not solve the problem (on TV, violence often used to attain socially approved goals).
  • We have internalized a code of behavior that discourages such acts (exposure to violence on TV may desensitize).
  • So, TV can alter these inhibiting factors. Controlled research demonstrates that violent TV can be and independent factor in higher levels of aggressive behavior, especially in those predisposed to aggression.
• Parental control--V-chip?

Television, Information, and News

• Until recent times most people were blissfully ignorant of the world around them (Battle of New Orleans in 1812 was fought two weeks after the war was formally ended).
• Electronic communications has changed this. Especially in the 21st century--instantaneous communication.
• 1960--more people use TV for news than newspapers. 2010: 76% go to TV for local news (69% used newspapers, too).
• 2010: prime time network news: total of 21.6 million viewers.
• U.S. -- 15,000 newspapers; 12,000 periodicals; 400 million radios; 114 million TVs.
• TV has been the most important element in recent communication revolution.
• But TV is not completely dominant --
  • TV much less important for local news than the local newspapers.
  • For national and international news TV is prime source for coverage.
  • News presented on TV is fundamentally different than news that appears in papers.
• 2007 Pew Research Center
  • 38% who received most of their information from TV news correctly answered 15 of 23 questions on current events.
  • 51% of NPR listeners.
  • 54% of Daily Show and Colbert Report!
• News on TV presented as sound bite: 30 minute news show equivalent to one page of a newspaper.
  • Average TV news story: 1 minute and 20 seconds.
  • One study: 20% of viewers cannot recall a single item of news after one hour.
• Newspaper -- impersonal, background, and analysis; TV -- storytelling. Visually oriented entertainment.
• Pew Research Journalism Project: State of the News Media 2014.

Television and Politics

• Has TV fundamentally altered the political process?
• No doubt politics of today is far different from the days of Harry Truman (1948), who campaigned from the back of a railroad car.
• Today, TV advertising plays a big role in elections.
• Prime time TV ads -- $110,000+ for 30 seconds (see also).
• Attack ads.
• Typical political campaign budgets 1/3 for TV advertising. April 3-November 8, 2008: McCain spent $125,553,148 and Obama spent $235,974,838. Spending in 2012 totaled $524 million.
• Increased costs for campaigns leads to politicians under the influence of powerful, wealthy interest groups, PAC, and Super PACs, which may or may not represent the will of the population.
• TV can influence elections:
  • 35% voters do not decide who they’ll vote for until the last week of election.
  • 10% undecided right up to the day of the election.
  • It is these groups on which TV ads can have the most impact.
• TV ads can be detrimental to the political process because ads often reduce a politician’s message to a sound bite. Real world problems are not so simple.
  • And network news has reduced length of a presidential candidate's spoken comments from 1 minute in 1968 to 8 seconds in 2008.
  • Solving complex problems in 30 seconds.

"As some critics have argued, the greatest threat to democracy may not come from the assault of hostile nations, but from the trivialization of the political process that occurs when television dictates the basic mode of discourse and comprehension." (Volti page 257)

Television and Thought

• McLuhan: television as a "cool" medium:
  • Indistinct--we "fill in the blanks" to involve all senses.
  • Non-linear.
  • Mode of perception that affects other aspects of our lives: all-at-once involvement.
• Child development:
  • 2D to 3D recognition (type of program). Temporary and limited to children with low language and visual skills. May be detrimental overall.
  • Decline in imagination (extent of viewing and type of programs).
  • Short attention span.
• Shift to digital media and other devices
  • New content providers.
  • Television on demand.
  • Commercialization?
• What's next?

Questions (pages 258-259):

1. In many countries, a considerable amount of television and radio broadcasting is done by organizations such as the British Broadcasting Corporation. In the United States, most broadcasting is done by commercial stations. What are the advantages and disadvantages of the two systems?
2. Political scientists have noted that regulatory agencies tend to be "captured" by the industry that they are regulating. Is this inevitable? Is it possible for regulatory agencies to prevent this from happening?
3. Do you agree with this chapter's general conclusions about television's influence on violent behavior? Do you think that there is too much violence on TV? Should television be more closely regulated so less violence appears on the screen?
4. Television commercials are a major part of campaigns for the presidency and congressional offices. In what ways has television affected the way that campaigns are run? On balance, has television been a positive or negative influence on political campaigns and campaigners?
5. Should parents try to control the television-viewing habits of their children? To what extent is it even possible to do so?
6. How do you watch televised material? Do you use a conventional TV set or a new media platform like a smartphone? What are the advantages or disadvantages of each?
7. Although many thought that radio would be completely replaced by television, this never happened, and, in the aggregate, radio stations are quite profitable today. How is radio programming today different from the "golden age of radio" in the 1930s and 1940s? Might network television also have to undergo major changes if it is to survive?
   
   

Chapter 14