Mass Media

• Nickelodeons-

Newspapers

• Massive increase in number of newspapers available

• Sunday paper=bigger edition (why?)

Radio

• 1920- Westinghouse workers send music and baseball games over radio waves

• KDKA in Pittsburgh was the first for profit radio station in US (1st broadcast was Harding Pres. election)

• WWJ in Detroit soon follows

• (these stations had powerful signals- heard as far away as Australia!)

• NBC- major media network that connected stations around the nation

• Content:

• Sports, music (JAZZ), religious events, news, even drama-type shows

• Advertisers included Wrigleys, Maxwell House, Campbell’s, General Electric

Other Trends

• Flagpole sitting- “Shipwreck” Kelly- 49 days!

• Beauty pageants- Miss America

• (next day)

JAZZ

• Origins of Jazz-African American music of the south– Followed _____ and ________

• Improvisation

• Seemed to sum up the character of the decade

• 1929- 2/3 of all air time devoted to jazz

Jazz musicians

• Louie Armstrong- trumpet

• Duke Ellington- piano, composer, band leader

• George Gershwin- composer