Fireside Politics: Radio and Political Culture in the United States, 1920-1940

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.