When it first appeared in the 1930s, FM radio was a technological marvel, providing better sound and nearly eliminating the static that plagued AM stations. It took another forty years, however, for FM's popularity to surpass that of AM. In Sounds of Change, Christopher Sterling and Michael Keith detail the history of FM, from its inception to its dominance (for now, at least) of the airwaves.Initially, FM's identity as a separate service was stifled,...

When television became the next big thing in broadcast entertainment, everyone figured video would kill the radio star-and radio, period. But radio came roaring back with a whole new concept. Visionary entrepreneurs like Todd Storz pioneered the Top 40 concept, which united a generation. But it took trendsetting disc jockeys like Alan Freed, Murray the K, Wolfman Jack, Cousin Brucie, and their fast-talking, too-cool-for-school counterparts across...

"This history encompasses the four transcontinental webs that operated during the pre-television Golden Age, plus local and regional hookups, developments that have occurred in the decades since including the impact of television, rise of the disc jockey, rise of talk radio and other specialized formatting, implications of satellite technology and consolidation of networks and local stations."--Provided by publisher.

A history of radio's effects on American society in the 1930s and 1940s.