The First Measured Century (2000)
The First Measured Century (2000) An ambitious and highly successful PBS attempt to provide a social, political, and economic overview of 20th century America through statistics and in-depth interviews. The statistical assessments, presented by Ben Wattenberg, who was intimately involved in monumental The Statistical Analysis of the United States: From Colonial Times to the Present (1976), are first rate. Middletown is viewed in the 1920s, then recently with follow-up interviews. Social change is measured, as is public perception of immigrants. Personally I was enchanted by the story of George Gallup's launch of the Gallup Polls, and his bet to return all fees for the year, if his prediction of the 1936 (FDR) election was erroneous. An excellent measure of the U.S. during bleak and exuberant times. The conclusion is that we are a confident nation much better off than a century earlier. The companion book, The First Measured Century: An Illustrated Guide to Trends in America, 1900-2000 provides a valuable collection of statistical data, with one-page introductions. However, it totally lacks the zesty personality of the video.
