Broadcast television

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Description

In 1927, Herbert Hoover made TV history by appearing in one of America's first experimental broadcasts; 33 years later, the televising of the Kennedy-Nixon debates changed the face of political history forever. This program covers the progress of broadcast TV, from experimental novelty, to its emergence as a mass media powerhouse, and on to its current state as an industry with declining audience-share. In addition, the growth of public television and the symbiotic nature of the network-affiliate relationship are discussed. Can this once-dominant medium, now eroded by cable TV, VCRs, the Internet, and Nintendo, regain its past glory? This program is a necessary resource for any study of the history of broadcast television and its role in American culture.