The history of radio is a long and illustrious one. In today’s modern world, where we have television and the internet, you’d be forgiven for thinking that radio could have died out somewhere along the way. But it’s still alive and kicking, and playing an essential role in the lives of many.
The biggest moment in the history of radio would arguably be the invention of radio itself, but this is notoriously hard to pin down. If you look back at history you can see the precursors to the invention of radio as far back as the 1820s, along with names like Michael Faraday and Heinrich Rudolf Hertz.
It wasn’t until Nikola Tesla made a breakthrough in the latter years of the 19th century that radio as we know it today came to fruition. The first radio patent for was granted in 1896, and from then on things started moving quickly. Wireless telegraphy began to be used from 1899 onwards.
Tesla demonstrating wireless transmissions during his high frequency and potential lecture of 1891. Tesla later presented the fundamentals of radio in 1893.
It would be a few more years before the first broadcasts were made over the radio on a regular basis. This took place in 1916 and even then they were limited to Morse Code. It would be another three years before people would hear a voice over the radio, marking another major event in the history of the radio itself.
News reports were broadcast over the radio from around 1920 onwards, just a couple of years after the First World War ended. In truth radio didn’t really hit the airwaves properly until the 1920s, when more and more people had radios in their homes. There were also more radio channels being organized and broadcast.
Another major problem was soon discovered as more and more stations were started and broadcast by more people. Eventually interference started to degrade the signals you could hear, and that was the point when regulation came in. It was a necessary evil and meant that after some rules were laid down, everyone could enjoy better and clearer radio signals.
Perhaps the next major turning point in the history of radio was the Second World War. Since the First World War was over by the time radio really kicked into action, this was the first big opportunity for the radio to become an essential source of news.
But soon after this when television really made its grand entrance, radio was very nearly doomed altogether.
It’s understandable that radio should be neglected for a while as television took over. This was more than just sound – it had moving images which only increased in quality. But radio hung on and soon stabilized once again.
Throughout its history, radio has really come of age and gone into the 21st century now. With so much to offer and so much history behind it, it’s certain that radio will still be here for a long time to come .