Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-09-14
RADIO ANNIVERSARY.
TO Be CELEBRATED.
BroadCasting Is Proud of Ac-
CompIiShmentS of Past
Ten Years.

PITTSBURGH, Pa. LP.-Broadcast-
ing, proud of its accomplishments in so
short period, celebrates 1880 as its
tenth anniversary.
Inaugurated on election night, No
venber 2 1920. at the climax of the
Harding-Cox campaign, it feels that,
despite its youth, it really has done
more than could have been dreamed
of on that memorable night.
To KDKA. Pittsburgh, Familiarity
known on the air as 'the pioneer
broadcasting station of the world" is
given the credit for making an idea q
reality. 1t was this station which gave
the facts and figures of the vote at a
time when crystal sets were nearly as
expensive as the eight tube receivers Of
today.
Pioneer Artists to Be Heard.
In commemoration of the event,
KDKA is planning an anniversary
night program. In it will be heard
some of the pioneer artists and others
who have been important factors in
the building up of broadcasting
There also is father of broadcast
ing" He is H. P. Davis, vice president
of the Westinghouse Co., owner of
KDKA, who conceived the idea of using
the radio telephone for mass communi-
cation rather than merely for point-to-
point messages.
His company had been asked to I'M
dertake special work in radio by the
British government during the World
War, and by the time that the Ameri-
can Government decided 1t required
radio apparatus for military purposes
two experimental stations, OWN and
1--WE, were in operation. One was in
the East Pittsburgh works and the
other was five miles away, at the home
of Frank Conrad, assistant chief en-
gineer, in Pittsburgh.
After the war the company found
itself with a large investment and a
vast organization, and in solving this
problem it was decided to try out
broadcasting. Through experiments with
his station, Conrad was enabled to
improve transmission considerably. His
call letters then were Xxx.
Newspaper "Ad" Gave Davis Idea.
Davis hit on the idea of broadcasting
through a newspaper advertisement. A
Pittsburgh paper carried the announce
ment of department store saying 1t
had for sale few radio receivers over
which could be heard the transmissions
made by the Conrad Station.
conference d1C6E COlllCIcllCC OIOuSAAa
the decision to start actual broadcast
ing on election night. For this first
broadcast a wire connected the radio
station and its operating room, which
housed a transmitter requiring COM
paratively little space, to a Pittsburgh
newspaper.
one man copied the returns as they
came in by telephone. Another an
nounced them on a microphone looking
more like a telephone set. At home was
Mr.. Conrad standing by with his trans
mitter in case something went wrong at
the station"
Audience Attested Success.
Broadcasting was a success. That
was the verdict of the small first audi
ence. After operating KDKA nine
months, the company opened WBZ, at
Springfield, Mass, in September, 1921
WIZ, Newark, N. j., october IL, 1921
and KYW, Chicago, November IL, 1922
Now KDKA is planning to lead the
field in other respects. 1t is building 9
2OO-kilowatt transmitter, the outgrowtf
of that small station of long ago.
Just like the present transm1tter, re-
curing q spacious room to house, dwar1S
that first broadcast set, the new plant
will be a giant when compared with the
apparatus now In use.