Your Life's Work: Radio and Television (1940)

[Music] have you ever looked inside your radio you probably have and perhaps you've taken the tubes out to test them the vacuum tube makes it possible to transmit sound whether By Radio a loudspeaker system or a motion picture projector the vacuum tube has been responsible for the growth of radio into a business involving thousands of people and millions of dollars like any business radio broadcasting employs a great many people in general office work such as correspondents dinography clerks and bookkeepers Executives and managers of special departments salesmen who sell time on the air to advertisers experts to select the talent for programs are all a necessary part of radio broadcasting continuity writers prepare script and other writers handled publicity news and material for special educational and farm programs news commentators broadcast stories gathered from all corners of the world often analyzing important events and expressing their own opinions regarding them for regularly scheduled programs the production department has a multitude of Duties to perform primarily concerned with planning and preparing the programs to go on the air sound effects add realism to dramatic programs and are produced by specialists in a small although very interesting field actors and actresses perform for unseen audiences and control men skillfully operate the apparatus which mixes sound effects music and dialogue the best the world has to offer in music drama and comedy may be enjoyed in one's own home or radio's greatest application is in broadcasting Mass entertainment many programs are broadcast over Radio Networks and telephone lines are employed to connect the studio with the various stations as a program May originate in a studio at New York or Hollywood the use of telephone wires makes it possible for stations thousands of miles away to broadcast the program the master controls are operated by who have advanced from the ranks their work requires perfect coordination of mind and hand for station hookups must be made on the Split Second during the short period allowed for station identification telephone lines which have been set up in advanc are connected to feed the program to the network station the maintenance of radio broadcasting equipment employs a large number of workers known as technicians it is their job to see that the the apparatus is kept in perfect working order in the stations we find these men at work on the amplifiers and on the power equipment they are not developing new methods or devices but are maintaining those which have already been developed by the engineer radio Engineers are men technically trained in the field of electrical engineering as applied to radio and Communications they have brought about the high degree of perfection now attained both in broadcasting equipment and in radio receiving set this work of improvement and development is continually being carried on by the relatively small number of highly trained Specialists who are radio Engineers theirs are among the top positions in radio these positions have been filled by men without professional training but today there is little chance for a man to become a radio engineer without training in a first class engineering School radio Manufacturing in general is classified as unskilled work as most of the jobs can be mastered in a very short time many women are employed assembling and inspecting radios as the work is not heavy ordinarily such work does not lead to responsible positions and should be avoided unless one will be satisfied with employment in manufacturing however men with training are sometimes placed in the production Department of radio manufacturing plants to gain practical experience this work serves also as a Proving Ground for these men and those who qualify May advance to positions of Greater responsibility because radio broadcasts are so popular the public demands prompt and efficient repair service to radio sets this has created a large field of employment however the supply of radio servicemen generally exceeds the need and this makes it extremely difficult for any but the well- trained to succeed in the work often the most successful radio dealers and salesmen are those who can talk with authority about the products they sell frequently because they've had practical experience in radio repair work the Radio Service field is not a good stepping stone to the radio engineer job unless it is followed or accompanied by technical engineering training a very interesting field of work is that the radio operator who sends and receives messages he must be able to send and receive the international moris code at a specified number of words per minute granting of the commercial operator's license is based on a rigid government examination conducted by the Federal Communications Commission and it must be renewed periodically radio operators are found on practically all large ships they communicate with other ships and with radio stations on land the operator at the land station sends and receives commercial messages handles weather reports and listens for distress signals from ships at Sea Air Travel has become safe today largely because of the application of radio principles on commercial airlines the licensed Pilots must be radio operators in addition to flying the plane they must report their positions and get their bearings weather information and Landing instructions from the radio operators at the ground stations the ground station operator does not have to be an aviator in addition to handling messages he must understand the theory of radio and how to make minor repairs in order to keep his station on the air the operator's work is to maintain contact with planes in Flight as well as to communicate with other airports regarding schedules passenger reservations and weather conditions men with radio training often find employment in Allied lines using basic radio principles among these is a sound movie through the use of microphone amplifier and vacuum tube the sound for Motion Pictures is photographically recorded on the edge of the film to form the soundtrack when the soundtrack reaches a thousands of theaters it is reproduced by means of a photo El electric cell or electric eye amplifi and a loud speaker system maintenance men with fundamental knowledge of radio technique are constantly employed to keep this delicate equipment in working order public address systems also use some of the principles of radio they range from the temporary and portable unit to permanent installations in large Auditorium many operators of portable public address systems own their own equipment which is in demand at county fairs sporting events political rallies and conventions this type of work requires some special training but the field is so crowded that it offers few really good jobs the better jobs are those planning and installing the large permanent public address systems but this work requires a thorough background in radio and acoustical engineering another field requiring thorough engineering training is the transmission of photographs by wire and radio new Services maintain photo transmitters at strategic points and the newspaper subscribing to this service get the photographs over receiving instruments in their own offices television the baby of the radio family is creating openings for experienced Engineers most of whom are graduating from Radio work from the scene of action cameramen televis events which you may see in your own home if of course you have a television receiver television is opening up a new field as does any new development it is Furnishing employment for men who design operate install and service the transmitters and receivers but men with radio experience especially those who have prepared themselves through study and application are given preference specialized training study and hard work are necessary in All Phases of radio in spite of the size and importance of the radio field it doesn't hold great opportunity except for those who are are able to secure the highly Technical Training which it requires the best training is that obtained at a first class electrical engineering school specializing in Communications engineering if that is impossible there are a few vocational and correspondence schools which offer excellent courses in the theory of radio however you should ask your school authorities to help you investigate any school residents or a correspondence which you may plan to attend your high school preparation for entrance into radio work must lay a strong foundation in Science and Mathematics the basis of all engineering and especially of electrical engineering you must in addition develop a high degree of coordination between hand and mind because much of the work is very exacting in nature if you are really interested in radio as your life work probably one of the best ways to get started is to make it a hobby and build an amateur station this will give you the chance to put basic theory in Practical operations it will show you more quickly than anything else whether or not you can succeed in radio [Music]