Quote:
Originally Posted by barryem
i read an article 30 or 40 years ago, I think in the magazine Psychology Today, that discussed the Orson Welles "War of the Worlds" broadcast and how it changed the world. One of it's effects was that it convinced the world that people actually listened to radio and that advertising was worth doing.
That broadcast was done by The Mercury Theater on the Air, a radio show with no sponsor. There had been a lot of such shows up till then. They were called Sustaining Shows by the networks because they were thought to enhance the network's reputation and the network paid their bills.
After that the show's name changed to "The Campbell Playhouse", sponsored by Campbell's Soup. Other sustaining shows found sponsors not long after as well.
There had been advertising before that but that's when it became the main thing. So blame Orson Welles. It's all his fault. 
Another effect of that show, according to that article, was to convince Hitler, and later the rest of the world, of the value of propaganda.
Barry |
Didn't they announce just once at the beginning it was a work of fiction and IIRC the year was 1937.