The short film Radio and Television from 1940 is an informational video for high school students of the time who wished to go into the field of radio work. It describes different jobs available in the field as well as the training required for each position. In addition to this, it also gives an idea of exactly how complex the radio system of 1940 was. It also goes on to show how the technology used in radios was used to develop the first television receiver sets. This shows that the radio technology that everyone at the time made frequent use of and likely took for granted to a certain degree was much more complex than it seems.
This video is highly relevant to a 21st century class on The Information Society because of the perspective it can provide. It shows that common communications technology appears simple on the outside, but that's only because complex systems in the background make it seem that way. For example, people today have a tendency to log onto the Internet and think nothing of it, not realizing the incredibly complicated and complex systems that can connect one computer to another over great distances in order to share information. In short, this video provides a perspective of what goes into the development and maintenance required to advance communication technologies.
This video is also relevant to a 21st century class on The Information Society is because it shows how one communication technology can lead to another and how many communication technologies are, in fact, connected. While the video spends mot of the time talking about radio and opportunities for jobs in that field, it shifts focus at the end of the video to the development of the field of television. It mentions how the technology used in radio was used to development the television. This shows a modern class that communication technologies are not separate entities, but rather a long line where one technology leads to the next in continual advancement and development.
1 comment:
Scott,
I found that your last point, on building connections between different communication mediums, really related back to my video and commentary as well, on the telephone. The idea of building connections and seeing these connections between different forms of technology is obviously a huge aspect of not only The Information Society, but all of our FIG classes. The fact that it can be applied to both your video on radio and television use, and to my video on the telephone shows that there is also a connection between telephone, radio, television, etc.
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