Audience Demand in Radio

Audience demand shaped the radio industry in the 1920s by determining how radio would be used and what would be broadcast.

Audience demand is an important force in any entertainment industry. A company can produce a product or show, but if the audience doesn't want it, it would be a waste of time and money. Although the company is who's making the product, its decision in what to make is influenced by what the audience wants. This causes the company to think about what kind of product would appeal to its audience; sometimes a company will even go so far as to take a survey or measure audience reaction to the product in some way before the product is released.

The radio was immensely popular with Americans in the 1920s. It became a means of escape from the repetitiveness of daily life, and as such it created a huge demand for new and more varied programs. Americans wanted to listen to music, news, and variety programs. Not only did this demand cause more programs to be broadcast, but it also compelled many people and companies to go into broadcasting themselves. Individuals wanted to get into the radio business to gain fame and companies wanted to get into advertising on the radio to reach a larger number of people with information about their products and services. For example, Media Now talks about Westinghouse opening KDKA in Pittsburgh because they realized regular radio broadcasts could help sell radios. Ultimately, it was audience demand that had the greatest impact on the continuation of the radio industry; the industry continued and grew because American audiences wanted it to.