Blog Post 3- Radio

The advertisement industry in part helped shape American radio to focus on economic interests.The advertisement industries focused on product placement to finiance their broadcastings. Advertisers saw that the radio was, "direct access to the home." The advertiser's also realized that the entertainment programs, as opposed to the news programs, attracted more listeners and would provide a larger audience for their products.

This concept of plugging advertisements into entertainment programs had no objections in the 1920s because of the enthusiasum over this new medium. "Advertisers saw a way to help create and then reach a mass consumer public, turning people first and foremost into consumers by promoting their goods on the airwaves. This changed how Americans thought about money, careers, credit, even where they wanted to live: country, small town, or city" (Hilmes, 1997). Advertisers placing economic interests above everything else, and having no objections by the public, allowed for this form of commercial advertising-based model to expand and grow. Listeners became accustomed to hearing ads in their programs of products such as Coca-Cola and Camel Cigarettes.

http://www.oldtimeradiofans.com/old_radio_commercials/Camel_Cigarettes.php
This is a link for an old Camel Cigarette commercial that was broadcasted on the radio in the 1920s.

http://indymotorspeedway.com/cigs/1920s.html