ABSTRACT
No serious historian questions the reality of these events, or denies the general contours of radio’s development in the United States. More than six decades later, however, historians are still interpreting the “how” and the “why” of broadcast radio’s emergence in the United States. They continue to theorize about the significance of the foundation of NBC or the Radio Act. And they examine previously ignored events, people, and programs in radio history to understand their significance. This dynamic process of interpretation and reinterpretation, this relentless application of theory to generate new understanding of old events, is characteristic of critical theory and its use in the history of electronic media.
