Remarks on Radio in Brazil

摘要

The history of radio in Brazil is nearly as old as that in the United States. While some sources trace the history of radio in the United States through the Marconi stations as early as 1901 (McNicol, 1917), scholars date the beginnings of radio in Brazil in the 1920s. Clovis Reis (2004), for example, outlines three periods of the history of Brazilian radio-the experimental transmission phase (1922-1935), the era of consolidation and the Golden Era of media (1935-1955), and a period marked by the loss of radio space and audience due to television (1955-1976). Doris Haussen (2001) also notes the period of consolidation, but reflects the strong role of the State in shaping radio. She claims, regarding radio, that "its political power is undeniable, regardless of its orientation" (p. 11). She rightly argues that, as with any country or region, we must understand radio not only within the international sphere, but within the economic, social, and historical contexts of a particular culture. In fact, radio in Brazil may have different contours, different relations to the state, and different relations to national culture than in the United States or other cultures.