World Radio Day

"Radio is the theater of the mind..."- Steve Allen.

Nikola Tesla was granted the first radio patents in 1900, resulting in Guglielmo Marconi’s initial radio patents to be denied that same year. Four years later, the U.S. patent office reversed its decision and awarded Marconi the patent for inventing radio, despite the fact that Marconi’s devices used 17 of Tesla’s patents. In 1943, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld Tesla’s original patents, but the history books had already recorded the name “Marconi” as the inventor of radio. In 1920, the world’s first commercial radio station, KDKA, went on the air in Pittsburgh. FM Radio made its first appearance in 1939.

Now 62% of shoppers are listening to the radio an average of 14 minutes prior to shopping.

13 February is World Radio Day — a day to celebrate radio as a medium; to improve international cooperation between broadcasters; and to encourage major networks and community radio alike to promote access to information, freedom of expression and gender equality over the airwaves.

World Radio Day is about celebrating radio, why we love it and why we need it today more than ever. A day to remember the unique power of radio to touch lives and bring people together across every corner of the globe. It was proclaimed on 3 November 2011 by UNESCO’s 36th General Conference after originally proposed by the Kingdom of Spain (36 C/Resolution 63; A/RES/67/124).

The date of 13 February, the day the United Nations radio was established in 1946, was proposed by the Director-General of UNESCO. The objectives of the Day will be to raise greater awareness among the public and the media of the importance of radio; to encourage decision makers to establish and provide access to information through radio; as well as to enhance networking and international cooperation among broadcasters.

Interesting facts about US Radio: only six radio stations as for 2014 east of the Mississippi River can still use “K” as the first letter in their call signs. Every other station uses “W.” Canadian radio stations begin with the letter “C” while stations in Mexico begin with “X.”

Source: unesco.org | un.org