Princeton Radio Research Project - Revision history

Crosbie Smith: rm Adorno detail; not key here

2011-02-19T13:11:29Z

rm Adorno detail; not key here

Crosbie Smith: sent to help -> seconded

2011-02-19T13:08:18Z

sent to help -> seconded

Crosbie Smith: relationship to Office of Radio Research; funding, & a ref

2011-02-19T12:35:50Z

relationship to Office of Radio Research; funding, & a ref

Crosbie Smith: moved Princeton Radio Project to Princeton Radio Research Project: More Google hits (web or books)

2011-02-19T12:09:58Z

moved Princeton Radio Project to Princeton Radio Research Project: More Google hits (web or books)

Crosbie Smith: rm. duplication

2011-02-19T08:26:18Z

rm. duplication

Crosbie Smith: add ref

2011-02-19T08:25:23Z

add ref

Crosbie Smith: reflect name change - 'Princeton ' Radio Project

2011-02-19T08:17:29Z

reflect name change - 'Princeton ' Radio Project

Crosbie Smith: moved Radio Project to Princeton Radio Project: referred to as this in more respectable publications

2011-02-19T08:16:52Z

moved Radio Project to Princeton Radio Project: referred to as this in more respectable publications

Crosbie Smith: content from Wikipedia

2011-02-19T07:38:50Z

content from Wikipedia

New page

The '''Radio Project''' was a [[social research]] project funded by the [[Rockefeller Foundation]] to look into the effects of mass media on society.

In 1937, the Rockefeller Foundation started funding research to find the effects of new forms of mass media on society, especially radio. Several universities joined up and a headquarters was formed at the [[Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs|School of Public and International Affairs]] at [[Princeton University]]. The following people were involved:

* [[Paul Lazarsfeld]] - Director of the Radio Project
* [[Theodor Adorno]] - Chief of the Music Division
* [[Hadley Cantril]] - A psychologist at [[Princeton University]]'s [[Princeton University Department of Psychology|Department of Psychology]]
* [[Gordon Allport]] - another of Lazarsfeld's assistants, went on to be the [[Tavistock Institute]]'s leading representative in the United States.
* [[Frank Stanton]] - Researcher from CBS sent to help the project, went on to become president of [[CBS]].

Among the Project's first studies were [[soap opera]]s, known as [[radio drama]]s at the time.

The Radio Project also researched the 1938 Halloween broadcast of ''[[The War of the Worlds (radio)|The War of the Worlds]]''. They found that of the estimated 6 million people who heard this broadcast, 25% thought it was real. Most of the people who panicked did not think that it was an invasion from Mars that was occurring, but rather an invasion by the Germans. It was later determined that because of the radio broadcasts from the [[Munich Crisis]] earlier in the year, the masses were prone to this.

A third research project was that of listening habits. Because of this, a new method was developed used to survey an audience - this was dubbed the [[Little Annie Project]]. The official name was the [[Stanton-Lazarsfeld Program Analyzer]]. This allowed one not only to find out if a listener liked the performance, but how they felt at any individual moment, through a dial which they would turn to express their preference (positive or negative). This has since become an essential tool in focus group research.

[[Theodor Adorno]] produced numerous reports on the effects of "atomized listening" which radio supported and of which he was highly critical. However, because of profound methodological disagreements with Lazarsfeld over the use of techniques like listener surveys and "Little Annie" (Adorno thought both grossly simplified and ignored the degree to which expressed tastes were the result of commercial marketing), Adorno left the project in 1941.

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 A third research project was that of listening habits. Because of this, a new method was developed used to survey an audience - this was dubbed the [[Little Annie Project]]. The official name was the [[Stanton-Lazarsfeld Program Analyzer]]. This allowed one not only to find out if a listener liked the performance, but how they felt at any individual moment, through a dial which they would turn to express their preference (positive or negative). This has since become an essential tool in focus group research.
 ==Notes==
 <references/>

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-The '''Princeton Radio Project''' was a [[social research]] project funded by the [[Rockefeller Foundation]] to look into the effects of mass media on society.
+Beginning in 1937, the '''Princeton Radio Research Project''' was a large-scale study on the social effects of radio. An [[Bureau of Applied Social Research|Office of Radio Research]] was created to carry out the work, initially under the auspices of Princeton University, New Jersey.  Initial funding of $67,000 was provided by the [[Rockefeller Foundation]].<ref>{{cite book
+|title=The history of media and communication research: contested memories
-In 1937, the Rockefeller Foundation awarded funds to Princeton psychologist [[Hadley Cantril]] for a large-scale study on the social effects of radio.<ref>{{cite book
+|author=David W. Park, Jefferson Pooley
-|title=Paul Lazarsfeld: A Biographical Memoir
+|quote=$67000 over two years to fund a "Princeton Radio Research Project,"
-|pages=258
+|date=2008
-|url=http://books.nap.edu/html/biomems/plazersfeld.pdf
+|publisher=Peter Lang Publishing
-|author=David L. Sills
+|isbn=0820488291}}</ref>
 Participants included:
 * [[Paul Lazarsfeld]] - Director of the Radio Project
 * [[Theodor Adorno]]  - Chief of the Music Division
 * [[Gordon Allport]]  - another of Lazarsfeld's assistants, went on to be the [[Tavistock Institute]]'s leading representative in the United States.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 The '''Princeton Radio Project''' was a [[social research]] project funded by the [[Rockefeller Foundation]] to look into the effects of mass media on society.
-In 1937, the Rockefeller Foundation started funding research to find the effects of new forms of mass media on society, especially radio.  Several universities joined up and a headquarters was formed at the [[Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs|School of Public and International Affairs]] at [[Princeton University]].  The following people were involved:
+In 1937, the Rockefeller Foundation awarded funds to Princeton psychologist [[Hadley Cantril]] for a large-scale study on the social effects of radio.<ref>{{cite book
 * [[Paul Lazarsfeld]] - Director of the Radio Project
@@ Line 16: / Line 24: @@
 [[Theodor Adorno]] produced numerous reports on the effects of "atomized listening" which radio supported and of which he was highly critical. However, because of profound methodological disagreements with Lazarsfeld over the use of techniques like listener surveys and "Little Annie" (Adorno thought both grossly simplified and ignored the degree to which expressed tastes were the result of commercial marketing), Adorno left the project in 1941.

← Older revision		Revision as of 08:17, 19 February 2011
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−	The '''Radio Project''' was a [[social research]] project funded by the [[Rockefeller Foundation]] to look into the effects of mass media on society.	+	The '''Princeton Radio Project''' was a [[social research]] project funded by the [[Rockefeller Foundation]] to look into the effects of mass media on society.

	In 1937, the Rockefeller Foundation started funding research to find the effects of new forms of mass media on society, especially radio. Several universities joined up and a headquarters was formed at the [[Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs\|School of Public and International Affairs]] at [[Princeton University]]. The following people were involved:		In 1937, the Rockefeller Foundation started funding research to find the effects of new forms of mass media on society, especially radio. Several universities joined up and a headquarters was formed at the [[Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs\|School of Public and International Affairs]] at [[Princeton University]]. The following people were involved:

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 * [[Theodor Adorno]]  - Chief of the Music Division
 * [[Gordon Allport]]  - another of Lazarsfeld's assistants, went on to be the [[Tavistock Institute]]'s leading representative in the United States.
-* [[Frank Stanton]]   - Researcher from CBS sent to help the project, went on to become president of [[CBS]].
+* [[Frank Stanton]]   - CBS researcher seconded to the project; went on to become president at CBS.
 Among the Project's first studies were [[soap opera]]s, known as [[radio drama]]s at the time.

← Older revision	Revision as of 12:09, 19 February 2011
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← Older revision	Revision as of 08:16, 19 February 2011
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