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Article: "Silent Cal" and radio

C

CrankyYankee

Calvin Coolidge, in 1924, became our first American president to effectively use the newly created radio despite the fact that his Vermont accent made the word cow sound like three syllables. After all, this was a time before our homogenized American accent ruled the airwaves. Historical memory recalls Franklin D. Roosevelt with his fireside chats as the first presidential radio communication, but Coolidge predates him by a decade.

http://www.rutlandherald.com/apps/p...03/712130301/1039/OPINION03&template=printart
 
The article you quote is from the head of the "Calvin Coolidge Memorial Foundation."

As a student, I heard recordings of Coolidge at the National Voice Library. He sounded something like Cliff Clavin, only with a higher voice and the accent was thicker.

During his administration, not many people were listening to radio, it was not a time of national crisis and Coolidge was not as eloquent as Roosevelt. I don't think the statement that Coolidge was the first to use radio "effectively" is warranted, although (unlike some more recent politicians) he didn't screw up either.
 
Perhaps a better choice of word may have been "extensively" (rather than "effectively") instead?

"Calvin Coolidge was the first president to use radio extensively."
That quote is taken from the White House Historical Assn.

Also from that source is:

"President Andrew Jackson (1829-1837), a very popular leader, spoke to only 10,000 people at his inauguration. One hundred years later, President Warren Harding (1921-1923) was heard before an audience of 125,000. President Coolidge broadcast his inaugural address to 23 million radio listeners on March 4, 1925."

There's no doubt the audience for President Roosevelt wartime speeches and addresses was much larger and listened to more closely. Cal happened to be the President at the point when radio was really getting going and thereby was obliged to utilitze the medium.
 
He was still a man of few words.

Once, a bet was made that he (Cal) could be induced to say more than two words.
The person who made the bet explained the challenge to Calvin.
His answer was "You lose."
 
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