WSJV Studios and ER's Radio Journalism

By 1930, 40 percent of American families owned a radio. Eight years later, 90 percent of homes in in Washington DC had one. The District of Columbia became a major center for radio operations, especially as news and political journalism moved onto the air. CBS acquired radio station WJSV in 1933 as their Washington base and in 1934 opened up headquarters on the eighth floor of the Earle Building. Besides ER, the WJSV studios hosted other major figures such as Edward R. Murrow and Walter Cronkite.

Like these men, ER moved from print to radio journalism as the medium took off. ER hosted a number of programs during her years in the White House, two of which aired on CBS. One, “Americans of Tomorrow,” was an education-focused program sponsored by the Typewriter Educational Research Bureau which aired in November and December of 1934. Another, “It’s a Woman’s World”, discussed women in American society and covered life in the White House. It aired on CBS from February through April 1935, sponsored by the Shelby Shoe Company.

ER came to be admired by those in the radio business. In the May-October 1939 issue of Radio Mirror, Jerry Mason wrote an article titled “Eleanor Roosevelt--Radio’s Favorite Guest.” The article praises her as one of radio’s top personalities, citing her engaging presence and her professionalism. Mason ends his article with an anecdote about ER leaving a broadcast:

As Mrs. Roosevelt started to leave the auditorium, a policeman came up to her: “Mrs. Roosevelt, there’s a tremendous crowd out front waiting for you. But I’ve cleared the back way and you can get right away.” Her answer is a complete revelation of the character of the simple, unassuming woman who is America’s First Lady. She smiled as she said: “Oh Spinach--I’m going the front way.”

ER always sought to speak to people on a personal level, and radio allowed her into their very living rooms, as they did her husband in his famous fireside chats. Her words brought Washington's politics to so many people who had previously felt cut-off from federal policy, especially American women. Both ER and FDR used radio as an important tool to reach a broad swath of Americans in a way that hadn’t been done before.

/erpapers.columbian.gwu.edu/radio-and-television The Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Project has transcribed many of Eleanor Roosevelt's radio and television programs.