History of Television Flashcards
Call Kai
Learn
Practice Test
Spaced Repetition
Match
Flashcards
Knowt Play1/44
Earn XP
Description and Tags
so far week 1 to week 5
Name | Mastery | Learn | Test | Matching | Spaced | Call with Kai | Chat |
|---|
No analytics yet
Send a link to your students to track their progress
45 Terms
Q: Who invented the Nipkow disk?
A: Paul Nipkow — early mechanical scanning device (1884).
Q: Who coined the word “television”?
A: Constantin Perskyi.
Q: Who made early mechanical TV (“stow pictures”)?
A: Charles Jenkins.
Q: What did AT&T demonstrate in 1927?
A: Long‑distance TV transmission.
Q: What technology made electronic TV possible?
A: Cathode‑ray tube (CRT) — electron beams create images.
Q: What happened in 1931?
A: First viable all‑electronic TV system.
Q: Why wasn’t TV invented by one person?
A: It required many inventions + corporate cooperation + government policy.
Q: What companies formed the cross‑licensing alliance?
A: GE, AT&T, Westinghouse, United Fruit.
Q: What did the alliance create?
A: RCA — a government‑supported private monopoly.
Q: Who was David Sarnoff?
A: RCA president; hyped TV; ran 134 exhibits in 1939; made TV a national mission.
Q: Who actually invented electronic TV?
A: Philo T. Farnsworth — all‑electronic TV system.
Q: Why did TV take off fast in America?
A: Strong economy, consumer culture, radio popularity, postwar boom.
Q: TV adoption numbers?
A: 1950 → 9%
1951 → first color TV
1955 → 86%
Q: Why did vaudeville dominate early TV?
A: Cheap, visual, familiar, perfect for early technology.
Q: Who was Milton Berle?
A: “Mr. Television” — star of Texaco Star Theater.
Q: Why did Milton Berle decline?
A: Competition, suburbanization, rising costs, Weaver’s advertising changes.
Q: What was Pat Weaver’s “magazine concept”?
A: Multiple sponsors buy short ads → networks control programming.
Q: What was CBS’s strategy under William Paley?
A: Buy top radio stars → move them to TV → invest in filmed sitcoms.
Q: What generation was born 1927–1945?
A: Silent Generation — cautious, conformist, unrebellious.
Q: What sitcom defined CBS’s rise?
A: I Love Lucy — filmed, suburban, family‑friendly.
Q: Why is The Twilight Zone “anomalous”?
A: Anthology format; bold; socially critical; not typical commercial TV.
Q: How did Rod Serling avoid censorship?
A: Used sci‑fi metaphors to hide commentary on race, conformity, politics.
Q: Why was early TV hard to preserve?
A: Mostly live, rarely recorded, low picture quality.
Q: What were the Halcyon Years?
A: 1955–1963 — TV expands with postwar prosperity + GI Bill.
Q: What did the GI Bill do?
A: Sent veterans to college; created middle‑class boom; expanded TV audiences.
Q: What show moved TV production from NY → LA?
A: I Love Lucy.
Q: What is the message of “Time Enough at Last”?
A: Irony, anti‑intellectualism, conformity, cruelty of fate.
Q: What is the message of “Eye of the Beholder”?
A: Beauty is socially constructed; conformity is dangerous.
Q: What is high brow culture?
A: Elite arts, opera, classical music, Ivy League taste.
Q: What is middle brow culture?
A: Educational, respectable, aspirational programming.
Q: What is low brow culture?
A: Mass entertainment — vaudeville, slapstick, westerns.
Q: What were Pat Weaver’s three innovations?
A: Participation ads, public service uplift, live programming
Q: What was Weaver’s T‑H‑T plan
A: Today → Home → Tonight — modern TV schedule.
Q: What was ABC’s comeback strategy?
A: Hollywood partnerships, alternative scheduling, targeting young families.
Q: What partnership saved ABC?
A: Disney — Disneyland, Davy Crockett.
Q: What is an oligopoly?
A: 3 networks (NBC, CBS, ABC) controlling national TV.
Q: Why was the Kennedy assassination broadcast important?
A: TV became America’s “central nervous system” during crisis.
Q: What are the four phases of TV production?
A: Sponsor → Network → Joint → Independent (Fin‑Syn).
Q: What did the Fin‑Syn Rule do?
A: Networks couldn’t own or syndicate shows → independent producers gained power.
Q: Who was Paul Klein?
A: NBC researcher who warned that poor audiences = bad for advertisers.
Q: What was CBS’s demographic strategy?
A: Target young urban professionals → “rural purge.”
Q: What show did ABC reject but CBS made a hit?
A: All in the Family.
Q: Why was All in the Family important?
A: Tackled race, gender, politics; appealed to young + old viewers.
Q: What was MASH about?*
A: Korean War setting → commentary on Vietnam; anti‑war themes.
Q: What was the peak network era?
A: 1974–75 — networks had 93.6% of prime‑time viewing.