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Wisconsin / Radio / History

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9XM Talking WHA Radio and the Wisconsin Idea Randall Davidson "9-X-M talking . . . department of physics . . . University of Wisconsin . . . stand by one minute . . ." These words crackled in the headphones of crystal sets around the country in 1921 as the University of Wisconsin radio station 9XM began its regular schedule of voice broadcasts. Randall Davidson provides the first comprehensive history of the University of Wisconsin radio station, WHA; affiliated state-owned station, WLBL; and the post­World War II FM stations that were the backbone of the network now known as Wisconsin Public Radio. 9XM Talking describes how, with homemade equipment and ideas developed from scratch, 9XM endured many struggles and became a tangible example of "the Wisconsin Idea," bringing the educational riches of the university to all the state's residents. From the beginning, those involved with the radio station felt it should provide a service for the practical use of Wisconsin citizens. The book's informative chapters cover the programs that allowed the medium of radio to benefit farmers and homemakers, to bring world-class educators into isolated rural schoolrooms, and to teach people all over Wisconsin everything from literature to history to touch-typing, long before anyone came up with the term "distance learning." Davidson concludes by discussing the claim that WHA has to the title "Oldest Station in the Nation." This groundbreaking book is based on archival materials dating back to the early twentieth century and includes dozens of historic photos and illustrations, many of which have never been published before. "Given the historical significance of WHA and the added insights about the station's early struggles for survival, this is an important work of broadcast history."–Alan G. Stavitsky, University of Oregon Randall Davidson joined Wisconsin Public Radio in 1990 as a news producer and news anchor. He is also the network's chief announcer and serves as the unofficial historian of WPR. He lives in Madison, Wisconsin. For more information contact our publicity manager, phone: (608) 263-0734, email: publicity@uwpress.wisc.edu Of related interest Something I Said?: Innuendo and Out the Other Michael Feldman

January 2007 LC: 2006008875 HE 512 pp. 6 x 9 73 b/w illus. ISBN: 0-299-21870-8 Cloth $34.95 s ISBN-13: 978-0-299-21870-6 To order, you can accumulate titles in the Shopping Cart by clicking on the bulleted lines below. You can submit your order electronically, paying for it with MasterCard or Visa. Click here for further explanation of shopping cart feature. Never ordered from us before? Read this first.

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