1933 : FDR gives first fireside chat
On this day in 1933, eight days after his inauguration, President
Franklin D. Roosevelt gives his first national radio address or
"fireside chat," broadcast directly from the White House.
Roosevelt began that first address simply: "I want to talk for a few
minutes with the people of the United States about banking." He went
on to explain his recent decision to close the nation's banks in order
to stop a surge in mass withdrawals by panicked investors worried
about possible bank failures. The banks would be reopening the next
day, Roosevelt said, and he thanked the public for their "fortitude
and good temper" during the "banking holiday."
At the time, the U.S. was at the lowest point of the Great Depression,
with between 25 and 33 percent of the work force unemployed. The
nation was worried, and Roosevelt's address was designed to ease fears
and to inspire confidence in his leadership.
Roosevelt went on to deliver 30 more of these broadcasts between March
1933 and June 1944. They reached an astonishing number of American
households, 90 percent of which owned a radio at the time.
Journalist Robert Trout coined the phrase "fireside chat" to describe
Roosevelt's radio addresses, invoking an image of the president
sitting by a fire in a living room, speaking earnestly to the American
people about his hopes and dreams for the nation. In fact, Roosevelt
took great care to make sure each address was accessible and
understandable to ordinary Americans, regardless of their level of
education. He used simple vocabulary and relied on folksy anecdotes or
analogies to explain the often complex issues facing the country.
Over the course of his historic 12-year presidency, Roosevelt used the
chats to build popular support for his groundbreaking New Deal
policies, in the face of stiff opposition from big business and other
groups. After World War II began, he used them to explain his
administration's wartime policies to the American people. The success
of Roosevelt's chats was evident not only in his three re-elections,
but also in the millions of letters that flooded the White House.
Farmers, business owners, men, women, rich, poor--most of them
expressed the feeling that the president had entered their home and
spoken directly to them. In an era when presidents had previously
communicated with their citizens almost exclusively through
spokespeople and journalists, it was an unprecedented step.
history.com/tdih.do
General Interest
1933 : FDR gives first fireside chat
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihVideoCategory&id=4829
1888 : The Blizzard of 1888
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4828
1930 : Gandhi leads civil disobedience
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=6834
1938 : Germany annexes Austria
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4830
1993 : Reno sworn in as attorney general
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4831
#########################################
On this day in 1933, eight days after his inauguration, President
Franklin D. Roosevelt gives his first national radio address or
"fireside chat," broadcast directly from the White House.
Roosevelt began that first address simply: "I want to talk for a few
minutes with the people of the United States about banking." He went
on to explain his recent decision to close the nation's banks in order
to stop a surge in mass withdrawals by panicked investors worried
about possible bank failures. The banks would be reopening the next
day, Roosevelt said, and he thanked the public for their "fortitude
and good temper" during the "banking holiday."
At the time, the U.S. was at the lowest point of the Great Depression,
with between 25 and 33 percent of the work force unemployed. The
nation was worried, and Roosevelt's address was designed to ease fears
and to inspire confidence in his leadership.
Roosevelt went on to deliver 30 more of these broadcasts between March
1933 and June 1944. They reached an astonishing number of American
households, 90 percent of which owned a radio at the time.
Journalist Robert Trout coined the phrase "fireside chat" to describe
Roosevelt's radio addresses, invoking an image of the president
sitting by a fire in a living room, speaking earnestly to the American
people about his hopes and dreams for the nation. In fact, Roosevelt
took great care to make sure each address was accessible and
understandable to ordinary Americans, regardless of their level of
education. He used simple vocabulary and relied on folksy anecdotes or
analogies to explain the often complex issues facing the country.
Over the course of his historic 12-year presidency, Roosevelt used the
chats to build popular support for his groundbreaking New Deal
policies, in the face of stiff opposition from big business and other
groups. After World War II began, he used them to explain his
administration's wartime policies to the American people. The success
of Roosevelt's chats was evident not only in his three re-elections,
but also in the millions of letters that flooded the White House.
Farmers, business owners, men, women, rich, poor--most of them
expressed the feeling that the president had entered their home and
spoken directly to them. In an era when presidents had previously
communicated with their citizens almost exclusively through
spokespeople and journalists, it was an unprecedented step.
history.com/tdih.do
General Interest
1933 : FDR gives first fireside chat
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihVideoCategory&id=4829
1888 : The Blizzard of 1888
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4828
1930 : Gandhi leads civil disobedience
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=6834
1938 : Germany annexes Austria
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4830
1993 : Reno sworn in as attorney general
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4831
#########################################
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