Across the Waves, How the United States and France Shaped the International Age of Radio, How the United States and France Shaped the International Age of Radio

Author

Vaillant, Derek W

Year

2017

Publisher

University of Illinois Press

Language

English

Pages

ISBN

978-0-25204-141-9

Link

Last Update

26-Nov-2025

Keywords

Sociology ; Communication Studies ; History ; American Studies ; Business

Description

It was a broadcaster’s nightmare. In spring 1953, Simon J. Copans, the seasoned announcer for the Voice of America (VOA) radio network in Paris, fumbled for words. Fortunately, the problem did not occur in front of a microphone, but in front of a typewriter, as he struggled to complete a restricted memo to the U.S. State Department summarizing the condition of U.S.–French broadcasting. “It is very difficult,” Copans admitted, “to list separately what the French radio does for the [VOA] and what the [VOA] does for the French radio.”¹ The state of affairs defied easy description partly because it...