APUSH chapter 22 The "New Era" and chapter 23 The Great Depression

Motherhood in the '20s

1920s saw redefinition of motherhood Behaviorists challenged the long held assumption that women had an instinctive capacity for motherhood Maternal affection wasn't sufficient preparation for child rearing The new approach suggested mothers should rely on advice and assistance from experts and professionals These changes helped redefine what had been an all-consumming activity For many, it was still very important but less emotionally fulfilling, less connected to their instinctive lives, more dependent on people and institutions outside the family "Companionate Marriages"- Many attempted to compensated by devoting more attention to their roles as wives and companions Middle class wife shared increasingly in her husband's social life; devoted more attention to cosmetics and clothing, and were less willing to allow children to interfere with their marriage Many considered their sexual relationships with their husbands as pleasurable and romantic, not simply for procreation

The Man Nobody Knows

A book by advertising executive, Bruce Barton, who portrayed Jesus Christ as a "super salesman", who picked up 12 men from the bottom ranks of business and forged them into an organization that conquered the world He claimed that the parables were the most powerful advertisements of all time His message was fully in tune with the new spirit of the consumer culture

Scopes Trial

ACLU offered free counsel to any TN educator willing to defy the law and become the defendant in a test case John Scopes agreed to have himself arrested and was fined $100 Scopes was defended by famous defensive attorney, Clarence Darrow, while William Jennings Bryan served as prosecuting attorney The question was which was valid-the Bible or Darwin The judge refused to allow "expert" testimony by evolution scholars and Scopes was found guilty, but the case was dismissed in a higher court on a technicality Darrow scored an important victory for the modernists by calling Bryan to the stand to give testimony on the Bible, making Bryan's defense look foolish He finally tricked him into admitting the possibility that not all religious dogma was subject to only one interpretation It was a traumatic experience for many fundamentalists It isolated and excluded them from many mainstream Protestant denominations It helped them put an end to their political activism It didn't change their religious convictions

Open Shop

After the turmoil of 1919, corporate leaders worked hard to spread the doctrine that unionism was somehow subversive, that a crucial element of democratic capitalism was the protection of this (a shop in which no worker could be required to join a union) The crusade for this-the "American Plan"-received endorsement of the National Association of Manufactures in 1920 and became a pretext for a a harsh campaign of union busting across the country

National Origins Act of 1924

Agitation to curb foreign emigration to the US began in the 19th century and gained strength largely bc of support of middle class progressives After WWI, many old-stock Americans began to associate immigration with radicalism In 1921, Congress passed an emergency immigration act, establishing a quota system by which annual immigration from any country couldn't exceed 3% of the number of persons of that nationality In 1924, this act was passed - it strengthened the exclusionist provision of the 1921 law It deeply angered the Japanese It banned immigration from east Asia, entirely; Japan was the principal target It also reduced the quota for Europeans from 3% to 2% The quota would be based on the census of 1890, a year in which there had been many fewer southern and eastern Europeans in the country Immigration would heavily favor northwestern Europeans-people of "nordic" or "teutonic" stock 5 years later a further restriction set a rigid limit of 150,000 immigrants a year In the years that followed, immigration officials seldom permitted even 1/2 that number to actually enter the country

1928 election and Al Smith

Al Smith: NYC born, Democrat leader in Tammany Hall, Irish Catholic Couldn't unify the party in the 1928 Presidential election; largely due to his Catholic faith First democrat since the Civil War not to carry the entire south He did well in large cities, he carried only MA and RI His opponent, the victor, was a man who perhaps more than any other contemporary politician seemed to personify the modern, prosperous, middle-class society of the New Era: Herbert Hoover

Radio in the Depression

Almost every American family had a radio in the 1930s; it was often a community experience Young people listened to and danced to them with friends Many people in poor neighborhoods would use them as a kind of social activity: they would gather on a street or backyard to listen to sporting events or concerts Families listened to programs together Escapist Programming - Shows like Amos and Andy, Superman, and Dick Tracy, and The Lone Ranger brought various types of genres into people's homes Soap operas were enormously popular Radio shows were broadcast live; radio comedies and dramas were performed before audiences in theaters, band concerts were broadcast from dance halls, which helped jazz and swing bands to achieve popularity Radio provided Americans with their first direct access to important public events, and radio news and sports divisions grew to meet demand Important/dramatic events of 1930s were covered by radio: World Series, college football, Academy Awards, political conventions, pres. inaugurations, Hindenburg disaster, "War of the Worlds" broadcast Impact: it was important for the way it drew the nation together by creating the possibility of shared experiences and common access to culture and information, and for the way it helped reshape social life, encouraged many to center their lives more around the home than in the past

Mechanized Farming

Am. agriculture was embracing new technologies for increasing production Number of tractors quadrupled, they helped to open 35 million new acres for cultivation The invention of hybrid corn became available to farmers in 1921 and the creation of chemical fertilizers and pesticides were introduced and proliferated into the 1940s The new technologies greatly increased agricultural productivity, but demand for goods wasn't rising as fast as production This resulted in substantial surpluses, a decline in food prices, and severe drop in farmers' income in the 1920s More than 3 million people left agriculture over the course of the decade

Social Values

American social values seemed to change relatively little in response to the Depression Instead, many people responded to hard times by redoubling their commitment to familiar ideas and goals Many looked to the govt for assistance; many blamed corporate moguls for their distress Yet it didn't seriously erode success ethic Some expressed anger and struck out at the economic system Many blamed themselves: some were so ashamed of their joblessness that they refused to their homes Some responded eagerly to reassurances that they could, through their own efforts, restore themselves to prosperity and success

The Lost Generation

At the heart of their critique of modern society was a sense of personal alienation The repudiation of Wilsonian idealism, the growing emphasis on materialism and consumerism suggested that the war had been a fraud; that the suffering and dying had been in vain One result of this alienation was a series of critiques on modern society by "bunkers"

(Social) Impact of the Automobile

Automobile greatly affected Am. life: expanded geographic horizons of millions of people who in the past had seldom ventured far from their homes Rural men and women found the car a means of escaping the isolation of farm life, and city dwellers found it as an escape from congested city life Weekend drives became a staple of urban leisure Many families moved to new suburbs that were growing rapidly in response to the ease of access the automobile had created It transformed the idea of vacations Middle and working class people could travel long distances to go on vacation For young people, whose families could afford a car, it allowed them to move easily away from parents and family and to develop social lives of their own, which contributed to emergence of a well-developed and relatively independent youth culture

Okies

Despite disastrous conditions farm economy continued to produce far more goods than consumers could afford This caused prices to fall so low that few made any profit on their crops Many farmers left their homes in search of work A name given to people, particularly from OK, who left the Dust Bowl to traveled to CA in search of a new life; they worked from farm to farm picking fruit and other crops at starvation wages

US Banks wanted debt payments

Due to WWI loans, some nations (Germany and Austria) owed US banks sums too large to be repaid out of their shattered economies US govt. refused to forgive or reduce debts; American banks began making large loans to European govts. to pay off earlier loans Debts were paid only by piling up new and greater ones European nations found it difficult to borrow money from US after economy weakened At the same time, high American protective tariffs made it difficult for them to sell goods in Am. markets W/o any source of foreign exchange w/ which to repay their loans, they began to default The collapse of the international credit structure was one of the reasons the Depression spread to Europe after 1931

Technology Growth and sources of the boom

During the 1920s, manufacturing output rose by more than 60% Per capita income grew by a third and inflation was negligible A mild recession in 1923 interrupted the pattern of growth, but it subsided by early 1924, and the economy expanded with greater vigor than before Sources of the boom: The debilitation of European industry post-WWI; left the US for the next 10 years the only truly healthy industrial power in the world Technology and great industrial expansion: automobile industry became one of the most important industries in the nation, as a result of the development of assembly line (which also stimulated growth in many other industries) Increased mobility of the automobile made possible increased the demand for suburban housing, fueling a boom in the construction industry Other new industries benefiting from technological innovations contributed to economic growth: Improvements were made in radio, aviation, trains, home appliances and computers

Dust Bowl

Farm income declined by 60% between 1929 and 1932 1/3 of all American farmers lost their land Beginning in 1930, from TX to the Dakotas was subject a drought and high heat making it a "dust bowl" It continued for a decade, turning the one fertile farm regions into deserts Soil in some places was w/o moisture as far as 3 ft below the surface, at times temperatures were averaging over 100 degrees, grasshoppers devoured remaining meager crops It turned once fertile farmland in an American version of the Sahara Desert; "black blizzards" would sweep across the Plains, blotting out the sun and suffocating livestock and people The dust was everywhere, regardless of how diligent people were to try to keep it out of their homes and anything

Fundamentalism

Fundamentalists - defenders of traditional faith; provincial, largely rural people, fighting to maintain the centrality of traditional religion in American life They were outraged at the abandonment of traditional beliefs in the face of scientific discoveries They insisted the Bible is the literal interpretation of God; they thoroughly opposed Darwin's theory of evolution They insisted humans hadn't evolved from lower order of animals, but had been created by God This was a highly evangelical movement, interested in spreading the doctrine to new groups Fundamentalist evangelists traveled from state to state attracting huge crowds to their revival meetings Mid 1920s: it was gaining political strength in some states with its demands for legislation to forbid the teaching of evolution in public schools

Blacks' migration to the North

Half of all Blacks still lived in the South; many as sharecroppers and tenant farmers After the Depression, whites demanded that all blacks be dismissed from their jobs, and believed that they should not have jobs until every white man has one Many left the South in the '30s and went North, but conditions there were little better than in the South In many cities, black unemployment was 50% or more 2 million were on some form of relief by 1932 NAACP worked diligently to win a position for blacks w/in emerging labor movement, supporting the formation of the Congress of Industrial Organizations and helping to break down racial barriers w/in labor unions

Harding and Coolidge

Harding became president after years of doing little in public life An undistinguished Republican senator from OH who wasn't exactly the party's top choice He appointed capable men to important cabinet positions to help compensate for his lack of skills His intellectual limits were compounded by his personal weaknesses - gambling, illegal alcohol and womanizing (even though he was married) He lacked the strength to abandon the party hacks who had helped him create his political success He was involved in the Teapot Dome Scandal After Harding died of a heart attack, Coolidge succeeded him He was very different from his predecessor Harding was genial, garrulous, and debauched, while Coolidge was dour, silent, and puritanical Harding was, if not perhaps personally corrupt, then at least tolerant of corruption Coolidge seemed honest beyond reproach Essentially, both took a passive approach to their office Coolidge was even less active as president than Harding, partly bc of his conviction that govt should interfere as little as possible in the life of the nation

Teapot Dome Scandal

Harry Daughtery was appointed attorney general Sec. of the Interior, Albert Fall Daughtery and Fall were involved in fraud and corruption At the urging of Fall, Harding transferred control of Teapot Dome, WY and Elks Hill, CA rich naval oil reserves from the Navy Dept. to his Interior dept. Fall then secretly leased the land to two businessmen and received in return nearly 1/2 million dollars in "loans" to ease his private financial troubles Fall was convicted of bribery and sentenced to a year in prison

Philip Randolph

He founded in 1925 and led the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters This was a vigorous union, led by an African American and represented a nearly all black workforce Over time, he won some significant gains for his members-increased wages, shorter working hours He also enlisted the union in battles for civil rights for African Americans

Hoover's Failed of Voluntarism

He said that the fundamental business of this country is production and distribution of commodities He called leaders of labor, business, agriculture to the White House to urge them to adopt a program of voluntary cooperation for recovery He implored all three to keep the status quo; he attempted to use govt. spending as a tool to fight the Depression. Mid 1931 economic conditions had deteriorated so much that the modest structure of voluntary cooperation he had erected collapsed When it go worse, Hoover was less willing to increase spending; he worried instead about creating large govt. deficits. 1932 he proposed a tax increase to help govt avoid a deficit

Bonus Army

In 1924, Congress approved a bonus of $1,000 ($13,900 in 2016 money) for WWI vets to be paid, beginning in 1945 By 1932, the vets wanted/needed that money and demanded it Hoover rejected it, concerned about balancing the budget A Bonus Army went to Washington, DC, built crude camps around the city and promised to stay until Congress approved legislation to give them the money Congress voted down their proposal Many vets left, but others stayed. In mid July he ordered police to clear them out of abandoned federal buildings in which they had been staying. Few marchers threw rocks at them, someone opened fire, killing 2 veterans. Hoover considered this incident evidence of growing violence and radicalism, and order the US army to assist police in clearing them out of the buildings.

Agricultural Marketing Act

In 1929, he proposed the Agricultural Marketing Act, the first major govt. program to help farmers maintain prices A federally sponsored Farm Board would make loans to national marketing cooperatives or establish corporations to buy surpluses and thus raise prices

Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC)

In Jan. 1932, Congress passed the RFC, a govt. agency whose purpose was to provide fed. loans to troubled banks and other businesses It even made funds available to local govts. to support public works projects and assist relief efforts. It operated on a large scale-$1.5 million budget for public works It failed to deal directly with real problems of the economy to produce any significant recovery; much of its funds went to large banks and corporations and not individuals. Ut helped finance only those public work projects that promised to pay for themselves. It didn't have enough money to make any real impact and didn't even spend all of its money

Harlem Renaissance

In postwar Harlem, NYC, a new generation of black artists and intellectuals created a flourishing African American culture widely described as this There were nightclubs featuring great jazz musicians: Duke Ellington, Jelly Roll Morton, Fletcher Henderson There were theaters featuring musical comedies and vaudeville acts Many white New Yorkers traveled up to Harlem for the music and theater, but audiences were largely black Harlem was a center of literature, poetry and art that drew heavily from American and African roots Black artists were trying to demonstrate the richness of their racial heritage Gradually white publishers began to notice and take interest in the writers Locke helped launch Hughes, Zora Neale Huston, Countee Cullen, Claude McKay, James Weldon Johnson and others gradually found readerships well beyond the black community

The Grapes of Wrath

John Steinbeck's novel of the Joad family, migrants from the Dust Bowl to CA who encounter an unending string of calamities and failures It offered a harsh portrayal of exploitive features of agrarian life in the West, and it gave a tribute to the endurance of his man characters and the spirit of community they represent

Factors for the Great Depression

Lack of Diversification - Prosperity had depended excessively on a few basic industries, notably construction and automobiles Late 1920s: those industries began to decline Newer industries, such as petroleum, mechanics, and plastics,were taking up the slack in construction and automobile industries, but hadn't yet developed enough strength to compensate for the decline in other sectors Maldistribution of Purchasing Power - This resulted in a weakness in consumer demand, which as too small to create an adequate market for the goods the economic producing In 1919 nearly 1/2 of American families lived on or below the minimum subsistence level Credit Structure - Farmers were deeply in debt and crop prices too low to allow them to pay off debts Small and large banks were in trouble Small banks' customers defaulted on loans prompting them to fail Some big banks recklessly invested in the stock market, making unwise loans When the market collapsed, many banks suffered losses greater than they could absorb America's position in international trade- European demand for American products declined by late '20s Partly due to American tariffs, plus European industry and agriculture were becoming more productive better and some (Germany) were having financial difficulties and couldn't buy overseas products Unstable International Debt Structure - Due to WWI loans, some nations owed US banks sums too large to be repaid out of their shattered economies US govt. refused to forgive or reduce debts; American banks began making large loans to European govts. to pay off earlier loans

Popular Front and The Lincoln Brigade

Late 1930s, much of the political literature was a result of the rise of the Popular Front, a broad coalition of antifascist groups on the left, of which the most important was the Am. communist party The Popular Front did much to enhance the reputation and influence of the Communist party For some, it offered an escape from the lonely and difficult stance of detachment and alienation they embraced in the '20s Spanish Civil War was important to American intellectuals on the Left It gave meaning and purpose to individual lives and pitted Fascists of Francisco Franco against the existing republican govt. Franco's forces (backed by Germany and Italy) won the war It attracted a substantial group-more than 3,000-who formed the Abraham Lincoln Brigade and traveled to Spain to fight against the fascists About 1/3 died in combat

Hoovervilles

Many Americans held Hoover personally to blame for the crisis and began calling shantytowns "Hoovervilles"

Belief in personal responsibility

Many Americans remained committed to the traditional emphasis on the individual Americans committed to traditional ideas and goals during the depression Some responded eagerly to reassurances that they could, through their own efforts, restore themselves to prosperity and success Carnegie's message in his self-help manual How to Win Friends and Influence People was that personal initiative was the route to success, as well as to make others feel important

Labor in the New Era

More than 2/3rds of Americans in 1929 lived no better than at a "minimum comfort level" Half of those languished at or below the "subsistence and poverty" level American industrial workers experienced both success and failure in the 1920s Most workers saw their standard of living rise during the decade; many enjoyed improved working conditions and other benefits Some employers adopted paternalistic techniques that came to be known as welfare capitalism Many laborers continued to regard an effective independent union movement as their best hope The New Era was a bleak time for labor organization, in part because the unions themselves were generally less conservative and failed to adapt to the realities of the modern economy The AFL continued to make no provision for unskilled, industrial workers

Disapproval of Women's Employment

Most people believed that what work there was should go men Many believed that no woman whose husband was employed should accept a job But, both single and married worked in the '30s, despite public condemnation Largest group of female workers consisted of wives and mothers By the end of the Depression, 20% more women were working than had been doing so at the beginning Professional opportunities for women declined bc unemployed men began moving into these professions Female industrial workers were more likely to be laid off or to experience wage reductions than their male counterparts Non-professional jobs were less likely to disappear, as unemployed men wouldn't take service jobs as salesclerks & stenographers

American Communist Party

Much of the political literature was a result of the rise of the Popular Front, a broad coalition of antifascist groups on the left, of which the most important was the Am. communist party It had long been a harsh and unrelenting critic of Am. capitalism and the govt it claimed was controlled by it 1935 Soviet Union told them to soften their attitude toward FDR (because Stalin saw the US as a potential ally against Hitler) and formed loose alliances w/ other progressive groups They began to praise the New Deal and even supported John L Lewis, a powerful, anticommunist labor leader It adopted the slogan "Communism is 20th century Americanism" The Popular Front did much to enhance the reputation and influence of this party, whose membership grew to 100,000 Communist Party members were among the most effective union organizers in some industries It was among the few political organizations that took a firm stand in favor of racial justice It wasn't the open patriotic organization it tried to appear It was always under close and rigid supervision of Soviet Union

Modern Administrative Systems

New forms of corporate organization emerged to advance the trend GM was the 5th largest corporation in America, and the largest car producer Alfred P Sloan created a modern administrative system with an efficient divisional organization The new system made it easier for GM to control its many subsidiaries, and simpler for it-and many other corporations that adopted similar administrative systems- to expand further

F Scott Fitzgerald

Novelist who ridiculed the American obsession with material success in The Great Gatsby The main character, Jay Gatsby, spent his life accumulating wealth and social prestige in order to win over the woman he loves The world to which he has aspired turns out to be one of pretension, fraud, and cruelty, and it ultimately destroys him

Black Tuesday

On Oct 29, 1929 all efforts to save the market failed 16 million shares were traded; the industrial index dropped by 43 points; stocks in many became worthless Many thought the Stock Market Crash was the beginning and cause of the Great Depression, but the depression began earlier

Birth Control

Progress in development of birth control was both a result and cause of the changing ideas of motherhood Margaret Sanger, a pioneer in the birth control movement, promoted the diaphragm and other devices out of concern for working class women, believing large families were the major cause of poverty and distress in poor communities She was more concerned with persuading middle class women of its benefits instead of working class women She argued that women should be free to enjoy sexual activity w/o any connection to procreation Birth control devices began to find a large market among middle class women

Andrew Mellon

Secretary of the Treasury, a wealthy steel and aluminum tycoon who devoted himself to working to substantial reductions in taxes on corporate profits, personal income, and inheritances Largely bc of his efforts, Congress cut them all by more than half He also worked closely with Pres. Coolidge after 1924 on a series of measures to trim dramatically the already modest federal budget The administration managed to retire half the nation's WWI debt

Flappers

Some concluded that in the New Era, it was no longer necessary to maintain a rigid, Victorian female respectability Women could now smoke, dance, wear seductive clothing and makeup, and attend lively parties They could strive for physical and emotional fulfillment, for release from repression and prohibition A flapper was the modern woman whose liberated lifestyle found expression in dress, hairstyle, speech and behavior Flapper lifestyle had a particular impact on lower-middle-working class single women Despite the image of liberation, most women remained highly dependent on men and were relatively powerless when men exploited that dependence

"Welfare Capitalism"

Some employers in their efforts to avoid disruptive labor unrest adopted paternalistic techniques known as this When labor grievances surfaced, workers could voice them through the so-called company union-these were workers' councils and shop committees, organized by the corporations themselves and thus w/o the independence later unions demanded It brought many workers important economic benefits, but didn't help them gain any real control over their own fates This survived only as long as industry prospered This took the form of pension plans, paid vacations, cafeterias and other benefits It affected only a relatively small number of workers; most employers were interested in primarily keeping their labor costs at a minimum Therefore workers as a whole received wage increases at a rate far below increases in productions and profits American workers remained relatively poor and powerless; average annual income remained below $1,500 when $1,800 was considered necessary to maintain a minimally decent standard of living

Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act

Tariff Act of 1930, increased protection on 75 farm products Neither the tariff act or the Agricultural Marketing Act ultimately helped American farmers significantly; the tariff actually harmed the agricultural economy by stifling exports of food

KKK

The KKK resurrected itself in 1915- a group of white southerners met on Stone Mountain and established a new version of the society Nativist passions had swelled in GA and elsewhere in response to the case of Leo Frank; a Jewish factory manger convicted of murdering a female employee; a mob stormed his jail and lynched him D.W. Griffith's The Birth of a Nation also inspired white southerners to form the Klan It was largely concerned w/ intimidating African Americans, who were becoming insubordinate At first, it remained small, obscure, and almost entirely southern After WWI, concern about African Americans became secondary to concern about Catholics, Jews, and foreigners Membership grew rapidly and dramatically in almost all parts of the country By 1924 it had 4 million members It believed in defending what it considered, "traditional, fundamentalist morality"; systematically terrorizing the above list along with Blacks It defended "traditional values"; it enforced prohibition and attempted to instill compulsory Bible reading in schools and worked to punish divorce The KKK declined after 1925 when a series of internal power struggles and several sordid scandals discredited some leaders

The Disenchanted

The generation that lived through WWI came to see the conflict as a useless waste of lives with no purpose For many young people in the '20s, disenchantment with the war contributed to a growing disenchantment with the US The new consumer-driven era seemed meaningless and vulgar to many artists and intellectuals, and they viewed their own culture with contempt Rather than trying to influence and reform their society, they isolated themselves from it and embarked on a restless search for personal fulfillment Gertrude Stein referred to these people as, "The Lost Generation"

Herbet Hoover, "Associationalism"

The idea of voluntarism, to Hoover, then Sec. of Commerce and a notable Progressive, didn't require the govt. remain passive; on the contrary, public institutions should play an active role in creating the new, cooperative order "Associationalism" - a concept that envisioned the creation of national organizations of businessmen in particular industries Through trade associations, private entrepreneurs could stabilize their industries and promote efficiency in production and marketing In 1928, Hoover easily defeated Al Smith for the presidency

National Woman's Party

Under the leadership of Alice Paul, this organization pressed on with its campaign to make the Equal Rights Amendment a part of the Constitution although it found little support in Congress Nevertheless, women's organizations and female political activities grew in many ways: responding to the suffrage victory, women organized the League of Women Voters and the women's auxiliaries of both the Democratic and Republican Parties Female dominated consumer groups grew rapidly and increased the range and energy of their efforts Women activists won a significant triumph in 1921, when they secured passage in Congress of a measure in keeping w/ the traditional feminist goal of securing protective legislation for women: the Sheppard-Towner Act

18th amendment and prohibition (The "noble experiment")

When 20th amendment went into effect in 1920, it had the support of most members of the middle class and most of those who considered themselves progressives Within a year it had become clear that the "noble experiment" wasn't working well Prohibition did substantially reduce drinking in some regions of the country It also produced conspicuous and growing violations that made the law an almost immediate source of disillusionment and controversy Fed govt only hired 1500 agents to enforce these laws, in many places they received little help from local police Before long, it was easy to acquire alcohol in much of the country as it once had been to acquire legal alcohol And since enormous lucrative industry was now barred to legitimate businessmen, organized crime figures took it over Al Capone built a criminal empire based on illegal alcohol Many middle class progressives who had originally supported prohibition soon soured on the experiment An enormous constituency of provincial, largely rural, protestant Americans continued vehemently to defend it Opponents of prohibition steadily gained influence Not until 1933 were they finally able to effectively challenge the "drys" and win repeal of the 18th amendment

Hollywood and radio

With the addition of sound in movies in 1927 movies were becoming an even more popular and powerful form of mass communication Motion Picture Association, headed by Will Hays, was to review films and to ban anything likely to offend viewers Hays exercised his powers broadly and imposed on the film industry a safe, sanctimonious conformity for many years Radio KDKA Pittsburgh - The most important communications vehicle was the only one truly new to the 1920s...radio In 1920, the first commercial radio station, KDKA, began operations in Pittsburgh; by 1923, more than 500 stations were in operation The National Broadcast Company (NBC) was formed in 1927