Wasteland Speech
Encyclopedia
The Wasteland Speech was a speech given by Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) chairman Newton N. Minow
to the convention of the National Association of Broadcasters
on May 9, 1961. The speech was Minow's first major speech after he was appointed chairman of the FCC by President John F Kennedy. In the speech, Minow referred to American commercial television programming as a "vast wasteland" and advocated for programming in the public interest
.
This speech is properly titled "Television and the Public Interest". It was a landmark speech for the medium of television
, at a time when there were only three networks in the United States and when the realm of television was much less vast than it is today. Nonetheless, it is counted as one of the one hundred best American speeches of the 20th century by several authorities and selected as one of the 25 Speeches that Changed the World by Vital Speeches. Related writings include his book (co-written with Craig LaMay) Abandoned in the Wasteland: Children, Television, & the First Amendment.
The phrase "vast wasteland" was suggested to Minow by his friend, reporter and freelance writer John Bartlow Martin
. Martin had recently watched twenty consecutive hours of television as research for a magazine piece, and concluded it was "a vast wasteland of junk." During the editing process, Minow cut the words "of junk."
Minow often remarks that the two words best remembered from the speech are "vast wasteland," but the two words he wishes would be remembered are "public interest."
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
(FCC) chairman Newton N. Minow
Newton N. Minow
Newton Norman Minow is an American attorney and former Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. His speech referring to television as a "vast wasteland" is cited even as the speech has passed its 50th anniversary...
to the convention of the National Association of Broadcasters
National Association of Broadcasters
The National Association of Broadcasters is a trade association, workers union, and lobby group representing the interests of for-profit, over-the-air radio and television broadcasters in the United States...
on May 9, 1961. The speech was Minow's first major speech after he was appointed chairman of the FCC by President John F Kennedy. In the speech, Minow referred to American commercial television programming as a "vast wasteland" and advocated for programming in the public interest
Public interest
The public interest refers to the "common well-being" or "general welfare." The public interest is central to policy debates, politics, democracy and the nature of government itself...
.
- "When television is good, nothing — not the theater, not the magazines or newspapers — nothing is better.
- But when television is bad, nothing is worse. I invite each of you to sit down in front of your own television set when your station goes on the air and stay there, for a day, without a book, without a magazine, without a newspaper, without a profit and loss sheet or a rating book to distract you. Keep your eyes glued to that set until the station signs off. I can assure you that what you will observe is a vast wasteland.
- You will see a procession of game shows, formula comedies about totally unbelievable families, blood and thunder, mayhem, violence, sadism, murder, western bad men, western good men, private eyes, gangsters, more violence, and cartoons. And endlessly commercials — many screaming, cajoling, and offending. And most of all, boredom. True, you'll see a few things you will enjoy. But they will be very, very few. And if you think I exaggerate, I only ask you to try it."
This speech is properly titled "Television and the Public Interest". It was a landmark speech for the medium of television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
, at a time when there were only three networks in the United States and when the realm of television was much less vast than it is today. Nonetheless, it is counted as one of the one hundred best American speeches of the 20th century by several authorities and selected as one of the 25 Speeches that Changed the World by Vital Speeches. Related writings include his book (co-written with Craig LaMay) Abandoned in the Wasteland: Children, Television, & the First Amendment.
The phrase "vast wasteland" was suggested to Minow by his friend, reporter and freelance writer John Bartlow Martin
John Bartlow Martin
John Bartlow Martin was an author of 15 books, Ambassador to the Dominican Republic, and speechwriter and confidant to many American Democratic politicians including Adlai Stevenson, John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, Lyndon B...
. Martin had recently watched twenty consecutive hours of television as research for a magazine piece, and concluded it was "a vast wasteland of junk." During the editing process, Minow cut the words "of junk."
Minow often remarks that the two words best remembered from the speech are "vast wasteland," but the two words he wishes would be remembered are "public interest."
External links
- Complete text and audio of Minow's speech from AmericanRhetoric.com
- Maclean's article, June 17, 1996
- "Update" April 24, 2001
- "Museum of Broadcast Communications article on Minow and the speech"
- "Assessment of the speech by Minow and 24 commentators for the Federal Communications Law Journal" May 2003
- "Interview with Minow about the state of television in 2006
- MP3 recording of the entire Minow speech, "Television and the Public Interest"