When Orson Welles produced the radio broadcast “War of the World,” based on the book by H.G. Wells, not even he could have imagined the cultural impact that this event would have on media broadcasting for decades to come. This, of course, was an entertainment piece, broadcast during the show “Mercury Theatre on the Air” on Halloween Eve. It was announced that the broadcast was indeed not real, only an entertaining fiction story. During that time, radio was the main source of communication, and the major source of mass communication. Some listeners turned in to the story part way through, and truly believed that we were being invaded by Martians. The broadcast production at the time was so detailed, so realistic, and so believable, it sent Americans into a state of panic all across the eastern seaboard.
This could not happen in today’s society, as there is an abundance of technology it makes it almost impossible to pull anything off of this magnitude. This was a special time for not only radio, by mass media and entertainment in general. The radio allowed the performers to produce a “theatre of the mind,” allowing the listener to envision their own thoughts and ideas based on the detail of the performance on air.
Welles of course went on to direct and star in what many consider to be the greatest movie of all time, Citizen Kane
