Comm Media

War of the Worlds

Notes:
make earth seem so small
humans studied by unsympathetic creatures
1939 - great disillutionment
no more war scare, business better, men at work
Oct 30 = 32 million people listening on radios
normal weather report and song played (like normal radio broadcast)
interrupt broadcast about hydrogen gas explosions in mars
Ramon Raquelos band interrupted. plays songs
meterological bureu needs to watch mars for anythinge else weird
plays bands again
princeton u in jersey. Carl Phillips in pitch black observatory with pro Peterson
watching mars through telescope
stripes = a canal. no living chance on mars.. 1000 to 1
mars is 40 million miles from earth
someone just handed prof Peterson (world famous astronomer) received messagefrom Dr. Grey of the Natural history museum ny
seismograph received earthquake thing just 20 miles outta princeton
more music plays
20 explosions on Mars detected frmo Canada
8:50pm fell on Grovers mill NJ appeared to be a meterorite
heard all teh way fromElizabeth
Bobby Millet and his orchestra play
Grovers Mill, NJ
Carl Phillips there.. very windy. half buried in a pit
object does not look like meteor. looks like huge cylinder. diameter about 30 yards. Prof asks "Whats that"? as if he didn't hear
you hear crowd at site
step closer please, closer and louder please, pardon me, louder please
interview seems real. constant interruptions, questions, wrong questions, cuts him off
humming osund from inside the object worsened.. people cant hear it at first. scraping noise
metal casing extraterrestial
end opens.. rotates, is hallow
hear crowd yelling when it opens, keeps those idiots lose
see aliens with tentacles. large as bear. describes it coming out little by little. eyes black gleam like serpant. monster can hardly move. weighed down by gravity
crowd falls back
music
eyewitness on whats happen in the williams farm in grovers mil nj
carl phillips. seems a bit out of breathe.. ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlmen..
seems to describe changing thigns, crowd moving back, prof moving aorund one side. captain and two police go around with something in hands.
strikes head on. you hear scream. gets cut off
san diego cali speaking on cali astronomical society. sever volcanic disturbances on mars
piano interlude
grovers mill by tele
40 people lie dead. bodies burned and distorted beyond all recognition
state militia at trenton nj.
counties of mercer and middle sx, as far west of princeton and eat og jamesburg / cannot cross. unless military or state authorities. homes must evacuate. gen montgomery smith
aliens went back into pit. let fire people stop fire and help bodies
hold on one minute
back to Prof Peterson/pearson? talks from farm nex tto grovers mill.
does not know why aliens are here. heat ray weapon. scientific knowledge advances us
fires under control
militia has rifles and machine guns. aliens wont reappear
officia;.. battle at grovers mill
120 known survivors. grovers mill to plainsborough dead
mosnters control of middlesex nj. communications down from PA to Atlantic ocean\
enemy confined in small area. hope in military and God.
nation united and courageous to help them
human supremacy on earth, fight for it
secretary of teh itnerior from washington
heat ray on powerlines nad electrical equipment in central jersey
enemy will be reinforced
profesor pearson afraid to be lost in recent battle
somerville
basking ridge
great swamp twenty miles south of morristown
winfield
bulletin from long island, ny
watchung mountains
passaic river into jersey marshes
objective is nyc
pushing down power station
yells, excitement, gets cutoff
bayone nj calling lamden field
newark nj poisonous black smoke
automobiles use route 7, 23, 24
no more defense, army, artillery, air force is wiped out
may be the last broadcast. will stay til teh end
voice seems lost of hope

First Twenty minutes vs. The rest:
The first twenty minutes plays music; the station seems to be trying to keep a more relaxed, regular radio atmosphere. In the beginning, they did not believe that the extraterrestrial creatures were there. They thought that it was just a meteorite. However, after the first twenty minutes, they realized that it was something more. Professor Peterson/Pearson was at first a nonbeliever, and spoke on behalf of astromers in saying that a meterorite was sighted. He later said that a meteorite crashed on a farm. After the first twenty minutes of the radio broadcast, he visited the farm, and proclaimed that it was an unidentified object. The rest of the broadcast followed this idea. Soon the extraterrestrial's left their space craft and caused some damage. Rather than the radio broadcast be about the music, with a few short bulletins about the "meteor", the broadcast became based on the story of the invading aliens.

Good Disclaimer?
By the time the disclaimer towards the end of the broadcast came, most of the listeners were probably running away scared. Disclaimers should be at the beginning of broadcasts, and maybe even repeat a couple of times throughout the broadcast. The disclaimer did not even attract attention. Even if the listeners were still listening by some chance, they would probably be staring, scared, thinking about the invasion.

Places Named
Princeton University
Natural History Museum in NY
Canada
Grovers Mill, NJ
Somerville
Basking Ridge
Great Swamp twenty miles south of morristown
Winfield
Long Island, NY
Watchung Mountains
Passaic River
Jersey marshes

posted by maggie @ 8:10 AM