Radio in Revolution : Wireless Technology and State Power in Mexico, 1897-1938

Joseph Justin Castro

ISBN 10: 0803286783 / ISBN 13: 9780803286788

Published by Nebraska Jul 2016, 2016

About this Item

Neuware - Long before the Arab Spring and its use of social media demonstrated the potent intersection between technology and revolution, the Mexican Revolution employed wireless technology in the form of radiotelegraphy and radio broadcasting to alter the course of the revolution and influence how political leaders reconstituted the government.Radio in Revolution, an innovative study of early radio technologies and the Mexican Revolution, examines the foundational relationship between electronic wireless technologies, single-party rule, and authoritarian practices in Mexican media. J. Justin Castro bridges the Porfiriato and the Mexican Revolution, discussing the technological continuities and change that set the stage for LÁzaro CÁrdenas s famous radio decree calling for the expropriation of foreign oil companies. Not only did the nascent development of radio technology represent a major component in government plans for nation and state building, its interplay with state power in Mexico also transformed it into a crucial component of public communication services, national cohesion, military operations, and intelligence gathering. Castro argues that the revolution had far-reaching ramifications for the development of radio and politics in Mexico and reveals how continued security concerns prompted the revolutionary victors to view radio as a threat even while they embraced it as an essential component of maintaining control.

Seller Inventory # 9780803286788

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Radio in Revolution : Wireless Technology and State Power in Mexico, 1897-1938
• Publisher: Nebraska Jul 2016
• Publication Date: 2016
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0803286783
• ISBN 13: 9780803286788
• Binding: Taschenbuch
• Condition: Neu
• Dimensions: 226W x 151H x 25D millimeters 226 millimeters width by 151 millimeters height by 25 millimeters depth
• Weight: 402 grams

About this title

Synopsis

Long before the Arab Spring and its use of social media demonstrated the potent intersection between technology and revolution, the Mexican Revolution employed wireless technology in the form of radiotelegraphy and radio broadcasting to alter the course of the revolution and influence how political leaders reconstituted the government.

Radio in Revolution, an innovative study of early radio technologies and the Mexican Revolution, examines the foundational relationship between electronic wireless technologies, single-party rule, and authoritarian practices in Mexican media. J. Justin Castro bridges the Porfiriato and the Mexican Revolution, discussing the technological continuities and change that set the stage for Lázaro Cárdenas’s famous radio decree calling for the expropriation of foreign oil companies.

Not only did the nascent development of radio technology represent a major component in government plans for nation and state building, its interplay with state power in Mexico also transformed it into a crucial component of public communication services, national cohesion, military operations, and intelligence gathering. Castro argues that the revolution had far-reaching ramifications for the development of radio and politics in Mexico and reveals how continued security concerns prompted the revolutionary victors to view radio as a threat even while they embraced it as an essential component of maintaining control. 

About the Author

J. Justin Castro is an assistant professor of history at Arkansas State University.