Description
PROJECT #1 – ORAL HISTORY REPORT
Interview ONE person in his or her seventies (70s), eighties (80s), or nineties (90s) — find someone who likes to talk! Ask questions about your interviewee’s mass media experiences in the 20th and 21st centuries. Use the questions below as a starting point. You should come up with more questions as you conduct the interview. If you don’t have a family member or other acquaintance in this age bracket, there are plenty of retirement communities and nursing homes in the area filled with people who would love to talk to you.
Sound Recording
What records did you listen to? Who was your favorite recording artist?
What kind of record player did you have, and where was it in your home?
Was there any kind of music you weren’t supposed to listen to? Why?
Were you allowed to play music whenever you wanted, or were there parental limitations in your home?
How much did a record cost? Where did you buy your records?
How did you find out about the artists you listened to?
What did your parents think about records and record players?
Do you still listen to music now, if so on which devices?
Radio
What do you remember about your first experiences with radio?
What kinds of programs did you listen to (entertainment, music, talk, etc.)?
When were they on, and why did you like them?
Do you remember anything about the early radio commercials?
Do you remember any public concern about radio commercials?
Do you remember any educational radio programs?
What technical problems did you experience with your radio set?
Do you have some specific memories (good or bad) about listening to the radio when you were young? What are they? What was it like when FM radio became available?
Do you listen to the radio now? If so, which are youe favorite shows?
Which devices do you listen on?
Television/Cable
What was it like when TV became available?
Where did you watch your first TV programs, and what was the viewing experience like?
How much did your family’s first TV set cost and what factors figured into its purchase?
What was reception like? Did you have to make bunny ears with the antenna?
What was a typical family viewing session like? How did TV change your home life?
What do you remember about the beginning of cable and satellite television?
What do you remember about the corporate sponsors of TV shows?
What (if anything) do you remember about the quiz-show scandals?
What do you remember about the first 30-second TV commercials?
How do your television experiences in the 1950s compare with your television experiences now?
If you have it, how did you decide to get cable or satellite TV? What factors went into this decision?
Movies
What were your first movie going experiences like, and how were they different from today?
What were some of your favorite films growing up and why?
Do you remember anything about Al Jolson and the first talkies?
What do you remember about the excitement surrounding Gone with the Wind?
Were there films your parents forbid you to see? What were they and why?
What films were the most influential for you?
Games
What were the popular games you played when you were young?
What were some of your favorite games growing up and why?
Do you remember playing games as an adult? Which ones entertained you the most as you aged?
What do you remember about the excitement surrounding video games when they came out in the 70s?
Did you play video games when they began? Which games did you play and why?
What games were the most influential for you?
Do you play any games now? If so, which ones?
Where do you play those games? On a mobile device?
How do games compare from when you were young until now?
ORAL HISTORY PROJECT DETAILS
Please organize your interview information according to the following guidelines, trying to make your paper as readable and accessible as possible:
Group your interview participant’s answers under the assignment’s five (5) categories:
Sound recording
Radio
TV/Cable
Movies
Games
Type in 12-pt. single-spaced.
Put your name, the participant’s name and age, and the relationship you have with your interview participant at the top of the page.
Write at least a paragraph (single-spaced) for each category. Paragraphs should be robust, descriptive and enlightening about your subject. You can include other questions you think of while having a discussion with your interview subject to make sure you have enough material.
Paraphrase your interview. However, if there’s a great quote include what your participant said verbatim and in quotes.
Include only information that seems the most poignant or interesting.
Bold the responses that are the most poignant or interesting to you — something that made you say “Wow” or “Aha!”
The entire project should be between one and two pages, single-spaced.
Your complete project will have seven (7) paragraphs as you MUST include an introduction and conclusion.
Upload your Project 1 to Canvas and save the file as follows: "LastName_Project1."
Sample Solution