Author Archives: Bob Stepno

About Bob Stepno

mild-mannered reporter who found computers & the Web in grad school in the 1980s (Wesleyan) and '90s (UNC); taught journalism, media studies, Web production; retired to write, make music, photograph sunsets & walks in the woods.

Old-news navigation note

Posted on February 12, 2024 by Bob Stepno

A note to newcomers, including journalism students visiting for spring or summer 2024 classes.My most recent work on this site is within various “subtopic” pages and older program-episode posts, such as the Soldiers of the Press and Rogers of the … Continue reading →

Posted in media history, students, teaching | Leave a comment

Reporter as frame

Posted on January 24, 2024 by Bob Stepno

I will come back to say more about this program, but I think it is worth listening to as an example of a radio storytelling technique that uses a fictional magazine or newspaper reporter as a “wrapper” or frame to … Continue reading →

Posted in 1940s, civil rights, Drama, journalism, New York City, Race, reporters, stereotypes, true stories, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Fibber in the newsroom? Ask Aunt Jenny

Posted on October 24, 2023 by Bob Stepno

The regular “Aunt Jenny” at The Gazette is out of action, and Fibber McGee volunteers to replace the advice columnist for a day, with wife Molly as his secretary. Old-time radio programs of all kinds worked newspapers and journalism into … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950s, columnists, comedy, newspaper readers, newspapers, radio | Leave a comment

The Zengers make news again

Posted on May 4, 2023 by Bob Stepno

John and Anna Zenger weren’t radio stars, but I’ve just found a third appearance for them… In an episode of the CBS series “You Are There.” It’s an entertaining “live news report,” as if the 1949 CBS radio news crew … Continue reading →

Posted in 1940s, Colonial America, editors, free speech, historical figures, History, Libel law, media history, New York City, political corruption, publishers, true stories | Leave a comment

One line at a time

Posted on April 14, 2023 by Bob Stepno

Ottmar Mergenthaler already had been the subject of a Cavalcade of America historical-biography radioplay in 1937, but here he is getting the Hallmark Hall of Fame treatment 16 years later… a story that includes a suspenseful beginning for anyone who … Continue reading →

Posted in 19th century, historical figures, History, newspapers, technology, true stories | Leave a comment

High school editor gets distracted

Posted on April 11, 2023 by Bob Stepno

She’s a high-school-age Shirley Temple, but distracted by playboy artist Cary Grant. It’s The Bachelor and the Bobby Soxer, the 1947 Hollywood hit adapted in 1949 for Lux Radio Theater, with two of its original stars. (Myrna Loy, as Shirley’s … Continue reading →

Posted in 1940s, adaptations, comedy, courtroom, students, teenagers | Leave a comment

“Front Page Farrell” wasn’t front page news on D-Day

Posted on March 29, 2023 by Bob Stepno

On D-Day, one of America’s most famous reporters, Front Page Farrell, was not involved in the war coverage at all… But, of course, Dave Farrell was fictional. Still, his June 7, 1944, episode above has hints of America’s mood on … Continue reading →

Posted in 1940s, Europe, radio, reporters, soap opera, Uncategorized, World War II | Leave a comment

Mary liked editorials…

Posted on March 28, 2023 by Bob Stepno

In 1921, William Allen White writes an editorial when his 16-year-old daughter dies, not an obituary, and in 1954 Hallmark Hall of Fame uses his process of writing it to frame the story of her father, perhaps America’s most famous … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950s, columnists, Drama, editors, Hallmark, historical figures, journalism, media history, newspapers, publishers, writing | Leave a comment

Celebrity Interview Goes Wrong

Posted on February 15, 2023 by Bob Stepno

There’s really no journalism practiced in this episode of “A Date with Judy” from April 3, 1945, although the teenage heroine is going off to do a celebrity interview with actor Charles Boyer, in town for a wartime Red Cross … Continue reading →

Posted in 1940s, comedy, teenagers | Leave a comment

Newsies in the Dusty Attic

Posted on January 30, 2023 by Bob Stepno

During the past month, “The Dusty Attic,” a classic-radio program of the Radio Talking Books Service offered a series of four hour-long programs on the same theme as “Newspaper Heroes on the Air,” exploring the role of newspapers in society … Continue reading →

Posted in Big Town, Casey, Chicago, Drama, j-heroes, media history | Tagged | Leave a comment