“The War of the Worlds” is an episode of the American radio drama anthology series The Mercury Theatre on the Air, directed and narrated by Orson Welles

It was broadcasted live as a halloween special at 8pm on Sunday 30 October 1938 by CBS Radio.

The radio episode became famous after brining listeners into panic due to a range of realistic live reports about a supposed alien invasion, this radio drama may have been the start of fake news.

To what extent is The War of the Worlds a historically significant media product?

I believe that to a great extent, The War of the Worlds is a historically significant media product in many ways.

War of the Worlds is an early example of a hybrid radio form, adapting the H.G Wells story using news and documentary conventions. Also, it is known as an episode of the American radio drama anthology series The Mercury Theatre on the Air: providing a strong brand identity.

The broadcast and the initial response believed that this was an early example of a documented mass media, having a direct effect on the audience’s behavior. It became famous for causing lots of panic from the audience and the immediate aftermath was chaotic. It was said that the studio was invaded by policemen and in some places, mobs were in the streets. Plus, there were many calls reporting deaths. Additionally, a study by the Radio Project discovered that fewer than one-third of frightened listeners thought the invaders were aliens. However, most people thought they were listening to reports of a German invasion or a natural catastrophe. 

The radio broadcast was aired over the Columbia Broadcasting System radio network, showing the power of networking, and within three weeks, newspapers had published at least 12,500 articles about the broadcast and its impact. Furthermore, Adolf Hitler referenced the broadcast in a speech in Munich on November 8, 1938. This would have brought even more attention, making it more of a historically significant event.

The more attention the situation gets, the more history it has. So, therefore, I believe that The War of the Worlds had a big impact historically, as it had a large impact on the society, with different reactions through Stuart Hall’s theory of preferred reading. If people viewed a situation with the same consistent dominant reading, War of the World’s most likely wouldn’t have been significantly historical as it is today. Through people having different readings, such as negotiated, dominant and oppositional, the more room for further reactions/opinions. Therefore, the War of the Worlds was a great impact, as it had numerous different reactions, causing a big impact, and therefore creating a significant historical event.