TELEVISION'S ARRIVAL IN THE APPALACHIAN MOUNTAINS OF THE USA

Abstract

Through the use of oral histories, this study looks at the social impact of television's arrival in the Appalachian Mountains of the USA. Given the oral traditions of rural Appalachia, oral history is particularly well suited for this topic. Despite electrification delays and reception problems, the arrival of television, like radio before it, reinforced the community ties of many of the participants and families in this study. Most of the participants spoke about their memories of TV from the early 1950s to the early 1960s. However, few programmes during that period included characters or performers that spoke to the Appalachian culture, leaving mountain residents seemingly marginalized from ‘mainstream’ TV audiences. Yet early television's underrepresentation or misrepresentation of Appalachia did not exclude these interviewees from participating in TV's arrival, nor did marginalization make their experiences insignificant. Participants’ oral histories give enthusiastic voice to their communities’ welcoming of television, and at the same time reveal their own individual agency and personal reflection in creating Appalachian TV audiences.