Fireside Chat refers to:
Fireside Chat is one of the instances in which U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt utilized mass communication for a politically motivated public relations campaign.In the 1930s, the U.S. economy was in the midst of the Great Depression.
In order to solicit the support of the American people for the government and to alleviate the depression, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt used the Fireside Chat program to reach out to the American people over the radio.
His talks not only inspired the American people and strengthened their confidence, but also publicized his basic ideas of monetary and social reforms, thus winning people's understanding and respect. It played a greater role in getting the U.S. government through the hardships and easing the crisis.
Historical Impact of Sidewalk Talks:
The background of the first fireside chat was the Great Depression of the 1930s in the U.S. Roosevelt also made use of the newly-emerging medium of broadcasting, and used the form of a "talk" rather than a "speech" to convey his self-confidence in the form of a "talk" rather than a "speech".
Whenever they heard the fireside chat, it was as if people saw Roosevelt with a smile on his face, so it was said that "Roosevelt was no farther away from them than the radio in the living room." Some people even cut out his picture and pasted it on their radios. The tremendous impact achieved by the fireside chats became a legend in the history of broadcasting. Roosevelt continued the format thereafter until his death.
Roosevelt's preference for radio made many newspaper journalists feel indignant, as did JFK's later enthusiasm for television, and Roosevelt's fireside chats thus became one of the paradigms of government public relations.