Technology: The Microphone
Include 5 academic sources, 2 of which are course readings
?
Brief history:
? Megaphone which amplified voices of performers in amphitheaters
? Began with the liquid transmitter used by Bell However, this was unstable and too
difficult to multiply.
? Next, Hughes invented the carbon microphone, which was refined by Edison.
Edison’s was cheapest so his was widely used.
? Carbon granules were difficult to work with. So then the electromagnetic
microphone emerged.
? Many men competing for patents on the microphone at the same time (Boyd,
2014):
? Emile Berliner filed a patent on a carbon microphone (1877)
? This was bought by Alexander Bell (he invented the telephone in 1876)
? Thomas Edison was filing a patent at the same time
? In the US, David Edward Hughes claimed the invention was his.
? How sociocultural values are inscribed into it
? Designer assumptions
? Two assumed uses:
? Amplifying:
? In ancient Greece, there were masks used in
performances which had an open mouth that was angled
to amplify the sound coming from the actor’s mouth.
(Montgomery, 1959, p.243)
? Carbon microphone
? Condenser/capacitor microphone
? Recording:
? Affordances
? How race and gender are embedded into it
The microphone enabled broadcasting of radio and then television. Sound broadcasting was
believed to have emerged in the 1920s, and television in the 1930s.
? Our proposal on how the technology can be redesigned to be more inclusive
– offer microphones with visual indicators for the hearing impaired to monitor audio input
levels.
– Adjustable sensitivity settings
– User friendly design for all ages
Who/was the first woman, person of colour, involved in radio and television?
The microphone enabled broadcasting of radio and then television. The microphone itself
doesn’t actually have many affordances, just amplification and recording (we can give a brief
history of those here). We can then discuss how the microphone was used in music (include
race and gender here, jazz music, swing dancing etc.). We can then discuss the politics of the
audio-broadcasting industry.
– Hosts of radio shows being white men for a very long time
– Owners of recording studios
– Owners of production studios
– Evolution of the podcast
– Pricepoint of microphones – need money to have a voice.
– Failure of using microphones at conferences, speeches etc – some people connect
hearing aids to the
We can talk about the amplification of voices for both good and bad reasons (good being the
Thesis ideas:
–
Examine microphone use across different groups to identify inclusivity challenges (how
different user groups interact with microphones)
Analyzing technological limitations of microphones affecting diverse user experiences
Proposing solutions to enhance microphone accessibility
Sources:
Academic:
Montgomery, H. C. (1959). Amplification and High Fidelity in the Greek Theater. The Classical
Journal, 54(6), 242–245. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3294133
–
Marx reading…
Non-academic:
Boyd, A. (Executive Producer). (2014, June 5). Microphone (no.2949) [Audio podcast episode]
In The Engines of our Engenuity. University of Houston, Cullen College of Engineering.
https://engines.egr.uh.edu/episode/2949#:~:text=In%201877%20Emile%20Berliner%20filed,hug
e%20sum%20at%20the%20time.
Camacho, J. & Manvell, R. (2024, January 18). Broadcasting. Encyclopedia Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/technology/broadcasting
Brief-history-of-microphones
https://radio.co/blog/10-oldest-radio-stations
The Microphone
By: Jorja & Sana
Thesis:
Marshall McLuhan said “The medium is the message”. Far too often there is a
focus on the process of recording and listening to media enabled by the
microphone. We argue that in order to make the microphone more inclusive,
focus must be shifted away from the technology itself and onto the experiences
it surrounds such as recording, listening, and amplifying.
Background: invention
Heavily politicized and rooted in con?ict of
ownership:
–
In 1877 Berliner ?led a patent on the
carbon microphone which was then
purchased by Alexander Bell.
At the same time, Thomas Edison was
?ling a patent
In the US, David Edward Hughes
claimed the invention was his.
Micpedia, 2022
Background: uses (radio and tv)
–
1896 Nikolai Tesla ?led for a patent on the radio, which was primarily
used for military and naval purposes.
Marshal McLuhan: “The medium is the message”.
Designer intentions
–
Transmit sound waves that were produced by speci?c people
–
Radio hosts and owners who were white men
Affordances
–
–
–
Connecting to hearing aids
The concept of a singular machine was replaced by machines attached to
large systems (Marx, 2010).
“By cosigning technologies to the realm of things, this well-established
iconography distracts attention from the human – socioeconomic and
political – relations which largely determine who uses them and for what
purposes.” (p.576) Microphone was such an amazing technology that it
distracted from the message or artform being expressed.
Race and gender – bring up music/tv industries
–
Concept of ownership in recording industries
–
Technology: The Microphone
Include 5 academic sources, 2 of which are course readings
?
Brief history:
? Megaphone which amplified voices of performers in amphitheaters
? Began with the liquid transmitter used by Bell However, this was unstable and too
difficult to multiply.
? Next, Hughes invented the carbon microphone, which was refined by Edison.
Edison’s was cheapest so his was widely used.
? Carbon granules were difficult to work with. So then the electromagnetic
microphone emerged.
? Many men competing for patents on the microphone at the same time (Boyd,
2014):
? Emile Berliner filed a patent on a carbon microphone (1877)
? This was bought by Alexander Bell (he invented the telephone in 1876)
? Thomas Edison was filing a patent at the same time
? In the US, David Edward Hughes claimed the invention was his.
? How sociocultural values are inscribed into it
? Designer assumptions
? Two assumed uses:
? Amplifying:
? In ancient Greece, there were masks used in
performances which had an open mouth that was angled
to amplify the sound coming from the actor’s mouth.
(Montgomery, 1959, p.243)
? Carbon microphone
? Condenser/capacitor microphone
? Recording:
? Affordances
? How race and gender are embedded into it
The microphone enabled broadcasting of radio and then television. Sound broadcasting was
believed to have emerged in the 1920s, and television in the 1930s.
? Our proposal on how the technology can be redesigned to be more inclusive
– offer microphones with visual indicators for the hearing impaired to monitor audio input
levels.
– Adjustable sensitivity settings
– User friendly design for all ages
Who/was the first woman, person of colour, involved in radio and television?
The microphone enabled broadcasting of radio and then television. The microphone itself
doesn’t actually have many affordances, just amplification and recording (we can give a brief
history of those here). We can then discuss how the microphone was used in music (include
race and gender here, jazz music, swing dancing etc.). We can then discuss the politics of the
audio-broadcasting industry.
– Hosts of radio shows being white men for a very long time
– Owners of recording studios
– Owners of production studios
– Evolution of the podcast
– Pricepoint of microphones – need money to have a voice.
– Failure of using microphones at conferences, speeches etc – some people connect
hearing aids to the
We can talk about the amplification of voices for both good and bad reasons (good being the
Thesis ideas:
–
Examine microphone use across different groups to identify inclusivity challenges (how
different user groups interact with microphones)
Analyzing technological limitations of microphones affecting diverse user experiences
Proposing solutions to enhance microphone accessibility
Sources:
Academic:
Montgomery, H. C. (1959). Amplification and High Fidelity in the Greek Theater. The Classical
Journal, 54(6), 242–245. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3294133
–
Marx reading…
Non-academic:
Boyd, A. (Executive Producer). (2014, June 5). Microphone (no.2949) [Audio podcast episode]
In The Engines of our Engenuity. University of Houston, Cullen College of Engineering.
https://engines.egr.uh.edu/episode/2949#:~:text=In%201877%20Emile%20Berliner%20filed,hug
e%20sum%20at%20the%20time.
Camacho, J. & Manvell, R. (2024, January 18). Broadcasting. Encyclopedia Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/technology/broadcasting
Brief-history-of-microphones
https://radio.co/blog/10-oldest-radio-stations

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