What the Public Knew About Wireless Before Titanic [Scanning Our Past]

When the Titanic sank and took the lives of 1500 people in 1912, the coverage in the American press reflected the shock of the public that such a disaster could occur. The ship represented the acme of maritime transportation, including a state-of-the-art wireless telegraphy station. Much of the surprise arose from the discovery that the operation of this station and the international maritime wireless system were not as effective as people had learned over the previous five years. Wireless enthusiast and publisher Hugo Gernsback claimed that 400000 people were articipating in wireless in some form in 1912, but that left about 92 million Americans who were not.1 What did this other 99% know about this technology, especially in its maritime uses? How did the form and delivery of that information shape their assumptions about its capabilities? The answers lie in the technology's publicity after the promotion.