 | ||
The Weekly Address of the President of the United States (also known as the Weekly (Radio) Address or Your Weekly Address) is the weekly speech by the President of the United States to the nation. Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first U.S. president to deliver such radio addresses. Ronald Reagan revived the practice of delivering a weekly Saturday radio broadcast in 1982, and his successors have all continued the practice.
As the Internet became mainstream, the weekly address was made available on other media. George W. Bush introduced an audio podcast feed and Barack Obama introduced a weekly video address during his presidential transition period. Donald Trump has continued the weekly video address.
History
Franklin D. Roosevelt first used what would become known as fireside chats in 1929 as Governor of New York. His third gubernatorial address—April 3, 1929, on WGY radio—is cited by Roosevelt biographer Frank Freidel as being the first fireside chat. As president he continued the tradition, which he called his fireside chats. The success of these presidential addresses encouraged their continuation by future presidents.
The practice of regularly scheduled addresses began in 1982 when President Ronald Reagan started delivering a radio broadcast every Saturday. Conservative journalist William A. Rusher, who publicly urged Reagan to begin the series of broadcasts, explicitly referred to the "fireside chats" and compared Reagan's communications skills to those of Roosevelt. During a sound check prior to the radio address in August 1984, Reagan made the following gaffe as a way to test the microphone: "My fellow Americans, I'm pleased to tell you today that I've signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. We begin bombing in five minutes."
George H. W. Bush did not participate in the weekly radio address during his term, while Bill Clinton did so, often going over ten minutes with some speeches early in his term. George W. Bush began to have his addresses posted as an audio podcast once that technology became popular.
Barack Obama used YouTube for regular video addresses as President-elect and since his inauguration the weekly addresses have continued on the White House website, the official White House YouTube channel, and networks such as C-SPAN, with the 24-hour cable news channels and network morning shows usually airing the full address only if the topic involves a breaking news event; short summaries of the address and the talking points within are otherwise edited and presented within regular news reports throughout each Saturday.
Donald Trump continued to use video address as his predecessor did, however, his weekly address also went onto Facebook as a live stream.
It has long become customary for the President's Weekly Radio Address to be followed by a response from the opposition party. When the President is a Democrat, the opposition's response is given by a Republican and vice-versa. This response is not limited to only responding by the subject of the president's address, but may address other topics of political or social interest, a tribute to a figure who has died in the last week, a general patriotic message on holiday weekends (the latter two of which can also be part of the presidential address), or other concerns working through the Senate or House which have not yet been addressed by the executive branch.
A common complaint about the President's Weekly Radio Address is that only a few radio stations (mainly public radio and all-news radio outlets, a format very rare outside of major metropolitan areas) cover the very short broadcasts, they are not advertised publicly, and very few Americans are able to find address coverage on their local radio dial; Saturday mornings usually have brokered or paid programming carried on most commercial radio stations.