COMM 320 Study Guide - Final Guide: Radical Change, Brenda Maddox, Crc Press
Document Summary
Without any doubts, the telephone meant a radical change in personal communication throughout north america when it was invented. In its early stages, the telephone system required the involvements of operators as mediating components for the production of telephone calls. In fact, before the adoption of automatic switchboard, telephone operators were required to make the connections between subscribers. At a time when women barely occupied the labour force, the telephone came into play and changed significantly women"s roles and status within society. In fact, as author mich le martin wrote is her book, women" s particular characteristics facilitated the transition of the telephone industry from a small-scale enterprise to a modern corporate capitalist monopoly (1991, p. 50). Therefore, women operators" contribution was central to the rapid development of the telephone industry in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. This essay explores the job of telephone operators, which was uniquely performed by women, who were known as hello girls .
