Artifact Details

Title

UNIVAC 1952 Election, featuring Edward R. Murrow

Catalog Number

102651772

Type

Moving Image

Description

This news broadcast describes the role of the UNIVAC system in the 1952 U.S. presidential race between Dwight D. Eisenhower and Adlai Stevenson. The UNIVAC is introduced as the "miracle of the modern age, the electronic brain," and the broadcast is narrated by Edward R. Murrow. The clip discusses how UNIVAC was being used to predict the outcome of the election, based on the early returns. As a picture of the relationship between the public and computers in the 1950s, it is invaluable - Murrow continually refers to the UNIVAC as "he" (as in "now he is processing the data") and has one-sided conversations with the machine ("what are you saying now? He's not a very talkative machine"). There are several good shots of UNIVAC hardware, and the narration is geared towards an audience of laypeople.

Date

1952-11-04

Credits

Murrow, Edward R.

Publisher

CBS News

Place of Publication

New York, NY, US

Platform

Betacam

Duration

00:08:00

Format

U-Matic

Copyright Holder

Thought Equity

Category

Broadcast