On September 6, 1926, Czechoslovak Radio connected with the wider world for the first time. From the Palace of the League of Nations in Geneva, it broadcast a speech by Foreign Minister Edvard Beneš, opening a new era of international broadcasts. The technically complex connection, routed through several European cities, was eventually completed successfully, allowing listeners in Prague to hear Beneš’s voice almost in real time. The event marked an important step forward for radio journalism, which from then on became a window onto not only cultural life, but also political and public events.
When Edvard Beneš’s voice came through from Geneva on September 6, 1926, listeners at home experienced something they had never heard before. For the first time, Czechoslovak Radio had brought an event from abroad directly to its listeners, showing that it could connect Prague with events taking place around the world.
Photo: APF Czech Radio
Making it happen was an adventure in its own right. The signal travelled via Bern, Zurich, Ulm, Regensburg, Brod nad Lesy and Plzeň before reaching the Prague district of Strašnice. Several European broadcasting companies were involved, and they had to coordinate the connection across the entire route so that Beneš’s speech could be heard without major interruptions. According to The First Ten Years of Czechoslovak Radio, the broadcast was “very successful.”
The event became a milestone. Radio, which had already become part of cultural life, was now establishing itself firmly in politics and the public sphere. Beneš’s speech from Geneva thus paved the way for regular international broadcasts – something we now take completely for granted.