Today, all eyes are on the United States of America as the Presidency
changes hands in front of a worldwide audience. While some have chosen to
boycott the 58th Inauguration Day festivities, I will be watching. I
will be watching because today is historic no matter the name, party or
platform of the individual taking the oath of office. It’s a time when all of
America should turn their ear to hear the new President’s first message as
leader of the free world.
It’s been 92 years since Calvin Coolidge’s inauguration became the first to be broadcast nationally on the radio. It was the sixth-longest Inaugural Address in U.S. history, yet not one that stands out for a defining quote we all know today. It was March 4, 1925. My grandmother was 35 days old.
Twenty-four years later, Harry Truman was the first to deliver his address on national television. Twelve years later, John F. Kennedy urged citizens to “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country” in the first Inauguration televised in color. In 1997, President Bill Clinton’s second oath of office was the first to be streamed online. Since then, with the creation of smart phones and more and more internet media, the opportunities to watch or listen to an Inauguration have grown. Eight years ago, Barrack Obama’s first Inaugural set a world record with 45.5 million viewers via video stream, in addition to the 2 million in attendance and millions watching on TV.
There will be no shortage of ways to watch President-Elect Donald Trump take the oath of office today at noon (ET) to become the 45th President of the United States and deliver his Inaugural Address. The ceremony will be broadcast live on television, radio and streamed live through various platforms and media groups.
Today, as my daughter turns a year old, we will watch via ABC’s Roku app. It will be the first Inauguration in either of my children’s lifetime and a moment my daughter will have as part of her birthday every four years (1, 5, 9, 13, 17, 21, etc.). My wife watched her first one a day shy of eight months old when Ronald Reagan took his second oath of office.
Currently our nation continues to divide into partisan politics. It is reported that 65 Democratic members of Congress will skip the Inauguration events in boycott. It shouldn’t be missed though that the boycotts are from among the party and not that of the 2016 2016 Presidential runner-up Hillary Clinton, who will be in attendance. While some Democrats have dismissed her attendance as that of a former First Lady, only two runner-ups have not attended in the last 30 years: Gov. Michael Dukakis in 1989 and Gov. Mitt Romney in 2013. In fact all Presidents who lost re-election bids have attended their successor’s inauguration (most recently George H.W. Bush in 1993 and Jimmy Carter in 1981), except John Adams in 1801 and his son John Quincey Adams in 1829.
This is not a day to turn a deaf ear in America or try to make our voices louder than that of the incoming President.
This year’s address by Trump, estimated to last 20 minutes, is believed to be a call for unity. While many may find that call hard to believe given campaign rhetoric and our political climate, we should listen, and we should do so with an open mind, regardless of our political stance or view of our new President. Not doing so cheats ourselves and our country.
It’s been 92 years since Calvin Coolidge’s inauguration became the first to be broadcast nationally on the radio. It was the sixth-longest Inaugural Address in U.S. history, yet not one that stands out for a defining quote we all know today. It was March 4, 1925. My grandmother was 35 days old.
Twenty-four years later, Harry Truman was the first to deliver his address on national television. Twelve years later, John F. Kennedy urged citizens to “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country” in the first Inauguration televised in color. In 1997, President Bill Clinton’s second oath of office was the first to be streamed online. Since then, with the creation of smart phones and more and more internet media, the opportunities to watch or listen to an Inauguration have grown. Eight years ago, Barrack Obama’s first Inaugural set a world record with 45.5 million viewers via video stream, in addition to the 2 million in attendance and millions watching on TV.
There will be no shortage of ways to watch President-Elect Donald Trump take the oath of office today at noon (ET) to become the 45th President of the United States and deliver his Inaugural Address. The ceremony will be broadcast live on television, radio and streamed live through various platforms and media groups.
Today, as my daughter turns a year old, we will watch via ABC’s Roku app. It will be the first Inauguration in either of my children’s lifetime and a moment my daughter will have as part of her birthday every four years (1, 5, 9, 13, 17, 21, etc.). My wife watched her first one a day shy of eight months old when Ronald Reagan took his second oath of office.
Currently our nation continues to divide into partisan politics. It is reported that 65 Democratic members of Congress will skip the Inauguration events in boycott. It shouldn’t be missed though that the boycotts are from among the party and not that of the 2016 2016 Presidential runner-up Hillary Clinton, who will be in attendance. While some Democrats have dismissed her attendance as that of a former First Lady, only two runner-ups have not attended in the last 30 years: Gov. Michael Dukakis in 1989 and Gov. Mitt Romney in 2013. In fact all Presidents who lost re-election bids have attended their successor’s inauguration (most recently George H.W. Bush in 1993 and Jimmy Carter in 1981), except John Adams in 1801 and his son John Quincey Adams in 1829.
This is not a day to turn a deaf ear in America or try to make our voices louder than that of the incoming President.
This year’s address by Trump, estimated to last 20 minutes, is believed to be a call for unity. While many may find that call hard to believe given campaign rhetoric and our political climate, we should listen, and we should do so with an open mind, regardless of our political stance or view of our new President. Not doing so cheats ourselves and our country.
