"I want to talk for a few minutes with the people of the United States about banking... I can assure you that it is safer to keep your money in a reopened bank than under the mattress... It is your problem no less than it is mine. Together we cannot fail." — Franklin D. Roosevelt, First Fireside Chat, March 12, 1933
The fireside chat format helped Roosevelt build the New Deal coalition by:
- A
Bypassing the Constitution to legislate by decree
- B
Avoiding any contact with newspaper journalists
- Ccheck_circle
Using radio to speak directly to ordinary Americans about federal policy
- D
Promoting Republican opposition to banking reform
Explanation
Radio allowed FDR to reassure citizens directly, an innovation that strengthened popular support for New Deal programs.