The Rise and Fall of the Civil War Signal Operator

The Civil War signal operators' doings, their daring escapades on the battlefield very quickly get picked up in the popular press. The British referred to wiretapping as wire milking in the period instead. In post-bellum decades, as wiretapping proliferates, popular novelists and popular news accounts fixate on the idea that this growing telecommunications infrastructure has leaky parts.

Transcript

Play full episode

Remember Everything You Learn from Podcasts

Save insights instantly, chat with episodes, and build lasting knowledge - all powered by AI.