George V. Denny Jr. (1899–1959) was the long-time moderator of one of radio's first talk shows, America's Town Meeting of the Air, as well as the executive director of the League for Political Education/Town Hall, which produced the program.
[2] In his role, by 1935 Denny worried that an uninformed public was bad for democracy;[3] and that American society had become so polarized that the average person didn't listen to other points of view.
[4] His goal was to create a new kind of educational program, one that would be entertaining as well as mentally challenging, while exposing listeners to various perspectives on the issues of the day.
Explaining the rationale behind a radio town meeting, Denny wrote that it was "... a device which is designed to attract [the average American's] attention and stimulate his [sic] interest in the complex economic, social and political problems which he must have a hand in solving.
And educators found it so useful that Denny and NBC put program listings and what the speakers had said into booklet form, which was disseminated to public school civics teachers.
Denny did not shy away from controversy: his panelists included Socialist presidential candidate Norman Thomas, American Communist Party leader Earl Browder, and civil libertarian Morris Ernst.
[14] The 1930s were definitely the heyday of America's Town Meeting, although it remained on the air throughout the 1940s and sometimes still inspired the kinds of passionate discussions Denny had hoped for.
Denny resigned his position at the League for Political Education (then known as Town Hall, Inc.) in 1951;[2] by 1952, he had been replaced as moderator — the show was finally canceled on July 1, 1956.