Edmund Albert Chester, Sr. - (June 22, 1897 – October 14, 1973) - was a senior Vice President and executive at the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmi ...

and

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

networks during the 1940s. As Director of Latin American Relations he collaborated with the Department of State to develop CBS's "La Cadena de Las Americas" radio network in support of

Pan-Americanism Pan-Americanism is a movement that seeks to create, encourage, and organize relationships, associations and cooperation among the states of the Americas, through diplomatic, political, economic, and social means. History Following the indepen ...

during World War II. He also served as a highly respected journalist and Bureau Chief for Latin America at

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. ne ...

and Vice President at La Prensa Asociada in the 1930s.''Time'', June 1, 1942

Biography

During the course of a journalistic career which ranged over two decades, he assumed a central role in the development of a viable international radio transmission network linking the

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

with the developing nations of

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...

and

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

for the

network from 1940 through 1949. As Director of Short Wave Broadcasts for

he supervised the creation of this vast shortwave service which was widely known throughout South America as the Network of the Americas (La Cadena de las Americas).''In All His Glory: the Life And Times of William S. Paley''
Salley Bedell Smith. Random House. New York, 2002 p. 18 William S. Paley, CBS, Edmund A. Chester on books.google He assisted

William S. Paley William Samuel Paley (September 28, 1901 – October 26, 1990) was an American businessman, primarily involved in the media, and best known as the chief executive who built the Columbia Broadcasting System ( CBS) from a small radio network into ...

and high level diplomats from

in the development of the intricate broadcast standards which would serve as the foundations for this vital information link during the turbulent

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

era. He also collaborated with his counterparts in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

during the post World War II era in order to coordinate the creation of new technical broadcast standards and the expansion of the broadcast network which linked the two continents. His endeavors were not limited to the technical development of

' worldwide broadcasting capabilities. As

' Director of Latin American Relations Mr. Chester worked in concert with the Department of State, the United States

Office of the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs The Office of the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs, later known as the Office for Inter-American Affairs, was a United States agency promoting inter-American cooperation (Pan-Americanism) during the 1940s, especially in commercial and econ ...

(OCIAA) and

Voice of America Voice of America (VOA or VoA) is the state-owned news network and international radio broadcaster of the United States of America. It is the largest and oldest U.S.-funded international broadcaster. VOA produces digital, TV, and radio content ...

while supervising the development of news and cultural programming for live broadcasts to North America and Latin America from the CBS broadcast studios in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. These imaginative cultural initiatives served to foster benevolent diplomatic relations and high level cultural exchanges throughout South America as part of President Franklin Roosevelt's support for

during the 1940s. Popular programs such as ''

Viva America Viva may refer to: Companies and organisations * Viva (network operator), a Dominican mobile network operator * Viva Air, a Spanish airline taken over by flag carrier Iberia * Viva Air Dominicana * VIVA Bahrain, a telecommunication company * ...

showcased professional musical talent of the highest caliber in live concert and were supervised by the Department of State and the Office of Inter-American Affairs during the tenure of Nelson Rockefeller.''The New York Times'', January 18, 1942, pg. 27''The New York Times'', November 5, 1983, pg. 34 He presented prominent musicians from both North America and South America for extended appearances on these broadcasts. Included among these artists were:

Alfredo Antonini Alfredo Antonini (May 31, 1901 – November 3, 1983) was a leading Italian-American symphony conductor and composer who was active on the international concert stage as well as on the CBS radio and television networks from the 1930s through the e ...

(

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

orchestral conductor);

Juan Arvizu Juan Nepomuceno Arvizu Santelices (known as Juan Arvizu; Santiago de Querétaro, May 22, 1900 - Mexico City, November 19, 1985), was an acclaimed lyric tenor in Mexico and a noted interpreter of the Latin American bolero and tango on the internati ...

( Mexican "Tenor with the Silken Voice

Nestor Mesta Chayres, Nestor Mesta Chaires ( Mexican tenor aka "El Gitano De Mexico

Eva Garza Eva Garza (May 11, 1917 – November 1, 1966) was a Mexican-American singer and film actress who acquired international recognition in the 1940s and 1950s during the Golden Age of Mexican cinema. She collaborated on live radio shows and films wit ...

( Mexican songstress);

Terig Tucci Terig Tucci (June 23, 1897 – February 28, 1973) was an Argentine composer, violinist, pianist, and mandolinist. Tucci was born in Buenos Aires, in 1897. His first composition, “Cariños de madre” was performed for a zarzuela at the ...

( Argentine composer/arranger);

John Serry, Sr. John Serry Sr. (born John Serrapica; January 29, 1915 – September 14, 2003) was an American concert accordionist, arranger, composer, organist, and educator. He performed on the CBS Radio and Television networks and contributed to Voic ...

(

concert accordionist/composer),

Elsa Miranda Elsa M. Miranda (14 February 1922 – 27 April 2007) was a noted Puerto Rican singer who was featured on radio and television in the United States during the Golden Age of Radio in the 1940s. As a naturalized Argentinian, she was also active as ...

(Puerto Rican vocalist) and members of the CBS Pan American Orchestra. As World War II evolved, the shortwave broadcasts which were transmitted over Chester's "La Cadena de Las Americas" grew in popularity and scope throughout Latin America. Initially broadcasts only lasted for seven hours each day. By 1945, Chester successfully developed the network to broadcast high quality entertainment and news programming over 114 affiliated radio stations in twenty Latin American nations. In later years (1948), Mr. Chester emerged as the Director of News, Special Events and Sports for the

Television Network A television network or television broadcaster is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, where a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay television providers. Until the mid- ...

. During this period he assumed a central role in coordinating the integration of the vast CBS radio network with the evolving television division. In the course of supervising

' historic live television coverage of the proceedings of the

United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...

in November 1949, Mr. Chester demonstrated an enduring commitment to the lofty professional standards for excellence in broadcasting which served as the hallmark of the entire

network for decades to come.''The New York Times'', November 4, 1949, pg. 50

References

External links

WorldCat.org Library holdings for Edmund A. Chester
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chester, Edmund A. American television executives American male journalists 1897 births 1973 deaths American radio executives CBS executives Journalists from New York City