Page "Mutual Broadcasting System" Paragraph 12

Mutual also began building a reputation as a strong news service, rivaling CBS and NBC in quality if not always in budget.

The broadcasts of WOR reporter Gabriel Heatter from the Lindbergh kidnapping " trial of the century " in 1935, heard over Mutual, were highly regarded ; Heatter soon had his own regularly scheduled newscast, aired nationally five nights a week.

In 1936, also via WOR, Mutual began broadcasting the reports of news commentator Raymond Gram Swing, who became one of the country's leading voices on foreign affairs.

In November 1937, conservative commentator Fulton Lewis Jr., heard five nights weekly from Mutual affiliate WOL, became the first national news personality to broadcast out of Washington, D. C .; he would remain with the network until his death almost three decades later.

In 1938, Mutual started rebroadcasting news reports from the BBC and English-language newscasts from the European mainland.

The network also began employing its own reporters in Europe as the continent headed toward crisis, including John Steele, Waverly Root, Arthur Mann, and Victor Lusinchi.

Among these was Sigrid Schultz, the first accomplished female foreign correspondent to appear on American news radio.