Presidential Trivia Answers

Thanks for playing!

(1) QUESTION: Which President was the first to have his State of the Union broadcast via radio? What about television? Live webcast?

ANSWER: The first radio address was Calvin Coolidge (1923). The first television address was Harry Truman (1947). The first live webcast was George W. Bush (2002).

(2) QUESTION: Which President delivered the most messages? Which delivered the least? (For those who are aware that the State of the Union used to be called the Annual Message, I am counting both. I am also counting both written messages and messages delivered in person.)

ANSWER: FDR holds the record for the most messages, at 12. Ten of these were delivered to Congress in person. Two Presidents did not give any message at all because they unfortunately passed away before they got a chance to do so: William Henry Harrison and James Garfield.

(3) QUESTION: Which Presidents hold the records for the longest/shortest messages?

ANSWER: Jimmy Carter delivered the longest written message (33,667 words), while Bill Clinton holds the record for the longest message delivered in person (9,190 words). The shortest message was George Washington’s second Annual Message at only 1,089 words.