Judge, 1938-03 · page 6 of 52
Judge — March 1938 — page 6: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis This is a Bell Telephone System advertisement rather than political satire. It depicts a telephone operator at a switchboard, emphasizing the professional courtesy and service operators provided. The text celebrates the operator's courteous phrases—"Please" and "Thank you"—as hallmarks of quality telephone service. The advertisement notes that 170,000 women were employed by Bell System out of 315,000 total employees, highlighting their significant workforce role. It describes operators as "your friends and neighbors" with an average ten-year tenure, positioning them as trusted community members. The image and copy work together to promote Bell's service quality through human connection, appealing to customers' appreciation for politeness and personal interaction—marketing strategy that emphasizes the human element of telephone service during this era.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
C2 a Lp Tue alert, courteous voice of the telephone operator is known to all who use the tele- phone. To the little old lady in the shawl, the man in the big house on the hill, or a tiny tot of six, the words are the same, “Number, please” and “Thank you.” The Bell System appreciates your patron- age and tries to deserve it. In everything that concerns telephone service, we hope you can say: “They’re nice people to do F ooh 9 business with.” » gs, 170,000 Women Are Employed by the Bell System More than half of the 315,000 employees of the Bell System are women. Their average length of service is about ten years, They are your friends and neighbors. BELL TELEPHONE SYSTEM