Object

Josh's Office AM Radio (Desk-Top News Receiver)

Used for receiving news broadcasts in the bullpen.

5 appearances

Purpose

To receive and broadcast AM audio — late‑breaking news bulletins and wire feeds — providing the on‑duty staff with real‑time external information.

Significance

Functions as the tenuous lifeline to the outside world: it delivers late news that shapes immediate tactical choices, heightens the room's pressure during political emergencies, and marks Josh's role as the watcher who 'picks up the late wires' when events threaten to spill out of control.

Appearances in the Narrative

When this object appears and how it's used

5 moments

S1E7 · The State Dinner

Donna's Warning: Indonesia's Brutal Practice Ups the Stakes

A small AM radio provides background storm reportage that frames the scene's urgency; its low‑fidelity updates punctuate Josh's mood and justify his focus on FEMA/Red Cross coordination rather than prolonged debate about Donna's research.

Before: On Josh's desk, tuned to news about the storm; emitting low-level bulletins.

After: Continues to play in the background as staff move through the bullpen and into Leo's meeting, providing ongoing aural pressure.

View full event

S1E7 · The State Dinner

Triage and Turf: Storms, State Dinner, and a Power Struggle

The AM radio provides background news — reports about the storm — giving immediate situational context that frames the urgency of Josh's call and Leo's FEMA/Red Cross directives. Its breathy bulletins anchor the meeting in real-world crisis.

Before: Sitting on Josh's desk, powered on and broadcasting low-fidelity news bulletins.

After: Remains on and broadcasting as staff move to triage tasks; continues as ambient informational source.

View full event

S1E7 · The State Dinner

Hickory: Bartlet's Call to Harold Lewis

A tabletop radio/speaker (represented in the briefing as the speaker-phone line) transmits Harold's frail voice; the crackle and dropouts give the conversation texture and urgency, dramatizing the fragility of contact between the White House and the cutter.

Before: Sits on or near the briefing table, powered and patched into the Hickory's radio feed.

After: Remains the tenuous lifeline as the President promises to stay on the line; its continued functioning is precarious and central to the scene's suspense.

View full event

S1E18 · Six Meetings Before Lunch

The Jackal: A Momentary Reprieve

The small AM tabletop radio is the initiating prop: Toby pushes its button to cue the jazz track that becomes the audible backbone for C.J.'s lip‑synched performance. It functions as a ritual trigger, turning background tension into a set piece of communal release.

Before: Sitting on Josh's desk, powered and at hand; ready but silent.

After: Playing through the number then fading out as the jazz ends; remains in place on the desk.

View full event

S1E18 · Six Meetings Before Lunch

Matchmaking Under 'The Jackal' — Leo Plants Sam with Mallory

A small tabletop AM radio supplies the jazz backing for C.J.'s lip-synch; Toby pushes its button to start the track, making it the audible engine of the room's release and the cue that frames Toby's protective ritual and C.J.'s performance.

Before: Sitting on the press-room desk, plugged in and available as a portable playback source.

After: Still on the desk as the jazz fades, having provided the musical cue that punctuated the celebration and then subsided back into ambient noise.

View full event