George W. Bush delivered the first State of the Union livestreamed online

Woodrow Wilson revived the in-person State of the Union in 1913

President Wilson became the first president since John Adams to deliver the State of the Union in person. He is credited with transforming the speech from a routine update into a public tool for advancing the president's legislative agenda.

Television transformed the State of the Union, beginning with Harry Truman

In 1947, President Truman delivered the first televised State of the Union address, marking the address's shift into the visual age and expanding the president's reach beyond radio to a national TV audience.

Calvin Coolidge brought the State of the Union to the radio age

On Dec. 6, 1923, President Coolidge delivered his Annual Message from the US House chamber as millions listened by radio—crowds gathered outside with amplifiers—making it the first nationally broadcast address and the only in-person State of the Union of his presidency.

Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first president to use the term 'State of the Union'

In 1934, President Roosevelt became the first president to formally call the annual address the "State of the Union," replacing the older title "Annual Message to Congress" and using the language from the Constitution.

The State of the Union address was first delivered in New York City

The first address took place in New York City in 1790, when President George Washington addressed Congress at Federal Hall—the nation's capital under the Articles of Confederation and the seat of the federal government during the Constitution's first year.

Lyndon Johnson moved the State of the Union into prime time

In January 1965, President Johnson moved the address to prime time to reach a larger TV audience, using it to promote his "Great Society" program—a push to reduce poverty, advance civil rights, and expand federal action in healthcare and economic opportunity.

See a visual history of the State of the Union

This gallery offers a visual archive of the State of the Union, featuring photographs from each president's address, beginning with Franklin D. Roosevelt. Explore decades of presidential moments, settings, and historical context tied to the annual speech.

The opposition party to the president first delivered a televised response in 1966

Television networks first granted airtime to the out-of-power party in 1966, with Republicans Everett Dirksen and then-Representative Gerald R. Ford delivering the inaugural response. See a list of each opposition response to the State of the Union since then.

Go behind the scenes of the 2012 State of the Union Address

This video showcases the speechwriting process behind Barack Obama's 2012 State of the Union, highlighting how writers shaped themes, refined language, and coordinated closely with the president in the lead-up to the address.

Historians reflect on the best State of the Unions ever

These political experts highlight standout State of the Union addresses that shaped the nation's direction—from Washington's first and Lincoln's Civil War messages to FDR's wartime resolve, LBJ's Great Society launch, and Clinton's scandal-shadowed 1998 speech.

President Donald Trump's 2025 address drew 36.6 million viewers

President Trump's audience was about 13% higher than President Biden's 2024 address, but it fell short of Donald Trump's first-term State of the Union viewership, which consistently topped 37 million and peaked near 48 million in 2017.

President Reagan postponed the State of the Union after Challenger

In his Oval Office address delivered the night of the disaster, President Ronald Reagan spoke directly to the nation about the loss of Challenger and its crew, postponing that evening's scheduled State of the Union to address the tragedy.

George Washington set the template for the presidency

As the first US president, George Washington established key traditions still followed today—forming a Cabinet, serving only two terms, asserting executive independence, and peacefully transferring power—helping define how the presidency would function.

Why the First Gulf War occurred—and how it played out

This video navigates the conflict’s core—from Iraq's August 2, 1990 invasion of Kuwait through Operation Desert Shield’s buildup, to the decisive air and ground assault of January–February 1991. It spotlights coalition tactics and rapid liberation of Kuwait, highlighting how precision bombing and advanced tech reshaped modern warfare.

The annual 'turkey pardon' officially began in 1989

President George HW Bush oversaw the first official pardon, but the tradition began years before that. This short video from PBS News explores the history of presidential pardons for the lucky birds. There’s no “fowl” language, but there are plenty of puns!

Watch Springsteen open a somber 9/11 tribute

“America: A Tribute to Heroes” was a fundraising telethon on Sept. 21, 2001, and simulcast across the four major networks. Springsteen opened the program with “My City of Ruins,” a song originally written about Asbury Park that took on new significance after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

On April 12, 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human in space

In 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human to orbit Earth, deepening US fears of falling behind in the space race. Watch archival footage to see why the mission was such a historic turning point.

The 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force has been used by four administrations to justify military operations in 22 countries

Passed three days after the September 11 attacks to authorize the use of force against al-Qaeda and the Taliban, the 2001 AUMF has since been stretched far beyond its original scope and has been used by four consecutive administrations to justify military operations.

Watch archival footage of Jesse Owens in the 1936 Berlin Olympics

The 1936 Berlin Games were the first Olympics to be shown live on television (though not broadcast). The Germans used a closed circuit television network to bring the Games to 25 viewing halls in black and white. View footage of American Olympic hero Jesse Owens winning his four gold medals, and his historic interaction with German long jumper Luz Long in Nazi Germany.

YouTube's first-ever video was nothing special

YouTube has grown into a cultural force in its two-plus decades of existence. Its beginnings, though, were modest, especially its first video: a 19-second clip about a visit to the San Diego Zoo. This brief resource explains the origins and longtail impact of "Me at the zoo," a simple video uploaded by Jawed Karim on April 23, 2005.

In 1992, sports betting was outlawed in places where it wasn't already legal

On Oct. 29, 1992, then-President George HW Bush signed the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, outlawing sports gambling where it was not already legal.

The 'Miracle on the Hudson' showed heroism in the air and changed social media forever

On Jan. 15, 2009, US Airways Flight 1549 lost both engines after hitting birds and was safely landed in the Hudson River. The event was a turning point for Twitter, as a photo and a tweet quickly spread—marking Twitter's rise as a real-time news source.

'Attack of the Clones' was the first major feature film to be shot digitally

George Lucas was frustrated by the degradation of film and began testing digitally shot scenes with 1999's "The Phantom Menace." For the 2002 "Star Wars" film, he decided to go all in with HD digital cameras, leading to brighter pictures, a quicker review process, and a more seamless editing process.

The history of Vannevar Bush, who influenced the creation of hyperlinks and the NSF

As director of the Office of Scientific Research and Development, Bush submitted a report outlining how to support basic research at American colleges and universities by establishing an independent funding agency, which laid the groundwork for the National Science Foundation. His idea for a Memex machine that connected microfilm content in "associative trails" of links would influence Douglas Engelbart's development of hypertext.

Watch Steve Jobs introduce the first iPad

Apple's cofounder debuted the first iPad in 2010, framing it as a third category of personal electronics between the laptop and the smartphone. Steve Jobs showed off how thin the device was (for the time) and explained how it was better than smartphones and laptops for browsing the web.

The US first hosted the World Cup in 1994, a tournament that lives in soccer infamy for its poor planning and the murder of Colombian player Andres Escobar, who'd accidentally scored on his own net.

Watch contemporary footage covering the US-backed Shah of Iran fleeing the country in the face of the 1979 Iranian Revolution

The United States has had a tumultuous relationship with Cuba since its 1959 revolution, highlighted by a nuclear crisis and a decades-long trade embargo.

Hear about the 250-year history of the United States Postal Service, complete with some of its strangest deliveries, important innovations, and the figures that made it an American institution.

While the first exchange-traded fund (a 'basket' of different assets that can be bought and sold on a stock exchange) in the US only launched in 1993, the global ETF market has grown to more than $10T in the short time since.

The first horror movie is believed to be George Méliès' 1986 short 'The Haunted Castle,' which pioneered the use of special effects

The American Society of Civil Engineers' infrastructure report card gave the US a C in 2025, its highest grade since the project launched in 1998.

Abraham Lincoln was almost assassinated weeks before his inauguration as he traveled from Illinois to DC through Baltimore in 1861; it took two independent claims for Lincoln to be convinced the threat was real

View the ten deadliest tornadoes in US history.

Before humans, the Soviet Union and the United States sent animals—including apes, dogs, and cats—to space during the Space Race.

Jimmy Carter signed a 1978 bill that legalized home brewing, a move credited with kick-starting the craft beer industry.

See the most iconic photos from four decades of LIFE magazine

The first image of a black hole was captured by creating an Earth-sized virtual observatory from a network of eight radio telescopes.

'Shogun,' a 1980s TV series, helped popularize sushi in the US by stimulating an American interest in Japanese culture.

Long before Major League Baseball began allowing instant replay for balls and strikes, an umpire reluctantly used the technology to determine whether a hit was a home run, a move that inadvertently ushered in a new era for the sport.

In 2019, a laptop loaded with six of the worst malware in history and described as 'an exhibit of historical weaponry' sold for $1.3M.

In 1939, baseball star Lou Gehrig delivered his inspirational 'Luckiest Man' speech after retiring due to the health condition that now bears his name.

The Russia-Ukraine conflict is the largest ground war in Europe since World War II in casualties, forces mobilized, and displacement of civilians.

Before writing 'Walden,' transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau nearly burned down his hometown with a campfire that grew out of control.

The Beatles' US label rejected the band's first two singles, 'Please Please Me' and 'From Me to You,' with one executive calling the band 'dead in the water.'

Children are now three times more likely to say they want to be a YouTuber when they grow up than an astronaut, with some even attending 'YouTube camps' that teach kids how to create content for the platform.

Explore the history, structure, and species of Australia's Great Barrier Reef with this interactive journey narrated by Sir David Attenborough.

Watch what the Ebola virus does inside our cells and organs in order to spread and survive.

Telehealth demand for GLP-1s for weight loss is booming as consumers seek easier access.