Shaping the Future of Radio

In the early 1910s, long before “disc jockeys” became a thing, Sybil M. True Herrold was already spinning records and captivating listeners in San Jose.

Alongside her husband, radio pioneer Charles Herrold, Sybil hosted the weekly “Little Ham Program” on KQW—broadcasting music, local news, and weekly contests around 1910. She borrowed records from Sherman Clay’s to showcase new hits, and her broadcasts drove listeners to rush out and buy the songs she played.

Sybil herself remarked in a 1959 interview: “I really believe that I was the first woman to ever broadcast a program,” reflecting pride in her role as a trailblazer. Through her engaging style—request lines, giveaways, music features—she laid the groundwork for modern radio personalities.

While Charles Herrold is often credited as a father of broadcasting, Sybil True stands as one of the nation’s first female radio hosts, perhaps even the world’s first female “disc jockey.” Her legacy lives on in the voices we hear on air today.

From college campus airwaves to the national landscape, Sybil True helped tune the future of radio—right from San Jose.