3. The Roads Must Roll

In this episode of Radio Revisited: Behind the Static, Walt Briggs introduces Robert A. Heinlein’s bold 1950 radio story The Roads Must Roll, a vision of a future America running on massive conveyor systems — until a labor revolt threatens to derail everything. After the broadcast, Walt dives into the story’s prescient commentary on automation, class struggle, and the false promise of efficiency. It’s a sharp, mechanical tale with a human heartbeat — and its echoes feel anything but distant. This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.