Telstar 1 and 2 demonstrated routing of telephone, television and other communications types between continents.
The Smithsonian Air and Space Museum pages below contain images of the satellites. They show two rows of non-very-directional antennas that completely circle the "equator" of the spherical satellite, pointing radially outwards in a complete circle.
I estimate there are about 42 of the larger antennas and 64 of the smaller ones.
Question: How were all of the over 100 antennas distributed in these two rings configured to receive and transmit signals, since at any time half to most of them wouldn't be pointing at the US or Europe?
This illustration from 1962 shows the major components of Bell Systems’ experimental communications satellite.
Source: Smithsonian Air and Space Museum page Satellite Components
Backup spacecraft for Telstar, the world’s first active communications satellite. Telstar 1 began an era of live international television. After its launch on July 10, 1962, it relayed television images between the United States and France and England.
Source: cropped from Smithsonian Air and Space Museum page Telstar