Car Industry Seeks to Crush AM Radio; Congress May Rescue It

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Car Industry Seeks to Crush AM Radio; Congress May Rescue It

Conservative talk show hosts, FEMA are fighting carmakers, tech industries in lobbying battle over drive-time radio

{snip picture}

Radio in a vintage car. GETTY IMAGES

By Julie BykowiczFollow
and Ted MannFollow
Jan. 28, 2024 5:30 am ET

WASHINGTON—A motley crew of AM radio advocates, including conservative talk show hosts like Hugh Hewitt and federal emergency officials, are lobbying Congress to stop carmakers from dropping the old medium from new vehicles. … Tesla, Volvo, and BMW are among the companies that have already stopped providing AM tuners in some models. Last year Ford said it would join them—until CEO Jim Farley reversed course “after speaking with policy leaders.”

Lawmakers say most car companies are noncommittal about the future of AM tuners in vehicles, so they want to require them by law to keep making cars with free AM radio. Supporters argue it is a critical piece of the emergency communication network, while the automakers say Americans have plenty of other ways, including their phones, to receive alerts and information.

The legislation has united lawmakers who ordinarily want nothing to do with one another. Sens. Ted Cruz (R., Texas) and Ed Markey (D., Mass.) are leading the Senate effort, and on the House side, Speaker Mike Johnson—himself a former conservative talk radio host in Louisiana—and progressive “squad” member Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan are among about 200 co-sponsors.

“I would challenge anyone to find any issue where Bernie Sanders and heavy hitters on the right are co-sponsors. It doesn’t exist,” said Curtis LeGeyt, president of the National Association of Broadcasters.

{snip}

[no_hypocrisy]

1. Plus, w/o AM radio, no local news, sports, weather, and traffic.

[AllaN01Bear]

2. a.m tends to be more rubust in emergencys than f,m.

[brush]

3. Come on, car manufacturers, what could it cost to include AM radio in cars, something done for over a century?

What could they possibly be saving, a few cents per unit?

And there's the safety issue as there are millions of cars, older and many newer, that'll be on the road for years possibly tuned in to AM when there is a national, regional or local emergency.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

5. It's not the money; it's the electrical interference. NT

[brush]

7. Explain pls. We've lived with it for over a century.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

9. Not in the form of broadband and switching power supplies.

Last edited Sun Jan 28, 2024, 07:44 PM - Edit history (1)

Automotive engine management systems have only been around to any extent since the mid-80s.

[brush]

10. That's not explaining anything. Millions of cars, new and old, have AM...

and are still on the road.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

13. What's changing?

In a Future Filled With Electric Cars, AM Radio May Be Left Behind

Carmakers say electromagnetic interference causes static and noise on AM transmissions, annoying customers.

Broadcasters say they could lose a connection to their core listeners, who rely on the radio for emergencies.



Carmakers say that electric vehicles generate electromagnetic interference, causing static, noise and a high-frequency hum. Roger Kisby for The New York Times

By Michael Levenson
Dec. 10, 2022

For nearly 100 years, drivers have been listening to AM radio, an American institution crackling with news, traffic, weather, sports and an eclectic variety of other programs.

But that dashboard staple could be going the way of manual-crank windows and car ashtrays as electric vehicles begin to grab more of the American marketplace.

{snip}

[tirebiter]

4. 🙈 A.M. is the voice of the Right Wing

Let it die. Cell phones would be better for emergency purposes.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

6. Only in part. I fall asleep listening to AM radio every night.

Last edited Sun Jan 28, 2024, 07:42 PM - Edit history (1)

Cell phones would be better for emergency purposes.

A 1kW AM station can reach 100,000 people. How many people can a cellphone reach?

🙈 A.M. is the voice of the Right Wing

Here’s how I solve that issue. My radios are kind of old, so this might not work for you.

Most of my radios have a tuning knob. I’ve found that by rotating the tuning knob, I can tune the radio up and down the dial. If there’s a station I don’t like, I don’t listen to it. I keep tuning until I find a station I do like. That’s the station I listen to.

Other people might listen to stations I don’t like, but that’s their choice.

[Think. Again.]

12. That's a really bad argument...

Both AM radios and cell phones can only reach the people that have them.

I suspect more people are carrying around a cell phone than are carrying around an AM radio.

[OAITW r.2.0]

8. Why is this a legal thing? A broadcast band that's antiquated....why should the Government care? Hell. FM is probably

Is next. Probably the future is streaming music/podcasts from your phone.

[Think. Again.]

11. Thank you...

I was about to write that I don't think this rises to a level of national importance that federal legislation should waste time and funds on it.

Should we legislate that bud vases in cars must be brought back next?

[Voltaire2]

14. Yet more socialism for the owning class.

This is yet another example of the rich and powerful using government regulation to increase their wealth and power.