@@johnp139 A battery-powered radio will still be functional even if the internet, cellular, phone, and power lines are out of service where ever you might be stuck. AM moreso than FM because while AM has lower fidelity than FM, it has greater range and reach.
@@heyed Amateur radio also. Am thinking of studying again to get my basic license. Once I get it I can use it if needed, I'm more of a listener than talker.
NC here. AM radio saved lives in NC during the hurricane. This article should focus more on local FM radio/AM radio translators. Local radio no local news support
Regarding AM for emergencies…my family survived the 2017 fires of Northern California. The local AM station was a lifeline to letting us know what was happening,even if we were 65 miles away. This is a necessary thing we all need to keep everyone up to date on what is happening. Please don’t take out AM radio.
The ultra conservative political talking heads were howling over the suggestion that AM radio be shut down. They would lose a large part of their listener base which are people over the age of 60.
What few people may realize or have even had the opportunity to listen to today is that AM radio does NOT sound as bad as is does on modern digital radios and stereos in it's natural, original design with analog vacuum tube receivers and amplifiers. AM was designed when all radios and amplifiers were analog and used vacuum tubes for the electronics. On a well maintained or properly rebuilt/restored vacuum tube radio with a tube amplifier AM radio will sound very smooth, strong, warm, and clear. Natural, and you will notice little of the "limited, flat" sound eq that we hear in modern radios with little high end or bass response. The AM signal itself hasn't changed in 100+ years. The way our radios and amplifiers receive, process, and amplify the sound has. Today's digital radios, electronic tuners, and even solid state radios and amplifiers from the 1960s onward give AM that muffled frequency response that makes it sound like everyone is talking in a tin can.
Growing up in the early 70's I would listen on my am/fm clock radio by my bed. Started when I that radio for a much wanted Christmas present. My parents were not wealthy at all. So this was a huge present. I would lay in bed during the summer in 7th & 8 th grades listening to a NY station doing Yankee games. Occasionally I would find a Chicago game. The sounds were magical to me. Talking to the batters, the people yelling cold beer,etc. We only had a small black& white TV with a screen the size of a laptop. So seeing many games on TV was impossible.amy nights alone in my room in the attic, listening to a great big world. So many memories.
The Telecommunications Act that was passed in the mid-1990s, opening the door for large corporations to buy-up countless radio stations, along with satellite-fed syndicated radio programming, contributing to shutting down the local aspect of many AM radio stations. Many AM stations now use an operating engineer to keep the station on-air, but minus the local announcing talents at the microphone.
this is what killed the biz. because corporations were able to buy multiple stations in a single market, it killed competition ratings now mean nothing....it's all about coverage and it led to people tuning out, because local stations no longer catered to local audiences and that killed commercial viability....which is why most commercials are either for snake oil or other scams or those damn kars for kids congress could move to change this and do it as a jobs program....but they probably wont am radio does do an ok biz in smaller markets
Thank you for including WIOO in Carlisle PA. I worked there doing news and spinning records from 1986 to 1993, back when the format was top 40 (think Whitney Houston, Barry Manilow, and Barbra Streisand. I also read the Hospital Report, the Obituary Report, and hosted "Tradio" My formative years as a broadcaster. Long may AM Radio live!!
The biggest problem for AM is declining revenue due to lower listenership. Advertising declines when ratings go down. When that becomes critical, the station either sells to a conglomerate or goes dark. I listen to AM for hours a day. OK, I'm an antique, just turned 70 this year. Part of what I do is a hobby. It's called Dxing, listening for distant stations, especially ones that I haven't heard before. Truly, it becomes almost an addiction. It's sure fun!
I think a part of the decline is when Rush Limbaugh passed away. He was replaced by two guys, but they don't have the keen insights that Rush always had.
I have worked in local radio for 15 years. I love it. It is necessary when it is local. People can listen to music in many better ways but who else is broadcasting the game, interviewing the new principal, giving the daily obits, having immediate new, etc? My favorite day in radio is when people called in asking for help as a flood came in quickly. We would announce the address needing help and within minutes they’d call back and say too many people came to help. It was radio at its best: Local community engagement in the time of need. Long live local radio.
I could not care less for games or obis. Interviewing a new principal is ok. New mayor, new police chief, new rules, new construction, a park, potholes, hobos living in a creek, chemical spill, corrupt council member, bad school curriculum, no physics teacher, air quality, etc.
Thanks for this love letter to a struggling medium. I made the unfortunate decision to get a BA in radio production from my college in the very final year they offered that as a major. I fell in love with the medium in college but wasn't really thinking through the downstream effects of radio's draining advertising revenue. I tried my hand at terrestrial radio employment at 2 stations. Both were largely on AM dials. I was a board op and call screener on a particularly toxic conservative talk radio station. Even though I did not like much of the tenor of the conversations, I found the production process entertaining and worked with otherwise very kind people. I also did traffic reports on air for a slightly less toxic AM talker. As dim as this demand might be, AM is always there for the people who still care it's there. That's the entire point by now.
Clearly remember being a kid back in the Midwest during the 1970’s and riding around with my dad in his pickup truck listening to my hometown’s local AM radio station! Their “Tradio” program was especially popular - right after the 12:00 news where folks could call in and offer for sale whatever they wanted - the 1970’s version of Craig’s List! As a young man in the 1990’s, traveling the country in my company-issue Ford Taurus, AM radio was a constant! Rush Limbaugh in the afternoon, Bruce Williams in the evening, and Art Bell late at night! Kept me awake on my travels, entertained me, and allowed me to learn quite a bit along the way! Great memories………👍
i still Listen to AM radio, there's nothing wrong with it, it's reliable and it's been around for years and I'll continue to listen to the radio for the rest of my life
Although I've been a listener of AM for decades, I do not believe that the government should interfere with capitalism by ordering that AM continue to be installed in new cars. If kids today don't want it, they don't want it; simple as that.
It's an important source of cultural content for people who speak other languages. Spanish and Asian languages are common on AM radio in California and other states.
I'd sit alone and watch your light My only friend through teenage nights And everything I had to know I heard it on my radio You gave them all those old-time stars Through wars of worlds invaded by Mars You made 'em laugh, you made 'em cry You made us feel like we could fly Radio So, don't become some background noise A backdrop for the girls and boys Who just don't know or just don't care And just complain when you're not there You had your time, you had the power You've yet to have your finest hour Radio, radio All we hear is "Radio ga ga Radio goo goo Radio ga ga" All we hear is "Radio ga ga "Radio blah blah" Radio, what's new? Radio, someone still loves you We watch the shows, we watch the stars On videos for hours and hours We hardly need to use our ears How music changes through the years Let's hope you never leave, old friend Like all good things on you we depend So, stick around 'cause we might miss you When we grow tired of all this visual You had your time, you had the power You've yet to have your finest hour Radio, radio All we hear is "Radio ga ga Radio goo goo Radio ga ga" All we hear is "Radio ga ga Radio goo goo Radio ga ga" All we hear is "Radio ga ga Radio blah blah" Radio, what's new? Someone still loves you (Radio ga ga, radio ga ga) (Radio ga ga, radio ga ga) (Radio ga ga, radio ga ga) You had your time, you had the power You've yet to have your finest hour Radio, radio Written by Freddie Mercury and Queen 40 years ago
I'm assuming from the way you completely ignored that radio was destroyed byy corporate consolidation, not technology, that CBS must be owned by one of these conglomerates
AM Radio may well save lives. AM radio can deliver information to thousands of people instantly from just one simple site. Streaming networks rely on a complicated infrastructure. As has been seen many times, Internet & cell providers often fail during times of emergency whereas radio will often hold up for much longer.
I’ve not listened to AM or FM radio in decades. Literally. I do not watch local television either. I listen to satellite radio (music and a specific “DJ” or stream music from my iPhone and then only when in my vehicle. I do not watch local television either. I stream everything.
Lately, the weather here in southern Brasil has been increasingly more unforgiven. Early this year, the state where I am living had a huge flood and one of my properties is located in a big city about 150km from here. It was under more than 1.5m of water. I just couldn't be there to save anything. Thanks to a local FM station, I knew in real time what was going on not only on my street, but in front of its very location. Unfortunately, since 2013 AM stations are migrating to FM, a measure I consider to be late, since the new generation no longer listen to the radio no matter what band it may be broadcasting. Last year, Radio Pelotense AM 620kHz went off the air. It neither migrated to FM nor it could even wait a little longer to celebrate 100 years of its foundation in 2025. I listened to its last moments even though I am more than 350km distant.
In my area we have a big AM station WBCB-AM in Levittown PA (Part of the Trenton/Princeton, NJ radio market) which is owned by Philadelphia Eagles play-by-play voice Merrill Reese, and they do local programming, and high school sports covering both Bucks County in Pennsylvania and Mercer County in New Jersey as they are a good AM station.
Radio of the 1920s to the 1950s gave us a number of formats that still exist in TV: the sitcom, the soap opera, the detective show, the cop show, the quiz show, the talent show, the late night show, the daytime talk show, the dramatic show, even the variety show which was still popular on TV in the 1970s (but has disappeared today). In the mid 1950s radio transitioned to DJ and talk radio formats.
This reporter isn't letting the facts get in the way of a good story. The reason for the proposed legislation is Tesla was considering dropping AM radio in their cars because it's a lot of effort to get an AM radio to work without interference (the buzzing you hear when listening to AM near fluorescent lighting, for example) in an electric car, and surely Tesla knows exactly how little it's customers actually listen to AM radio, and considered it was a reasonable cost-savings move. And after Tesla did it, others would surely follow. Like discontinuing CD players in cars.
This report romanticizes things somewhat. In most of the country, AM radio has turned into a right-wing cesspool operated by national corporations with little connection to the community.
I listen to WSM 650 even though I live in SC. Not bad country music and the Grand Ole Opry. The Phillies used to be on WPHT-AM. AM radio has locally wise stops airing at a certain time so the bigger AM stations can reach a greater audience. Save AM radio!
I have fond memories of WIOO since I grew up near Carlisle Pa. I was at my grandparents house when the blizzard of 93 hit. Had no power and no phone. We were listening to WIOO on a little battery powered GE radio to get local updates while we were stranded. It was our only source of info at that time. Also, my pap did listen to Tradio every day too. My grandparents have been gone for a few years now but I have that same GE radio as a momento. Still works too!
I listen to the 2 AM radio stations out of Buffalo, New York. WGR 550AM is the flagship station of the Buffalo Bills (NFL) and also the flagship station of the Buffalo Sabres (NHL). WBEN 930AM is Buffalo’s only News/Talk station.
The only things left on radio (AM or FM) are syndicated right-wing windbags, sports talk, religious talk, and the same songs played repeatedly. I stream Spotify in the car because I'm able to hear a variety of music that I wouldn't dream of hearing on radio.
Stop the constant talk radio formats on all the AM stations, have fewer commercials, and play music -- to actually make having the station on be enjoyable time spent ...... not a mechanism replacing door-to-door salesmen and election canvassers. AM has been driving listeners away for years! I used to listen to AM constantly, because it had longer range and I didn't need to continually find a new station when travelling. Now, I seldom tune one in, unless I want to listen to a baseball game. I don't pay for radio services .... and I'm sure there is still a market out there for free AM radio with the right format. FM is getting clogged with too many commercials now.
I live in NH and we have two AM oldies stations that play a great mix of 50's-70's music. Not repetitive 10 song lists that are played on automated FM stations.
@@richardmerriam7044 right, the automated FM stations are now driving away listeners too. If AM radio gets smart, they can recapture listeners from the automated FM stations.
What was not mentioned was the propensity for most AM stations now to broadcast far-right-wing talk. This has to do with the swallowing up of stations by conglomerates, which put on what they feel is the best and cheapest way to build their audience--anger.
One thing radios can do that phones can't is maintain service during emergencies. As long as the radio transmitter has power (and many of them do have emergency generators) and you have a set of batteries for your radio, you can get information at any time. As recent Helene survivors can attest, that's not how cellular telephone architecture is designed. Cell service is all about that two-way signal, so that you can load websites and streams of your choosing. With radio, you give up the ability to choose your content (other than to tune to different stations) but gain the reliability that comes with the radio station not needing to hear anything back from your radio. Always keep a good radio (not a cheap dinky one) on hand, and make sure it has a battery power option and that you have good batteries for it.
Disappointed that neither New Jersey nor Mangos were mentioned. Back in '47, AFTER the war, these two staples were so relevant to American life that my family purchased a ranch in South Nearby, East Manitoba to till the soil and produce REAL, genuine, authentic Schmutz. You're welcome. 😮😅😅😅
I noticed this after listening again -- half the ad spots were filled with PSAs. The AM stations here have a history of right-leaning shows; if they had more of a balance of perspectives more people might listen.
There still are what is called "clear-channel" stations with 50kw transmitters. In the sixties you could hear a few in your region clearly all night long. They were loved in the Midwest where you could have good reception in your car traveling in the middle of nowhere. One staple was far right wing talk show commentator Paul Harvey for your disinformation of the time. He lasted long time after that. The only one I remember now is from when we moved to California, KFI from Los Angeles. Apparently it still exists.
There is a solution to the woes of AM radio. It's one that the FCC is aware of, but refuses to act upon. It's termed "Expand the Band," and it's simply accomplished in three steps. First, open up the 76.1-81.9 MHz portion of the FM band that was freed up when they "repacked" what had been TV Channels 5 and 6. Second, offer every AM station operator in the country a one-time opportunity: trade in your AM license (and those of any FM "translator" or "booster" they may have), straight up, for the ability to broadcast a 25,000 signal somewhere between 76.1 and 81.9. And third? Sunset the AM band entirely, effective December 31, 2029. Station owners/operators get a more financially viable FM signal to serve their communities, the clutter of 250 watt translators and booster stations that pollute 82.1 to 107.9 disappear and make room for new players, and audiences likely get better, more locally-oriented programming.
AM & FM Radio needs to move to digital and give up all of these wasteful frequencies, or face eventual extinction. There’s no other way. You can’t expect listeners to stick forever in a creative medium that is barely innovating or changing
Those frequencies are vital in emergencies. You just need a battery operated transistor radio. When power is out, you can't always get digital content, not to mention that some people don't have access to wired or wireless Internet in remote areas.
@@johnp139 AM signals can travel much farther and are less prone to obstacle interference (trees or hills). There are AM stations that can be picked up more than 100 miles away, and they're easier to tune in.
What was not mentioned is the unique ability of AM radio to be a source of information during times of emergency. 😊
3:45
How is it unique?
@@johnp139 A battery-powered radio will still be functional even if the internet, cellular, phone, and power lines are out of service where ever you might be stuck. AM moreso than FM because while AM has lower fidelity than FM, it has greater range and reach.
I think certain Am radio stations can broadcast at 100,000 watts in an emergency.
@@heyed Amateur radio also. Am thinking of studying again to get my basic license. Once I get it I can use it if needed, I'm more of a listener than talker.
NC here. AM radio saved lives in NC during the hurricane.
This article should focus more on local FM radio/AM radio translators. Local radio no local news support
What radio does best is local. Too much local radio has expired with national radio conglomerates.
That and there's been way too much fragmentation.
Regarding AM for emergencies…my family survived the 2017 fires of Northern California. The local AM station was a lifeline to letting us know what was happening,even if we were 65 miles away. This is a necessary thing we all need to keep everyone up to date on what is happening. Please don’t take out AM radio.
Hopefully AM sticks around! Great medium especially in emergencies.
The ultra conservative political talking heads were howling over the suggestion that AM radio be shut down. They would lose a large part of their listener base which are people over the age of 60.
@@jaydee975 well there are plenty of us that listen to Am under 60. Like during the hurricane when most forms of communication were down
How so?
@@johnp139 well when the hurricanes hit the east coast and the cell towers went down the AM radio stations were still broadcasting helpful information
What few people may realize or have even had the opportunity to listen to today is that AM radio does NOT sound as bad as is does on modern digital radios and stereos in it's natural, original design with analog vacuum tube receivers and amplifiers.
AM was designed when all radios and amplifiers were analog and used vacuum tubes for the electronics. On a well maintained or properly rebuilt/restored vacuum tube radio with a tube amplifier AM radio will sound very smooth, strong, warm, and clear. Natural, and you will notice little of the "limited, flat" sound eq that we hear in modern radios with little high end or bass response.
The AM signal itself hasn't changed in 100+ years. The way our radios and amplifiers receive, process, and amplify the sound has.
Today's digital radios, electronic tuners, and even solid state radios and amplifiers from the 1960s onward give AM that muffled frequency response that makes it sound like everyone is talking in a tin can.
That's good to know
Growing up in the early 70's I would listen on my am/fm clock radio by my bed. Started when I that radio for a much wanted Christmas present. My parents were not wealthy at all. So this was a huge present. I would lay in bed during the summer in 7th & 8 th grades listening to a NY station doing Yankee games. Occasionally I would find a Chicago game. The sounds were magical to me. Talking to the batters, the people yelling cold beer,etc. We only had a small black& white TV with a screen the size of a laptop. So seeing many games on TV was impossible.amy nights alone in my room in the attic, listening to a great big world. So many memories.
The Telecommunications Act that was passed in the mid-1990s, opening the door for large corporations to buy-up countless radio stations, along with satellite-fed syndicated radio programming, contributing to shutting down the local aspect of many AM radio stations. Many AM stations now use an operating engineer to keep the station on-air, but minus the local announcing talents at the microphone.
this is what killed the biz.
because corporations were able to buy multiple stations in a single market, it killed competition
ratings now mean nothing....it's all about coverage
and it led to people tuning out, because local stations no longer catered to local audiences
and that killed commercial viability....which is why most commercials are either for snake oil or other scams or those damn kars for kids
congress could move to change this and do it as a jobs program....but they probably wont
am radio does do an ok biz in smaller markets
Thank you for including WIOO in Carlisle PA. I worked there doing news and spinning records from 1986 to 1993, back when the format was top 40 (think Whitney Houston, Barry Manilow, and Barbra Streisand. I also read the Hospital Report, the Obituary Report, and hosted "Tradio" My formative years as a broadcaster. Long may AM Radio live!!
Am radio is critical.
Was listening to Wcbs 880 in hs. Thats how I found out about 9-11 attacks.
It's critical to democracy.
I found out on FM.
The biggest problem for AM is declining revenue due to lower listenership. Advertising declines when ratings go down. When that becomes critical, the station either sells to a conglomerate or goes dark. I listen to AM for hours a day. OK, I'm an antique, just turned 70 this year. Part of what I do is a hobby. It's called Dxing, listening for distant stations, especially ones that I haven't heard before. Truly, it becomes almost an addiction. It's sure fun!
I think a part of the decline is when Rush Limbaugh passed away. He was replaced by two guys, but they don't have the keen insights that Rush always had.
@@BradJames878 oh please.....rush killed am radio
because there is no competition....corporations own the stations and they wont compete against themselves
I have worked in local radio for 15 years. I love it. It is necessary when it is local. People can listen to music in many better ways but who else is broadcasting the game, interviewing the new principal, giving the daily obits, having immediate new, etc?
My favorite day in radio is when people called in asking for help as a flood came in quickly. We would announce the address needing help and within minutes they’d call back and say too many people came to help. It was radio at its best: Local community engagement in the time of need.
Long live local radio.
I could not care less for games or obis. Interviewing a new principal is ok. New mayor, new police chief, new rules, new construction, a park, potholes, hobos living in a creek, chemical spill, corrupt council member, bad school curriculum, no physics teacher, air quality, etc.
Thanks for this love letter to a struggling medium.
I made the unfortunate decision to get a BA in radio production from my college in the very final year they offered that as a major. I fell in love with the medium in college but wasn't really thinking through the downstream effects of radio's draining advertising revenue.
I tried my hand at terrestrial radio employment at 2 stations. Both were largely on AM dials. I was a board op and call screener on a particularly toxic conservative talk radio station. Even though I did not like much of the tenor of the conversations, I found the production process entertaining and worked with otherwise very kind people. I also did traffic reports on air for a slightly less toxic AM talker.
As dim as this demand might be, AM is always there for the people who still care it's there. That's the entire point by now.
Clearly remember being a kid back in the Midwest during the 1970’s and riding around with my dad in his pickup truck listening to my hometown’s local AM radio station! Their “Tradio” program was especially popular - right after the 12:00 news where folks could call in and offer for sale whatever they wanted - the 1970’s version of Craig’s List!
As a young man in the 1990’s, traveling the country in my company-issue Ford Taurus, AM radio was a constant! Rush Limbaugh in the afternoon, Bruce Williams in the evening, and Art Bell late at night! Kept me awake on my travels, entertained me, and allowed me to learn quite a bit along the way!
Great memories………👍
God bless you. I know some of those names. Worked in conservative talk radio as a board operator.
In the Philippines, AM Radio is broadcast on new channels. Not all AM Frequencies have it, but to survive, it's time to innovate.
i still Listen to AM radio, there's nothing wrong with it, it's reliable and it's been around for years and I'll continue to listen to the radio for the rest of my life
It works great, at least until somebody turns on a fluorescent light, then it’s toast.
Although I've been a listener of AM for decades, I do not believe that the government should interfere with capitalism by ordering that AM continue to be installed in new cars. If kids today don't want it, they don't want it; simple as that.
My AM radio is sports and right wing propaganda. It can go.
The only things keeping AM radio alive are religious and ultra conservative radio talk shows. Otherwise AM radio is pretty much a relic of the past.
It's an important source of cultural content for people who speak other languages. Spanish and Asian languages are common on AM radio in California and other states.
Unfortunately, true. But ethnic groups also use it.
AM radio would have died 30-35 years ago if it weren’t for Rush.
I'd sit alone and watch your light
My only friend through teenage nights
And everything I had to know
I heard it on my radio
You gave them all those old-time stars
Through wars of worlds invaded by Mars
You made 'em laugh, you made 'em cry
You made us feel like we could fly
Radio
So, don't become some background noise
A backdrop for the girls and boys
Who just don't know or just don't care
And just complain when you're not there
You had your time, you had the power
You've yet to have your finest hour
Radio, radio
All we hear is "Radio ga ga
Radio goo goo
Radio ga ga"
All we hear is "Radio ga ga
"Radio blah blah"
Radio, what's new?
Radio, someone still loves you
We watch the shows, we watch the stars
On videos for hours and hours
We hardly need to use our ears
How music changes through the years
Let's hope you never leave, old friend
Like all good things on you we depend
So, stick around 'cause we might miss you
When we grow tired of all this visual
You had your time, you had the power
You've yet to have your finest hour
Radio, radio
All we hear is "Radio ga ga
Radio goo goo
Radio ga ga"
All we hear is "Radio ga ga
Radio goo goo
Radio ga ga"
All we hear is "Radio ga ga
Radio blah blah"
Radio, what's new?
Someone still loves you
(Radio ga ga, radio ga ga)
(Radio ga ga, radio ga ga)
(Radio ga ga, radio ga ga)
You had your time, you had the power
You've yet to have your finest hour
Radio, radio
Written by Freddie Mercury and Queen 40 years ago
I love listening to AM radio. WCCO radio has just celebrated its 100th year of broadcasting. ❤
I worked at a local AM radio station in college. We had the Tradio swap shop, and also read local obituaries on the air during the 6:00 newscast.
I am watching this in the old KGNO radio studio in Dodge City Kansas.
I'm assuming from the way you completely ignored that radio was destroyed byy corporate consolidation, not technology, that CBS must be owned by one of these conglomerates
I remember Y-100 radio, thank you so much for bringing back memories
Thanks for this! As long as there are Americans speaking Spanish and religious programs, we will always have AM radio.
AM Radio may well save lives. AM radio can deliver information to thousands of people instantly from just one simple site. Streaming networks rely on a complicated infrastructure. As has been seen many times, Internet & cell providers often fail during times of emergency whereas radio will often hold up for much longer.
I’ve not listened to AM or FM radio in decades. Literally. I do not watch local television either. I listen to satellite radio (music and a specific “DJ” or stream music from my iPhone and then only when in my vehicle. I do not watch local television either. I stream everything.
Lately, the weather here in southern Brasil has been increasingly more unforgiven. Early this year, the state where I am living had a huge flood and one of my properties is located in a big city about 150km from here. It was under more than 1.5m of water. I just couldn't be there to save anything. Thanks to a local FM station, I knew in real time what was going on not only on my street, but in front of its very location. Unfortunately, since 2013 AM stations are migrating to FM, a measure I consider to be late, since the new generation no longer listen to the radio no matter what band it may be broadcasting. Last year, Radio Pelotense AM 620kHz went off the air. It neither migrated to FM nor it could even wait a little longer to celebrate 100 years of its foundation in 2025. I listened to its last moments even though I am more than 350km distant.
In my area we have a big AM station WBCB-AM in Levittown PA (Part of the Trenton/Princeton, NJ radio market) which is owned by Philadelphia Eagles play-by-play voice Merrill Reese, and they do local programming, and high school sports covering both Bucks County in Pennsylvania and Mercer County in New Jersey as they are a good AM station.
Radio of the 1920s to the 1950s gave us a number of formats that still exist in TV: the sitcom, the soap opera, the detective show, the cop show, the quiz show, the talent show, the late night show, the daytime talk show, the dramatic show, even the variety show which was still popular on TV in the 1970s (but has disappeared today). In the mid 1950s radio transitioned to DJ and talk radio formats.
This reporter isn't letting the facts get in the way of a good story.
The reason for the proposed legislation is Tesla was considering dropping AM radio in their cars because it's a lot of effort to get an AM radio to work without interference (the buzzing you hear when listening to AM near fluorescent lighting, for example) in an electric car, and surely Tesla knows exactly how little it's customers actually listen to AM radio, and considered it was a reasonable cost-savings move. And after Tesla did it, others would surely follow. Like discontinuing CD players in cars.
I want my AM/FM and CD player in my car. I HATE TOUCH SCREEN!!
This report romanticizes things somewhat. In most of the country, AM radio has turned into a right-wing cesspool operated by national corporations with little connection to the community.
And what's not right-wing propaganda is evangelical preaching that is somehow ignorant of the teachings of Jesus.
Well stated… comrade.
Unfortunately, yes. But sometimes you can find the occasional music station if you're lucky.
I listen to WSM 650 even though I live in SC. Not bad country music and the Grand Ole Opry. The Phillies used to be on WPHT-AM. AM radio has locally wise stops airing at a certain time so the bigger AM stations can reach a greater audience. Save AM radio!
Live in middle Tennessee and worked in radio. Working at WSM AM is still my dream job.
I have fond memories of WIOO since I grew up near Carlisle Pa. I was at my grandparents house when the blizzard of 93 hit. Had no power and no phone. We were listening to WIOO on a little battery powered GE radio to get local updates while we were stranded. It was our only source of info at that time. Also, my pap did listen to Tradio every day too. My grandparents have been gone for a few years now but I have that same GE radio as a momento. Still works too!
No good content on FM, even less on AM. Five HD subchannels have been terminated locally during the last couple of years. Nothing to listen to.
I miss listening to The Savage Nation.
Out of San Francisco
That why we need AM radio for emergency
I listen to the 2 AM radio stations out of Buffalo, New York. WGR 550AM is the flagship station of the Buffalo Bills (NFL) and also the flagship station of the Buffalo Sabres (NHL). WBEN 930AM is Buffalo’s only News/Talk station.
Yeah, well, maybe if AM radio hadn't largely become hate radio, they wouldn't be in this predicament, would they?!!!
One of the last FREE mediums. 😢
FM radio uses a digital automated DJ to save money. Many FMs are losing money. Many talk radio stations have purchased FMs and sold the AMs😢
My introduction to Pop/all radio music came from AM-WABC (NY).
So happy to hear from Frederick Md near where I lived many moons ago! Thanks
A 50KW AM transmitter needs a lot of maintainece. Once Rush Limbaugh passed away, talk radio has been in decline.
those stations that find an audience, will find advertisers and remain viable.
AM radio should play more music if it wants to be relevant in non-emergency situations.
who won the football game?
The only things left on radio (AM or FM) are syndicated right-wing windbags, sports talk, religious talk, and the same songs played repeatedly. I stream Spotify in the car because I'm able to hear a variety of music that I wouldn't dream of hearing on radio.
. . . and incessant garbage commercials.
You have a point there. But if you live in an area with college radio, you may want to check them out.
Stop the constant talk radio formats on all the AM stations, have fewer commercials, and play music -- to actually make having the station on be enjoyable time spent ...... not a mechanism replacing door-to-door salesmen and election canvassers. AM has been driving listeners away for years!
I used to listen to AM constantly, because it had longer range and I didn't need to continually find a new station when travelling. Now, I seldom tune one in, unless I want to listen to a baseball game. I don't pay for radio services .... and I'm sure there is still a market out there for free AM radio with the right format. FM is getting clogged with too many commercials now.
I live in NH and we have two AM oldies stations that play a great mix of 50's-70's music. Not repetitive 10 song lists that are played on automated FM stations.
@@richardmerriam7044 right, the automated FM stations are now driving away listeners too. If AM radio gets smart, they can recapture listeners from the automated FM stations.
If they would double their bandwidth and go for Fidelity, people would listen more.
What was not mentioned was the propensity for most AM stations now to broadcast far-right-wing talk. This has to do with the swallowing up of stations by conglomerates, which put on what they feel is the best and cheapest way to build their audience--anger.
Or Truth..
no press box?
That bandwidth could be used serving other technology. Like when they got rid of channel 1
One thing radios can do that phones can't is maintain service during emergencies. As long as the radio transmitter has power (and many of them do have emergency generators) and you have a set of batteries for your radio, you can get information at any time. As recent Helene survivors can attest, that's not how cellular telephone architecture is designed. Cell service is all about that two-way signal, so that you can load websites and streams of your choosing. With radio, you give up the ability to choose your content (other than to tune to different stations) but gain the reliability that comes with the radio station not needing to hear anything back from your radio. Always keep a good radio (not a cheap dinky one) on hand, and make sure it has a battery power option and that you have good batteries for it.
How about FM????
5G Broadcast is broadcast.
The world is going to resemble the world with George Bailey never having been born-on steroids.
The loss of WCBS 880 AM was shocking. No, 1010 WINS is not the same.
740 khz CSZM
Disappointed that neither New Jersey nor Mangos were mentioned. Back in '47, AFTER the war, these two staples were so relevant to American life that my family purchased a ranch in South Nearby, East Manitoba to till the soil and produce REAL, genuine, authentic Schmutz. You're welcome. 😮😅😅😅
😂 Richard and Sal 😂
Where’s there $$$ to be made AM will survive … like it’s always been for everything
I wonder will Philly lose KYW and WPHT and their formats?
I wonder will audacy end more all news and news talk stations across the country?
I noticed this after listening again -- half the ad spots were filled with PSAs. The AM stations here have a history of right-leaning shows; if they had more of a balance of perspectives more people might listen.
There still are what is called "clear-channel" stations with 50kw transmitters. In the sixties you could hear a few in your region clearly all night long. They were loved in the Midwest where you could have good reception in your car traveling in the middle of nowhere. One staple was far right wing talk show commentator Paul Harvey for your disinformation of the time. He lasted long time after that.
The only one I remember now is from when we moved to California, KFI from Los Angeles. Apparently it still exists.
⏳
Les Nesman.....
This isn’t WKRP or otherwise I’m Dr. Johnny Fever.
WCBS 880 IS SPORTS RADIO NOW
WHSQ-880AM of ESPN Radio.
77 wabc is doing well
sorry...no sympathy from me. this is a self-inflicted wound. too many commercials...may whatever god you believe in, have mercy on your soul
Disco killed AM radio.
Good riddance! AM radio used to be good, especially for emergencies, but now it is full of right wing political talking heads..
How many years did you listen to talk radio? How many years did you work in talk radio?
Yeah.. go socialism go….😂😂😂😂
There is a solution to the woes of AM radio. It's one that the FCC is aware of, but refuses to act upon. It's termed "Expand the Band," and it's simply accomplished in three steps. First, open up the 76.1-81.9 MHz portion of the FM band that was freed up when they "repacked" what had been TV Channels 5 and 6. Second, offer every AM station operator in the country a one-time opportunity: trade in your AM license (and those of any FM "translator" or "booster" they may have), straight up, for the ability to broadcast a 25,000 signal somewhere between 76.1 and 81.9. And third? Sunset the AM band entirely, effective December 31, 2029. Station owners/operators get a more financially viable FM signal to serve their communities, the clutter of 250 watt translators and booster stations that pollute 82.1 to 107.9 disappear and make room for new players, and audiences likely get better, more locally-oriented programming.
AM & FM Radio needs to move to digital and give up all of these wasteful frequencies, or face eventual extinction. There’s no other way.
You can’t expect listeners to stick forever in a creative medium that is barely innovating or changing
It would take way more spectrum for each listener to stream the same station on their mobile phone
Those frequencies are vital in emergencies. You just need a battery operated transistor radio. When power is out, you can't always get digital content, not to mention that some people don't have access to wired or wireless Internet in remote areas.
@@mcg1119What about FM? Why wouldn’t that work in an emergency?
@@johnp139 AM signals can travel much farther and are less prone to obstacle interference (trees or hills). There are AM stations that can be picked up more than 100 miles away, and they're easier to tune in.
@@mcg1119, agreed. If the power goes out in your house, so does your high speed WiFi. Think about that - another reason why AM radio is still crucial.
AM is an incredible communication medium for spreading right wing propaganda ... "talk radio" attracts boomer fascists and grooms them
Completely irrelevant in 2024, when you can access the same content online.