AM is it really dead?

[kc2asb]

Good idea, I need to look for one. The only stereo I have that even supports AM these days is an old power-station of a receiver. I don't have the room to hook that bad boy up, and it would probably produce some noise complaints lol.

Ha! You won't need anything fancy to pick up some of the flame-thrower stations. The GE Super Radio I & II, though, are among the more elaborate portables that are considered a gold standard among DX'ers. They are both older model only available on the used market and can be pricey for nicer examples.

 

[YalekW]

At night, you should be able to pick up more stations with a simple portable radio. You might hear some of the 50kw clear channel stations, like WABC out of NYC, etc.

It does seem like AM radio is little more than political talk, sports, and religious stations these days.

Mannnnnnnnnn I hate those political religious propaganda stations. Even foreign ones in the higher Khz ranges. In my eyes they dont deserve to broadcast any form of that media, not because of freedom, but because its the same information over and over and OVER again, it gets extremely irritating when somebody obsesses over a supernatural entity or two, or whatever. Its not interesting to me, unless if some person wanted to share a numeric value thats worth something to most "men" (in... sports).

 

[kc2asb]

Mannnnnnnnnn I hate those political religious propaganda stations. Even foreign ones in the higher Khz ranges. In my eyes they dont deserve to broadcast any form of that media, not because of freedom, but because its the same information over and over and OVER again, it gets extremely irritating when somebody obsesses over a supernatural entity or two, or whatever. Its not interesting to me, unless if some person wanted to share a numeric value thats worth something to most "men" (in... sports).

It's all repetitive and does drive listeners away. Even sports talk has reached a saturation point. As a kid in the early 80's, I do not remember this dissection of sports practically down to the atomic level. However, this syndicated programming is about all that is left to these station owners, and allows them to break even or turn a small profit if they are lucky.

There are some AM stations that have music formats, such as WMTR in Morristown, NJ and "Zoomer Radio" in Canada. However, people largely do not want to listen to music in AM. (I'm an exception and kind of like the warm sound)

Not sure what the answer is to keep AM viable, or if it is even possible. AM (mediumwave) and longwave stations are going dark across Europe at a rapid rate. That may be the end game here as well.

 

[MTS2000des]

The lack of AM stereo standardization (lassiez faire at it's best!), the bandwidth of most modern AM stations being optimized for speech versus music (I get it, the noise floor) and LACK OF COMPELLING PROGRAMMING are what are putting AM radio into hospice. Even if we had a real FCC standard with AM stereo like we did with FM multiplex, it would have bought AM a few years, maybe a decade or so, before it was put out to pasture. HD radio didn't save it (again, another proprietary format driven by the NAB and not the FCC), it created more problems than it solved. We all want to live in the past because, quite frankly, the present sucks- but the ship has sailed.

 

[slowmover]

Yeah, truth.
There's something about the (lack of) fidelity on AM that makes it feel right. I remember talking to a friend about that once. He reminded me that "back in the day" a lot of music was recorded with low fidelity AM radio in mind, and some of it just sounds "right" on AM. Personally I feel that Glen Campbell just sounds right on a distant AM radio station at night.

Bing Crosby on an All American Five.
The ubiquitous kitchen radio


Much of the 1960s pop music was mono for same reason. Phil Spector, etc. FM doesn’t play a role until 1971.

What has nearly killed AM/FM broadcast radio was Reagan Admin allowing what the original 1934 FCC bill promised would never happen: other than single station ownership.

Same defect as Craigslist wiping out newspapers. Not a societal good.

Allow these to first be bought out by syndicates, then strangle the audience interest.

Add “woke” and it’s a wonder anyone listens. Classical music attacked with dumbed-down announcers and eliminating the 1-2-3 pause from music end to dearth of details (conductor, orchestra, recording company, date, etc). Zero respect for the time & space construct.

By the mid-1970s I could tell you the date of the recording within a year, maybe two. Trends exist in all places. Centuries old music is one of them. The “sound” of such, not just the conducting (or arrangement).

Record stores were where one could have a look at other recordings. Other interpretations. YouTube not the same substitute any more than is a computerized library catalog.

With newspapers it’s that articles other than just one’s own interest would get read. Common conversational fare among the high school graduates (back when one-half or less matriculated).

It’s none of it organic. The poor America of tbe 1930s easily afforded these things. Don’t buy enemy actions labeled as excuses.

It was important to the enemy that America was united thru 1945. After she’d fulfilled her role, it became important to fragment her.

.

 

[slowmover]

Nearly every programming decision on radio -- all radio -- these days is the result of tons of research, especially on the advertising end, so it probably is effective or they'd do it differently. And I would guess that some spots (leading spots?) cost more to run than the middle ones. But that is just a guess.

It’s churn. The same sort of theft of money as the fraud being made evident by DOGE. Fake money spent to ostensibly promote a business chosen ahead to succeed against its competitors all the while with the secondary benefit of destroying interest in radio down past the typical 12-yr old mentality. Big rake-off by all parties.

Americans read (mentally exist) at the 6th Grade level.

Advertising is just psy-op. Has been since inception. See Edw. Bernays. Look at all those wore the mask and took the jab because someone told them to do it.

There’s more than one way to allow advertising (announcer reads ad probably best). The stranglehold on music recorded, etc, need not exist. It’s artificial.

.

 

[slowmover]

I only started trying but I did pick up two from the West coast. It's pretty rare, for me anyway. Hawaii's AM stations are pretty weak. This antenna helped a lot.

I do really well on Shortwave and the Ham bands. 🤙🏻

Haven’t heard him in awhile but there was a guy used to sit on the side of Kilauea and could reach the US interior on 11M during Skip.

 

[slowmover]

I agree with others who have stated its nearing the end of its run in the US, but will not disappear for some time. The programming on AM is very poor and duplicative, as stations all seem to carry the same line-ups and there is very little original content. Gone are the distinctive regional sounds one could hear DXing the AM band even just 15-20 years ago or so. Many AM stations are just getting by with syndicated programming and advertising. Hiring DJ's and producing original programming just isn't a viable model any longer, on AM or FM for that matter.

It would be tragic if AM radio were to disappear, as I still think it's the best last resort for getting information out over a wide area in a crisis should cell phones and the internet are down. Of course, how many people have a battery-operated portable these days? People under a certain age do not listen to radio period

It’s literally the first objective in war to capture AM broadcast facilities. Tell them what to do in the way they’re used to hearing it.

It’s success from 1920 thru 1986 wasn’t any fluke.

That said, I sure as hell don’t miss ghetto blaster boomboxes.

I do miss the small pocket transistor am radios.
At home, in the car, walking or biking. Open air, or with an ear plug. The symbolism meant as much as the use.





.

 

[YalekW]

First, you're trying to inject logic in this. You should know that logic isn't held in high esteem by the government.

Second, I think the OP was talking about commercial AM radios in cars.

Logic is the literal reason why your words of wisdom arent held in high esteem, either.

 

[YalekW]

The lack of AM stereo standardization (lassiez faire at it's best!), the bandwidth of most modern AM stations being optimized for speech versus music (I get it, the noise floor) and LACK OF COMPELLING PROGRAMMING are what are putting AM radio into hospice. Even if we had a real FCC standard with AM stereo like we did with FM multiplex, it would have bought AM a few years, maybe a decade or so, before it was put out to pasture. HD radio didn't save it (again, another proprietary format driven by the NAB and not the FCC), it created more problems than it solved. We all want to live in the past because, quite frankly, the present sucks- but the ship has sailed.

This is EXACTLY correct. This is why AM is dying. Just saying.

 

[slowmover]

Logic is the literal reason why your words of wisdom arent held in high esteem, either.

I don’t get the impression he was disagreeing. He misunderstood the nature of attack from within.

A Rush Limbaugh feint which disguises truth and never names the actors, for example. All while he received $25-million per year. And radio stations didn’t have to pay for the show. Controlled opposition. Funnels anger into meaninglessness as nothing changed for the good.

“Carl Tuckerson” or a nobody like Joe Rogan, same thing. Or everyone’s favorite fake opposition, Alex Jones.

Hell, the Trump people have a former stripper in charge of the JFK release in Congress. Have redacted the Aerospace/Alien Tech files which tie it to Epstein era.

The logic was/is exemplary when one stands back a few feet. Broadcast radio merely the oldest “live” reporting. [1940 Blitz] “This is Edward Murrow reporting from London . . . .”

.

 

[YalekW]

The words of wisdom I was basing on this ironic/contradicting thought:

In reply to:

I don’t get the impression he was disagreeing. He misunderstood the nature of attack from within.

A Rush Limbaugh feint which disguises truth and never names the actors, for example. All while he received $25-million per year. And radio stations didn’t have to pay for the show. Controlled opposition. Funnels anger into meaninglessness as nothing changed for the good.

“Carl Tuckerson” or a nobody like Joe Rogan, same thing. Or everyone’s favorite fake opposition, Alex Jones.

The logic was/is exemplary when one stands back a few feet.

.

...Hopefully that cleared up some things.
Dont know if he (or me) was intending to be like those 3 people.

 

[KK4JUG]

It’s churn. The same sort of theft of money as the fraud being made evident by DOGE. Fake money spent to ostensibly promote a business chosen ahead to succeed against its competitors all the while with the secondary benefit of destroying interest in radio down past the typical 12-yr old mentality. Big rake-off by all parties.

Americans read (mentally exist) at the 6th Grade level.

Advertising is just psy-op. Has been since inception. See Edw. Bernays. Look at all those wore the mask and took the jab because someone told them to do it.

There’s more than one way to allow advertising (announcer reads ad probably best). The stranglehold on music recorded, etc, need not exist. It’s artificial.

.

That makes no sense whatsoever. Am I missing something?

 

[YalekW]

Maybe its best if we didnt scope this towards politics before any moderator peeks by....

 

[slowmover]

The words of wisdom I was basing on this ironic/contradicting thought:
View attachment 180918
In reply to:

...Hopefully that cleared up some things.
Dont know if he (or me) was intending to be like those 3 people.

On the surface there’s not a contradiction.

“Government logic” is organized theft (now without credible defense) so it’s a joke to call it reasoned, efficient or worthy (as his point).

 

[KK4JUG]

Looking back over the entries here, the subject is morphing into a political debate and probably just short of being closed.

 

[kc2asb]

Looking back over the entries here, the subject is morphing into a political debate and probably just short of being closed.

I agree. Let's get back on topic before this great thread is closed.

 

[slowmover]

Broadcast Radio is wholly political.
Them that control media control discourse.
Licensure = Control.

Eliminating AM radio from cars just tells one that electric cars are a bad idea. Fried brains & cojones.

That folks say that AM’s time passed by?
They’re part of the problem.

As in a post above, there’s not an adequate substitute for AM broadcast.

.

 

[YalekW]

Ok im outta this topic. Have fun peeps. Lol.

 

[kc2asb]

I do miss the small pocket transistor am radios.
At home, in the car, walking or biking. Open air, or with an ear plug. The symbolism meant as much as the use.
.

When I was growing up, it was the Walkman - same freedom. (though I did have a pocket AM radio as a kid) Have several now. The best thing about terrestrial radio: no monthly subscription fee, no internet or cell tower connection required.