The interference issue in electric vehicles could probably be solved with some sort of filter. Might be cheap, too. There was a bill drafted to make AM inclusion mandatory in vehicles. Not sure what happened to it.
AM is it really dead?
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mmckenna
I ♥ Ø
Correct, that's been mentioned a few times in this thread.
The issue isn't political, like some want to make it, it's purely economical. Changing designs, adding shielding, adding filtering, it all costs money. That money either comes out of profits/shareholder dividends (oh, the horrors!!!!), or it gets passed on to the customer.
Rather than fixing the issue, it's easier to just eliminate the device that exposed the sloppy design. Essentially hide it behind a curtain.
And they've gotten away with it for the most part. AM audiences are way down. Younger people stream audio. For many, this isn't an issue at all. For some, it is. For some, it's the end of the world, end of the hobby, and a personal attack on their eternal soul and mortal being.
typesix
Member
WBZ news also is carried on FM-HD2 on 107.9 Kiss
1010 WINS is also on 92.3FM - same 24/hour news format on AM and FM
kb3epz
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Everything broadcast is dying. Many big AM stations have moved to FM, but there wouldn't have been anywhere for them to move to 30 years ago as FM licenses in major markets were a premium. WIP and KYW on FM in the 80's? No way. Sure, nowadays everyone is streaming their stuff........but wait- now everyone with a decent internet audience is trying to establish premium memberships, Patreon's, Mighty Networks, etc., etc., etc. as the content platforms are making money hand over fist, but not sp much for many content creators. I doubt "free" quality online content is going to last forever, either. Personally, I find radio ads way less annoying than internet ads. Who knows where this all will land but I still think the market will correct itself. I mean, if I told you 20 years ago kids would be buying music on vinyl, you would have laughed me off this site. Anyway, here is an interesting article about some solutions to address the challenges of AM transmitter sites: AM Stations Have New Options. Ya know someone, somewhere is lobbying for the return of CONELRAD.
Exactly. Ads are creeping in to satellite radio just as they did with cable TV, despite the promise of an ad-free experience paid for by subscription fees. Also agree that radio ads are far less annoying/intrusive than internet ads. One need look no further than Youtube, which is the reigning heavyweight champ of annoying, intrusive ads. Youtube was amazing before Google purchased it - now they have ruined it, IMHO. (I refuse to watch Youtube now, period)
In conclusion, I agree with you - it's a bleak landscape for terrestrial radio, whether AM or FM
MikeinDestin
Member
I was in a Dunkin Donuts the other day. They have their own ads that are after so many songs. This announcer says "Dunkin' Radio" so loud it almost gives you a heart attack. Though last time they turned it down somewhat.
While I realize this is not a AM only issue, personally I find most radio stations very annoying with their 5+++minutes of commercial blocks. I know they do this to allow uninterrupted segments but I just do not understand how advertisers find it appealing especially when their ad is #10 out of 10. By then the listener has mentally tuned out.
Unfortunately the transmitter site issue is only one of many serious problems with AM.
The ad blocks are just background noise until the regular programming resumes. Probably not much different than people scrolling right past ads on websites or blocking them altogether. Or leaving the room when commercials come on TV. In the big picture, advertising has gone far beyond the saturation point and has ruined the user experience.
I used to LOVE LOVE LOVE radio, especially AM, shortwave, CB, with FM a distant fourth. Was looking to buy a nice new Tabletop AM/FM/SW, to get back into it, as I'm trying to extract myself from the cesspool the internet, in general, has become. Haven't listened to much radio in the past 15 years.
Usually stream everything from the phone now, like most "normal" people
under age 50ish. But the net has become so atrocious lately, I've been struggling to find non corporate slop. Internet streaming used to be easy and free. Becoming hard and expensive. So maybe go back to broadcast I was thinking.
I played around with a PL880 (moderate quality portable SW/FM/AM)for a few months, to see if I really wanted to splurge and get back into high quality broadcast reception.
I do not, and here is why:
Compared to the programming variety available prior to 1996 (when CC bought everything, thanks Bill Clinton!), there is NOTHING even remotely interesting on the air now. FM is 100% dollar store baby food. AM is continuous screeching right wing nastiness mixed with smoothbrain sportsball and latin polka, worse than listening to screeching chalkboard. More commercials than content, except NPR drivel mind control for weak minded leftists pretends to not have commercials. The same six songs over and over on all music stations. Art Bell is gone. SW is prerecorded religious crackpots, playing the same recordings made DECADES ago by nuts, who are also dead(!) Or Asian broadcasts.
So the OTA content is just non existent now. Literally nothing to listen to. But even if there were content, I still will never bother, and here is why:
There are so many nasty RF band destroying switching power supplies in my house, and everyone's house, that AM and SW are completely unlistenable. And trying to get all the nasty electronic screechmonsters out of my life is a practical impossiblity. Even all of my light bulbs screech from .5-20 MHz.
I've thought about it, going back to all incandescentbulbs, buying a few thousand dollars worth of linear power supplies, etc, to clean up the RF noise in my home... but the total lack of any remotely interesting content on the air, like what existed before 1996, just makes the whole thing moot. I'm kind of shocked FCC alowed all these noisemaker power supplies, but I guess FCC's sole purpose now is to protect oligopoly phone companies.
So no radio for me ever again, which makes me sad, but the forces that brought us here only care about maintenance of their fancy lifestyle, and the fancy new yacht they've been eyeing, their private jets and private villas, and could care less about some little guys that wish radio was interesting again.
Oh well, saved me a few bucks not spent on a nice tabletop receiver to listen to buzzing and screeching.
That new Amazon bare bones truck coming out in 2 years has it right. No radio at all, just a spot for charging the phone, and a bluetooth speaker. That's all the "stereo" has been doing in my cars for the last 20 years anyway, can't even guess when the last time was I actually tuned in a broadcast radio station in my car. At least 5 years, maybe 10.
If I could push a button and go back to 1995.... sigh
ETA: last thought. All the new AM/FM/SW receivers are DSP. Takes all the joy out of scanning the dial, looking for new stations.
Usually stream everything from the phone now, like most "normal" people
under age 50ish. But the net has become so atrocious lately, I've been struggling to find non corporate slop. Internet streaming used to be easy and free. Becoming hard and expensive. So maybe go back to broadcast I was thinking.I played around with a PL880 (moderate quality portable SW/FM/AM)for a few months, to see if I really wanted to splurge and get back into high quality broadcast reception.
I do not, and here is why:
Compared to the programming variety available prior to 1996 (when CC bought everything, thanks Bill Clinton!), there is NOTHING even remotely interesting on the air now. FM is 100% dollar store baby food. AM is continuous screeching right wing nastiness mixed with smoothbrain sportsball and latin polka, worse than listening to screeching chalkboard. More commercials than content, except NPR drivel mind control for weak minded leftists pretends to not have commercials. The same six songs over and over on all music stations. Art Bell is gone. SW is prerecorded religious crackpots, playing the same recordings made DECADES ago by nuts, who are also dead(!) Or Asian broadcasts.
So the OTA content is just non existent now. Literally nothing to listen to. But even if there were content, I still will never bother, and here is why:
There are so many nasty RF band destroying switching power supplies in my house, and everyone's house, that AM and SW are completely unlistenable. And trying to get all the nasty electronic screechmonsters out of my life is a practical impossiblity. Even all of my light bulbs screech from .5-20 MHz.
I've thought about it, going back to all incandescentbulbs, buying a few thousand dollars worth of linear power supplies, etc, to clean up the RF noise in my home... but the total lack of any remotely interesting content on the air, like what existed before 1996, just makes the whole thing moot. I'm kind of shocked FCC alowed all these noisemaker power supplies, but I guess FCC's sole purpose now is to protect oligopoly phone companies.
So no radio for me ever again, which makes me sad, but the forces that brought us here only care about maintenance of their fancy lifestyle, and the fancy new yacht they've been eyeing, their private jets and private villas, and could care less about some little guys that wish radio was interesting again.
Oh well, saved me a few bucks not spent on a nice tabletop receiver to listen to buzzing and screeching.
That new Amazon bare bones truck coming out in 2 years has it right. No radio at all, just a spot for charging the phone, and a bluetooth speaker. That's all the "stereo" has been doing in my cars for the last 20 years anyway, can't even guess when the last time was I actually tuned in a broadcast radio station in my car. At least 5 years, maybe 10.
If I could push a button and go back to 1995.... sigh
ETA: last thought. All the new AM/FM/SW receivers are DSP. Takes all the joy out of scanning the dial, looking for new stations.
Welp... you pay your money and make your choice...
I really enjoy AM radio still, especially when I can get more distant stations, even the weather is interesting in different areas (love hearing about Canadian weather here in Virginia).
I do miss 880 being an (almost) all news station, they were a staple growing up and was looking forward to better antennas to pick them up for more of the day, and teh ability to throw a null on it when I wanted to hear about the Canadian weather and news....
I DID however find one good sport for radio... BASEBALL (which I don't care for in person, or on TV), it's so slow (compared to everything else) that I can try and track where everyone is on the field, and what is going on, if I were overseas and it was one of the few sources of entertainment, I'd probably have a board with a baseball field diagram on the wall or desk, and try and track who is where. It seems to suit audio broadcasts very well (as opposed to tennis for example).
Thanks
Joel
I really enjoy AM radio still, especially when I can get more distant stations, even the weather is interesting in different areas (love hearing about Canadian weather here in Virginia).
I do miss 880 being an (almost) all news station, they were a staple growing up and was looking forward to better antennas to pick them up for more of the day, and teh ability to throw a null on it when I wanted to hear about the Canadian weather and news
....I DID however find one good sport for radio... BASEBALL (which I don't care for in person, or on TV), it's so slow (compared to everything else) that I can try and track where everyone is on the field, and what is going on, if I were overseas and it was one of the few sources of entertainment, I'd probably have a board with a baseball field diagram on the wall or desk, and try and track who is where. It seems to suit audio broadcasts very well (as opposed to tennis for example).
Thanks
Joel
As you stated, the 1996 Telecommunications Act (which was a bi-partisan effort) deregulated media ownership. The result is that a handful of conglomerates own 90% of media/entertainment industries. "Non-corporate slop" is virtually impossible to find, whether online, satellite, or terrestrial radio.
Sure, streaming was cheap/free for a while, which is how they roped people in. Now, it's a mine field of subscriptions and intrusive, irrelevant ads. But, they now have a captive audience who has no choice but to play by their rules. Also, online content means they can track what you watch and listen to and tailor/aim more ads at you.
I used to watch a lot of content on Youtube, but avoid it now since Google has made the ads longer and more intrusive. Pure greed,
Yes, terrestrial radio is generally poor. MW/AM and SW are pretty much as you described. FM can vary, depending on your area. Some places just have better music stations. Here in the NYC area, it's a mixed bag.
I disagree. Radio has a proved ability to get information out when the internet/cell phones fail. Not including a radio in vehicles is a mistake.
If you find a way, let me know.
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Slippery999
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- 105
There is still plenty of good programming on radio. To each their own. 🤙🏻
It's not fair to paint all radio programming with a broad brush, as we have been doing. You will find more varied programming on SW, but it has more than its share of political talk/religious programming. AM/MW pretty much falls into political talk, religious programming and sports talk, with some oldies / music stations mixed in.
On SW, pirate broadcasters offer original and varied programming. On AM/MW, searching for low power TIS stations is a real DX challenge.
Recently, a NC Broadcaster (Curtis Media Inc.) who owns two AM stations tied to FM translators in two small adjacent counties in the middle of Eastern NC recently changed the format of these two stations to a Spanish-speaking format. In these two counties, there's quite a large number of farms. Over time, many Spanish speaking immigrants have settled in this area to work on these large farms. Curtis Media tied these two AM stations to a larger Spanish speaking FM they were already operating in the larger Raleigh-Durham market. Prior to the switch, these two AMs were under-performing radio stations. I applaud the creativity of Curtis Media to take an under-performing asset and utilize it to serve a mainly under-served community in these two counties. It will be interesting to watch and see how well these two radio stations perform with their new format.
I love AM radio. It's something that was always there, especially when hurricanes hit. The most recent for me was Beryl last year. There was a lot of drivel and blather on the talk stations, but very little information from the "NewsRadio" station in town. There was a station, KCOH 1230 AM, part of the Black Information Network, that was nice to have in that format. Half-hour news programming, 24 hours a day. And it was very little editorial commentary; mostly news, with very good coverage of Houston info. It was also a nice reprieve from the UFO conspiracy that was on the "NewsRadio" station at night.
Four people lost their lives, and KCOH lost their tower in a helicopter crash in October 2024.
Four people lost their lives, and KCOH lost their tower in a helicopter crash in October 2024.
Absolutely. Radio and Baseball seem made for each other. Take a good announcer and a sharp color commentator and what you get can be as much fun as a good radio drama.
WWBR (World Wide Baseball Radio) might actually be something worthwhile on SW.
The father of a friend (when I was young) had been in the Navy, and on shore leave visited some remote Indian religious place (monastery?). He said the second he walked in, one of the people living there (Monk?) asked what he thought of the latest Cubs game (he listened to it on the radio), he said "How would I know, I've been on a ship for the past 3 months".
Thanks
Joel
