(See the little triangles?)
Posted on 01/28/2024 3:10:41 AM PST by NautiNurse
Conservative talk show hosts, FEMA are fighting carmakers, tech industries in lobbying battle over drive-time radio
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.”
[Snip]
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.
[Snip]
Moore said the bills’ opponents are at a disadvantage because “every member of Congress knows their local broadcaster. Those relationships are strong.”
[Snip]
Automakers say the rise of electric vehicles is driving the shift away from AM, because onboard electronics create interference with AM radio signals—a phenomenon that “makes the already fuzzy analog AM radio frequency basically unlistenable,” according to the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a car-industry trade group. Shielding cables and components to reduce interference would cost carmakers $3.8 billion over seven years, the group estimates.
[Snip]
The Federal Emergency Management Agency says that more than 75 radio stations, most of which operate on the AM band and cover at least 90% of the U.S. population, are equipped with backup communications equipment and generators that allow them to continue broadcasting information to the public during and after an emergency.
[Snip]
Automakers increasingly want to put radio and other car features “behind a paywall...They see this as another profit center..."
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(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...
“A NY Times article might be offered for sale for three ‘penny points”
You are feeling generous today! The problem facing newspapers is that if folks are like me, i have no problem moving on if i dont get the info I want to see because of a paywall or a 30 second ad. I simply dont care if they dont want to give me info. I might pay something but its not possible now. I see X is maybe getting close. We will see.
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I'm not in favor of regulations in general. But this is a reasonable one. You never know when you'll need the radio. Just look at the fires in Lahaina last year.
Most of the AM users I know are collectors of AM units and use the often it’s a much crisper sound with plate modulated units.
An interesting experiment is to fire up a battery powered AM radio the next time there is a power outage. It’s surprising how quiet the band is then.
Occasionally I get out my old shortwave radio and see what’s out there. Not much. I miss it.
When I lived in Guam the government recommended, not required, that everyone have an emergency closet in case of a major typhoon or earthquake.
The recommendations were at least, three days of canned/dried food. 40 pounds Charcoal or 40 pounds propane, whatever your grill used. Five days of bottled water. Flashlights, Candles. Matches. At least 1/2 a tank of gasoline in your car. Batteries or power banks for a cell phone, and a battery-powered AM/FM/Shortwave radio with extra batteries.
When the power went out you needed that radio to hear government warnings and announcements. The internet and cellphones were down; the radio worked.
It used to be that the only way to get Alex Jones was on shortwave. And who can forget Brother Stair, may he rest in peace.
Not in my 2021 Grand Cherokee!
bingo!
Well; our TMVs sure have about killed the over the air transmissions.
At least when the TV signal was weak; the screen just picked up more and more noise (snow).
My new digital TVs either show a picture or not.
No chance of viewing a far awai station.
SpelChunk replaced Breathe with Drive.
I know where the spark plugs are - Makes me want to hang onto the older cars, too.
Yeah, like that is gonna keep your 'infotainment' system from listening in anyway.
In a home radio - yes; but not in a car.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_American_Five
(See the little triangles?)
I do see the triangles!
Now, I know what to look for at the antique store!
Since Rush died, I don’t care anymore.
So, in a car, the AM antenna is incorporated into the FM antenna?
In the 70’s I had a Toyota that only came with AM. Maybe it was “FM Ready”, since it had an antenna.
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