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Saving AM Radio

TheBigA said:
At the top right of the page, there's a button that says "unwatch." Click it, and it won't show up in your alerts anymore.

I use it all the time.
Click to expand...
I wish I could, but moderators have to take the chaff with the grain.
 
Now that this thread is winding down and nearing the end, I want to thank you all for participating.
I never dreamed it would reach 1000 posts.
The title implied not just how to save AM but whether we should try. I've learned so much.

What is particularly interesting is that many of you who started your careers on AM have long since accepted that it is fading away and you are ok with that.
I agree with those of you who say that some stations will linger on for some time, maybe even past the lifetime of many of us.
But many will be gone in the not too distant future.
Anyway thanks to all and thanks for having me here. I hope I have been able to add something to this group.
 
How about some summary posts along with discussion of the potential or possibility for improvement or resolution?
  • Many AMs are daytimers and that has no technical resolution
  • Many AMs are low power and high on the band and their market has outgrown them
  • All AMs are subject to increasing man-made noise from other electrical and electronic devices that didn't exist 50 years ago.
  • AM radios made in the last four or five decades are not capable of anything even approaching the theoretical AM fidelity and bandwidth.
  • Electric vehicles present challenges to clear reception of AM
  • Listener perception of AM is that there is nothing on the band except foreign language and radical right programming.
  • Decreasing radio revenues means less money for "quality" programming. }
  • Lenders and investors believe AM is dead.
 
DavidEduardo said:
How about some summary posts along with discussion of the potential or possibility for improvement or resolution?
  • Many AMs are daytimers and that has no technical resolution
  • Many AMs are low power and high on the band and their market has outgrown them
  • All AMs are subject to increasing man-made noise from other electrical and electronic devices that didn't exist 50 years ago.
  • AM radios made in the last four or five decades are not capable of anything even approaching the theoretical AM fidelity and bandwidth.
  • Electric vehicles present challenges to clear reception of AM
  • Listener perception of AM is that there is nothing on the band except foreign language and radical right programming.
  • Decreasing radio revenues means less money for "quality" programming. }
  • Lenders and investors believe AM is dead.
Click to expand...
On point #4: What about the GE Superadios and other similar units?
 
semoochie said:
On point #4: What about the GE Superadios and other similar units?
Click to expand...
Superadiol has not been made for what, two decades? I still have two in their original boxes with "Armageddon" marked on them...
 
People in western North Carolina, where all the cell phone towers are out, no electricity so no television, no internet connections, and the mountainous terrain does not lend itself well to FM reception, might be wanting some battery-operated radios right now with an AM band. Severe devastation in that area, due to Hurricane Helene, with severely limited communications on how people can reach badly needed emergency services with water and food provisions.
 
Daryl Lynn L.A. said:
People in western North Carolina, where all the cell phone towers are out, no electricity so no television, no internet connections, and the mountainous terrain does not lend itself well to FM reception, might be wanting some battery-operated radios right now with an AM band. Severe devastation in that area, due to Hurricane Helene, with severely limited communications on how people can reach badly needed emergency services with water and food provisions.
Click to expand...
What is being reported, is that as in any natural disaster, emergency services and search and rescue are on the ground responding in person to the hardest hit areas first. Temporary cell towers have been deployed and additional 911 operators made available to take calls.
 
DavidEduardo said:
How about some summary posts along with discussion of the potential or possibility for improvement or resolution?
  • Many AMs are daytimers and that has no technical resolution
  • Many AMs are low power and high on the band and their market has outgrown them
  • All AMs are subject to increasing man-made noise from other electrical and electronic devices that didn't exist 50 years ago.
  • AM radios made in the last four or five decades are not capable of anything even approaching the theoretical AM fidelity and bandwidth.
  • Electric vehicles present challenges to clear reception of AM
  • Listener perception of AM is that there is nothing on the band except foreign language and radical right programming.
  • Decreasing radio revenues means less money for "quality" programming. }
  • Lenders and investors believe AM is dead.
Click to expand...
These are definitely some large hurdles to overcome, no doubt. The man-made noise is the biggest issue, in my book. It's the cause of many of the other problems/perceived problems with the band. Proper enforcement of FCC standards should theoretically help reduce this significantly, as was discussed upthread, but I'm not betting on the FCC wanting to go this route any time soon...
 


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