Who Will Fight The AM Battle?

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(By Deborah Parenti) One of the most discussed topics among radio broadcasters at last week’s NAB Show was the fate of AM radio.

Interestingly enough, some of the greatest concerns being voiced are coming from two very different sides of the spectrum so to speak: minority broadcasters who serve rural communities, most especially in the heartland, and conservative talk radio shows, syndicated and local, that are just as likely to broadcast over 50,000-watt signals. Essentially, that makes saving AM radio of interest across the board – if not the “dash” board in the minds of some automotive brands. There are campaigns being run on stations currently to inform listeners of the dangers of losing AM and I applaud those efforts.

But it can’t stop there – and the efforts can’t just be focused on appealing to listeners who are already in the “AM camp.”

The first thing I was told by Stoner Broadcasting President Glenn Bell when I was given my GM stripes was this: “Your first and most important job is to protect the license.” That license includes a responsibility to operate in the “public interest, convenience, and necessity.” While it’s been debated over the years exactly how that should be interpreted, it would seem fairly apparent that keeping listeners informed in times of disaster and crises would fit into that definition. That means broadcasters are charged to not be asleep at the wheel during life-threatening emergencies. In other words, when gale force winds are sending people into basement shelters, radio can’t be voice-tracking intros to the next music set.

The pandemic taught us new resourcefulness. We learned the real meaning of “remote” broadcasting, trading in car showrooms for bedrooms, kitchens, and home offices to keep listeners informed as well as entertained and engaged with the outside world. There is no reason for a station not to, at the bare minimum, have someone monitoring and on standby in case of emergency who can go live at a moment’s notice. It’s the broadcaster’s responsibility, not to mention the very thing we hang our hat on in laying out the case as to the importance of AM radio’s survival.

Over the years, there have been some outstanding examples of AM radio’s commitment to communities in times of need. WCBS-AM is one AM that has been there for New Yorkers from 9/11 through Superstorm Sandy and continues to serve and inform today. According to one listener 90 miles outside the city, “no FMs from NYC can aid on the commute like the big AM stations.” And during the devastation of Hurricane Ian, one of the prominent go-to stations was Tampa’s WFLA-AM which provided information and timely updates for their audience as well as those affected in other iHeart markets.

But the commitment needs to go further.  The crusade needs to be taken outside the listening pool. While on-air campaigns remind current audiences of the value of their AM stations, it’s not enough. And as important as the lobbying efforts with Congress are, that’s still not enough. Radio broadcasters need to truly band together and pass the collection plate to place ads in all the major news publications like The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. And the more signatures on those ads the better. A few billboards in the vicinity of some of the automotive headquarters might also not hurt.

If radio is serious about saving the AM dial, radio must commit to the battle. And make no mistake, it is a battle that needs to be fought on all fronts. Are we up for the fight?

P.S. Please, let’s keep politics out of this. We should all be able to agree that AM serves a diverse population and has an integral role in public safety. No one wins if the house is divided.

Deborah Parenti is Publisher of Radio Ink. She can be reached at [email protected].

5 COMMENTS

  1. Well TODAY (it’s Saturday) I learned more of how stations are trying to “save” AM. This morning at 7am I tuned into the “All News” station. They had a financial show on where CBS news should have been. Another talk station had a Baptist Preacher’s sermon. (Saturday.) That station was once the #1 station in its market. The other relevant talk station had a home improvement show on and was covering the news as well, however its newscasters were having what seemed to be technical issues and a few bouts of dead air. Those are examples of how AM is being saved ? We’re all smart enough to realize that unless they work on making programming relevant we may find that broadcast (both AM/FM) radio will be more and more irrelevant every day. We’ve got to stop living in the past and start thinking about the future of this still awesome medium. Radio used to be an entertainment destination. Can we please bring it back?

  2. Matty you are exactly right. AM radio is where I started. The days of 50,000 watt individual blow torches and locally driven content has disappeared. Now the AM band has been reduced to syndication sticks. Where is local news, where is high school football. Where is the new emerging 16 year old DJ. Just yesterday I read an article by a major radio company VP, talking about how at 16 he started in radio. Yet that same executive cut 3% of his workforce including production members with 20 plus year tenure. Somehow they are gonna cut there books to save a Syndicated AM band. Meanwhile thier investment is on digital and audio streaming. When is the last time any of the big companies invested in AM radio ? Some argue faith based channels will be affected. But truth is you can listen to any of those 26 min preaching slots on demand with podcast or the internet.
    Even sports radio national providers like ESPN cut staff recently.
    Yes I would love to see the AM band saved. And truthfully thier are some AM stations who are local doing it right. But I would argue the big boys are what has killed the AM dail themselves. Using it for agenda driven and nationally syndicated programs that fit only a chosen segments nitche.

  3. There will NEVER be an audience under 50 who would listen to AM and, as it’s going, FM either. Long commercial breaks, poor programming, and the fact that anyone can get the same content digitally are just some factors. Plus, it sounds like crap. Just stating the obvious. Radio needs to rethink how they program over the air completely. I LOVE radio and started at an AM when I was 16, but those days are gone. Stop trying to save what is the past and focus on what can work with TODAY’s audiences. I vote for short, live-read breaks, more local content, and strong digital strategies. Stop crusading for the good ole days and focus on the future. Why is that so hard for so many in radio these days?

  4. I can’t speak for Salem Radio specifically. However, many talk shows that the previous poster describes as “right wing” (a term usually used as a pejorative..so much for not getting political) have impressive ratings in their time slots. Buck and Travis, Hannity, Bongino, Mark Levin and the late Rush Limbaugh.They can’t achieve those ratings without crossing over to the “mainstream”. By running them, GM’s are doing the opposite of abandoning A.M… they’re trying to save it.

  5. Good points Deborah. Sadly though, if broadcasters as a whole had committed more dollars and resources to AM over the last 20+ years, there wouldn’t be an “AM relevance issue” today. Another words, if AM stations were significantly more popular with significantly more listeners, then car manufacturers and government regulators wouldn’t even think about removing AM.
    Yes, there are some legendary AM stations, largely in bigger markets, with relevant live programming that still attract large audiences. But many many AM owners have just thrown in the towel on their AM’s, relegating them to right-wing syndicated talk radio or commercial Christian donation-driven infomercials. (Good example: Salem Radio.) Neither of these appeal to mainstream audiences. So, many owners gave up on their AM’s and gave up on investing in them, and that helped create this crisis now of the relevance, or lack thereof, of the AM band.

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