‘Driven By Listeners,’ LeGeyt Calls for Continued AM Act Push

Over 800,000 listeners have already spoken; now broadcasters must keep up the pressure, says NAB President Curtis LeGeyt. He calls the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act unlike any campaign he’s seen, driven by public support and poised for a Senate breakthrough.

LeGeyt joined Nebraska Broadcasters Association President and NASBA Chair Jim Timm and Minnesota Broadcasters Association President Wendy Paulson for NASBA’s Broadcast Advocate podcast discussing everything from artificial intelligence to the FCC’s “Delete, Delete, Delete.” Still, the centerpiece of the conversation was the ongoing, high-stakes push to pass the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act.

LeGeyt emphasized the campaign’s momentum, calling it the most meaningful legislative effort he’s been part of in his 13 years at the NAB. “We have a very, very talented lobbying team in Washington, DC. The state association executives are obviously leading the charge to sync up what we’re doing in Washington, DC with our local stations,” he said. “But what’s different about this legislative effort is that it’s really been driven by our listeners.”

That grassroots pressure has been central to the AM bill’s rapid progress. More than 800,000 AM radio listeners have contacted lawmakers in support of the legislation, which would require automakers to include AM receivers in all new vehicles. The bill has a Senate supermajority and more than 160 co-sponsors in the House while awaiting a vote.

“This is one that continues to push through all of that noise,” LeGeyt said. “It’s bipartisan in an environment where there is almost no bipartisanship.”

Still, legislative timing remains the biggest hurdle. “It’s just a matter of finding time for that in the Senate, given a very, very packed legislative calendar between all the nominations coming out of the White House, as well as Congress’s focus on tax reform and the reconciliation process that’s just taking up a lot of time and oxygen,” LeGeyt said.

The NAB’s message to broadcasters: keep up the pressure. “If it is on Washington’s radar over the remainder of this Congress, when that opportunity presents itself… we’re going to have done our work to be there,” he said. “So I would urge every station – whether it’s managers or talent – to ensure that you’re talking about this with your listeners.”

The AM conversation also touches deeper themes around trust and infrastructure. LeGeyt underscored AM’s irreplaceable role in emergencies, calling local radio “the antidote to what the tech companies are doing” when it comes to stopping disinformation. “When other forms of communication fail, who’s on the ground reporting? Local broadcasters,” he said. “You can get your local radio station even when the power’s out… The tech companies aren’t there for any of that.”

Beyond AM, LeGeyt invoked another key NAB priority while discussing Big Tech: modernization of FCC media ownership rules. “These rules were written in a time where broadcasters only competed against other broadcasters… We need the scale to compete with those behemoths,” he said, referencing streaming giants like Netflix and Amazon.

He urged broadcasters to lean into public-facing campaigns like NAB’s AM radio and ownership advocacy spots. “No one is going to tell this story for you,” he said. “If we’re not extolling what we do every day and using our megaphone to differentiate ourselves… the tech companies aren’t going to tell that story for us.”

Looking ahead, LeGeyt said NAB will continue focusing on its three main advocacy goals of AM protection, ownership reform, and ATSC 3.0 transition while staying engaged in ongoing discussions about AI, local journalism protections, and advertising-related tax policy.

“In this environment where there is so much noise, so much partisanship, so much to be reactive to every single day, we’re gonna end up over 60 [priorities]. So I think we’ve got to really focus our efforts on those areas that we know can get some traction in the short term,” LeGeyt concluded. “Our industry needs some immediate relief that Washington can provide. And I think in those three areas, if we work very, very closely together, we’re gonna get it.”