The next time you plunk down $60,000 or so for a new pickup truck, ask the dealer: why can’t I get a $50 AM radio in it?
That’s a great question. Despite objections from the agricultural community, it looks like AM radios in some car and truck models, from Ford in particular, are on their way out. Electric motors are said to interfere with AM radio signals, causing poor reception. Eight manufacturers say they plan to eliminate it in some of their vehicles, and suggest that people who want it can stream it.
However, there are some real question marks surrounding all this.
First, it’s hard to understand why engineers aren’t trying to figure out a workaround. Electric vehicle sales are growing but they still comprise a small segment of sales. There’s lot of time to find a way to have electric motors and AM radio signals co-exist in a vehicle.
Second, it appears manufacturers forgot to ask the farm community – one of its most loyal markets – what it thinks about no more AM radio. Maybe they were afraid of the answer.
Because if they asked, here’s what they could have heard.
On the farm, radio counts. In the US, three-quarters of all farmers listen to the radio five days a week. It’s their number-one mobile medium. According to the National Association of Farm Broadcasters, most farmers have a whopping 14 radios on their farm. Manufacturers must be aware of these statistics.
As well, farmers and many others trust radio for weather and other public safety information. In a well-travelled quote, Nathan Simington, a commissioner with the Federal Communications Commission, called AM radio “an indispensable source of information for more than three million farmers in the US.”
More importantly, he said, farm broadcasters, especially those on AM, are a trusted source of information. “Forget about oil and gas,” he said. “These days, trust is the most important commodity out there.”
Trust, along with tradition and image, is certainly what manufacturers lean on to sell pickups. How can you trust a company that dumps one of your important management tools?
Hoosier Radio out of Indiana reports that last December, Senator Ed Markey, a member of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, sent letters to 20 car manufacturers requesting that they maintain AM radio in their vehicles, including new EV models.
The senator stressed that free broadcast radio is a critical, reliable channel for local, state, and federal government officials, including the President of the United States.
Others outside of the farm community are chiming in, too. Earlier this month, Alex Siciliano, senior vice president for communication at the National Association of Broadcasters, shared his thoughts.
“There’s no question that AM radio plays a critical role in informing Americans and keeping them safe; it is the backbone of the Emergency Alert System,” he said. “This is why numerous policymakers have sounded alarm bells for automakers.”
Siciliano claims that nearly 48 million Americans listen to AM radio.
Now it’s time for manufacturers to listen, too.
