Yahoo Autos U.S. Sen. Ed Markey Really, Really Wants Automakers to Keep AM Radio in Their Electric Cars
When BMW introduced the electric i3 city car, it was a wild departure from what you saw in the rest of the lineup. And not just because it was battery-powered. While it offered a surprisingly fun driving experience and an optional range extender for owners who needed extra range, one thing it didn’t offer really stood out: AM radio. Now other automakers are or are considering following suit, and U.S. Senator Ed Markey is not happy about that.
As Mass Live reports, Markey wrote a letter to 20 automakers, which you can download here, asking them to keep offering AM radio in future vehicles. But it’s not because he’s desperate to make sure he always has access to the deranged ramblings of some talk radio lunatic. It’s because he’s worried about how cars without AM radio will affect information communication during emergencies.
Read more
“Despite innovations such as the smartphone and social media, AM/FM broadcast radio remains the most dependable, cost-free, and accessible communication mechanism for public officials to communicate with the public during times of emergency. As a result, any phase-out of broadcast AM radio could pose a significant communication problem during emergencies,” Markey wrote.
He also claimed:
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly 90 percent of Americans ages 12 and older — totaling hundreds of millions of people — listened to AM or FM radio each week, 1 higher than the percentage that watch television (56 percent) or own a computer (77 percent). Forty-seven percent of Americans receive news from the radio, and tens of millions more listen to music. The car remains a main channel through which consumers listen to broadcast radio, with 89 percent of prospective U.S. car buyers saying a radio tuner should be standard in every car. Moreover, 33 percent of new car buyers say that AM radio is a very important feature in a vehicle — higher than dedicated Wi-Fi (31 percent), SiriusXM satellite radio (27 percent), and personal assistants.
