AARoads Forum

Here an article of the LA Times about the death of the AM Radio
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-fi-am-death-20140902-story.html#page=1

Here in Quebec, the remaining and surviving AM stations are rare, very rare.

Disney announced a massive sell off of their AM based Radio Disney network. http://variety.com/2014/biz/news/radio-disney-sells-most-of-its-u-s-stations-as-it-makes-switch-to-digital-1201283925/

Once upon a time, Canada used to have many great AM stereo stations broadcasting music. Sad to see them all go FM.

I still use AM frequently for news/traffic, be it 880 if I'm north (NYC area) or good ol' "KYW...Newsradio...1060" (sing the jingle) if I'm south (Eagles Country)

I've practically stopped listening to broadcast radio "over the air" entirely, relying instead on the XM radio and the Bluetooth connection instead and listening to MP3s and audio books. The broadcast radio that I listen to is several programs from the local public radio station where I recording the streaming audio for later playback. Hey, anything to annoy ClearChannel.

The only time I ever deliberately listen to AM radio is when I know the Huskers are playing and I'm in the car.  I suppose I could set it to whatever SiriusXM channel has the game, but I have 1110 AM (KFAB) preset on my car.  Of course, sometimes, I get bored with SiriusXM and just turn it to AM and start flipping channels.

AM radio's death has been predicted for about my entire half-century long life.  Has not happened yet.

Probably never will. 

Because AM radio keeps reinventing itself.  TV took its roll as a general entertainment media, starting in the late 40s, but radio kept at it into the early 60s, because the roll out of TV stations was mis-handled by the FCC in smaller cities.  AM found rock music.  Kept at music from the mid-50s until well into the 80s, even in the face of FM's superiority, because car makers could make some extra $$ by making FM an option until not that long ago.  Then came the end of the so-called "fairness doctrine" and rise of commentators who dared disagree with CBSABCNBCCNNPBSTIMESPOST.  Followed shortly thereafter by Spanish broadcasting.  And, in many places, paid religion can still pay the bills. 

And, through it all, there has been baseball.  And in the South and Midwest, College sports. 

AM radio will be fine.

Now, if you are a lazy broadcaster, and just want to toss up ESPNR or some nut-fringe political talkers that give you the content for free, rather than pay for the true talent, just want to get your "local" news from a statewide service that employs people that cannot pass a basic civics test, don't want to pay for the local baseball team, you will fail.

I once picked up KYW1060 clear as can be out in indiana, right at the ohio state line.

As goes LA, so goes the country. After all, the NFL folded, right?

Quote from: DandyDan on September 04, 2014, 06:28:53 AM
The only time I ever deliberately listen to AM radio is when I know the Huskers are playing and I'm in the car.  I suppose I could set it to whatever SiriusXM channel has the game, but I have 1110 AM (KFAB) preset on my car.  Of course, sometimes, I get bored with SiriusXM and just turn it to AM and start flipping channels.

Sirius XM is no better than FM. I got it for free with my last rental car, and they played the same songs over and over. If your station is 80's on 8, you have an entire decade to work with, yet they continuously repeated the same top 40 playlist from that week in 1986. It was pretty ridiculous. It would have been passable if they then did that week in 1983 and then 1989 or something and so on, but no, the exact same list on a 48 hour loop. As a subscription service, this is unoriginal and unacceptable.


iPhone

Quote from: SP Cook on September 04, 2014, 06:52:46 AM
AM radio's death has been predicted for about my entire half-century long life.  Has not happened yet.

Probably never will. 

Because AM radio keeps reinventing itself.  TV took its roll as a general entertainment media, starting in the late 40s, but radio kept at it into the early 60s, because the roll out of TV stations was mis-handled by the FCC in smaller cities.  AM found rock music.  Kept at music from the mid-50s until well into the 80s, even in the face of FM's superiority, because car makers could make some extra $$ by making FM an option until not that long ago.  Then came the end of the so-called "fairness doctrine" and rise of commentators who dared disagree with CBSABCNBCCNNPBSTIMESPOST.  Followed shortly thereafter by Spanish broadcasting.  And, in many places, paid religion can still pay the bills. 

And, through it all, there has been baseball.  And in the South and Midwest, College sports. 

AM radio will be fine.

Now, if you are a lazy broadcaster, and just want to toss up ESPNR or some nut-fringe political talkers that give you the content for free, rather than pay for the true talent, just want to get your "local" news from a statewide service that employs people that cannot pass a basic civics test, don't want to pay for the local baseball team, you will fail.

I hope you're right, but unfortunately the evidence is all too clear that AM is on life support.  I too have heard repeatedly about AM's "imminent" demise through my 45 years in broadcasting, but this time it's much more likely to be true.

First, AM's audience is old and dying off.  Less than 15% of total radio listening is done on AM, and its not being used in any significant numbers by people under 55.  We can endlessly debate why that happened, but those are the facts.  Young people simply don't listen to AM.  Among all the other media choices they have, AM is not on their radar.  It's their grandfather's radio.  They also don't listen in any significant numbers to the paid religion programs you mentioned.

Second, AM stations are extremely expensive to maintain, particularly those with directional antennas.  They use a lot of land which is becoming increasingly more valuable than the AM radio stations which currently inhabit that land.  For this reason, many AM licenses have already been turned in, the stations demolished and the land sold.

Third, AM is becoming increasingly difficult to listen to.  Levels of noise and interference are increasing, thanks in part to the FCC's abdication of its enforcement powers under Part 15 of the FCC rules, which govern (among other things) interference and noise created by consumer devices.  As electronics have gotten cheaper, the amounts of noise generated have drastically increased, making AM listening difficult where it was previously easy.  The interference-free service areas of all AM stations have decreased due to this problem.  The addition, on some stations, of HD Radio (an attempt to move AM radio into the digital age) has unfortunately made the noise problem worse, since HD generates digital hash (which an analog radio can't make anything out of) and that hash is just another noise component.

And lastly, radio isn't doing anything about any of this.  As you noted, in the past, radio was able to re-invent itself.  It's just not happening now.  As the angry-old-man conservative talk format begins to fail because its audience is dying off, no one is coming up with anything to replace it that will have any appeal beyond the 55-to-death demographic.

I wish all of this were not so.  I cut my teeth on AM radio, on both sides of the mic.  But...I fear it is.

I listen to an AM radio station every day, but not over the air. I stream it via iHeartRadio. That's because AM reception is impossible due to my geographical location and the structure of my office building, electrical interference, etc.

i don't particularly care about the technical aspects. Content is what I'm concerned about.

When I drive from Philadelphia to Chicago, i listen to WBBM or KYW during the first and last hours of the journey.  This is just to hear the traffic & weather.  The other dozen hours or so, I generally play CDs.

I've been making this trip several times a year for the past 15 years.  There used to be enjoyable AM stations in southwestern parts of both PA and Ontario, but they're long gone.  The only AM station now worth listening to is Zoomer Radio from Toronto.  It comes in well in eastern Ohio.  I might tune it in if my CD player has to cool down.

Quote from: hbelkins on September 04, 2014, 11:11:15 AM
...AM reception is impossible due to my geographical location and the structure of my office building, electrical interference, etc.

i don't particularly care about the technical aspects.

Actually, those technical aspects are the story here.  They're what's preventing you from listening to your AM radio.

I hate to say it, but we're moving toward a world in which streaming will displace both AM and FM radio.  It probably won't happen in my lifetime, but the economics argue strongly in favor of it eventually.  No massive, regulated technical infrastructure to deal with for distribution and (in AM's case) no large parcels of land necessary to support it.

Quote from: Pete from Boston on September 04, 2014, 09:33:03 AM
As goes LA, so goes the country. After all, the NFL folded, right?

Didn't you know there's absolutely nothing, and I mean nothing between the Hudson River and the LA Basin?

/sarc.

Quote from: SteveG1988 on September 04, 2014, 09:25:37 AM
I once picked up KYW1060 clear as can be out in indiana, right at the ohio state line.

This reminds me:

I was able to catch WBZ out of Boston in the mountains of West Virginia. I was amazed.

Quote from: The Nature Boy on September 04, 2014, 12:37:11 PM

Quote from: SteveG1988 on September 04, 2014, 09:25:37 AM
I once picked up KYW1060 clear as can be out in indiana, right at the ohio state line.

This reminds me:

I was able to catch WBZ out of Boston in the mountains of West Virginia. I was amazed.

They claim to reach 38 states (and "the best provinces of Canada").

Quote from: Pete from Boston on September 04, 2014, 12:49:42 PM

Quote from: The Nature Boy on September 04, 2014, 12:37:11 PM

Quote from: SteveG1988 on September 04, 2014, 09:25:37 AM
I once picked up KYW1060 clear as can be out in indiana, right at the ohio state line.

This reminds me:

I was able to catch WBZ out of Boston in the mountains of West Virginia. I was amazed.

They claim to reach 38 states (and "the best provinces of Canada").

I wonder what their budget has to be. A high powered antenna like that can't come cheap.

When I was growing up, my dad listened to WHAS (840 AM, one of the old-time clear channel stations) out of Louisville. They played music but also had a lot of news, the University of Kentucky basketball games and the games of the old Kentucky Colonels ABA team, and so on. I've heard stories of UK fans driving their cars to remote rural locations and listening to the UK games on WHAS back before nearly every game was on TV.

Even in the mountains, we had pretty good reception for WHAS, but we had a rule that we couldn't have blinking Christmas lights on the tree because the flashing lights (hi, Takumi, where you been lately?) interfered with the radio reception.

When an area FM station that we could pick up well dropped the Cincinnati Reds, my dad started listening to the games on WLW (700 AM, another clear channel station).

Now both of those clear channel stations are Clear Channel stations.

If it was not for political talk and all around news, AM would have folded a long time ago.

Also in Orlando, Florida the AM dial is loaded with mostly Latino stations as you climb higher on the dial.   That is because Orlando is growing in Hispanic population. With all of this, as well, I think that is causing the AM radio to hang on here in O Town.

So far what I learned at CSB it is not that much of a threat yet.  What I learned in school is that Sirius Radio is the one that is dying more than AM is.  The way my instructors made is sound that if it was not for Howard Stern, that would have gone under years ago.  It seems that his one of a kind perverted sense of humor that attracts millions of listeners could easily keep Sirius in business by itself.

Quote from: SidS1045 on September 04, 2014, 11:50:12 AM
I hate to say it, but we're moving toward a world in which streaming will displace both AM and FM radio.  It probably won't happen in my lifetime, but the economics argue strongly in favor of it eventually.  No massive, regulated technical infrastructure to deal with for distribution and (in AM's case) no large parcels of land necessary to support it.

Better not happen any time soon.  I enjoy listening to the Fly Morning Rush on my commute and use FM whenever in the Rochester-Albany Thruway corridor.  I am NOT paying extra to have some internet service in my car.  Plus by that point it may be impossible for me to stream music from a device; I currently use a very old iPod nano for trips where I don't have stations on my presets, and I wouldn't be surprised if MP3 players themselves go the way of the dodo by the time I need to replace it.

Quote from: roadman65 on September 04, 2014, 01:22:51 PM
If it was not for political talk and all around news, AM would have folded a long time ago.

Also in Orlando, Florida the AM dial is loaded with mostly Latino stations as you climb higher on the dial.   That is because Orlando is growing in Hispanic population. With all of this, as well, I think that is causing the AM radio to hang on here in O Town.

So far what I learned at CSB it is not that much of a threat yet.  What I learned in school is that Sirius Radio is the one that is dying more than AM is.  The way my instructors made is sound that if it was not for Howard Stern, that would have gone under years ago.  It seems that his one of a kind perverted sense of humor that attracts millions of listeners could easily keep Sirius in business by itself.

I would be sad if we lost Sirius. I travel a lot and find it easy to just throw on Sirius for hours instead of fishing for local stations whenever I enter a new market. I've never listened to Howard and never would.

I could always buy a new car radio that has an AUX port but cell reception isn't always reliable.

All-news WTOP in Washington, D.C. (transmitters in Maryland) was on 1500 AM for decades (WTOP stood for "top of the dial"). 

But 1500 AM is now WFED, a specialized station aimed at federal employees and WTOP has moved to three FM stations, the primary one being 103.5. 

Regarding interference, yes, many more things these days disrupt AM reception. In my area, a big one is bad insulators on power lines, and tree limbs rubbing power lines.  Those are easy to notice when out driving around. It seems like everything in my house generates noise in the AM band, light dimmers, motors, microwave, TV, computer, my well pump, electric fence chargers and refrigerator and freezers.

I've also noted some radios are better than others at pulling a signal out of the crud. My aftermarket CD/tuner sucks on AM, the Equinox has a passable AM radio, and the '87 Ford pickup I sold a few years ago was actually pretty good.

As for even expensive receivers, they are a joke.

Quote from: Laura on September 04, 2014, 09:48:53 AM

Sirius XM is no better than FM. I got it for free with my last rental car, and they played the same songs over and over. If your station is 80's on 8, you have an entire decade to work with, yet they continuously repeated the same top 40 playlist from that week in 1986. It was pretty ridiculous. It would have been passable if they then did that week in 1983 and then 1989 or something and so on, but no, the exact same list on a 48 hour loop. As a subscription service, this is unoriginal and unacceptable.


iPhone

There's some truth in what you're saying, but if I get bored with one channel, I flip it to another one.   There's enough channels on SiriusXM.  And if I get really bored, I turn it to the Canadian channels.

Quote from: roadman65 on September 04, 2014, 01:22:51 PMWhat I learned in school is that Sirius Radio is the one that is dying more than AM is.  The way my instructors made is sound that if it was not for Howard Stern, that would have gone under years ago.  It seems that his one of a kind perverted sense of humor that attracts millions of listeners could easily keep Sirius in business by itself.

Your instructor's comments fall under the heading of "fact-challenged."  SiriusXM is in the black and has a net gain of subscribers every quarter for the past few years.  Hardly a dying business.  It's probably not going to displace any other medium, but its place as a niche medium seems assured.

Quote from: SidS1045 on September 04, 2014, 10:44:33 AM
  As the angry-old-man conservative talk format begins to fail because its audience is dying off, no one is coming up with anything to replace it that will have any appeal beyond the 55-to-death demographic.

And that is what is wrong with not only the entertainment industry, but many industries. Everybody wants to market to the masses.  And, yes, that is where MOST of the money is.  But, what people forget is you can make a lot of money outside the "target demographic".  If you want to fight for your tiny sliver of the big pie, fine.  I can list dozens of industries where there are tremendously successful players, for which the "target demographic" has no use.  Business forgets that all money is green.  Del Webb died a billionaire.  Selling houses to retirees.

Quote from: The Nature Boy on September 04, 2014, 01:30:44 PM

I would be sad if we lost Sirius. I travel a lot and find it easy to just throw on Sirius for hours instead of fishing for local stations whenever I enter a new market. I've never listened to Howard and never would.

SXM is doing fine.  The merger between the two services was needed, there just isn't the market for two competitors.  Truckers and other long form travelers keep it going, and there is nothing on the horizon that is going to replace that. 

Stern is entirely a creation of the hype machine.  Reality is he was on a few FM stations in a few cities when he was "king of all media".  He is a niche of a niche of a niche. 

Quote from: SP Cook on September 05, 2014, 07:20:25 AM
Stern is entirely a creation of the hype machine.  Reality is he was on a few FM stations in a few cities when he was "king of all media".  He is a niche of a niche of a niche.

Having lived and been in several markets, my personal belief is that every market has someone on the radio who is like Howard Stern.  Howard Stern got lucky in that his market was New York and as they say, if you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere.

Quote from: DandyDan on September 05, 2014, 07:26:20 AM

Quote from: SP Cook on September 05, 2014, 07:20:25 AM
Stern is entirely a creation of the hype machine.  Reality is he was on a few FM stations in a few cities when he was "king of all media".  He is a niche of a niche of a niche.

Having lived and been in several markets, my personal belief is that every market has someone on the radio who is like Howard Stern.  Howard Stern got lucky in that his market was New York and as they say, if you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere.

And he was always second fiddle in Chicago.  Others (Steve Dahl, Mancow) were doing what he was doing, but better in this market.  Plus, Dahl did everything Stern did long before Stern did it.

Quote from: Brandon on September 05, 2014, 09:32:56 AM

Quote from: DandyDan on September 05, 2014, 07:26:20 AM

Quote from: SP Cook on September 05, 2014, 07:20:25 AM
Stern is entirely a creation of the hype machine.  Reality is he was on a few FM stations in a few cities when he was "king of all media".  He is a niche of a niche of a niche.

Having lived and been in several markets, my personal belief is that every market has someone on the radio who is like Howard Stern.  Howard Stern got lucky in that his market was New York and as they say, if you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere.

And he was always second fiddle in Chicago.  Others (Steve Dahl, Mancow) were doing what he was doing, but better in this market.  Plus, Dahl did everything Stern did long before Stern did it.

I don't know much about Dahl, but it seems like his career and Stern's have been more or less concurrent.  If anything, he made it big a handful of years before Stern did, not what I'd call "long."

Quote from: The Nature Boy on September 04, 2014, 12:57:20 PM

Quote from: Pete from Boston on September 04, 2014, 12:49:42 PM

Quote from: The Nature Boy on September 04, 2014, 12:37:11 PM

Quote from: SteveG1988 on September 04, 2014, 09:25:37 AM
I once picked up KYW1060 clear as can be out in indiana, right at the ohio state line.

This reminds me:

I was able to catch WBZ out of Boston in the mountains of West Virginia. I was amazed.

They claim to reach 38 states (and "the best provinces of Canada").

I wonder what their budget has to be. A high powered antenna like that can't come cheap.

They get the same 50,000 watts all the other big boys get. One thing they do is employ a directional pattern to the signal to avoid broadcasting to the ocean. In layman's terms it's kind of like putting your thumb on the end of a garden hose. WBT in Charlotte has a similar effect, although for different reasons. You can hear it in Cuba at night, but reception to the immediate (like 5 miles) west is so poor they use an FM station to fill in the gap.

Quote from: 6a on September 05, 2014, 06:15:41 PMOne thing they do is employ a directional pattern to the signal to avoid broadcasting to the ocean. In layman's terms it's kind of like putting your thumb on the end of a garden hose.

WWL/New Orleans does the same thing as WBZ.  Their transmitter site is in the swampland south of New Orleans and they're directional to the north to avoid wasting signal in the Gulf of Mexico.

The right-wing talk format is garbage.

Quote from: Laura on September 04, 2014, 09:48:53 AM
Sirius XM is no better than FM. I got it for free with my last rental car, and they played the same songs over and over. If your station is 80's on 8, you have an entire decade to work with, yet they continuously repeated the same top 40 playlist from that week in 1986. It was pretty ridiculous. It would have been passable if they then did that week in 1983 and then 1989 or something and so on, but no, the exact same list on a 48 hour loop. As a subscription service, this is unoriginal and unacceptable.

How do they get people to pay for this crap?

Quote from: bandit957 on September 08, 2014, 03:31:40 PM

Quote from: Laura on September 04, 2014, 09:48:53 AM
Sirius XM is no better than FM. I got it for free with my last rental car, and they played the same songs over and over. If your station is 80's on 8, you have an entire decade to work with, yet they continuously repeated the same top 40 playlist from that week in 1986. It was pretty ridiculous. It would have been passable if they then did that week in 1983 and then 1989 or something and so on, but no, the exact same list on a 48 hour loop. As a subscription service, this is unoriginal and unacceptable.

How do they get people to pay for this crap?

As I said above, I pay for it because I travel too much and hate having to constantly change the number. They also have some niche stations that I really like. If you're a fan of something not on the radio, it's worth it. Their classic rock stations are also pretty decent.

In my day, my dad used to listen to the Reds games on WLW on the stereo in the living room. I noticed that if you ran past the stereo really fast, it would create a rumbling noise on WLW. I kept doing this, and he got so mad!

Also, a next-door neighbor kept blaring Reds games on WLW when I was trying to do homework. So I took an electronics kit and somehow built a little "station" that created a high-pitched whistling noise that jammed WLW.

Also, is there anyone else here from the Cincinnati area who remembers when WCLU was top 40?

Quote from: bandit957 on September 08, 2014, 03:28:26 PM
The right-wing talk format is garbage.

Yet it's odd that left-wing talk never really got off the ground.

Quote from: hbelkins on September 08, 2014, 10:19:57 PM

Quote from: bandit957 on September 08, 2014, 03:28:26 PM
The right-wing talk format is garbage.

Yet it's odd that left-wing talk never really got off the ground.

Left-wing current-affairs talk radio fills a lot of NPR (not every station, but weekdays on the big ones).  The content, for me, eventually gets drowned out by the weird, inhuman cadence and tone and feel of the hosts.  They are not of this earth! 

People often respond to this complaint by asking me if I'd prefer the scathing hate-mongering at the other end, and that's a cop-out to excuse poor broadcasters.  I like that NPR tries some creative radio sometimes, but they have to lose these people I picture as being muppets with ugly sweaters voiced by Gary Owens.

Quote from: hbelkins on September 08, 2014, 10:19:57 PM

Quote from: bandit957 on September 08, 2014, 03:28:26 PM
The right-wing talk format is garbage.

Yet it's odd that left-wing talk never really got off the ground.

Not really. Radio, especially AM, skews toward older listeners, which tend to be right-wing. That, and the Republican Party is much more unified in its political positions than the Democratic party, so it's easier to create a radio station that is acceptable to the majority of its target market.

There are three, interlinked ideas relative to that issue.

First, as Limbaugh said "I am equal time".  No, that is not just some phrase.  The mainstream media is at the far left edge of political thought.  It, for nearly 80 years, has developed a style where it couches its commentary as flat reporting.  There are, therefore plenty of sources for left wing thought, from government subsidized PBS/NPR to the monolithic ABCNBCCBS, to your local newspaper.  AM talkers found an unserved niche.  One called, most people.

Second, Conservatism is about facts and logic.  Liberalism (actually socialism, used correctly liberal in the 19th century context is what we now call conservatism) is about emotion.  I want everybody to have *.  Well, OK, nice but in the real world (insert here an unlimited amount of discussion as to why you cannot just give * to "everybody" ) Oh, you are mean, and greedy, and ignorant.  Everybody should have *. * now. * now. * now.  Occupy.  Boycott.  Burn.  No facts.  No logic.  No reason.  And, relative to radio, not much time filled and not much said you haven't heard before.

Third, as Limbaugh's 23 Updated Undeniable Truth of the Universe says "The only way liberals win national elections is by pretending they're
not liberals".  Look at the upcoming Senate races.  West Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Louisiana, Georgia, Kansas, Alaska, on and on.  A far-left liberal who is running as a "moderate" who wants to "work together" and blah, blah, blah.  They really cannot remember who their party's leaders are, or why they are members of such a party with which they "disagree" with so much.  The last thing they want is some AM talker talking about what they really believe.

Quote from: SP Cook on September 09, 2014, 06:39:20 AM
Second, Conservatism is about facts and logic.  Liberalism (actually socialism, used correctly liberal in the 19th century context is what we now call conservatism) is about emotion.

negative.  conservatism is about using one's lizard brain when one's higher-order capabilities are distracted or otherwise unavailable.

http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science/2014/09/truthiness_research_cognitive_biases_for_simple_clear_conservative_messages.html

Well, I'm not surprised that AM is on life support as we speak. In my childhood, I was an avid listener of WLS-AM when it had the Top-40 format, and I was sad to see it go in favor of news/talk. Even today, you can find news/talk and sports on the FM dial! Needless to say, AM is indeed in a very sad state right now.

Quote from: Scott5114 on September 09, 2014, 02:09:53 AM
Not really. Radio, especially AM, skews toward older listeners, which tend to be right-wing.

Older people are more conservative today, but in the '90s, younger people were more conservative. Older people in the 1990s were New Deal types. But even in the '90s, AM talk radio was already dominated by the right wing.

Quote from: SP Cook on September 09, 2014, 06:39:20 AMThe mainstream media is at the far left edge of political thought.

That's hilarious.

Quote from: SP Cook on September 09, 2014, 06:39:20 AM
There are three, interlinked ideas relative to that issue.

First, as Limbaugh said "I am equal time".  No, that is not just some phrase.  The mainstream media is at the far left edge of political thought.  It, for nearly 80 years, has developed a style where it couches its commentary as flat reporting.  There are, therefore plenty of sources for left wing thought, from government subsidized PBS/NPR to the monolithic ABCNBCCBS, to your local newspaper.  AM talkers found an unserved niche.  One called, most people.

Second, Conservatism is about facts and logic.  Liberalism (actually socialism, used correctly liberal in the 19th century context is what we now call conservatism) is about emotion.  I want everybody to have *.  Well, OK, nice but in the real world (insert here an unlimited amount of discussion as to why you cannot just give * to "everybody" ) Oh, you are mean, and greedy, and ignorant.  Everybody should have *. * now. * now. * now.  Occupy.  Boycott.  Burn.  No facts.  No logic.  No reason.  And, relative to radio, not much time filled and not much said you haven't heard before.

Third, as Limbaugh's 23 Updated Undeniable Truth of the Universe says "The only way liberals win national elections is by pretending they're
not liberals".  Look at the upcoming Senate races.  West Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Louisiana, Georgia, Kansas, Alaska, on and on.  A far-left liberal who is running as a "moderate" who wants to "work together" and blah, blah, blah.  They really cannot remember who their party's leaders are, or why they are members of such a party with which they "disagree" with so much.  The last thing they want is some AM talker talking about what they really believe.

Limbaugh is so full of himself he's become a parody of the architypal reactionary nut-case rightie.  What he once was...a humorous, self-deprecating voice of a POV previously ignored as too radical for most...was long ago subordinated to the loudmouth "blame everything on the left" true believer...in his own PR.  Conservatives can, believe it or not, be articulate, brainy advocates for their POV with a sense of humor to boot.  Limbaugh is everything but, and IMO damages the cause.  He's nothing but perpetual anger and "everything bad is Obama's/Clinton's/Gore's/Pelosi's/Reid's fault."  Sorry, but *nothing* is ever so black-and-white.

I can take everything you just posted, turn it 180 degrees, and it would be just as valid to a leftie.

And just to keep this thread on track:  Several separate studies have shown that political talk on radio (almost all of it right-wing) are a large part of what's turning off the electorate.  Shrill, perpetually angry voices calling the other side "traitors" and claiming the other side "hates America" ad nauseam don't contribute to a well-informed electorate and do nothing to stimulate intelligent debate.

Quote from: Pete from Boston on September 08, 2014, 10:48:02 PM
Left-wing current-affairs talk radio fills a lot of NPR (not every station, but weekdays on the big ones).  The content, for me, eventually gets drowned out by the weird, inhuman cadence and tone and feel of the hosts.  They are not of this earth! 

This.

The thing that gets me about most public radio stations, besides the obvious liberal slant, is the lack of passion that the announcers have. The monotone delivery that most of them have bore me to tears. Limbaugh, Hannity, Levin (the three conservative talk hosts that I listen to) show emotion and passion for what they're discussing. Even that poor slob Alan Colmes, whose show I listened to sometimes when I was driving late in the evening and I still had XM Radio and it was still carrying Fox News Talk, got passionate about his topics.

Random NPR host from Directional State University? Not so much. It's like they're just reading off a script dictating something.

Quote from: SP Cook on September 09, 2014, 06:39:20 AM
First, as Limbaugh said "I am equal time".  No, that is not just some phrase.  The mainstream media is at the far left edge of political thought.  It, for nearly 80 years, has developed a style where it couches its commentary as flat reporting.  There are, therefore plenty of sources for left wing thought, from government subsidized PBS/NPR to the monolithic ABCNBCCBS, to your local newspaper.  AM talkers found an unserved niche.  One called, most people.

Second, Conservatism is about facts and logic.

These two things, too. Limbaugh was a counter to what you got from 6:30-7 p.m. Eastern time every night on the three broadcast networks and 24/7 on CNN, plus what you read on the editorial pages of seven out of every eight big daily newspapers. He reached out to a huge untapped audience.

Quote from: bandit957 on September 09, 2014, 12:36:14 PM
Older people are more conservative today, but in the '90s, younger people were more conservative.

Even in the 80s. Anyone remember the Kinks song "Young Conservatives?" That song seemed to treat that demographic with disdain, from the same British band that had so aptly chronicled the failure of the Carter administration in song in "A Gallon of Gas" and "Catch Me Now I'm Falling."

There's part of me that doesn't want to wade into what's turning into a political discussion, but I do want to point out this: Conservatism appeals just as much to emotion to Liberalism does - it's just different emotions. The appeals to patriotism, individualism (as in, get the government out of my hair), American Exceptionalism, the idea that we're slipping into a socialist state - those all appeal to emotions of pride, fear, self-determination. And this is reinforced by the "passion" that right-wing talk show hosts display - their quasi-theatrical delivery succeeds precisely because they are playing to the listeners' emotions.

Now, if you subscribe to the idea that public radio is tilted towards the left, then the "lack" of emotion displayed by public radio and liberal talk show hosts would suggest that their listeners don't need the same stirring of emotions to reinforce their viewpoints - that a reasoned, rational, and intellectual (some can read this as "boring" or "lacking in passion") voice gets the job done. You could also argue, if you remember the debates, that this approach helped John Kerry lose the election in 2004.

Finally, to this:

Quote
an unserved niche.  One called, most people.

The belief that this country is primarily on one side or the other is, IMO, exactly what's causing the morass we're in. The popular vote for the winner of presidential elections has gone over 60% only four times in the last century (topping out at 61.05% - and it should be noted that two of those times were for Democrats, and two for Republicans), and is not likely to do so in 2016, regardless of which side wins. If the nation as a whole all spent a little less time worrying about being right (or more precisely, about proving the other side wrong), and little more time worrying about the actual problems at hand, then perhaps we'd get somewhere.

Quote from: DTComposer on September 09, 2014, 04:16:56 PMNow, if you subscribe to the idea that public radio is tilted towards the left, then the "lack" of emotion displayed by public radio and liberal talk show hosts would suggest that their listeners don't need the same stirring of emotions to reinforce their viewpoints....

MY point (I can't speak for following comments) is not simply that they lack emotion, but that the highs and lows of emotion don't match those of human beings.  They speak a dialect of what's spoken in commercials – something that sounds pleasant in a snippet but couldn't sound sincere for longer than that.  It's the audio equivalent of looking at someone who never blinks while talking to you, or the 1997 Star Wars animation that just didn't look like it could ever be mistaken for something real.

QuoteIf the nation as a whole all spent a little less time worrying about being right (or more precisely, about proving the other side wrong), and little more time worrying about the actual problems at hand, then perhaps we'd get somewhere.

Amen to that. 

Quote from: SP Cook on September 09, 2014, 06:39:20 AM
Third, as Limbaugh's 23 Updated Undeniable Truth of the Universe says "The only way liberals win national elections is by pretending they're
not liberals".

SP, why is it that so much of the Limbaugh audience depends on the largest federal government social programs, Medicare and Social Security?

Quote from: SidS1045 on September 09, 2014, 02:02:18 PM

Quote from: SP Cook on September 09, 2014, 06:39:20 AM
There are three, interlinked ideas relative to that issue.

First, as Limbaugh said "I am equal time".  No, that is not just some phrase.  The mainstream media is at the far left edge of political thought.  It, for nearly 80 years, has developed a style where it couches its commentary as flat reporting.  There are, therefore plenty of sources for left wing thought, from government subsidized PBS/NPR to the monolithic ABCNBCCBS, to your local newspaper.  AM talkers found an unserved niche.  One called, most people.

Second, Conservatism is about facts and logic.  Liberalism (actually socialism, used correctly liberal in the 19th century context is what we now call conservatism) is about emotion.  I want everybody to have *.  Well, OK, nice but in the real world (insert here an unlimited amount of discussion as to why you cannot just give * to "everybody" ) Oh, you are mean, and greedy, and ignorant.  Everybody should have *. * now. * now. * now.  Occupy.  Boycott.  Burn.  No facts.  No logic.  No reason.  And, relative to radio, not much time filled and not much said you haven't heard before.

Third, as Limbaugh's 23 Updated Undeniable Truth of the Universe says "The only way liberals win national elections is by pretending they're
not liberals".  Look at the upcoming Senate races.  West Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Louisiana, Georgia, Kansas, Alaska, on and on.  A far-left liberal who is running as a "moderate" who wants to "work together" and blah, blah, blah.  They really cannot remember who their party's leaders are, or why they are members of such a party with which they "disagree" with so much.  The last thing they want is some AM talker talking about what they really believe.

Limbaugh is so full of himself he's become a parody of the architypal reactionary nut-case rightie.  What he once was...a humorous, self-deprecating voice of a POV previously ignored as too radical for most...was long ago subordinated to the loudmouth "blame everything on the left" true believer...in his own PR.  Conservatives can, believe it or not, be articulate, brainy advocates for their POV with a sense of humor to boot.  Limbaugh is everything but, and IMO damages the cause.  He's nothing but perpetual anger and "everything bad is Obama's/Clinton's/Gore's/Pelosi's/Reid's fault."  Sorry, but *nothing* is ever so black-and-white.

I can take everything you just posted, turn it 180 degrees, and it would be just as valid to a leftie.

And just to keep this thread on track:  Several separate studies have shown that political talk on radio (almost all of it right-wing) are a large part of what's turning off the electorate.  Shrill, perpetually angry voices calling the other side "traitors" and claiming the other side "hates America" ad nauseam don't contribute to a well-informed electorate and do nothing to stimulate intelligent debate.

Yep. I am one of these people. I hardly ever listen to talk radio, but when I do, I want intelligent radio. If I want to listen to people yelling about how much Obama sucks and omg Benghazi, I can get that from a few friends and family members on Facebook. Intelligent conversation is harder to find. I'm in graduate school, I engage in intelligent conversations in my classes. I expect intelligent conversation in real life, not a bunch of yelling.

I don't know why republicans can't catch on to this fact. My generation has much more college education than past generations. Yelling makes you sound uneducated. We will not pay attention to you if you sound uneducated. Also, stop making stupid comments pretending to be gynecologists. Only Ron Paul has that luxury because he has actually delivered babies. Also, stop nominating racists into office.

In reality, democrats and republicans are the same and most Americans are moderates. The democrats just package themselves better to younger people. I like This American Life on NPR because it covers real topics that engage me into thinking about the top issues. I feel like I could have a conversation with the hosts. I can't stand republican radio because it's a whinefest.


iPhone

Not long ago I used to catch a lot of WABC in New York, a very right-wing station.  There's not much to say about it that anyone who has listened to that kind of station doesn't already know, but what always intrigued me was the number of male sexual enhancement scams advertised on it.  I mean, didn't they get the joke all the rest of us did (i.e., audience is a bunch of sexually frustrated dudes)?

'

A few months ago I was doing radio roulette one afternoon in the NYC area on AM, and stumbled on some older loud ranting guy that sounded like the typical ultra conservative Limbaugh-like stereotype.  For whatever reason, I listened for a few minutes and was shocked to hear him spouting off a very liberal point of view.  Apparently they do exist.  I don't remember who it was and I'm too lazy right now to figure it out, so I will leave that to somebody else: Go!

Quote from: Roadrunner75 on September 10, 2014, 09:39:32 AM
A few months ago I was doing radio roulette one afternoon in the NYC area on AM, and stumbled on some older loud ranting guy that sounded like the typical ultra conservative Limbaugh-like stereotype.  For whatever reason, I listened for a few minutes and was shocked to hear him spouting off a very liberal point of view.  Apparently they do exist.  I don't remember who it was and I'm too lazy right now to figure it out, so I will leave that to somebody else: Go!

They exist.  Ever hear Chris Matthews?

As far as I'm concerned, almost all talk radio (right wing, NPR, even ESPN) is crap.  Even talk TV is crap (The View, etc).

Quote from: Brandon on September 10, 2014, 10:02:53 AM

Quote from: Roadrunner75 on September 10, 2014, 09:39:32 AM
A few months ago I was doing radio roulette one afternoon in the NYC area on AM, and stumbled on some older loud ranting guy that sounded like the typical ultra conservative Limbaugh-like stereotype.  For whatever reason, I listened for a few minutes and was shocked to hear him spouting off a very liberal point of view.  Apparently they do exist.  I don't remember who it was and I'm too lazy right now to figure it out, so I will leave that to somebody else: Go!

They exist.  Ever hear Chris Matthews?

As far as I'm concerned, almost all talk radio (right wing, NPR, even ESPN) is crap.  Even talk TV is crap (The View, etc).

And liberals like that are the reason why I'm an independent.
Also, Tumblr is full of people like that, so I get to deal with people like them a lot.

And here I thought the fun of Amplitude Modulation was being able to pick up, say, a station from Denver crystal clear in northern Wisconsin (or WGN through out the majority of the Upper Midwest even during the day).

Quote from: Pete from Boston on September 08, 2014, 10:48:02 PM
Left-wing current-affairs talk radio fills a lot of NPR (not every station, but weekdays on the big ones).  The content, for me, eventually gets drowned out by the weird, inhuman cadence and tone and feel of the hosts.  They are not of this earth! 

Some people are really into Autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR) (http://mentalfloss.com/article/53220/listening-soft-voices-can-cause-brain-orgasms), and NPR can be their fix. Seriously.

Most of MSNBC's hosts are Limbaugh style loud liberals. It's weird that the liberals on radio are also not like that.

Right-wing talk radio comes across as the 11-year-old schoolyard bully who's now 60. People can't stand bullies.

Quote from: Brandon on September 10, 2014, 10:02:53 AM
They exist.  Ever hear Chris Matthews?

Chris Matthews is liberal???

Quote from: bandit957 on September 10, 2014, 03:15:59 PM

Quote from: Brandon on September 10, 2014, 10:02:53 AM
They exist.  Ever hear Chris Matthews?

Chris Matthews is liberal???

To the vast majority of people in this country, yes, Chris Matthews is considered left-wing, as Rush Limbaugh would be considered right-wing.

I'd say another reason liberal talk radio hasn't done well is that liberals listen to a lot of music and they don't participate in long car rides as often as conservatives.

Quote from: bandit957 on September 10, 2014, 03:14:19 PM
Right-wing talk radio comes across as the 11-year-old schoolyard bully who's now 60. People can't stand bullies.

Limbaugh has one of the highest rated talk shows in the country so his style does work. I do not agree with it but it works.

Quote from: The Nature Boy on September 10, 2014, 08:13:10 PM

Quote from: bandit957 on September 10, 2014, 03:14:19 PM
Right-wing talk radio comes across as the 11-year-old schoolyard bully who's now 60. People can't stand bullies.

Limbaugh has one of the highest rated talk shows in the country so his style does work. I do not agree with it but it works.

The rest of them just aren't that popular though.

Quote from: bandit957 on September 10, 2014, 08:47:49 PM
The rest of them just aren't that popular though.

Hannity is second and I believe Levin is fourth. Not sure who's third; possibly Beck, to whom I don't listen.

The media is, by and large, neither right or left wing. It is apathetic. It merely publishes whatever soundbites or press releases are emitted by anyone on its radar at face value, without fact-checking what is said. Someone can be quoted and say the sky is green on TV news and at most the best that they will do is to half-ass it by including a rebuttal from someone else saying that it's blue, out of the interest of "fairness". It does no fairness to the viewer to not call a liar on their lies, but of course by taking refuge in neutrality they avoid pissing the wrong person off and lose their access to more soundbites.

Some politicians have figured this out and play the media like a fiddle. They say what they want people to think because they know no media source will dare question it before they put it on the air. They know that it's their opponents that will have to debunk them, and that debunking will not be questioned either, just put next to the original lie and presented as two equally valid opinions. And that some viewers will choose to believe them over the debunker.

The media realizes this too, but they don't care because showing the two sides fighting is an excellent spectator sport and draws ratings. People get fired up about the other side saying something they choose to disagree with and watch to hear more. And the media outlet washes their hands of it. If they get called on it, they're innocent, because they weren't the ones that lied, they just quoted Sen. Whosit (J-CM), make up your own mind and decide who's right!

Every for-profit news source does this. I have even caught NPR at it, although it seems less frequent there than other media. I am all for not endorsing a particular point of view but the media needs to do a better job at helping people to form an informed opinion by pointing out when a speaker commits a provable error of fact.

Quote from: hbelkins on September 10, 2014, 09:31:15 PMHannity is second and I believe Levin is fourth. Not sure who's third; possibly Beck, to whom I don't listen.

If it's not Beck; third might be Laura Ingraham.

Quote from: GCrites80s on September 10, 2014, 06:55:13 PM
I'd say another reason liberal talk radio hasn't done well is that liberals listen to a lot of music and they don't participate in long car rides as often as conservatives.

What about Tom Joyner?  He is definitely not conservative and is been syndicated for many years.  He may be classified as a Shock Jock, but his program deals with controversial topics and has Sharpton on it who is the most Liberal person around.  People cannot truly say that his tone is that of Howard Stern.

Quote from: on_wisconsin on September 10, 2014, 10:48:37 AM
And here I thought the fun of Amplitude Modulation was being able to pick up, say, a station from Denver crystal clear in northern Wisconsin (or WGN through out the majority of the Upper Midwest even during the day).

Yes, and wasn't there a Charlotte station who boasted that it could be heard from ME to FL at night? I believe it was WBT who made that claim.

Quote from: GCrites80s on September 10, 2014, 06:55:13 PM
I'd say another reason liberal talk radio hasn't done well is that liberals listen to a lot of music and they don't participate in long car rides as often as conservatives.

There's also audiobooks to factor in.

Quote from: vdeane on September 11, 2014, 12:53:21 PM

Quote from: GCrites80s on September 10, 2014, 06:55:13 PM
I'd say another reason liberal talk radio hasn't done well is that liberals listen to a lot of music and they don't participate in long car rides as often as conservatives.

There's also audiobooks to factor in.

That and podcasts. I listen to Welcome to Night Vale on the way to work whenever there's a new episode.

There's very little fictional programming like that on the radio these days, as far as I know; I'd be much more inclined to listen to that than news, sports, or politics if I were forced to listen to something other than music.

Quote from: Scott5114 on September 11, 2014, 04:14:26 PM

There's very little fictional programming like that on the radio these days, as far as I know; I'd be much more inclined to listen to that than news, sports, or politics if I were forced to listen to something other than music.

Speaking of fictional programming. Some of the late soap-operas like the Guilding Light beginned as radio series before is move to the television.

Also, in the 1980 GM, Ford and Chrysler offered once in their car radios, the AM stereo option but it didn't caught but what if AM stereo had caught and became "in"?

Quote from: Stephane Dumas on September 11, 2014, 04:48:45 PMAlso, in the 1980 GM, Ford and Chrysler offered once in their car radios, the AM stereo option but it didn't caught but what if AM stereo had caught and became "in"?

During the 90s & even early 2000s; at least two AM stations in Philadelphia actually advertised that they were in AM stereo; one of them being KYM 1060 (yes, the all-news station) the other another was a contemporary Christian music station (AM 990 WZZD) that existed at the time.

Quote from: PHLBOS on September 11, 2014, 05:39:26 PM
During the 90s & even early 2000s; two AM stations in Philadelphia actually advertised that they were in AM stereo; one of them being KYM 1060 (yes, the all-news station) the other was a contemporary Christian music station (AM 990 WZZD) that existed at the time.

I remember KYW advertising that they were in AM Stereo.  Not that anyone had an AM stereo receiver to find out what it sounded like, but I could never see the point of a news station offering that.  Do they pan the announcers around - traffic to the left of me, sports to the right, here I am - stuck in the middle with news.

WPEN broadcast in AM-Stereo for quite a while.  Also, 1210 was in stereo, at least for Sid Mark's programmes.  I had a Ford and the stereo indicator came on for both AM and FM bands.

One other thing that sucks about AM is the fact power lines distort the transmission.  The same for overpasses as you drive on the highway.  Every bridge you pass beneath you hear static for the time you are under it. 

Also if you have power lines that are above the street you drive forget about getting a clear broadcast as the static alone will be with you the entire way.  FM has no distortions under these conditions.

And if there's lightning anywhere between you and the station, including heat lightning, there's interference. So if I'm listening to a Reds game on WLW out of Cincinnati one little zap in Xenia and I hear it.

A bit off-topic but I spotted that article on Jalopnik where half of the radio stations (including FM stations) will disseapear by 2024.
http://jalopnik.com/expert-predicts-half-of-all-radio-stations-to-disappea-1652034874

why do I get the idea that the last station playing will be hosting Rush Limbaugh?

Another thing to consider.... since many stations are streaming their audio, what I have been doing is recording the audio stream for playback. The local classical radio station has six programs that I listen to: "Cinema Saturday", "Connections", "Thistle and Shamrock", "Song Travels", "Metropolitan Opera", and "At The Opera". Part of the reason is that I'm asleep during the day when these programs are on. But, once the MP3 files are created, I've used Audacity to trim the beginning and ending out, remove the one minute station plugs in the middle, then save it for playback through my Android phone where I can then listen to the programs either through the Bluetooth connection on my phone or Bluetooth headset at work. I also listen to plenty of audiobooks.

It was unheard of in 2006 (when I purchased my last car) to play audio from your cell phone to your car. People were more concerned about whether the car had a CD player. The introduction of the iPhone in 2007 changed that, and now, it is rare for a recent model car NOT to have at least an aux audio input, and, if you are playing a little more, Bluetooth integration. In fact, one of the requirements when I was purchasing a car this year was that it had to have Bluetooth.

I think people got sick and tired of yammering radio personalities and loads of commercials when all they want to do is listen to music or actual content.

I was able to pick up WLW 700 on I-39 in IL

Quote from: ZLoth on October 29, 2014, 06:17:08 PM
It was unheard of in 2006 (when I purchased my last car) to play audio from your cell phone to your car. People were more concerned about whether the car had a CD player. The introduction of the iPhone in 2007 changed that, and now, it is rare for a recent model car NOT to have at least an aux audio input, and, if you are playing a little more, Bluetooth integration. In fact, one of the requirements when I was purchasing a car this year was that it had to have Bluetooth.

Did people not think to use their iPods the same way?

Quote
I think people got sick and tired of yammering radio personalities and loads of commercials when all they want to do is listen to music or actual content.

I use radio whenever I'm within the I-90/Thruway corridor where I have the stations mapped (I have four; 100.5 for exits 48A to 40, 100.3 for exits 40 to 32, 96.9 for exits 32 to 28, and 92.3 for exits 28 to 20 (also on the Northway up to exit 26 or I-88 to exit 21; I don't have the eastern boundary mapped yet, but it's probably near MassPike exit 2)).  Outside of that I use my ancient iPod nano (3rd generation; the fat one with video).

Quote from: vdeane on October 30, 2014, 01:17:33 PM

Quote from: ZLoth on October 29, 2014, 06:17:08 PM
It was unheard of in 2006 (when I purchased my last car) to play audio from your cell phone to your car. People were more concerned about whether the car had a CD player. The introduction of the iPhone in 2007 changed that, and now, it is rare for a recent model car NOT to have at least an aux audio input, and, if you are playing a little more, Bluetooth integration. In fact, one of the requirements when I was purchasing a car this year was that it had to have Bluetooth.

Did people not think to use their iPods the same way?

People used those little radio adapters or used cassette adapters if their car came with a tape deck (like many 2002 models still did).

People have been saying radio is dead for a long time. Most radio stations suck. Same songs over and over. A wacky, crazy morning show where they just break all the rules. And the same thing in every city. I think if radio becomes less profitable we will see some innovation . The station that. Is actually different can now be heard world wide via internet. It will change and we may be surprised where it goes

Quote from: GCrites80s on October 31, 2014, 10:42:12 AM

Quote from: vdeane on October 30, 2014, 01:17:33 PM

Quote from: ZLoth on October 29, 2014, 06:17:08 PM
It was unheard of in 2006 (when I purchased my last car) to play audio from your cell phone to your car. People were more concerned about whether the car had a CD player. The introduction of the iPhone in 2007 changed that, and now, it is rare for a recent model car NOT to have at least an aux audio input, and, if you are playing a little more, Bluetooth integration. In fact, one of the requirements when I was purchasing a car this year was that it had to have Bluetooth.

Did people not think to use their iPods the same way?

People used those little radio adapters or used cassette adapters if their car came with a tape deck (like many 2002 models still did).

But the aux input is SO much better!  The radio adapter has a few issues:
-Uses the flat iPod power out instead of the headphone jack, so it's quieter than the radio and quiet songs are impossible to hear
-Periodically need to change station, which can take several minutes if you don't know the area
-Doesn't work in major metro areas  (like NYC) because it requires a continuous section of spectrum where about 3 (preferably 5) stations aren't taken

For some reason, my parents didn't get a cassette adapter even though the car could have used it.  Might be because they're currently late adopters to technology (they both started getting into iPods when the iPhone came out, and we didn't get any kind of cell phones, not even flip phones, until even later), which is odd because Dad had Windows 3.11 and a car phone back in the early 90s.

Quote from: jwolfer on October 31, 2014, 01:00:21 PM
People have been saying radio is dead for a long time. Most radio stations suck. Same songs over and over. A wacky, crazy morning show where they just break all the rules. And the same thing in every city. I think if radio becomes less profitable we will see some innovation . The station that. Is actually different can now be heard world wide via internet. It will change and we may be surprised where it goes

"The same thing in every city"?  I have yet to find a 90s to now station other than Rochester's 100.5.  If there are others, they're not based in the parts of upstate NY I've lived in.

Internet doesn't work in the car unless you pay for a data connection.  No thank you.  And I'll be listening to the Fly Morning Rush for as long as I can - it's even one of the reasons I don't want to move out of Albany!

Quote from: jwolfer on October 31, 2014, 01:00:21 PM
People have been saying radio is dead for a long time. Most radio stations suck. Same songs over and over. A wacky, crazy morning show where they just break all the rules. And the same thing in every city. I think if radio becomes less profitable we will see some innovation . The station that. Is actually different can now be heard world wide via internet. It will change and we may be surprised where it goes

That innovation exists today.  Individuals (no NPR, no corporate owner, no college) put in over a million dollars a year voluntarily and make this amazing, amazing thing happen:

www.wfmu.org

Quote from: Pete from Boston on October 31, 2014, 01:20:57 PM

Quote from: jwolfer on October 31, 2014, 01:00:21 PM
People have been saying radio is dead for a long time. Most radio stations suck. Same songs over and over. A wacky, crazy morning show where they just break all the rules. And the same thing in every city. I think if radio becomes less profitable we will see some innovation . The station that. Is actually different can now be heard world wide via internet. It will change and we may be surprised where it goes

That innovation exists today.  Individuals (no NPR, no corporate owner, no college) put in over a million dollars a year voluntarily and make this amazing, amazing thing happen:

www.wfmu.org

I went to Upsala College in East Orange NJ 1988-1990. It was the college radio station there broadcasting from the basement of the dorms. The college closed in 1995 but the radio station is still going

Quote from: vdeane on October 31, 2014, 01:15:38 PMBut the aux input is SO much better!  The radio adapter has a few issues:
-Uses the flat iPod power out instead of the headphone jack, so it's quieter than the radio and quiet songs are impossible to hear
-Periodically need to change station, which can take several minutes if you don't know the area
-Doesn't work in major metro areas  (like NYC) because it requires a lcontinuous section of spectrum where about 3 (preferably 5) stations aren't taken

Works in NYC.  I use it there a lot.  Changing stations infrequently is about as much trouble as shifting your ass when it falls asleep.  And I hear quiet songs in a noisy vehicle.

You're right that a jack is better, but they didn't have jacks standard back in the dark ages when they made my truck.  The adapter is minimal trouble.

QuoteInternet doesn't work in the car unless you pay for a data connection.  No thank you.  And I'll be listening to the Fly Morning Rush for as long as I can - it's even one of the reasons I don't want to move out of Albany!

Paying for mobile data is becoming the rule, not the exception.  It's what home internet was ~twenty years ago.  Services are going to increasingly be tailored with that fact in mind. 

Quote from: jwolfer on October 31, 2014, 01:28:38 PM

Quote from: Pete from Boston on October 31, 2014, 01:20:57 PM

Quote from: jwolfer on October 31, 2014, 01:00:21 PM
People have been saying radio is dead for a long time. Most radio stations suck. Same songs over and over. A wacky, crazy morning show where they just break all the rules. And the same thing in every city. I think if radio becomes less profitable we will see some innovation . The station that. Is actually different can now be heard world wide via internet. It will change and we may be surprised where it goes

That innovation exists today.  Individuals (no NPR, no corporate owner, no college) put in over a million dollars a year voluntarily and make this amazing, amazing thing happen:

www.wfmu.org

I went to Upsala College in East Orange NJ 1988-1990. It was the college radio station there broadcasting from the basement of the dorms. The college closed in 1995 but the radio station is still going

In the late 1990s, WFMU raised money, bought their license from the bankrupt Upsala, and bought a building in downtown Jersey City before the neighborhood blew up. 

If one not-for-profit independent station can do a good enough job to get the listener support to do all this, than others can, too. 

Quote from: Pete from Boston on October 31, 2014, 01:32:42 PM

Quote from: vdeane on October 31, 2014, 01:15:38 PMBut the aux input is SO much better!  The radio adapter has a few issues:
-Uses the flat iPod power out instead of the headphone jack, so it's quieter than the radio and quiet songs are impossible to hear
-Periodically need to change station, which can take several minutes if you don't know the area
-Doesn't work in major metro areas  (like NYC) because it requires a lcontinuous section of spectrum where about 3 (preferably 5) stations aren't taken

Works in NYC.  I use it there a lot.  Changing stations infrequently is about as much trouble as shifting your ass when it falls asleep.  And I hear quiet songs in a noisy vehicle.

You're right that a jack is better, but they didn't have jacks standard back in the dark ages when they made my truck.  The adapter is minimal trouble.

QuoteInternet doesn't work in the car unless you pay for a data connection.  No thank you.  And I'll be listening to the Fly Morning Rush for as long as I can - it's even one of the reasons I don't want to move out of Albany!

Paying for mobile data is becoming the rule, not the exception.  It's what home internet was ~twenty years ago.  Services are going to increasingly be tailored with that fact in mind. 

Well, my iTrip never worked in NYC.  I couldn't find a station that wasn't overwhelmed by static.  There were many songs where I had to turn the radio volume to the max just to hear them - one even has a beginning so low that the iTrip's automatic shutoff would engage!

Changing stations was always a hassle. First you pause the iPod, move the radio to a different station, move the iTrip to that same station, and resume the iPod, all before the automatic shutoff engaged (if it did, the iTrip would need to be unplugged to reset it).  And that's if you knew of an open station.  If you didn't, it was just guesswork and trial and error (my iTrip didn't have the ability to scan for a free station, and its turner didn't go low or high enough to get to the stations that aren't commonly used).

Isn't mobile data finite?  Why would I want to chew up limited, expensive data for a smartphone I neither own nor am willing to pay for?  My "landline" internet (Verizon FiOS) is expensive enough.  Granted, Verizon is now making it cheaper to have a data plan than not have one for individual plans (which makes NO sense, but whatever), but that's why I pay my parents to keep my phone on their plan rather than get my own.

Seriously, it REALLY frustrates me that those of us who aren't jumping on the smartphone/tablet bandwagon are increasingly being left out in the cold.  Just yesterday I read an article that NYC is considering a system that would allow people to pay for the exact amount of parking that they use rather than overpay or risk a ticket - but only for smartphone users (never mind that credit cards COULD do the same thing).

Quote from: vdeane on October 31, 2014, 02:16:03 PM

Quote from: Pete from Boston on October 31, 2014, 01:32:42 PM

Quote from: vdeane on October 31, 2014, 01:15:38 PMBut the aux input is SO much better!  The radio adapter has a few issues:
-Uses the flat iPod power out instead of the headphone jack, so it's quieter than the radio and quiet songs are impossible to hear
-Periodically need to change station, which can take several minutes if you don't know the area
-Doesn't work in major metro areas  (like NYC) because it requires a lcontinuous section of spectrum where about 3 (preferably 5) stations aren't taken

Works in NYC.  I use it there a lot.  Changing stations infrequently is about as much trouble as shifting your ass when it falls asleep.  And I hear quiet songs in a noisy vehicle.

You're right that a jack is better, but they didn't have jacks standard back in the dark ages when they made my truck.  The adapter is minimal trouble.

QuoteInternet doesn't work in the car unless you pay for a data connection.  No thank you.  And I'll be listening to the Fly Morning Rush for as long as I can - it's even one of the reasons I don't want to move out of Albany!

Paying for mobile data is becoming the rule, not the exception.  It's what home internet was ~twenty years ago.  Services are going to increasingly be tailored with that fact in mind. 

Well, my iTrip never worked in NYC.  I couldn't find a station that wasn't overwhelmed by static.  There were many songs where I had to turn the radio volume to the max just to hear them - one even has a beginning so low that the iTrip's automatic shutoff would engage!

Changing stations was always a hassle. First you pause the iPod, move the radio to a different station, move the iTrip to that same station, and resume the iPod, all before the automatic shutoff engaged (if it did, the iTrip would need to be unplugged to reset it).  And that's if you knew of an open station.  If you didn't, it was just guesswork and trial and error (my iTrip didn't have the ability to scan for a free station, and its turner didn't go low or high enough to get to the stations that aren't commonly used).

Isn't mobile data finite?  Why would I want to chew up limited, expensive data for a smartphone I neither own nor am willing to pay for?  My "landline" internet (Verizon FiOS) is expensive enough.  Granted, Verizon is now making it cheaper to have a data plan than not have one for individual plans (which makes NO sense, but whatever), but that's why I pay my parents to keep my phone on their plan rather than get my own.

Seriously, it REALLY frustrates me that those of us who aren't jumping on the smartphone/tablet bandwagon are increasingly being left out in the cold.  Just yesterday I read an article that NYC is considering a system that would allow people to pay for the exact amount of parking that they use rather than overpay or risk a ticket - but only for smartphone users (never mind that credit cards COULD do the same thing).

I have a Griffin transmitter.  When the connection gets bad, I adjust the transmitter and the tuner by one, and 7 out of 10 times, I would say, that does it.  9.5/10 times a second change will do it if that doesn't.  I don't even need to look at the transmitter.  No pause necessary.

As for that "bandwagon," get used to it.  You're fighting a losing fight, and are only going to get more annoyed and more left out in the cold.  Never mind parking fines–I hope you don't need a cab quickly late at night, because smartphone users will soon have first dibs in every major city.  This is what the market wants.

~15 years ago there was a sizable portion of people who were steadfastly anti-cell-phone, chiding friends who gave in and bought one, and declaring things like "I don't see why you need to pay to be reachable all the time."  Most of them now have cell phones.  In your smartphone opposition I hear it all over again, with only the name of the item changed.

If it weren't for sports talk, I wouldn't really listen to AM radio. Even that medium is moving gradually towards FM. The ESPN station in Jackson is on FM.

I can't stand using FM transmitters.  In my last car (which is now my wife's) there was no aux input jack, and I used the FM transmitter option on my portable Sirius radio.  I had to constantly change the station in my travels.  My current car has the jack, and I've since primarily moved over to the Ipod, which is much better.  The stock radio in my wife's car otherwise works fine, so I keep thinking that one of these days I will rig up an aux input via the unused CD changer port in the back if possible, so she can use an MP3 player/Sirius too.

As for radio, I once actually received a survey from Arbitron a couple of years ago.  Until then I thought Nielsen and Arbitron were phantom rating systems that everyone hears about but no one ever actually gets or even hears about anyone getting surveyed.  I finally had my chance to weigh in on AM/FM.  But, as usual, it ended up in a huge stack of other things on my desk that I need to take care of or respond to, which get ignored until they eventually become moot and dumped into the recycle bin.  So I guess when radio finally disappears it will be partly my fault.

Clearly none of y'all knew about using 87.7 and 87.9 on your FM transmitters. Because both of my cars were/are from the early '00s, they had/have a CD player and did not have a cassette player or aux port, so I've had to use an FM transmitter. I currently use the 2009 version of the iTrip in "international mode" and it works well in rural areas, and used to work well in urban areas. However, now that the FCC has allowed  stations on those bands (and all of the low power "inbetween" bands), it won't work in any city that does. I can't use it in Philly or DC, but fortunately (for now) I can still use it in most of Baltimore. I can't use it when I am close to TV Hill or Hopkins hospital due to antenna interference, but otherwise it works.

ETA: amusingly, I would have gotten a different radio for my car, but since the GM factory radio has great AM capabilities, I refuse to do so.

iPhone

Again, I'm speaking from my own experience. Your mileage will vary. And, yes, I will repeat some points from a previous post.  :biggrin:

The ideal connection between your portable audio device (cell phone, iPod, MP3 player) and your car audio system is either Bluetooth (wireless) or a direct wired input (AUX). The problem is that, up until a few years ago, an AUX input and/or a Bluetooth connection was not available for cars. I know that my 2005 Chevy Malibu did not have that connection, but my 2013 Buick Verano does. In checking the car listings through Hertz Car Sales, practically all of the cars (2012-2013) had an Aux input, while the upper level ones had Bluetooth.

However, if you are driving an older vehicle, more than likely, you don't have a Aux input in your radio. The cheapest solution is to purchase a FM transmitter which can cost between $10-$30. The problem is that these units are very low power (cannot transmit more than 200 feet away), and you have to find an empty frequency. Part of the problem is that it can also be picked up by neighboring cars. As an example, I was listening to a not-so-strong station that was playing Christmas music when a car pulls up next to me, and I am listening to that person playing back their voice mail messages.  :-o

The solution, obviously, is that you want to have some sort of direct connection to the radio. The problem with the Malibu is that the radio is also part of the driver information display, so a radio swap is out of the question. For some car radios, like my friend's 2006 Toyota Camry, there are some aftermarket solutions (http://markholtz.info/tj) that will allow you to hook up directly to the radio. For my Chevy Malibu, no such option exists. :(

So, the next plan was to install a FM Modulator. An FM modulator hooks directly to the Antenna input of your radio and then you hook up an external antenna. One of the motivating factors was that the installation of the FM modulator was only $100 for me compared to repairing the CD player at over $300. Be sure to get a FM modulator that, when activated, disconnects the external antenna. The one that I had installed didn't have that capability, so in some areas, a strong local broadcaster jammed my FM modulator. On the other hand, it was a good solution for the circumstances.

Of course, now they have Mini Bluetooth speakers on sale that are around the size of a coke can that you can stick into a cup holder in your car. :)

Quote from: ZLoth on November 01, 2014, 06:33:24 AM
For some car radios, like my friend's 2006 Toyota Camry, there are some aftermarket solutions (http://markholtz.info/tj) that will allow you to hook up directly to the radio.

This is pretty much the plan I have for my wife's car ('05 Camry) - aux input via the unused CD changer port.

Quote from: jwolfer on October 31, 2014, 01:00:21 PM
People have been saying radio is dead for a long time. Most radio stations suck. Same songs over and over. A wacky, crazy morning show where they just break all the rules. And the same thing in every city. I think if radio becomes less profitable we will see some innovation . The station that. Is actually different can now be heard world wide via internet. It will change and we may be surprised where it goes

This reminds me that I haven't heard "You Shook Me All Night Long" today. Luckily there is a radio nearby.

Quote from: Pete from Boston on October 31, 2014, 02:54:24 PM
I have a Griffin transmitter.  When the connection gets bad, I adjust the transmitter and the tuner by one, and 7 out of 10 times, I would say, that does it.  9.5/10 times a second change will do it if that doesn't.  I don't even need to look at the transmitter.  No pause necessary.

I didn't like the gap in the music that would be caused by changing stations.  Hence the pause.  I also had to turn the radio volume down if I didn't want a roar of static assaulting my ears (as I had to run the volume so high with the iTrip - I swear the power audio was keyed to whatever volume the quietest song you had was at).  I would have to change by more than one often enough to annoy me - the transmitter was very weak so it was susceptible to bleed through from adjacent stations.

Quote
As for that "bandwagon," get used to it.  You're fighting a losing fight, and are only going to get more annoyed and more left out in the cold.  Never mind parking fines–I hope you don't need a cab quickly late at night, because smartphone users will soon have first dibs in every major city.  This is what the market wants.

I will never understand the tendency of humans to move like a herd and then discriminate against anyone who doesn't subscribe to their groupthink.  Quite frankly, I don't give a **** what any "market" wants.

Quote
~15 years ago there was a sizable portion of people who were steadfastly anti-cell-phone, chiding friends who gave in and bought one, and declaring things like "I don't see why you need to pay to be reachable all the time."  Most of them now have cell phones.  In your smartphone opposition I hear it all over again, with only the name of the item changed.

I don't have a smartphone for simple economic reasons.  I already spend $55/month for FiOS (will be over $80/month once my two year discount expires in May 2016).  Why should I spend the same amount just to get a puny monthly allocation of data on a slower connection to be used by a device that is much less convienen to use than my computers?  Give me a mouse and tabbed browsing (seriously, I have 13 tabs open right now, and that's nothing compared to just a few minutes ago; no idea how I'd browse AA Roads or Facebook without them) to a tiny touch screen any day of the week.  While the idea of a smartphone is kinda cool, I can't justify the cost.  Quite frankly, I can't afford it, especially since I spend almost all my time either at home (where I can use computers with my FiOS), at work (where I'm pretty sure people aren't supposed to be on their smartphones), or driving.  It doesn't fit into my life.

And that's fine.  What's not fine is society deciding that I don't need to be fully participating in it because of that.  Or deciding that it should dumb down the desktop computer interfaces to be more phone like.

Honestly, I would have gotten a smartphone years ago if the phone companies would let you use it with wifi only rather than force you to pay an arm and a leg for a data plan.*

*OK, so Ting does allow just that, but even with them I'd be paying more than twice as much (estimated) than what I currently pay Mom to keep me on the family plan.  Plus they're a Sprint reseller, so the network coverage is more limited.

Quote from: Laura on November 01, 2014, 04:24:20 AM
Clearly none of y'all knew about using 87.7 and 87.9 on your FM transmitters.

I used 87.9 for a while, but even that didn't work in NYC do to adjacent station bleedthrough.  My iTrip didn't go to 87.7.

Quote from: vdeane on November 01, 2014, 11:54:27 PM

Quote
~15 years ago there was a sizable portion of people who were steadfastly anti-cell-phone, chiding friends who gave in and bought one, and declaring things like "I don't see why you need to pay to be reachable all the time."  Most of them now have cell phones.  In your smartphone opposition I hear it all over again, with only the name of the item changed.

I don't have a smartphone for simple economic reasons.  I already spend $55/month for FiOS (will be over $80/month once my two year discount expires in May 2016).  Why should I spend the same amount just to get a puny monthly allocation of data on a slower connection to be used by a device that is much less convienen to use than my computers?  Give me a mouse and tabbed browsing (seriously, I have 13 tabs open right now, and that's nothing compared to just a few minutes ago; no idea how I'd browse AA Roads or Facebook without them) to a tiny touch screen any day of the week.  While the idea of a smartphone is kinda cool, I can't justify the cost.  Quite frankly, I can't afford it, especially since I spend almost all my time either at home (where I can use computers with my FiOS), at work (where I'm pretty sure people aren't supposed to be on their smartphones), or driving.  It doesn't fit into my life.

And that's fine.  What's not fine is society deciding that I don't need to be fully participating in it because of that.  Or deciding that it should dumb down the desktop computer interfaces to be more phone like.

Honestly, I would have gotten a smartphone years ago if the phone companies would let you use it with wifi only rather than force you to pay an arm and a leg for a data plan.*

*OK, so Ting does allow just that, but even with them I'd be paying more than twice as much (estimated) than what I currently pay Mom to keep me on the family plan.  Plus they're a Sprint reseller, so the network coverage is more limited.

And there were people saying the same thing about Internet access in general 10 years ago. I've had customers inquire about jobs at my workplace and then squawk whenever I tell them that it's all done online. Sorry, dude, that's how job applications are done in 2014. Fight the power all you want, but you're the one who chose not to get the Internet, now you suffer the consequences of that decision.

I definitely agree with you that touchscreens are of the Devil, but a smartphone is used as a supplement, not a replacement, for your computer. Any serious work I do on my desktop, same as I always have. The phone comes out when I'm on a break at work and I want to dash off a quick response to an email or catch up on AARoads with Tapatalk. (Usually when I'm on mobile and I come across something more involved I want to do, particularly moderation tasks, I will make a mental note and then go back and do it on the desktop when I'm at home.) A smartphone is just a way to access the Internet for a few moments when you are away from the desktop. It is cramped and stripped-down but it is better than not having it at all. Plus, you find yourself using it in novel ways (the camera flash can double as a flashlight, most people don't bother with watches anymore since their phone's lock screen displays a clock, etc.)

They do–or did at one time–make a "data-plan-free smartphone". It's the iPod Touch. It's, as far as I know, exactly like an iPhone, except it has no phone feature and uses wifi only. Most tablets run a smartphone OS too, and also run on wifi only, though many people would find them too cumbersome to take out of the house.

Quote from: Scott5114 on November 02, 2014, 04:01:04 AM
And there were people saying the same thing about Internet access in general 10 years ago. I've had customers inquire about jobs at my workplace and then squawk whenever I tell them that it's all done online. Sorry, dude, that's how job applications are done in 2014. Fight the power all you want, but you're the one who chose not to get the Internet, now you suffer the consequences of that decision.

At least one can go to the library to use the internet if they don't have it.

Quote from: agentsteel53 on October 29, 2014, 04:43:08 PM
why do I get the idea that the last station playing will be hosting Rush Limbaugh?

Quote from: Fox News Alert, November 2, 2034
Rush Limbaugh dies during the final radio broadcast

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The final radio broadcast ever took place last night, with exactly three people, all over the age of 100, listening. The final broadcast was a Rush Limbaugh Show episode, in which Limbaugh blamed the pain in his chest on President Chelsea Clinton. As the show continued, Limbaugh struggled more and more to keep up his argument, until about 10 minutes before the scheduled end of the episode, when the broadcast went silent. Rush Limbaugh had died of a heart attack at age 83. The final remaining radio network has reacted to his death by shutting down its broadcasts, as Limbaugh's show was the only remaining radio show on the network. Advertisers on the network reacted with apathy, as they noted that Facebook still exists and remains popular with the centenarian demographic. Upon Limbaugh's request, his remains will be cremated, mixed with dog feces, and burned in a paper bag on the steps of the White House.

Quote from: vdeane on November 01, 2014, 11:54:27 PM
I don't have a smartphone for simple economic reasons.  I already spend $55/month for FiOS (will be over $80/month once my two year discount expires in May 2016).  Why should I spend the same amount just to get a puny monthly allocation of data on a slower connection to be used by a device that is much less convienen to use than my computers?  Give me a mouse and tabbed browsing (seriously, I have 13 tabs open right now, and that's nothing compared to just a few minutes ago; no idea how I'd browse AA Roads or Facebook without them) to a tiny touch screen any day of the week.  While the idea of a smartphone is kinda cool, I can't justify the cost.  Quite frankly, I can't afford it, especially since I spend almost all my time either at home (where I can use computers with my FiOS), at work (where I'm pretty sure people aren't supposed to be on their smartphones), or driving.  It doesn't fit into my life.

And that's fine.  What's not fine is society deciding that I don't need to be fully participating in it because of that.  Or deciding that it should dumb down the desktop computer interfaces to be more phone like.

Honestly, I would have gotten a smartphone years ago if the phone companies would let you use it with wifi only rather than force you to pay an arm and a leg for a data plan.*

*OK, so Ting does allow just that, but even with them I'd be paying more than twice as much (estimated) than what I currently pay Mom to keep me on the family plan.  Plus they're a Sprint reseller, so the network coverage is more limited.

If you don't mind me asking, how much is your current cell phone bill? I pay $45 with Verizon prepay for unlimited talk/text, plus 500 MB of data. This is usually enough for me because most of the time I'm able to use wifi. Occasionally I will pay $5 for another 500 MB. I do still use an iPhone 4 (I could upgrade, but haven't) so I don't have to pay for that.

Quote from: Laura on November 01, 2014, 04:24:20 AM
Clearly none of y'all knew about using 87.7 and 87.9 on your FM transmitters.

Quote from: vdeane on November 01, 2014, 11:54:27 PM
I used 87.9 for a while, but even that didn't work in NYC do to adjacent station bleedthrough.  My iTrip didn't go to 87.7.

Yeah, cities and FM transmitters are not friends.

Quote from: Laura on November 02, 2014, 11:15:51 PM
If you don't mind me asking, how much is your current cell phone bill? I pay $45 with Verizon prepay for unlimited talk/text, plus 500 MB of data. This is usually enough for me because most of the time I'm able to use wifi. Occasionally I will pay $5 for another 500 MB. I do still use an iPhone 4 (I could upgrade, but haven't) so I don't have to pay for that.

I currently pay $14 to Mom every month to stay on the family plan (unlimited Verizon to Verizon talk/text, don't recall the number of minutes/texts for out of network); the $14 is the charge Verizon has for the additional line in the plan.  I don't recall what it would be to split off on its own, but it would be more than $45 (hence the paradox in that it's cheaper to get a data plan than a non-data plan).  That $45 plan is likely what I'd use if/when I eventually split the phone off.

Mine is $35/month for unlimited talk/text (I could get data for $5 more, but I just use wifi). I've been screwed by Verizon before, and there's no way I'd go back.

The only AM I listen to would be KYW 1060 and WPHT 1210 on sunday for Sunday With Sinatra & Sid Mark

Quote from: vdeane on November 03, 2014, 01:01:48 PM

Quote from: Laura on November 02, 2014, 11:15:51 PM
If you don't mind me asking, how much is your current cell phone bill? I pay $45 with Verizon prepay for unlimited talk/text, plus 500 MB of data. This is usually enough for me because most of the time I'm able to use wifi. Occasionally I will pay $5 for another 500 MB. I do still use an iPhone 4 (I could upgrade, but haven't) so I don't have to pay for that.

I currently pay $14 to Mom every month to stay on the family plan (unlimited Verizon to Verizon talk/text, don't recall the number of minutes/texts for out of network); the $14 is the charge Verizon has for the additional line in the plan.  I don't recall what it would be to split off on its own, but it would be more than $45 (hence the paradox in that it's cheaper to get a data plan than a non-data plan).  That $45 plan is likely what I'd use if/when I eventually split the phone off.

Wow, $14? That's awesome. I can see why you've stayed with a non-smartphone.


iPhone

Even $45 +$5/500MB seems oddly cheap.  I am still on an old unlimited plan, but even with several gigs per month of use it costs a little more than what it would under those terms. 

Quote from: Pete from Boston on November 04, 2014, 04:42:49 PM
Even $45 +$5/500MB seems oddly cheap.  I am still on an old unlimited plan, but even with several gigs per month of use it costs a little more than what it would under those terms.

Republic wireless.. $40 month unlimited. It routes everything including calls via WiFi when available. When no WiFi they use sprint network. It works well for the most part. Hand off from wireless to cell will drop calls sometimes.  You can opt for a WiFi only plan for $5/month I think.. Good for kids.. But no stores. Not much choice of phone moto x and no subsided phone. You have to buy phone

Well there's slim hope for AM radio between 2-6pm in Chicago. Steve Dahl on WLS-890AM

In Cincinnati there is still a decent amount of AM radio stations.

I know of one in Toronto. It always displayed traffic and weather on the 1's and was very vital in detouring around Toronto traffic jams. AM 680.

Quote from: iBallasticwolf2 on May 21, 2015, 09:57:43 PM
In Cincinnati there is still a decent amount of AM radio stations.

The only one that anyone actually still listens to is WLW.

I think the last time I genuinely liked anything on Cincinnati AM radio was Carmine Guzman's call-in talk show. That was 20 years ago.

Quote from: bandit957 on May 22, 2015, 10:51:04 AM

Quote from: iBallasticwolf2 on May 21, 2015, 09:57:43 PM
In Cincinnati there is still a decent amount of AM radio stations.

The only one that anyone actually still listens to is WLW.

I think the last time I genuinely liked anything on Cincinnati AM radio was Carmine Guzman's call-in talk show. That was 20 years ago.

Yea WLW is the strongest station anyway

I'd say 55KRC gets a substantial listenership in the Cincinnati area, given the programming it carries.

Quote from: hbelkins on May 22, 2015, 04:49:35 PM
I'd say 55KRC gets a substantial listenership in the Cincinnati area, given the programming it carries.

The garbage WKRC carries was popular in 1993 - not today.

AM radio was once the mainstay of the airwaves, before FM became more popular and the advent of satellite or digital radio.

In my area, I can name the 3 oldest running radio stations: KXO 1230/107.5 (began in 1927) in El Centro Ca.-Yuma Az.-Mexicali Mexico area, KTIE (formerly KFXM) 590 in San Bernardino-Riverside Ca. (began in the 1920s) and KNWZ 970 (formerly KCHV and KCLB-began in 1946) also found on 93.7 in Palm Springs-Indio Ca.

KFXM sound bits I was able to find on youtube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzZ6oBRJc1Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uk4x1OiGE5A

Heh.  We've got WGY here.  Officially dates back to 1922, but GE was tinkering around with it all the way back to 1915, I believe.

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-cbs-announces-cbs-radio-sale-20160315-story.html

Yes CBS planning to end its radio division. The reason is because CBS is going after younger audiences through video on demand apps and other CBS digital entities.

CBS sees radio as an albatross and KNX 1070, WCBS 880, WINS 1010, WBBM 780, and KCBS 740/106.9 are all mentioned on the list that CBS wants to get rid of.

http://www.bizjournals.com/chicago/news/2016/03/16/cbs-radio-sale-news-sends-shockwaves-through-its.html


Here's the reaction from Chicago about CBS Radio on the chopping block.

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/uniontrib/20060207/news_1b7disney.html

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-abc-news-radio-cumulus-20140807-story.html

Back in 2006 Disney sold ABC radio affiliates to Citadel radio (Now Known as Cumulus Broadcasting as of 2016)

http://www.slacker.com/station/abc-news
Disney saw the writing on the wall about AM radio as far back as 2006. And yes its to please younger audiences on digital as press releases say.

2014 Disney later sold Radio Disney and ended the OTA edition. Also Cumulus lost their contract in 2015 to run ABC Radio News.  Disney moved ABC Radio to slacker radio apps. AM radio does not have relevance in 2016 its the app and podcast age.

Just bring back CLU-132 already.

KDES of Palm Springs in the 1970s back when the station was either on 920 or 1010, and its FM dial 104.7 (moved to 98.5).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wR27Wu12XRU

I certainly agree with the sentiment that radio broadcasting is obsolete as an entertainment medium, and I expect to live to see a day when it is no longer used as such.

That said, I would caution against outright dismantling all of the infrastructure involved because it serves a very important purpose that most people don't think about until they need it: emergency broadcasts.

Yes, there are other ways of getting information in an emergency. But, AM radio can cover large areas with only one transmitter, and a backup generator can keep the station on air if the power goes out. And a radio receiver can be powered for potentially years after a crisis if you have a large enough stock of alkaline batteries.

All of the more modern forms of technology we're used to using are not nearly as resilient. Cell service is normally unavailable or unreliable in many locations. A power outage will kill your wifi instantly, and can easily knock out cellular service as well, leaving you with no internet access unless you have a wired connection (assuming that hasn't also been knocked out). Meanwhile, the battery on your laptop will be dead in a few hours, and the batteries on your phone and tablet will be dead within 24-48 hours because they are designed to rely on being recharged regularly, you can't simply replace them with fresh pair of AAs when they die.

In the event of a major catastrophe (such as, say, that huge Cascadia earthquake that we know will hit at some point), the people with battery powered radios are the people who will have the longest lasting means of communication with the outside world.

That's quite resilient.  I wonder if they could survive a coronal mass ejection powerful enough to destroy the power grid.

I know that AM radio has a much wider reach than FM radio, but FM radio tends to be clearer.  And as I have always lived relatively close to bigger cities, AM and FM radio were always both at my disposal.

Are there significant parts of the country that don't have access to FM radio but do have access to AM radio?

Is there really any major loss to lose AM radio to the extent that FM radio is still available?

So this means that the Big Three will be completely out of the radio station business if CBS goes through with its fire sale. I know NBC got out of the business years ago (and all of its stations are now owned by ClearChannel iHeartMedia), and ABC did it most recently. Care to venture a guess as to where all the CBS stations will end up? Entercom, perhaps? As long as it's not iHeartMedia, then I could care less.

I'm not sure if iHeartMedia is in a position to take them.  They're currently in litigation over whether they'll be considered in default to their creditors and forced to declare bankruptcy.

Quote from: vdeane on March 20, 2016, 03:35:42 PM
That's quite resilient.  I wonder if they could survive a coronal mass ejection powerful enough to destroy the power grid.

It remains untested whether this scenario is really plausible. People point to what happened with the Carrington Event in 1859 and assume that a similar occurrence today must logically be much worse, but the flaw with this assumption is that the modern power grid has all sorts of safety features that the telegraph network in 1859 did not. Such an event would undoubtedly cause widespread power outages as these safeties trip all over the place, but if they perform as designed, there wouldn't be any widespread permanent damage.

That said, during such an event radio as well as any other form of wireless communication would likely be rendered useless by all of the extra ambient electromagnetic radiation, the static would drown out the signal. But radio stations would be able to resume broadcasting once the solar storm passed.


Besides, this is only one possible crisis scenario and it wouldn't take anything nearly this severe for radio to potentially make itself useful. Right after Sandy hit, the area of Manhattan which lost power had so many cell towers down that service was reduced to near zero. Took half an hour to send or receive a text if you were lucky.

Looked at the February book for Dallas-Fort Worth and the top 12 stations are all FM. The highest-rated AM is WBAP, followed by sports station KTCK (The Ticket), which somehow still outperforms its two FM sports talk competitors.

Quote from: Henry on March 21, 2016, 10:23:30 AM
Care to venture a guess as to where all the CBS stations will end up?

As a lifer in the broadcasting business, that's what I want to know.  Most likely the stations will not be sold as a package deal, unless they find some company with oodles of cash which isn't mortgaged to the hilt...which leaves out iHeart Media, Cumulus and a few others.

The bigger question might be:  What do they want for the properties and what can they realistically get for them, especially the all-news operations?  CBS is virtually the only player in all-news stations, and there's also a question as to whether a buyer would keep them all-news.  It's an extremely expensive format to run, has short listening cycles ("You give us 22 minutes, we'll give you the world") and requires tons of people, which are the most expensive single expense in running a radio station.

Quote from: SidS1045 on March 23, 2016, 03:57:30 PM

Quote from: Henry on March 21, 2016, 10:23:30 AM
Care to venture a guess as to where all the CBS stations will end up?

As a lifer in the broadcasting business, that's what I want to know.  Most likely the stations will not be sold as a package deal, unless they find some company with oodles of cash which isn't mortgaged to the hilt...which leaves out iHeart Media, Cumulus and a few others.

The bigger question might be:  What do they want for the properties and what can they realistically get for them, especially the all-news operations?  CBS is virtually the only player in all-news stations, and there's also a question as to whether a buyer would keep them all-news.  It's an extremely expensive format to run, has short listening cycles ("You give us 22 minutes, we'll give you the world") and requires tons of people, which are the most expensive single expense in running a radio station.

http://deadline.com/2016/03/josh-elliott-named-lead-anchor-of-cbs-news-cbsn-digital-streaming-news-service-1201712201/. So far CBS has put lots of emphasis on their all News App CBSN on the CBS News site/app as a ploy to get younger audiences to CBS Apps.

It probably wouldn't be worth it for Cumulus or iHeart to buy CBS because in a bunch of markets (like DFW) they'll have to turn around and sell off a bunch of stations. FCC rules cap the amount of stations a company can own in a single market. That rule would have to change.

In CA radio sets, there are still a few original classic AM stations: KFI-640 and KNX-1070 from L.A., KFMB-760 from San Diego, KCBS-740 from San Francisco and KFBK-1530 from Sacramento to name a few. I'm able to receive KDWN-720 Las Vegas, KFYI-550 and KTAR-620 Phoenix, KOA-850 Denver and KJR-950 Seattle. They happen to be clear-channel or 50,000 watt boosters.

Quote from: Desert Man on March 24, 2016, 10:03:36 AM
In CA radio sets, there are still a few original classic AM stations: KFI-640 and KNX-1070 from L.A., KFMB-760 from San Diego, KCBS-740 from San Francisco and KFBK-1530 from Sacramento to name a few. I'm able to receive KDWN-720 Las Vegas, KFYI-550 and KTAR-620 Phoenix, KOA-850 Denver and KJR-950 Seattle. They happen to be clear-channel or 50,000 watt boosters.

Clear channel radio stations must've been incredibly interesting pre-internet or cable TV. I've gotten WBZ 1040 out of Boston as far south as West Virginia. I couldn't imagine being a kid in West Virginia in the 60s or 70s and happening upon Boston radio.

Quote from: The Nature Boy on March 24, 2016, 05:37:59 PM
Clear channel radio stations must've been incredibly interesting pre-internet or cable TV. I've gotten WBZ 1040 out of Boston as far south as West Virginia. I couldn't imagine being a kid in West Virginia in the 60s or 70s and happening upon Boston radio.

I can, because I've gotten radio and TV stations from other parts of the country on Long Island. I've actually been known to get a radio station as far west as the Kansas City area once in one of the used family station wagons we had.

Quote from: The Nature Boy on March 24, 2016, 05:37:59 PM
Clear channel radio stations must've been incredibly interesting pre-internet or cable TV. I've gotten WBZ 1040 out of Boston as far south as West Virginia. I couldn't imagine being a kid in West Virginia in the 60s or 70s and happening upon Boston radio.

Growing up, we got two television stations (the NBC and CBS affiliates out of Lexington) on one black-and-white TV in the house. My dad listened to a lot of AM radio -- WHAS from Louisville for UK and Kentucky Colonels basketball games and WLW for Cincinnati Reds games. But we also listened to WSM out of Nashville (Grand Ole Opry) and there was also a station out of Chicago (WLS?) that we listened to on occasion.

Lots of out-of-staters who grew up in the Bluegrass State, back in the day, would drive to locations where they could pick up WHAS to listen to Kentucky basketball games.

Clear Channel stations are interesting.  WTIC 1080 in Hartford brags that it can picked up in 23 states and eastern Canada, and is a de facto long distance flagship for Red Sox broadcasts.  I can attest to the eastern Canada part, as I picked it up to as close as 10 miles from Quebec City.  I've also picked it up in Virginia and West Virginia when far enough away from WBAL's (1090) city grade signal.  I've picked up WFAN (660) clear as a bell on 128 in the Boston area, as well as near DC.  WEEI (850) in Boston has a directional signal; you can pick it up in Halifax, but not Sturbridge.  Other than WFAN, other clear channel stations I can get (mostly at night and on a digital tuning radio): are

Boston: 1030 (fuzzy day, clear night)
NYC: 660, 710, 770, 880, 1010 (day and night for all)
Albany: 810
Philly: 1060, 1210 (610 has a local station blocking it)
Baltimore: 1090
DC: 1500
Rochester: 1180
Buffalo: 1520
Hamilton, ON: 900
Montreal: 690, 730, (940 when it was active)
Pittsburgh: 1020
Cleveland: 1120
Cincinnati: 700, 1530
Pittsburgh: 1020
Detroit: 760
Charlotte: 1110
Chicago (on a good night): 780, 890, 1000
Atlanta (on a good night): 750

I've picked up KMOX out of St. Louis down in Fairfield County, but there's a little 1120 station near me that blocks it.

http://www.robertfeder.com/2014/08/14/hey-kids-radio-disney-turning-off-stations/


From the 2014 archives Disney later sold its Radio Disney affiliates to different owners. One source indicated that Radio Disney audiences were using digital platforms over AM/FM platform.  Only KDIS Los Angeles stayed with Disney.

See Disney still owns Radio stations but 3 are ESPN sports talk affiliates and KDIS.  Its ABC radio division the ABC radio network went to slacker radio apps and its former stations went to Cumulus as in KABC-AM.

Quote from: vdeane on March 20, 2016, 03:35:42 PM
That's quite resilient.  I wonder if they could survive a coronal mass ejection powerful enough to destroy the power grid.

Over the past few years, FEMA has been hardening the Primary Entry Point stations of the EAS network.  These stations are generally the primary AM stations in their regions.  As I understand it, the upgraded PEP station gear is intended to survive a Carrington-type event, but probably wouldn't survive a space-based EMP military attack.

Surviving a Carrington type event isn't actually that difficult, assuming you have enough warning and your own power-generating capability.  However, given the probable damage (but not complete destruction) to transmission infrastructure, the public probably wouldn't appreciate the distinction.  :)

Quote from: The Nature Boy on March 24, 2016, 05:37:59 PM
Clear channel radio stations must've been incredibly interesting pre-internet or cable TV. I've gotten WBZ 1040 out of Boston as far south as West Virginia. I couldn't imagine being a kid in West Virginia in the 60s or 70s and happening upon Boston radio.

The real cool stuff was on shortwave, actually.   Heck, AM DXing is still kind of fun if you have the right gear.

The main reason I don't do much roadgeek-wise these days is that I got sucked into amateur radio.   The light blue dots on this map (http://xml.hrdlog.net/map.aspx?user=N1EN) represent some of the places I've made contact with, using just 100w, mostly between 1810 and 1850 kHz (just above the AM broadcast band).

When I lived in Hawaii, I was probably the only person on the island of Kauai to have a Los Angeles radio station (KFI-640 long before they became a talk radio station) programmed on their car radio. I also used to DX the Mainland just to see how far away I could pick up a station. My best was WOAI in San Antonio.

Quote from: hm insulators on March 30, 2016, 04:53:14 PM
When I lived in Hawaii, I was probably the only person on the island of Kauai to have a Los Angeles radio station (KFI-640 long before they became a talk radio station) programmed on their car radio. I also used to DX the Mainland just to see how far away I could pick up a station. My best was WOAI in San Antonio.

Is that picking the station up loud and clear, or barely hearing something through the static?

I have picked up WCBS 880 from NYC loud and clear at night in Montreal, and clear enough to understand what everyone is saying in the eastern suburbs of Cleveland. Both cases are in the range of 300-400 miles from the source. The idea of finding a signal thousands of miles from its source is pretty damn impressive.

https://radioinsight.com/blog/headlines/105684/cumulus-making-major-changes-at-kgo-ronn-owens-to-ksfo/#comment-21959


Wow KGO-AM will have some programming changes soon. I'm not sure how Cumulus is going to convince younger audiences to listen to KGO 810 when KQED is beating them up in the ratings for San Francisco and KCBS All News.

http://ratings.radio-online.com/cgi-bin/rol.exe/arb009

Quote from: jp the roadgeek on March 26, 2016, 01:12:12 AM
Clear Channel stations are interesting.  WTIC 1080 in Hartford brags that it can picked up in 23 states and eastern Canada, and is a de facto long distance flagship for Red Sox broadcasts.  I can attest to the eastern Canada part, as I picked it up to as close as 10 miles from Quebec City.  I've also picked it up in Virginia and West Virginia when far enough away from WBAL's (1090) city grade signal.  I've picked up WFAN (660) clear as a bell on 128 in the Boston area, as well as near DC.  WEEI (850) in Boston has a directional signal; you can pick it up in Halifax, but not Sturbridge.  Other than WFAN, other clear channel stations I can get (mostly at night and on a digital tuning radio): are

Boston: 1030 (fuzzy day, clear night)
NYC: 660, 710, 770, 880, 1010 (day and night for all)
Albany: 810
Philly: 1060, 1210 (610 has a local station blocking it)
Baltimore: 1090
DC: 1500
Rochester: 1180
Buffalo: 1520
Hamilton, ON: 900
Montreal: 690, 730, (940 when it was active)
Pittsburgh: 1020
Cleveland: 1120
Cincinnati: 700, 1530
Pittsburgh: 1020
Detroit: 760
Charlotte: 1110
Chicago (on a good night): 780, 890, 1000
Atlanta (on a good night): 750

I've picked up KMOX out of St. Louis down in Fairfield County, but there's a little 1120 station near me that blocks it.

I've found the hills on 84 east and west of Hartford to be fertile ground for DXing at night.  WTOP Washington DC, CFZM Toronto, KMOX St. Louis, 3WE Cleveland (apparently now defunct).  KYW from Philly is almost a given.  KDKA Pittsburgh on occasion.

The Cape is another good place. A gazillion miles of flat salt water in every direction allows a lot of clear signals.

http://nypost.com/2016/03/31/cbs-plans-to-spin-off-radio-business-with-an-ipo/

CBS to offer its radio division its IPO.

Another idea is when a big local AM station simulcasts on an FM "sister" or with a commonly-owned station. Here in Hartford/New Britain/Middletown:

WTIC-FM 96.5 HD2 simulcasts WTIC-AM 1080
WUCS-FM 97.9 HD2 simulcasts WPOP-AM 1410
WDRC-FM 102.9 HD3 simulcasts WDRC-AM 1360 (the head of the 4-station Talk Of Connecticut group)

http://www.allaccess.com/the-letter/archive/24075/as-goes-kgo

Wow this is not just happening at KGO but this was used as an example about AM Stations in general today from Cumulus O&O's KGO, WABC 77 and KABC 790 all main talk stations for Cumulus.

I picked up KEOM-FM 88.5 out of Mesquite, TX one day here in Columbus, OH around 9AM. I've noticed over the years that between 9-10:30 AM that I have been able to pick up faraway radio and analog TV stations back in the analog TV days.

I remember a day about 12 years ago where FM stations from far away were coming in over local stations.  Here in CT, I was trying to pick up WWEI-FM in RI and instead picked up a station in Lebanon, MO.  Next thing I know, I was picking up stations in DC, Louisiana, and Florida. Lasted about 3 hours in the early evening.

Longest DX I've ever received, FM OR AM, is WLS 890/WBBM 720 Chicago on a November night near Danbury, CT. The farthest FM, however WUSL 98.9 Philly during a rainstorm last April. I've found late nights, between 3-7:45 AM, especially around sunrise, to be the best FM DX'ing time. I couldn't tell you if there is a correlation or not. It is a pattern for me, though...  :cool:

I definitely remember making a special effort to pick up 750 WSB out of Atlanta to pick up Jim Ross' Sunday night wrestling radio program in the early '90s. This was at our farm outside of town which didn't have as much interference from other radio and TV stations as where I live now. It was in and out.

Farthest AM DX I've had was in Tuscaloosa, AL - I could get WGN over the air, as well as several stations from Oklahoma.  My roommate at the time actually was a regular guest on WGN.

The best FM catches I've had were also in Tuscaloosa, when I could get 101.1 out of New Orleans instead of 101.1 out of Cullman in the middle of the afternoon; that was probably the result of ducting in the atmosphere.  I can get 99.7 WTN out of Nashville in Shelby County (KY) instead of 99.7 DJX in Louisville sometimes, even though DJX is only about 35 miles away and running at 50 KW.


iPhone

I had some FM skip from Houston the other day on the same frequency I use for my XM radio.

From here in Tuscaloosa, I've gotten KOA from Denver and as far north as Montreal.  I'm guessing I've also received some of the border blaster Mexican stations, but I don't speak Spanish, so I couldn't really ID them.

When I lived in Connecticut, I used to regularly get as far west as Des Moines and St. Louis on a boombox and on my little clock radio.  I also got some low power stations from Newfoundland, which fascinated me because of the time zone change.  I was used to hearing Central/Eastern time stuff, but never Atlantic time zone.

https://radioinsight.com/blog/blogs/105742/where-do-they-kgo-from-here/

Wow KGO-AM in a catch 22 for now. Im Not sure how Cumulus will convince the current Demographics in the Bay Area to go to 810 AM for News/Talk when they are doing OK listening to talk radio on the FM side as in NPR Affiliate KQED.

When I first moved to eastern NC from the Chicago area I used to listen to WBBM-AM 780 on a nightly basis, and it was clear as a bell. I haven't really tried in years, I may go out to the car and give it a shot one night this weekend.

Quote from: KEVIN_224 on April 02, 2016, 01:19:56 PM
Another idea is when a big local AM station simulcasts on an FM "sister" or with a commonly-owned station. Here in Hartford/New Britain/Middletown:

WTIC-FM 96.5 HD2 simulcasts WTIC-AM 1080
WUCS-FM 97.9 HD2 simulcasts WPOP-AM 1410
WDRC-FM 102.9 HD3 simulcasts WDRC-AM 1360 (the head of the 4-station Talk Of Connecticut group)

If I recall, WALK-AM (1370 AM) and WALK-FM (97.5) in Patchogue, New York used to simulcast the late Robert Kline's "Kline 'til Nine" radio show.

Quote from: Laura on November 01, 2014, 04:24:20 AM
Clearly none of y'all knew about using 87.7 and 87.9 on your FM transmitters. Because both of my cars were/are from the early '00s, they had/have a CD player and did not have a cassette player or aux port, so I've had to use an FM transmitter. I currently use the 2009 version of the iTrip in "international mode" and it works well in rural areas, and used to work well in urban areas. However, now that the FCC has allowed  stations on those bands (and all of the low power "inbetween" bands), it won't work in any city that does. I can't use it in Philly or DC, but fortunately (for now) I can still use it in most of Baltimore. I can't use it when I am close to TV Hill or Hopkins hospital due to antenna interference, but otherwise it works.

ETA: amusingly, I would have gotten a different radio for my car, but since the GM factory radio has great AM capabilities, I refuse to do so.

iPhone

My mom had an FM adapter for XM in her 2000 Ford Excursion. However, it didn't have much use on long road trips as the frequency would have to change often. Luckily, I'm from a somewhat rural area, so she was able to use the same FM frequency for all of her daily trips (usually 88.3 or 89.1)

Longest regular AM at night has to be KOA from Denver or WWL from New Orleans. However, I did receive KGOW from Houston once at around 9am (!!!).

Side note: My car radio has HD Radio (for AM) and I can usually pick up WTMJ's HD feed (at ~130 miles). Some of the Chicago HDs occasionally come in.

Quote from: ftballfan on May 18, 2016, 10:15:24 PM
Longest regular AM at night has to be KOA from Denver or WWL from New Orleans. However, I did receive KGOW from Houston once at around 9am (!!!).

Side note: My car radio has HD Radio (for AM) and I can usually pick up WTMJ's HD feed (at ~130 miles). Some of the Chicago HDs occasionally come in.

I once picked up WWL all the way out in Canon City, CO, and I've picked up WGN down near New Orleans. Haven't had much chance to DX since, though. The electronics in the Explorer are a little messed up with some bad grounding, meaning that half the time I can't even get the local AMs in KC.

Quote from: Road Hog on March 24, 2016, 01:16:58 AM
It probably wouldn't be worth it for Cumulus or iHeart to buy CBS because in a bunch of markets (like DFW) they'll have to turn around and sell off a bunch of stations. FCC rules cap the amount of stations a company can own in a single market. That rule would have to change.

iHeart is on the verge of bankruptcy. So much so that there are rumblings on whether or not they can afford to keep Rush Limbaugh after his contract expires at the end of the year. He'd have to take a huge haircut to keep him (current contract is $400 million).