Posted by Mr. 50/50 on March 09, 2013 at 18:11:33:
In Reply to: END of AM-FM RADIOS IN GM CARS? posted by JB on March 09, 2013 at 11:48:34:
Sure I'm a radio guy, but this is a very bad idea. Many small town radio stations don't have/can't afford to stream their programming online. In a local emergency like a tornado warning AM & FM radio is [u][b]vital[/b][/u] for getting information out there immediately.
On the other hand, I have Sirius/XM Satellite radio in my car and use that for nearly 100% of my music listening, and I also hear all the Green Bay Packer games along with seeing the score/quarter with it during the NFL season. I only listen to a couple of local FM stations, but not very much.
As far as AM goes, I can get my local news fix just by going to WBEV's website anytime I want without having to wait around for their next newscast. The only AM station I listen to in my car a lot is WISN in Milwaukee for Rush and Mark Belling but I'm 50 miles away from their transmitter so even in the best conditions I get static buzzing near power lines. In the winter it's even worse with interference from at least three other 50,000 watt signals that also broadcast on 1130 KHz in Minneapolis (KTCN), Detroit (WDFN), and even as far away as Shreveport, LA (KWKH). After local sunset, WISN's signal becomes next to impossible to hear after they switch to their nighttime power (10,000 watts) and their night signal pattern which has a strong 'null' in my direction. That became much less of a problem past couple of years because of Clear Channel media's [color=#FF0000]'i heart radio'[/color] and I can now listen to Belling's talk show with absolute crystal clarity on my computer - not to mention being able to listen anytime via the 'podcast'.