AM Radio on Dashboard Advocacy Toolkit

In the March 9th issue of the VAB Voice, we covered Senator Markey’s letter questioning auto manufacturers about removing AM radio receivers from the dashboard in Electric Vehicles. We also covered auto manufacturer’s responses to him and his strong response back to them.

Shortly thereafter, Ford announced it would be removing AM receivers, not just from EVs but from all of its models made after 2023.

Both the National Alliance of State Broadcasters Associations (NASBA) and the NAB sprang into immediate action and with help from FEMA and Jacobs Media, launched an advocacy campaign to reverse this disasterous trend.

Senator Markey (D-MA), an avid AM radio listener, just introduced a bi-partisan bill in the Senate along with Senator Cruz (R-TX) called the “AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act”. If passed, every vehicle sold in the US would require AM broadcast radio (because of the Emergency Alerts it provides) as a safety feature like seat belts and emergency brakes. Rep. Balint and Senators Sanders have already signed onto the bill and Senator Welch is currently reviewing it for consideration. There was also a letter signed by over 100 members of congress that was sent to all auto-manufacturers urging them to keep AM radio on the dashboard. And NASBA just released a 50 State Resolution  in support of the AM Radio For Every Vehicle Act that was printed in Politico.

No doubt due to political pressure, Ford announced it will reverse course and make AM radio available in their 2024 vehicles, including the EVs. A minor victory, but really, passage of the AM Radio For Every Vehicle Act is what will ensure that AM broadcast radio gets put back in or remains on the dashboard of every make and model sold in the United States, which is the ulitmate goal.

The House of Representatives’ Energy and Commerce Subcommittee held a hearing titled “Listen Here: Why Americans Value AM Radio.” on Tuesday, June 6th which you can view here: https://energycommerce.house.gov. 

What can you do to help?

The NAB has created an AM Radio Toolkit with broadcast ready spots, scripts, live reads, talking points, digital banners, social media tiles and language you can use in emails and social media posts urging your listeners to take action. You can direct your listeners and/or your digital assets straight to this page https://p2a.co/ftcwn8g, which will automatically generate an email or a tweet that will go directly to Vermont’s Members of Congress.

Get everything you need at https://www.nab.org/amToolkit/default.asp

Download Broadcast Ready Spots:

Customizable Scripts to Create Your Own Spots:

If you want to customize your spots, download scripts here and add the specific ask that listeners email/text Senator Welch (don’t include Rep. Balint or Senator Sanders because they have already signed onto the bill!)  

Live Read Talking Points:

  • From the latest weather updates to vital emergency warnings, you know you can depend on (AM radio station moniker). In fact, more than 80 million Americans each month depend on AM radio to cover the high school football games, the latest weather and the news they rely on. Tell us how you depend on AM. Drop us a line at (email) or (on social media) and let us know what you love most. Tag it with #DependOnAm
  • Communities across the country depend on AM radio stations like (AM radio station moniker), whether they are in the car on the job or on the go. It is our honor to provide the news, weather and traffic reports that you depend on. We need your help – text AM to 52886 and tell Congress to keep AM radio in cars.
  • Your team at (AM radio station moniker) is proud to partner with great local causes such as (food bank, shelter, etc.) to make our community stronger and help those in need. It’s just one way we know that (town/locality) depends on AM radio. We would love to hear how you depend on AM. Drop us a line at (email) or (on social media) and let us know what you love most. Tag it with #DependOnAm
  • Whether it’s tuning into the high school football game…Monitoring the patterns of the incoming storm… Or catching your favorite talk show. These are just some of the ways listeners depend on local AM radio stations like ours. We need your help – text AM to 52886 and tell Congress to keep AM radio in cars.
  • In communities across the heartland, AM radio stations like ours are a vital connection to emergency information, weather updates, local news, sports and entertainment. We need your help – text AM to 52886 and tell Congress to keep AM radio in cars.
  • Vital rescue and recovery efforts…Religious services…Local news…Weather reports…These are just a few of the ways AM radio stations are the heart of their communities, keeping their listeners connected to the information they depend on every day. We need your help – text AM to 52886 and tell Congress to keep AM radio in cars.
  • Did you know that more than 80 million listeners depend on AM radio for the local news, community information, emergency updates, weather, cultural information and religious services? We want to hear why you depend on AM. Drop us a line at (email) or (on social media) and let us know what you love most. Tag it with #DependOnAm
  • America’s heartland depends on the free, critical weather and emergency updates, local news and entertainment that AM radio provides. (AM station moniker) is here for you and it is our honor to connect you to the information you need most. We need your help – text AM to 52886 and tell Congress to keep AM radio in cars.

Web Banner Ads

Download one of five animated Web Banners at https://www.nab.org/amToolkit/bannerAds.asp and post it on your website with a link to http://www.DependonAM.com. If you need custom sizes, email WeAreBroadcasters@nab.org

Social Media Tiles

Download one of 15 social media tiles at https://www.nab.org/amtoolkit/socialTiles.asp and use in social media posts. Include a link to DependonAM.com to share more information with your followers. If you need tiles in different sizes, contact WeAreBroadcasters@nab.org

Sample Texts to Listeners:

(AM station moniker) needs your help! Please ask your legislators to stand up for AM radio listeners. https://p2a.co/ftcwn8g

Some automakers want to take away AM radio in your car. Please act now to ask Congress to help. https://p2a.co/ftcwn8g

If you value (AM station moniker), please ask Congress to support keeping AM radio in cars. https://p2a.co/ftcwn8g

Sample Email to Listeners:

As a loyal listener of (AM station moniker), you already know what makes AM radio great. Whether it’s tuning into the high school football game, listening to your local church service, monitoring the incoming storm or catching your favorite talk show. These are just some of the ways our listeners depend on us.

And you may not know, AM radio stations make up the backbone of the emergency alert system – the tool used to keep the public safe in times of crisis.

There are more than 80 million Americans each month that depend on AM radio stations across the country. Yet despite this, certain automobile manufacturers have taken AM radio out of their electric vehicles. Some have even signaled they may remove AM from future models of all their vehicles.

We need your help.

If you could take just two minutes to send a message to your members of Congress about why AM radio is important to keep in the car, it would make an incredible difference.

We’ve made it easy. When you click here, you will be taken to a site with a pre-populated email (feel free to personalize this as you like). You can add your mailing address and this email will be sent to your representatives and senators on Capitol Hill. You can also take action by visiting DependOnAm.com or texting AM to 52866.

We don’t want AM radio listeners to be left in the dark. It’s important to send a message today to Congress asking them to advocate for AM radio with automakers.

Your help can make all the difference.

With gratitude,

(AM station representative)

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