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AM radio law opposed by tech and auto industries is close to passing | Ars Technica (arstechnica.com)

submitted 4 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

158 comments fedilink hide all child comments

A controversial bill that would require all new cars to be fitted with AM radios looks set to become a law in the near future. Yesterday, Senator Edward Markey (D-Mass) revealed that the "AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act" now has the support of 60 US Senators, as well as 246 co-sponsors in the House of Representatives, making its passage an almost sure thing. Should that happen, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration would be required to ensure that all new cars sold in the US had AM radios at no extra cost.

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[–] [email protected] 11 points 4 months ago (2 children)

AM's lack of fidelity allows it to have increased range, so it's especially important for emergency situations.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago) (2 children)

It's more the modulation type and lower frequency that allows the signal to propagate further. Hilariously, HD radio exists in the AM band in the US, digital transmissions over AM that sound crystal clear. I say hilarious because it seems like it doesn't make sense but then you have clear audio from something that can be affected by turning on a light, but simultaneously can transmit 6 states away to a little device in your hands without the aid of satellites.

Edit: Although, it really seems that rolling out a new emergency broadcast mechanism would make more sense, I suppose they're trying to ensure the least common denominator exists across all existing vehicles, since one from the 1930s to the 2020s could receive an AM transmission. Much like how aircraft still have AM radios for voice communications. Unless the AM band in the car is always listening for emergency broadcasts though, adding it is useless, as few would actively listen to it.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 4 months ago

Was about to ask if we can transmit digital signal with enough compression and error correction over AM - I guess I wasn't the first one to think of it 😂.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Do cars really need to have it though? They seem to be the only thing "targeted" to be forced into include something that can receive emergency broadcasts. Why not force homes to be outfitted with an AM radio? Everyone lives somewhere (mostly, unfortunately) but not everyone owns a car. If they really want people to have access to AM radio emergency broadcasts maybe they should supply people with portable AM radios rather than forcing car companies to include it in their cars and increasing the price of vehicles since they will require larger antennae and more wiring than just FM radio or no radio at all.