Time to Let AM Radio Evolve — Why All-Digital May Be Its Only Future

The recent debate over mandating AM radio in all new cars has brought fresh attention to the AM band. Industry voices, like Gary Shapiro of the Consumer Technology Association, caution that such mandates are costly. These mandates will even stifle innovation. Instead of fighting to preserve AM in its current noisy and analog state, it’s time to consider new possibilities. What if AM didn’t have to be the scratchy, staticky, afterthought in the dashboard? What if AM sound clean, deliver metadata, and offer a compelling user experience again?

That’s not a pipe dream—it’s already possible through all-digital AM broadcasting.

The Problem with Analog AM

Let’s be honest: traditional analog AM radio has seen better days. Urban noise pollution, power line interference, and switching power supplies create challenges for AM signals. Solar panels and the rise of electric vehicles exacerbate this toxic environment. Many modern devices are simply not designed to coexist peacefully with analog AM reception.

The experience has become frustrating. Listeners must find that “sweet spot” on their dashboard to avoid buzz. News talk sounds muffled. Music is virtually unlistenable. And if you’re inside an electric vehicle? You not get AM at all—because many EV manufacturers are simply removing it.

There are good reasons for that. EVs need expensive shielding to prevent interference with analog AM signals. According to industry estimates, this shielding can cost $50–$70 per vehicle. Across millions of cars, that adds up quickly.

Automakers should not be forced to spend billions on maintaining compatibility with an outdated transmission mode. It’s time to ask a real question. Is it worth saving AM as-is, or should we finally let it evolve?

Why All-Digital AM Is a Game-Changer

All-digital AM, using the HD Radio MA3 mode, offers a compelling choice to analog. It’s not theoretical—it’s real, FCC-approved, and already on the air in places like WWFD in Frederick, Maryland.

1. Cleaner Audio, No Static

All-digital AM eliminates the most common complaint about the band: the noise. In MA3 mode, there’s no background hiss. There’s no electrical buzz. You will not experience fading in and out when you drive under a bridge. Listeners get FM-like quality—sometimes even stereo—on the AM band. It makes spoken word content easier to listen to for longer periods. It also opens the door for music formats to return to AM.

2. Data and Metadata

In the analog world, AM can’t deliver more than sound. But in digital, AM stations can send song titles, artist names, program information, even emergency alerts with rich metadata. This makes AM look and feel more modern on car dashboard displays—no more mysterious “Unknown” text on screen.

3. More Efficient Use of Power and Spectrum

All-digital AM uses its allotted spectrum more efficiently. It can focus transmitter power more directly and avoid adjacent-channel interference that often plagues analog stations. It also reduces co-channel interference at night, since digital signals don’t propagate the same way. This helps station engineers sleep a little better.

4. Future-Proofing the Band

Rather than fighting to keep analog AM alive in a digital world, we should switch to all-digital. This change would make AM compatible with the direction the entire tech landscape is heading. Many new cars already support HD Radio; the infrastructure is there. Embracing all-digital positions AM as a modern, sustainable platform—not just something we’re keeping around for nostalgia.

What We’ve Learned from WWFD and Others

WWFD became the first U.S. AM station to go full-time all-digital in 2018. Its engineers have reported solid, reliable coverage—even better than the analog signal in some directions. The listener experience is drastically improved. This improvement has allowed the station to try music formats that were once unthinkable on AM.

More importantly, listeners with HD-compatible radios don’t notice that it’s AM at all. They see a station name, a song title, and they hear clean, FM-quality sound. That’s the promise of all-digital.

If every AM station had the choice to make this switch, we will stop forcing a tired technology to coexist. This shift would align with the modern digital world. Eventually, the incentive would allow us to fully join it.

The Transition: What About Existing Radios?

The main argument against going all-digital on AM is strong. Millions of analog-only radios would no longer be capable of receiving those signals. That’s a valid concern—no one wants to alienate loyal listeners. But it’s worth noting that:

A growing number of vehicles already include HD-capable radios. Home and portable HD receivers are becoming more affordable. Stations can simulcast content on FM translators, apps, or HD subchannels to maintain access for analog listeners during the transition.

This doesn’t have to be an overnight shift. The FCC already allows voluntary conversion to all-digital on AM. Stations will roll it out gradually. They did this with FM stereo. They also did so with AM stereo, albeit less successfully, and later with HD Radio on FM.

Education and outreach will be key. Listeners need to know what’s happening, why it’s happening, and how they can keep listening. Some broadcasters choose to delay until adoption is higher. Nevertheless, they should have the choice to innovate now. They should not wait until it’s too late.

Time to Think Bigger About AM

Rather than mandating AM radio in every dashboard, the conversation should be about redefining AM radio entirely. Let’s create a regulatory and technical environment where AM stations are encouraged to innovate—not just survive.

The FCC, NAB, and broadcasters:

Offer grants or technical support for all-digital trials. Streamline paperwork for MA3 mode transitions. Partner with automakers to guarantee continued HD Radio support. Promote public awareness campaigns for HD listening. Encourage new radio hardware that supports digital AM in homes.

All-digital AM is the tool that revives local radio in underserved areas. It brings niche music back to the airwaves. It also gives emergency services a more resilient platform. But only if we give it room to grow.

A Brighter Future for AM

The AM dial doesn’t have to fade away. It doesn’t have to be a relic we drag into every new car just because we feel obligated. AM radio can evolve—just like FM did, just like television did, just like every other medium eventually has.

All-digital AM gives us a path ahead that’s clean, modern, and listener-friendly. It tackles interference at the source. It improves the product. It positions AM as something that belongs in the future—not just in the past.

If broadcasters truly want to save AM radio, they shouldn’t fight to keep it the same. They should fight to make it better.

All-digital is how we do that!