Electric Cars Excluding AM Radio In Shot To Influential Conservative Talk

Car manufacturers are tuning out AM radio from their latest EV models. The manufacturers allege "interference" between electromagnetic frequencies from their motors and AM frequencies.

The car brands to exclude AM signals include Ford, Volkswagen, BMW, Mazda, Volvo, and Tesla.

Specifically, AM radio is home to conservative talk. And thus hosts are skeptical of the reason behind the decision from manufacturers.

Sean Hannity, with over 700 AM and FM affiliates, doesn't buy alleged "interference" as the reason.

"It's incomprehensible to me," Hannity told Fox News Digital.

"It's not complicated to put in a radio system that allows you to have AM FM, Sirius XM, or the ability to plug in your own music from your own phone. And I think people want more options, not less options. And this would be a direct hit politically on conservative talk radio in particular, which is what most people go to AM radio to listen to."

"So is there a political component to it? Certainly feels like it," Hannity concludes. 

Mark Levin, who broadcasts on over 400 stations, called the development an "attack" on "conservative talk radio."


“Let’s talk about radios for a minute. Ford is the latest manufacturer that says, the future production of cars will not include the AM platform… BMW has said it. Others have said it because it interferes with something or other.
"They finally figured out how to attack conservative talk radio.”

An astute point he makes.

Radio is the only form of media on which conservatives have a stranglehold. Liberal media has long controlled newspapers, blogs, Big Tech, and broadcast news networks. Conservatives have radio.

And critical the radio medium has been. The late Rush Limbaugh emerged more influential from his radio studio than any newspaper columnist or ABC "news" anchor.

Led by Limbaugh, talk radio jolted a litany of careers to prominence -- from Hannity to Levin to Glenn Beck.

Even today, talk radio remains highly consumed across the country.

Radio may not garner the virality of cable news or podcasting. That's because Twitter users and media writers don't consume the medium. But their listening habits do not t represent the nation at large. Not in the slightest.

Leading talk radio shows still reach more listeners per day than the vast majority of top-rated podcasts or shows on CNN.

Last summer, Nielsen found that radio reaches 93 percent of the American population. Concluding the following:

"That includes 93% of the 18+ population and 98% of the 50 and over crowd. The 18-34 demo is the lowest, but still stands at 87% according to Nielsen. The ratings firm concludes that “only AM/FM radio can deliver the scale advertisers need.”

And conservative talk accounts for much of the reach on AM stations, where liberal talk is a non-factor.

In addition to the legacy guard of Hannity-Levin-Beck, the genre has found younger juggernauts of late. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton, Dan Bongino, Dana Loesch, Charlie Kirk, and Jesse Kelly have each amassed substantial daily listenership.

Now, the success of those programs is not tied solely to the AM dial. They also air on FM signals. And in the case of Clay and Buck and Charlie Kirk, the podcast forms of their daily programs are among the most listened to in the News category.

Still, listeners of conservative talk have become accustomed to a readily available AM option. And as the saying goes, nothing in life is a coincidence.

“This idea that all of a sudden you’re gonna remove the AM band from cars — that’s aimed at people like me to prevent people like you from just turning on your radio as you drive in your own local area or general area, and listen to the station. That’s what that’s all about,” Mark Levin adds.

Of course, that's what this is about.

Written by
Bobby Burack is a writer for OutKick where he reports and analyzes the latest topics in media, culture, sports, and politics.. Burack has become a prominent voice in media and has been featured on several shows across OutKick and industry related podcasts and radio stations.