Opinion

DAVID MARCUS: Congress set to protect AM radio and American discourse

Bipartisan bill would require every new car sold in America to include an AM antenna for emergency alerts

By David Marcus Fox News

Published September 6, 2026 4:15pm EDT

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In 2026, the WFMD radio station in Frederick, Maryland, is celebrating its 90th year on the AM airwaves, and thanks to a bipartisan bill set for a vote in Congress this week, every new car sold in America will have an AM antenna to pick up its signal.

The AM Radio For Every Vehicle Act already has more than 300 co-sponsors in the House, 60 in the Senate, and has been pitched mainly as a measure to ensure that emergency messages — the ones that start with the shrill whistle — can be sent out to cars through the AM stations.

The commonsense measure is a good plan B to have in place in cases of cyberattacks or cyber outages, because sometimes the old ways can be the best ways.

If the bill passes, every new car sold in America will have an AM antenna to pick up its signal. (Rolf Vennenbernd/picture alliance via Getty........

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