Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) CEO Jim Farley announced Tuesday that the Detroit automaker is reversing a previous decision to remove AM radio from its vehicles, both electric and gasoline, in 2024.
Farley, in a post on his LinkedIn professional page and a tweet on Twitter, said, "After speaking with policy leaders about the importance of AM broadcast radio as a part of the emergency alert system, we've decided to include it on all 2024 Ford & Lincoln vehicles. For any owners of Ford EVs without AM broadcast capability, we’ll offer a software update. Customers can currently listen to AM radio content in a variety of ways in our vehicles –including via streaming – and we will continue to innovate to deliver even better in-vehicle entertainment and emergency notification options in the future. Thanks to our product development and manufacturing teams for their quick response to make this change for our customers.”
Ford spokesman Alan Hall confirmed that Ford will add the AM radio option to its 2023 Ford F-150 Lightning and Mustang Mach-E through a software update. In addition, Ford will not remove the AM option from its internal combustion engine vehicles in 2024 as had been decided initially.
Curtis LeGeyt, president of the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), told reporters on Tuesday that the organization "commends Ford for committing to keep AM radio in their vehicles, which will keep Americans safe and informed, particularly in times of emergency. With tens of millions of listeners, AM radio continues to serve as a vital lifeline to the public and a critical source of community news and exchange of diverse ideas."
Tesla has not offered AM radio in its vehicles for years. Automakers including BMW (OTC:BMWYY), Porsche (OTC:POAHY), Audi, Volvo (OTC:VLVLY), Volkswagen (ETR:VOWG_p), and Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) are listed in an April Forbes article as companies phasing out AM radio.
Previous reports of such changes have stirred an outcry on social media about reduced access to live traffic updates and weather reports. Broadcasters and elected officials have expressed concern about access to emergency broadcasts during crisis situations.
Shares of F are up 1.38% in afternoon trading on Tuesday.