With the legislative battle to keep AM radio hardware in vehicles largely settled, the conflict between broadcasters and automakers has shifted to the user interface. A coalition of broadcasters led by the NAB is petitioning the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to establish guidelines ensuring that AM radio is not just present in new vehicles, but easily accessible to drivers. The move comes after reports surfaced that several 2026 model year electric vehicles, while technically equipped with AM tuners, have buried the function beneath multiple layers of touchscreen menus.
In some of these new models, accessing a local AM news station requires navigating through a “media” tab, then a “sources” menu, and finally selecting a frequency band—a multi-step process that safety advocates argue is distracting for drivers. The NAB argues that this “digital burial” undermines the public safety purpose of the legislation that kept AM radio in cars in the first place. The primary argument for the band’s preservation is its role as the backbone of the Emergency Alert System (EAS). Broadcasters contend that if a driver cannot quickly and intuitively locate the band during a weather emergency or civil crisis, the infrastructure’s value is critically diminished.
The broadcasters are asking for a rule that would require “one-touch” access to broadcast radio, similar to the physical buttons of the past or a permanent dock icon on digital displays. Automakers have pushed back, citing the need for clean aesthetic design and the preference of younger consumers for streaming apps and smartphone integration. However, rural broadcasters emphasize that in areas with spotty cellular data, the easy accessibility of the AM band is a lifeline. They argue that burying the tuner is a passive-aggressive attempt by automakers to phase out the medium by making it too inconvenient to use.