{"id":36359,"date":"2025-09-22T08:55:13","date_gmt":"2025-09-22T08:55:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/36359\/"},"modified":"2025-09-22T08:55:13","modified_gmt":"2025-09-22T08:55:13","slug":"john-catsimatidis-sunset-clause-is-unnecessary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/36359\/","title":{"rendered":"John Catsimatidis: “Sunset Clause Is Unnecessary”"},"content":{"rendered":"

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(New York, NY) \u2013 In the ongoing push to save AM radio \u2014 especially given its role during certain emergencies \u2014 a key step was taken this past week. The House of Representatives passed a bill Thursday, mandating that AM radio be included in all new cars. A companion bill will have to pass in the US Senate to make it law.<\/p>\n

77 WABC owner-operator John Catsimatidis has been among the more outspoken voices when it comes to the importance of preserving AM radio, due to the nature of such broadcasts. In the event of an emergency, including something that significantly affected internet or television broadcast capability \u2014 AM radio would still be able to deliver information to the public. This is due to the way AM radio waves are able to transmit through the ground and then be received over long distances. Listeners to radio are undoubtedly familiar with the Emergency Alert System and how that is maintained by FEMA \u2014 including strategically placed \u201cbunkers\u201d, from which emergency broadcasts can originate.<\/p>\n

But as for the legislation that made its way through the House this past week, Catsimatidis has one main objection. In comments originally published in digital trade magazine Barrett Media, he took exception to the bill\u2019s so-called \u201csunset clause.\u201d<\/a> After eight years time, the AM radio requirement would go away.<\/p>\n

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\"\"An AM radio seen in a 1957 Ford Thunderbird, seen in Michigan, Aug. 22, 2024. \u00a9 Matthew Dae Smith\/Lansing State Journal \/ USA TODAY NETWORK<\/p>\n

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That doesn\u2019t sit right with Catsimatidis, who told Barrett: \u201c77WABC and all AM radio stations across the country provide life-saving information and emergency alerts to the public. While the committee\u2019s action may be a step forward, a ridiculous last-minute change sunsets the law in eight years. AM is the backbone of the emergency alert system, and tornadoes, hurricanes, and other disasters won\u2019t go away. The absurd eight-year sunset harms all Americans. 300 members of the House and 61 senators supported the bill without an eight-year sunset. Politics aside, Congress should not compromise on citizens receiving critical news from AM stations. The sunset must go.\u201d<\/p>\n

The argument from some automakers is that AM radio interferes with their car\u2019s engine \u2014 or vise versa \u2014 causing audio problems. Some have noted that there\u2019s not enough urgency surrounding the bid to protect AM, because it\u2019s perceived as a \u201cright wing\u201d or \u201cRepublican\u201d medium. And it\u2019s fair to note that since the onset of FM, and podcasts, an increasing number of younger consumers opt for content they hear through their phone, tablet, or laptop.<\/p>\n

\"\"77 WABC deejay Bruce Morrow, aka Cousin Brucie, speaks to the crowd alongside his $100,000 racing car outside of Stern\u2019s department store at Bergen Mall in Paramus, N.J., on September 5, 1971. \u00a9 Al Paglione\/NorthJersey.com \/ USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images<\/p>\n

As for the bill that is being considered in the Senate, Catsimatidis prefers it greatly, telling lawmakers it\u2019s more equipped to meet the emergency information mandate. He\u2019s quoted in Barrett Media as saying the Senate version \u201cis far superior, and protects the American public.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u00a0 (New York, NY) \u2013 In the ongoing push to save AM radio \u2014 especially given its role…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":36360,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[156,157,111,139,69],"class_list":["post-36359","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-music","tag-entertainment","tag-music","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36359","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36359"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36359\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36360"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36359"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36359"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36359"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}