August 20th marks National Radio Day, and The Buzz is celebrating 22 years this year.
From National Today:
The first commercial radio broadcast was in 1920. Now there are over 15,000 radio stations in the U.S., and more than 40,000 worldwide. Here are a few more random radio stats . . .
1. One in five Americans say listening to the radio is one of the top “little things” they look forward to each day. And a poll in June found it was the #1 thing people missed about their commute last year.
2. Around half of us love singing along to the radio. Women are more likely to admit they do it than men.
3. A study by Tinder in 2016 found “radio personality” was one of the SEXIEST JOBS you could have. It ranked fifth, but we fell off the list in 2018.
4. The radio is the 11th most important invention of all time. That’s according to a poll that came out in October. The top three were electricity, phones, and vaccines.
5. 9% of people wouldn’t mind it if radio stations played more commercials. (???) And 9% also think we should be allowed to play Christmas music all year.
6. Here’s a little science: FM stands for “frequency modulation” . . . and AM stands for “amplitude modulation.” When you change channels on AM radio, you’re changing the amplitude of the signal. On FM, you’re changing the frequency.
7. In general, if a station’s call letters start with a “W”, it means they’re east of the Mississippi River. Stations west of the Mississippi usually start with a “K”.
8. A recent study in Australia found waking up to music on the radio makes you feel less sluggish than waking up to an alarm.
9. 31% of dog owners have used the radio to keep their dog company.
10. Only 28% of radio hosts agree with the statement, “I have a face for radio.”
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