American Radio - Public Radio

Public Radio

The United States government directly produces two radio services for direct public consumption: WWV (a time signal service on shortwave) and NOAA Weather Radio (a weather radio and emergency information network). Both services are almost entirely automated and use synthesized voice recordings. Unlike most other English-language countries, the United States does not have a federal government-owned national broadcaster, and the country's international government-operated broadcasters overseen by the Broadcasting Board of Governors (the most widely known being Voice of America) are expressly forbidden from being marketed to American citizens. In lieu of a national broadcaster, the United States government instead subsidizes nonprofit radio stations through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

In 1998, the number of U.S. commercial radio stations had grown to 4,793 AM stations and 5,662 FM stations. In addition, there are 1,460 public radio stations. Most of these stations are run by universities and public authorities for educational purposes and are financed by public and/or private funds, subscriptions and corporate underwriting. Much public-radio broadcasting is supplied by NPR (formerly National Public Radio). NPR was incorporated in February 1970 under the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967; its television counterpart, PBS, was also created by the same legislation. (NPR and PBS are operated separately from each other.) The BBC World Service is distributed is the United States by PRI; it is also possible to listen to the World Service on shortwave.

The United States government has the direct authority to assume control over all radio stations in the United States at any time by way of the Emergency Alert System. All radio stations are required to have EAS equipment installed and operational in the event such a takeover is implemented.