Radio: The Church of What's Happening Now

We are finally able to drive our cars again. As we return to our cars many of us are rediscovering an old friend: Radio. Depending on whose research you buy, "buy," or believe, as much as 50% of all radio listening in the U.S. occurs in automobiles. That percentage is actually lower in most other countries.

As the U.S. re-opens listening is indeed up - according to Nielsen: https://www.insideradio.com/free/nielsen-marked-cume-and-aqh-recovery-in-may-2020-ppms/article_181f3132-a95c-11ea-b157-97c7cfd77a12.html

But Nielsen doesn't discriminate by in-vehicle listening. I'd submit that radio listening may have increased even more than Nielsen suggests - because once again we have places to go.

As a result of such a high percentage of in-car radio listening in the U.S., a lot of the broadcast advertising relates to vehicle purchasing, renting, repairing, or insuring. The remaining advertising relates to local sports or cultural events - of which there are many fewer these days - or destination shopping opportunities, like the local malls, finally re-opening.

In addition to being a platform for advertising, the radio is the real-time narration of events that drivers and passengers may see as they look out the windows of the car. In other words, on this first Sunday of June 2020, radio in the car is the equivalent of the Church of What's Happening Now - with apologies to the late Flip Wilson.

Regardless of the radio station you may listen to as you drive you can count on getting live, periodic updates on the local traffic, weather, sports, and news. No music app or podcast is going to provide you that real-time information in the same way as a normal, curated - anchored - radio broadcast.

In the midst of a global pandemic (with regularly changing local regulations regarding business openings), and protests over police brutality (sweeping across 350 U.S. cities in the past week), and the first hurricane of the season hitting the Gulf Coast - it's a good time to have access to those real-time radio updates - free of charge, of course. It's good to be able to drive again.

The media industry has been hammered during the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S. The nationwide shutdown erased a massive amount of economic activity which, in turn, almost completely eliminated the need for advertising. The coronavirus was an equal opportunity destroyer with Internet, broadcast, and print media all being hit by the advertising drought. Even the sports section of the national and local papers suffered a severe blow.

Driven indoors to shelter in place, content consumers did get online and tuned in to their televisions. They may have even bought and read more newspapers. But given the fact that as much as 50% of radio listening occurs in cars, broadcast radio was particularly hard hit.

As you return to your car this Sunday - maybe to get your first haircut in three months or to visit relatives - turn on your car radio and soak in the vehicle-mounted narration of the world outside that is passing by. The radio is the Church of What's Happening Now. It's good to be back in the pew.