Radio wave

Radio Waves

Question : Explain why AM stations are mostly news and talk shows , while FM stations are usually music

Whenever music is being played on the radio , people already know that it is from one FM station without even looking at the radio dial Likewise , if talk shows or news segments are heard , it is understood that they are being played from an AM radio station . Why is there such a distinction between the two kinds of radio stations ? Is it not possible to play music on AM and have talk shows

on FM ? Let us find out

The underlying technology involved in the AM and FM broadcasting is actually the wireless technology . Radio broadcasting is one form of wireless communication which is made possible by the radio signals These signals are electromagnetic waves that are sent from a base station with antenna transmitter to different receivers , which are the individual radio device at home . AM and FM bands are located in different frequency ranges . AM stations occupy frequencies from 535 - 1605 kHz and each channel is usually 10 kHz wide . AM , short for Amplitude Modulation , modifies first the amplitude of the original signal before transmission . The receiving device then decodes the modulation to get back the original sound before playing it . On the other hand , FM stations encode the original signal through frequency modulation prior to transmission . They occupy frequencies ranging from 88 - 108 MHz , each channel occupying a bandwidth of 200 kHz (Soong 2000

Radio signals transmitted by AM stations generally have longer wavelengths compared to FM stations . FM signals are line of sight , which means that its signals behave in a straight line and will only be captured if the receiving antenna is high enough to reach the signal lines . This poses a disadvantage when there are tall obstacles around the area such as buildings and mountains . On the contrary , AM signals are not bound by these obstacles because they can easily bend around them . This could be one reason why news segments and talk shows , which usually provide relevant information , are played in AM stations because they are intended to reach more people . Music being played on FM stations , on the other hand , is something that can just be a hobby or a pastime

AM works by changing the amplitude of the sound being transmitted . As stated in the CyberCollege (2007 ) module , this type of modulation is subject to static interference from such things as household appliances - and especially from lightning storms ' Being prone to external noise (interference ) makes the sound quality of AM stations not so clean and clear . Another reason why AM sounds seem to be of poor quality is that AM stations , in reality , only have bandwidth of about 5 kHz which is way below the 20 kHz musical range of a human ear (Soong , 2000 . In contrast , FM stations occupy a much wider bandwidth and FM signals are immune to any type of external interference , [have] a greater dynamic range , and...