There is nothing more old timey than radio. Just listen to the voice in your head when you think of “old time radio announcer”. It seems like something impossibly old and irrelevant. Most of us are old enough that we grew up with radio. It was beamed into our mom’s mini-van, or to a little personal boombox we had in our bedrooms. Back then, it was the only way to learn about new music, or to catch news stories as soon as they broke. As such, we were tied to our radios, and they played central roles in our lives, just as they had for a couple of generations prior.
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But then the internet came along. Everybody thought that it spelled the end of radio. But turns out, the internet has only given radio a renewed relevance. Apps like HAKT Radio bring broadcast radio to your internet-ready or mobile device, making them more accessible than ever before. And radio lives on in other ways, many of which are more vital than the form was ever before. Here are a few.
- Podcasts. Sometimes you just need to hear somebody talk, to tell a story. Storytelling has existed forever, centered around campfires and relaxing settings. Just because this is an old form doesn’t mean it’s now irrelevant. Podcasts have given stories a new way to be told, and people are tuning in. Even though the average podcast has a small listener base, Serial broke the mold last year and made podcast storytelling truly mainstream. No matter what you’re interested in, there’s a podcast out there for you. The format has been passed down by long running shows like This American Life. Find the perfect podcast that’s waiting for you.
- News. While news has always been a part of radio, it is now inseparable from it. Ideologies as diverse as those espoused by NPR and FOX have millions of listeners every day. Even in the age of the internet, sometimes the fastest way to hear about events in the world is to catch them on radio news, and programs like the ones on these networks keep that tradition alive.
- Local. Local radio is kooky and perfect. No matter where you live, there is local programming happening on the low end of the AM and FM dials. If you haven’t explored these programs, you can often find live auctions where local residents call in with items they want to sell, and other people call in with how much they’re willing to pay. This is also a great way to learn about local politics or news. If you want to become a more integrated member of your community, dig into local radio.
Radio is here to stay. With more people trying new things every day, Radio is proving that it can be more than sports, talk, and music. The internet makes more nuanced content available to exactly the people who want to hear it, giving a voice to people who would never have had a chance on Clear Channel. With apps like HAKT, all this and more is even easier to dial into.
