The Federal Communications Commission has released its year-end station totals for 2021.
As of Dec. 31, 2021, the number of licenses were as follows,
|
Station type |
Dec. ’21 | Dec. ’20 |
+/− |
| AM stations |
4,509 |
4,551 |
−42 |
| FM commercial |
6,676 |
6,699 |
−23 |
| FM educational |
4,204 |
4,195 |
+9 |
| FM translators and boosters |
8,866 |
8,420 |
+446 |
| LPFM |
2,069 |
2,136 |
−67 |
In the past 12 months the number of AM stations fell about 1 percent, continuing a contraction over time in the category, which peaked at around 5,000 in the 1990s.
FM translators and boosters continued their rapid expansion. Ten years ago, their number was 6,099; it has grown 45 percent since then, helped in part by the FCC’s AM revitalization initiative,…
