The United States, like many countries, is full of people who love listening to the radio. Radio programs are simply convenient, because it lets you hear news, listen to music, and even enjoy talk show conversations while still allowing you to multitask freely.
We love listening to the radio when we are driving in our cars, cooking our dinner, or even on the go when we are walking on the street. Radio shows provide us with a wealth of information, and we hear about breaking news, listen to opinion pieces, follow our favorite sports themes, or simply enjoy the latest pop and rock songs that are currently tearing up the hit charts.
Radio programs, despite the advent of television and the proliferation of internet media is here to stay. It still remains a popular entertainment and news medium and will be for generations to come. Radio makes our lives better, and is a great outlet to get all the information that you need in a format that is easy to digest.
They can focus on a wide range of different topics and independent radio shows are popping up everyday. While some people may think that the most popular radio programs are music stations, the truth is actually far from reality. Conservative talk shows are by far the most popular of all American radio programs and enjoy competitive viewership from people of all walks of life. Here are just some of the top listened radio programs in the United States today:
8. The Glenn Beck Program
The Glenn Beck Program has 7 million listeners in the United States, and is just one of the many conservative talk shows available. It typically airs at 5pm and runs for three hours. Glenn Beck, as a radio host, has a comedic side to him and both entertains and informs his viewers about the latest news and political happenings. The Glenn Beck Program originally was under contract with CNN, but has since moved to Fox News.
He often includes political commentary in his talk show, interjected with humor as well as his personal reflections on whatever topic is being discussed at the time. The radio show typically starts off with a monologue, followed by discussions with live callers. To reflect the hot talk format of his show, Beck uses rock music has his theme song, giving it a more hip style in comparison to more traditional conservative talk shows. Beck calls himself an entertainer, and enjoys stating his personal opinions on the air.
7. The Dave Ramsey Show
The Dave Ramsey Show is a three hour financial talk program that has been around since 1992. With more than 8 million listeners, the show focuses on financing and money related news.
Dave Ramsey is well known for his emotional and spiritual approach to financing discussions, choosing to connect with his listeners instead of focusing on just the mathematical aspect the subject. This connection with his viewers is what makes his show so popular, as he gives financing advice in an easily digestible format.
Dave Ramsey takes a lot of live calls on his shows, giving out financial advice on a number of different topics. He occasionally talks about tithing as well, which is a Christian church tax to support the clergy.
6. Marketplace
Marketplace is a public news radio program that was established in 1989 in California. It is now a nationally syndicated program.
The show was created by Jim Russel and has had a roster of different hosts throughout the years, including Kai Ryssdal, David Brancaccio, Lizzie O’Leary, and Ben Johnson. Ryssdal is the current host of the station.
Marketplace focuses primarily on business news and money advice. It features a number of regular reporters that focus on different aspects of business news.
They also feature short commentaries that give political perspectives on the current topics. As a financial advice radio show, it has a very rigid format that shares information in a very concise way.
5. Delilah
An adult contemporary radio show, Delilah is hosted by Delilah Rene Luke of Oregon, who is also the author of three books on love. She has over 8 million listeners and broadcasts directly from her home studio.
The radio show typically features contemporary music that is geared towards adults. Love songs are by far the most commonly heard songs on the station. It airs between 7pm to midnight on weekdays, with one or two shows airing over the weekends.
What makes Delilah so popular among its viewers is its audience interaction. Typically, Delilah will accept calls and listen to their situations. She will then play a song that she believes will match the caller’s situation. This close relationship with her listeners has made her one of the most popular music radio stations in America.
4. All Things Considered
Broadcast by National Public Radio (NPR), All Things Considered is a radio show that combines news broadcasts with talk show elements. It airs on the weekdays between 4pm to 6pm, and has a number of hosts that include Robert Siegel, Audie Cornish, Kelly McEvers, and Ari Shapiro.
All Things Considered has been around since 1971 and has since won numerous awards including the Ohio State Award and the Peabody Award, among others.
As a news talk show, it not only covers breaking news but focuses on some longer stories, with some of them lasting for more than 20 minutes.
This is because All Things Considered has a more intimate coverage of personal interest stories, which gives the show its distinct flavor – this style of news coverage has proven to be very popular among its listeners.
They usually start with the heavier news at the beginning of the program, and wrap up with the lighter ones.
3. The Sean Hannity Show
The Sean Hannity Show is an afternoon radio show that airs over Cumulus Media Networks and Premiere Radio Networks. The conservative talk show has over 12.5 million listeners and focuses primarily on political news and commentary. It is hosted by Sean Hannity, who has worked with the show since its inception in 1990.
The format of the show typically includes a running commentary on political news of the day, focusing on topics such as terrorism, economics, and illegal immigration within the United States. A prominent segment includes interviews of liberal commentators that include figures such as Bob Beckel and Leslie Marshall. Hannity also regularly conducts interviews with regular New York pedestrians, where they stop them to ask them about political topics.
2. Morning Edition
The Morning Edition is the second highest rated radio program in the US and has a following of more than 13 million listeners. It is a morning public news show that runs live from 5 am to 9 am. While the actual show only runs for two hours, regular updates are fed through the channel throughout the whole morning, until it ends at noon.
The Morning Edition features weekday news and its sister show, The Weekend Edition, runs on the weekends. As a public radio show, it features breaking news as well as more in-depth reports.
The show also features human interests stories and commentaries, covering topics such as business, sports, sciences, and politics. The show regularly interviews people in the news, including prominent businessmen and political figures.
The Morning Edition was created in 1979 by Bob Edwards, who was also the host of the program until 2004. He was eventually reassigned to become the senior correspondent of the radio show and was replaced by co-hosts Steve Inskeep and Renée Montagne. They are Morning Edition’s hosts up until the present. There are also several newscasters, analysts, and guest commentators that can be heard on the various segments of the show.
1. The Rush Limbaugh Show
A juggernaut of radio talk shows, the Rush Limbaugh Show boasts some 13.25 million listeners and is the highest rated radio program in the United States today. The Rush Limbaugh Show is a conservative talk show that is produced by Premiere Networks and hosted by the eponymous Rush Limbaugh.
It is a noon time radio show that runs for three hours each day that covers a variety of topics, putting particular emphasis on political commentary.
It is so popular that several prominent political figures have been guests on the show, including former president George W. Bush, former vice president Dick Cheney, and former secretary of the state Colin Powell.
Rush Limbaugh is a long-time entertainer and has been the host of the show since its inception in 1984. While it originally aired on KFBK, Sacramento AM radio station, it has since become nationally syndicated, being broadcast across multiple radio channels throughout the United States and in some parts of southern Canada.
The show’s format has not changed since it started, which widely contributes to its success. Its unchanging program structure typically features live news commentary and monologues by Rush Limbaugh, interspersed with music segments, phone calls from the show’s listeners, and comedic skits.