In 2002, about 75 radio stations, mostly in rural communities, provided what they consider to be a full-time agricultural format, and another 1,000 stations broadcast at least one hour per week of special farm-related programming. In addition, a number of regional and national farm radio networks have evolved to provide stations with specialized programs and advertising.

Federal and state agencies, led by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), provide radio reports on topics ranging from the latest research on crop diseases to new agricultural marketing strategies. This information is provided to stations by the USDA in the form of scripts and press releases and as prerecorded audio and video reports that broadcasters can integrate into their own locally produced programs.

On commercial stations, farm programming is generally supported through the sale of advertising. Large corporate producers of agricultural products and services have found radio to be an ideal medium for reaching the widely dispersed farm audience, a group that includes the decision makers of U.S. agribusiness. Farmers who tune in for market reports on these stations are likely also to hear commercials for chemicals, fertilizer, seed, and other agricultural necessities.

Farm programming is also provided by many noncommercial radio stations, especially those associated with land grant colleges and universities with large agricultural research and teaching components. Many of these campuses have strong ties to federal and state farm service offices that provide regionalized agricultural information and programming.

Origins

Radio was just one of several technological innovations in the early part of the 20th century that revolutionized farm life. The telephone, phonograph, automobile, and rural mail delivery all served to greatly reduce the isolation of rural families. But the coming of radio in the 1920s meant that for the first time, farms were instantaneously connected to the outsideworld. Music, sports, politics, and religion were suddenly available with the twist of a dial. Once-isolated farm families were suddenly a part of the growing national radio audience. In most farm homes, a battery-operated radio became a fixture long before the house was wired for electricity. Perhaps most significant, the radio brought farmers information that had an immediate impact on their livelihoods. Accurate weather reports allowed farmers to time harvests and protect crops from storms, and immediate reports of commodity prices from big-city agricultural markets meant farmers could reap bigger profits and manage operations more efficiently.

In fact, government-produced weather forecasts and agricultural market reports were among radio's first regularly scheduled programs. Initially, these broadcasts were aired experimentally by college and university stations, which were among the first on the air with radio transmitters. As early as 1921 (some sources say earlier) the University of Wisconsin's 9XM (later, WHA) began transmitting agricultural information on a regular schedule. Many other stations soon followed suit.

The USDA was especially quick to recognize radio's potential for reaching the far-flung farm audience. By the mid-1920s the agency had begun producing and distributing not only weather and market reports, but also informational programs on crop and livestock problems, agricultural marketing, and home economics. Scripts were distributed free of charge to radio stations through the USDA's vast network of county extension agents. The county agents themselves often worked closely with local radio stations to supplement programming with information on topics of local concern. At least some of the government-produced radio programs also had a distinctly political purpose: since farmers represented an important national voting bloc, the USDA interspersed the more mundane topics with features and talks that explained and promoted the administration's farm policy.

Early on, businesses that catered to rural customers also saw the potential of programming aimed specifically at the farm audience. Although overt radio advertising was still considered inappropriate in the early 1920s, these companies understood the promotional value of having their names on the air. Sears and Roebuck established the Chicago station WLS ("World's Largest Store") in part to promote its booming mail-order business with rural homes. The company was also instrumental in establishing other early stations in the Midwest and South. In Nashville, the National Life and Accident Insurance Company created the station WSM to help promote its products. In this case, "WSM" stood for the company's slogan, "We Shield Millions."

Stations across the country began to realize that the millions of U.S. farm homes constituted a special audience, and many began to produce and carry programs especially tailored for rural listeners, including those aimed at attracting farm women and children. Indeed, the Federal Radio Commission's radio frequency allocation scheme of 1928, with its high-powered clear channel stations designed to serve large rural areas, was very much driven by a concern (some of it admittedly political) for rural audiences. The National Broadcasting Company (NBC)'s The National Farm and Home Hour, begun in 1928, became one of the network's longest-running programs.

As radio developed, the government mounted a major campaign to get more farmers to buy receivers. USDA-authored articles in newspapers and farm periodicals told readers that the radio receiver had become an agricultural necessity. Countless anecdotes were reported of how farmers were able to save their crops by radio's advanced warning of bad weather or to increase their income by using radio reports of market price fluctuations.

But despite these efforts, bad economic times meant the adoption rate in rural areas lagged far behind that in cities. In the 1920s and 1930s many farmers barely eked out a subsistence, and hard cash was always in short supply. In addition, farmers generally lived at great distances from stations and needed to buy more expensive receivers to get satisfactory reception. And despite New Deal rural electrification efforts, many regions still lacked electricity, forcing use of battery-powered radios. By the 1940 census, 92 percent of urban U.S. homes reported owning radios, but only 70 percent of rural farm homes did. The situation among rural nonwhites was far worse. The chronic poverty among minority farmers meant that as late as 1940, only 20 percent owned radios.

Farm Radio and Country Music

Early listener response convinced broadcasters that rural and urban audiences differed considerably in their musical tastes. Farmers, it was believed, much preferred what was then called "hillbilly" music. This style was based on the folk songs commonly performed in rural areas, usually by one or two musicians playing simple stringed instruments. As the need grew for more programming to attract and hold the farm audience, several large stations developed live musical variety shows with a distinctly rural flavor. National Barn Dance, from Chicago's WLS, and The Grand Ole Opry, from WSM in Nashville, were two of the earliest and most successful.

By providing an audience for budding new performers and a ready market for their records, farm radio music shows played an essential role in the development of country music. Record companies began providing free or low-cost performers in exchange for the promotional value of having their stars heard on radio broadcasts. The fact that Nashville was the home of the powerful WSM and its immensely popular Grand Ole Opry was a decisive factor in that city's becoming the country music capital of the world.

The National Association of Farm Broadcasters

Radio stations soon recognized the need for specialized broadcast personnel to produce agricultural news and information programming. The position of station "farm director" was generally filled by someone who knew farming well and who could dedicate full attention to researching and reporting on agricultural issues. Often, male farm directors were assisted by women who were delegated the duties of reporting on rural home economics and hosting homemaker-oriented programs of interviews, recipes, and household hints. Today, farm broadcasters are often graduates of specialized university programs in agricultural journalism, and, although men still dominate the field, the role of female broadcasters has broadened considerably.

In the 1940s farm directors from several stations met and formed what would eventually be known as the National Association of Farm Broadcasters (NAFB). Today, the NAFB is farm broadcasting's major trade organization, offering members a news service, sales and marketing assistance, and farm audience research.

Farm Radio in the Television Age

The coming of television meant changes throughout the radio industry. Many of the powerful big-city radio stations no longer found it profitable to target rural audiences, and farm radio programming increasingly became the province of the growing number of lower-powered regional or local stations serving rural areas. At the same time, agricultural news and information programs began to appear on many local television stations that served farm audiences.

Yet for a number of reasons, farm radio has remained a viable medium. The low cost and portability of modern radio receivers means today's farm families can own several sets and listen wherever they happen to be. Radios installed in trucks, tractors, and other farm vehicles can accompany farmers throughout the workday. Timely weather forecasts and market reports remain just as important to farmers today as they were in the early days of radio. At the same time, the relatively low cost of operating a local radio station means that farm broadcasters can stay profitable even while appealing to a relatively narrow audience. In fact, it is just this characteristic that attracts agricultural advertisers, who can zero in on their target audience at a relatively low cost. These characteristics mean that farm radio will continue to flourish.