South Florida Sun-Sentinel To Apple: Activate FM Chips In iPhones

Today's Paper

In the wake of Hurricane Irma, the SOUTH FLORIDA SUN-SENTINEL has editorialized in favor of activating FM tuner chips in smartphones, calling on Congress to force APPLE to reverse its position against the activation.

The editorial in the FORT LAUDERDALE-based daily castigates APPLE for refusing to activate FM chips in iPhones, and blames the resistance by APPLE and other manufacturers for FLORIDA residents being unable to "hear the emergency alerts, storm updates and other critical information communicated after Hurricane Irma knocked out power to millions.  Instead, we were advised to buy battery-operated radios in advance. Even if you could find and afford one, good luck finding the batteries to run them."

"APPLE’s resistance is unacceptable," the paper asserts. "No company’s bottom line should stand in the way of Floridians receiving life-saving information. Given our nation’s dependence on cell phones, the smartphone’s FM switch is a public safety issue. If CUBA can make manufacturers flip the switch, surely we can."

The editorial, addressing APPLE CEO TIM COOK, urges, "Do the right thing, Mr. COOK. Flip the switch. Lives depend on it.  Our app and streaming addictions won’t disappear if we have the option of listening to FM radio. That’s why our earbuds are plugged into an iPhone, not a Walkman. We paid for these radio chips when we bought our pricey APPLE phones. It’s time to let us turn them on."

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