BusRadio is a national radio network that brings age-appropriate music, original programming, and public service messages to more than 1 million listeners between the ages of 6 and 18 every weekday during their daily bus ride. BusRadio reaches more than 10,000 buses in 170 school districts in 24 states across America.
BusRadio is the fastest growing national media network in the youth music space, a better alternative to inappropriate FM radio programming, and a vital safety partner with school districts across America. BusRadio provides a safer bus ride for students by providing school districts with valuable safety features that help minimize driver distractions, and keep students seated, well-behaved and occupied in a positive way. BusRadio's technology features GPS, driver panic buttons tied directly to local emergency services, and internal and external PA systems on every bus.
We are proud of the substantial benefits BusRadio provides to school districts, parents and students across America. Their support has been phenomenal. While we understand there are individuals who have voiced concerns about our service, we have taken care to meet with these individuals and address their concerns in every way possible. Nevertheless, these critiques - rarely rooted in fact - have left many myths behind. We have included some of the most common false claims and misconceptions below along with a factual explanation of what BusRadio really does.
| Myth | Reality |
|---|---|
Parents cannot monitor BusRadio content. |
BusRadio understands how important it is for parents to know what their kids are listening to, on and off the bus. That's why BusRadio provides a website for parents to do just that at www.busradioparents.com. Registered users can choose which regional show they'd like to listen to and then hear it for free exactly the way it was broadcast that same day on the buses in that region |
| School districts can't control what their students are hearing on the bus. | Local control is a cornerstone of BusRadio, and school districts do control what is played on their buses. BusRadio is able to customize programming content, including music and safety messages, to best serve each district. BusRadio understands every community is unique and we strive to serve the specific needs of individual districts in every way possible. Any content that is deemed objectionable by a school district for any reason is immediately removed. Districts may also specify particular safety messages or public announcements they would like to run on the system. |
| School districts turn to BusRadio as a revenue source. | Safety is the
number one reason that school districts turn to BusRadio. BusRadio provides
school districts with the safety features they need to ensure that their
school buses are as safe as they can be. Each BusRadio unit comes with
safety features like GPS, emergency panic buttons tied directly to local
emergency services, and internal and external PA systems. Furthermore, school districts routinely tell us that providing kids with age-appropriate content on the bus ride keeps kids safer by keeping them well-behaved. Buses are not classrooms, and they are often completely unsupervised environments where maintaining discipline is a constant struggle. An independent study, conducted by Edison Media Research, found that overall behavior improved dramatically with the implementation of BusRadio programming: kids remained in their seats; willingness to follow rules increased; overall noise levels were reduced; and driver distractions were minimized. |
| BusRadio programming includes explicit lyrics and inappropriate subject matter. | These claims are completely without merit. BusRadio was founded as an alternative to the inappropriate commercial FM radio content being played on more than half the school buses in the country. BusRadio provides schools with a better, safer, age-appropriate alternative and parents with the peace of mind that their children are not being exposed to the inappropriate and offensive music lyrics, inappropriate adult talk from 'shock jock' DJ's, and inappropriate advertising content found on commercial radio. Nothing is more important than our commitment to schools and to parents in 24 states across America - and the trust they place in us - to provide age-appropriate content that kids can enjoy. |
| BusRadio editing standards are not strict enough to ensure content that is age-appropriate. | BusRadio content is edited according to standards that far exceed those of commercial FM radio. All questionable subject matter is removed by our own editing team. Quite simply, the commonly heard commercial radio versions of popular songs are not played on BusRadio. BusRadio has set in place the strictest content guidelines in the industry - vetted by an independent content review board - and content is further separated into three age-specific daily programs for elementary, middle and high school children. |
| BusRadio musical programming is inappropriate for younger children. | Every day BusRadio produces unique programming for three age levels - elementary school,
middle school and high school. Musical content is limited to its corresponding
level of age-appropriateness. |
| BusRadio promotes an unhealthy lifestyle by playing age-appropriate songs from hip hop or dance artists. | Recent criticism of BusRadio targeting solely urban hip hop and dance artists smacks of the type of ugly stereotypes the music industry and the country have moved beyond. BusRadio ensures that all of its programming - musical and otherwise - is age-appropriate for the grade level audience listening to each show. |
| BusRadio edits leave traces of inappropriate lyrics after they have been removed. | BusRadio edits
completely remove ALL inappropriate content, including the full deletion
of language and subject matter. Where necessary, songs are remixed to
completely avoid any allusion to the deleted lyrics or subject matter.
However, only a few songs in the current BusRadio library of more than
600 titles require editing.
|
| BusRadio plays songs that contain lyrics that Urbandictionary.com defines as having adult themes. | These claims completely ignore contextual meaning. Urbandictionary.com is a user generated Web site - most often by young people - with no verifiable content. For example, the site lists many of the most common nouns in the English language as having adult-themed meanings. |
| As some critics have contended, BusRadio plays specific songs by artists like Timbaland, Kanye West, and Nickelback that are inappropriate. | Many of these songs are simply not played on BusRadio. For example, The Way I Are
by Timbaland, Stronger by Kanye West, and Rock Star by Nickelback -
all cited recently by critics - are not in rotation on BusRadio. BusRadio
has never aired Rock Star; a BusRadio edit of Stronger aired several
times on our high school show and was removed at the request of a local
school district; and a BusRadio edit of The Way I Are aired several
times to a high school audience. Inappropriate lyrics are sometimes
cited as being heard on BusRadio when in fact the subject matter or
lyrical phrase has been completely edited out by BusRadio. So that parents
and schools know exactly what students are hearing on the bus, BusRadio
provides downloads of all the shows that are aired across the country
online at www.busradioparents.com
|
| BusRadio sponsors promote products or services unhealthy for kids such as fast food or sugary sodas. | BusRadio does not take paid sponsorships for products that are deemed unhealthy for
kids. Rather, we encourage commercial sponsors to deliver positive,
socially responsible messages. Each BusRadio hour contains an average
of four minutes of paid sponsorships. Standard drive time FM radio averages
more than six times this amount - much of which is completely inappropriate
for children. BusRadio sponsorship messages are vetted for age-appropriateness with the same care as all BusRadio programming. Each sponsorship is carefully reviewed for content and subject matter. Some of our sponsors include: Answers.com, Disney's Buena Vista Entertainment, Konami and Cingular. |
| BusRadio disguises sponsorships as "promos" and public service announcements. | None of our public service announcements is a paid sponsorship. They are provided by our non-profit partners and often exceed the amount of paid sponsorships. BusRadio partners with a select number of the nation's most trusted and highly-regarded non-profit organizations to bring positive public service messages to kids and to reinforce the valuable lessons and missions of service of these trusted organizations. Some of our partners include: SADD, City Year, President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, Take Pride in America, Stand Up for Kids, National Eating Disorder Association, Afterschool Alliance, Do Something, KaBoom!, Ad Council, National Association of Pupil Transportation, and National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services. |
| The attention of bus drivers is being diverted by BusRadio driver contests. | BusRadio knows
how important bus drivers are to schools, parents, and the children
with whose safety they are entrusted each day, and we like to show our
appreciation for the work that they do. Drivers are of course instructed
only to contact BusRadio before or after their scheduled routes. At
no time has BusRadio been contacted by a driver on his or her route. In fact, BusRadio allows bus drivers to concentrate on driving, not disciplining students. BusRadio provides bus drivers with a valuable tool to keep noise levels down, minimize distractions, and help keep kids safe, behaved, and in their seats on the bus ride. |
| BusRadio
promoted the show "Aliens in America" to kids which has received
an 18+ rating from the Parents TV Council (PTC). |
One of BusRadio's celebrity interviews for the high school age level was with a young actor who has a role on the show. The industry standard Common Sense Media rates the show content appropriate for ages 14 and up. |
