In 1985, when AM Stereo was introduced to Australia, a young Sandi Aloisi interviewed then 2UE General Manager David Maxwell about the new technology.

The article hints at the split that was just barely hidden below the surface, as the established AM stations tried to pretend that they were not against the FMers, and the brash young FMers couldn’t give a toss what the old fogeys on the ‘heritage’ band said.

According to the article, 73% of Australians were aware of AM Stereo after a promotional campaign was run.

The problem was that very few of them actually invested in the required radio sets to listen to the new technology, despite there being 40 models on the market and Dick Smith Electronics reporting heavy demand in their stores at the time.

Read the article from Pulse Magazine below (click to enlarge), with thanks to radio historian Wayne Mac.

Sandi Aloisi can now be heard at breakfast on ABC NewsRadio. David Maxwell is a lecturer at Charles Sturt University.

Not everyone in the industry was convinced about the effectiveness of AM Stereo. A full five years before the introduction of AM Stereo, when the technologies were still being discussed, Alan Roebuck wrote this sceptical letter about the technology to B&T magazine.