I've been lucky to live near some great college and/or public radio stations, like WRAS in Atlanta, KUT in Austin and WDET in Detroit; so, as others have pointed out, your ability to access a good local station has a major impact on this question. I'd compare listening to satellite radio in the car to watching football on the NFL "Red Zone." How do you resist A) nothing but highlights and B) no commercials? So, your question exposes the potential danger of extinction in certain areas.
What has given me the most hope about local radio is my recent discovery of WDET's newest show: "Don Was Motor City Playlist." That show's podcast can be accessed from either WDET's website (wdet.org) or Spotify. The only caveat is that the WDET website only archives the 2 most recent episodes, while all of the episodes (the show started in April of this year) are available on Spotify. Anyone old enough to remember "free form FM radio in the 60's & 70's" should enjoy this show. The fact that Don is a master storyteller who is also hilarious certainly makes this a memorable and must listen experience.
What has given me the most hope about local radio is my recent discovery of WDET's newest show: "Don Was Motor City Playlist." That show's podcast can be accessed from either WDET's website (wdet.org) or Spotify. The only caveat is that the WDET website only archives the 2 most recent episodes, while all of the episodes (the show started in April of this year) are available on Spotify. Anyone old enough to remember "free form FM radio in the 60's & 70's" should enjoy this show. The fact that Don is a master storyteller who is also hilarious certainly makes this a memorable and must listen experience.