the number of radio stations in the u.s. with a christian format has grown greatly in the 21st century. this is partly because some am stations could not compete as commercial stations and were bought by christian groups to operate as non-commercial or semi-commercial christian stations. also more opportunities for fm stations came about with changes in fcc rules. many countries which used to have only government stations began to allow other groups to have radio stations. this increased the number of christian stations outside the u.s.