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Who Needs Radio?
DragonMagic writes "MSNBC asks what many /.ers have been asking: Who needs the radio anymore? Rather, it goes on to really ask, who needs the RIAA anymore? With online music distribution sources, television, and the internet itself, how much longer will it be before the radio, and the RIAA, will be an obsolete means to promote artists?"
I do also.
The key is how many people listen to music at home VS in there car. I bet most people listen to music in there car more hours of the day than in there homes.
What I really think people are missing is the community aspect of radio. In many small towns the local radio station plays an imporant role. They cover the local high school sports, weather, and community affairs.
They also serve an important role during emergencys.
That is one of the reasons I hate the "Clear Channel" stations. They are nothing but repeaters for the mother station. I think it is time to put more restrictions on local stations. They should have a required amount of local program content.
See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
Clear Channel stations are certainly not worth listening to. I used to think local call-in contests were bad enough, but Clear Channel has made them nationwide. Combine this with their highly censored playlists, their blind dedication to the war in Iraq coupled with sensationalist misreporting (a Clear Channel station here reported four buried vans in the desert as "Vindication for Bush: underground chemical weapons Labs were found today in Iraq") and their propensity for hiring the most moronic, annoying DJs possible, and you have the recipe for a radio station I never want to listen to. Contrast this with our local independent station, 99.5. They don't have call-in contests, you simply sign up as a "community member" of their station and they randomly give away concert tickets. They play an enormous variety of music, and it's rare to hear the same song played more than once in a single month. They have knowledgable DJs who discuss things you never knew about the music they play in a calm, conversational manner so it's pleasant to listen to. I conclude by saying, in the words of Frank Zappa, "KILL UGLY RADIO"