Fighting Payola

By Waldo Jaquith
A diverse group of members of the music industry, from the Recording Industry Association of America on down, are petitioning the Federal Communications Commission to reform the payola laws. The laws were put into place 1960 to prevent radio stations from being bribed to play songs. By using middlemen, the record industry has skirted the law. In the words of Public Enemy's Chuck D., "You look at the radio and they got the same 30 records circulating. These 30 records are paid for, and the minute you stop hearing a record, that means that records not paid for anymore. It's a different type of payola." In the group's statement, they single out Clear Channel Entertainment (the corporation that owns over 1,200 radio stations in the U.S., promotes DMB's tours and owns 93% of the venues that they headlined at in 2001) for "engaging in anti-competitive behavior" and encourage the FCC to "investigate whether an artist's choice to play or not to play in Clear Channel venues or to use or not to use Clear Channel's promotion company impacts the art's positions on or removal from Clear Channel playlists." ABC News has the story.