Oct 31, 2001 06:59 PM
6033 Views
(Updated Oct 31, 2001 07:10 PM)
Radio in New York City is as unadventurous as sex in the family position. Rigid music formats, endless commercials, and the same songs played day in and day out, the daily playlists generated by computer, rather than by humans. Oh sure, there are “live” DJ’s, but they are as rare as peace in Jammu-Kashmir. About the only thing one can hope for in radio is the next round of station mergers, and buyouts.
Everything is done in the name of marketing, whoever has the ear of the listener will sell the product. Who cares about the programming? It is just filler in between the commercials. Where else, but on the air, can you hear the same damn song 12 or more times a day? If 12+ times is needed to keep the listener enthralled, then by all means, do it, but don’t count me in as a listener, I actually prefer some adventure, and want to hear something new.
It is perhaps refreshing to know that there are some stations in America interesting enough to listen, and warrant mention. One of them is WFMU, on 91.5FM. This station is based in East Orange, NJ, near New York City, and can be heard, just barely, in parts of Manhattan, but not the rest of the city because of the weak transmitter it has. WFMU is noncommercial, and freeform meaning plays whatever it wants. Many Europeans take freeform radio for granted, not here in America; it is a rarity.
The DJs have their own shows, and one can hear anything from world music to heavy metal, to Indian ragas, even old wax cylinders made by Thomas Edison. WFMU’s website, https://wfmu.org is not only and nicely done, but informative, with show descriptions, and a link to listen live over the net.
I should also mention another excellent website, and that is the NYC Radio/Web Dial. This website features a comprehensive listing of radio stations that can be heard in New York City with links to station websites and links to live broadcasts over the net. The website is https://geocities.com/synergy_two/radioguide/zradio4.html
