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Largest Payola Investigation Since 1960

The L.A. Times is reporting that the FCC is launching yet another probe into pay-for-play violations at radio stations around the U.S. There is part of me that is over joyed at the fact that something is finally being done, but I also have to hold my breath because there has been talk like this without any action before. Most of that has come from politicians and not the FCC, so I’m used to the hot air.

The FCC’s action comes amid New York Atty. Gen. Eliot Spitzer’s pay-for-play probe, launched in 2004, which has alleged wrongdoing by both music and radio companies. In February, Spitzer sued Entercom, alleging that high-ranking executives had implemented scams to trade cash for airplay of songs by such artists as Avril Lavigne, Liz Phair and Jessica Simpson.

Payola, plugola, or whatever you want to call it, these things happen every single day. Ever hear of record promoters? These are the players in the middle that skirt around those payola laws that resulted after Allen Freed went down for taking money to play music on his massively popular radio show in 1960. Continue reading “Largest Payola Investigation Since 1960”

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Off-Season Games

There’s a lot happening in the NHL that would stem to peak the interest of a lot of Canucks fans right now. It might be early to start thinking about making any moves until the Stanley Cup is all over with, but I can’t stop myself from wondering.

Quinn’s out of the job in Toronto. Leafs don’t make it to the playoffs, he can’t lead Canada to the medal rounds of the Torino Olympics, and the fearless leader took a nasty puck to the face early in the season. Pat hasn’t had the best year. Nonis has stepped forward to say that the GM is for sticking with Crawford, but it would be an interesting move to bring Quinn back to Vancouver. I can’t say I know all the history and stats, but if you are one of those Canucks fans screaming to have Crawford fired, then here’s a great replacement.

The other thing is that Keith Tkachuk’s contract is up with St. Louis. I have never cared for the guy, but exceptions can be made if a move were to be made to bring him to Vancouver. The Blues had an awful year, and Tkachuk’s numbers from this season are not the greatest. Look at the record St. Louis had this year; you would too. He might make an interesting addition as a forward if the Blues don’t come to an agreement with him first.

With all the talk about shaking up the team for next year, we are well off to the races for post-season transaction speculation without the playoffs even starting yet.

Update: Blues optioned up for Tkachuk.  Darn. 

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People Listen to the Radio More Than You Think

Who says no one listens to the radio anymore because we’re all listening to our iPods? That’s rubbish. People are listening to the radio a lot more than the industry thinks. We’re just not listening to broadcast radio. We’re piping iPods through the stereo using all sorts of neat little transmitters.

I have one. It works through my Powerbook via USB. It’s brilliant for music and listening to podcasts all throughout the apartment. I often wonder if anyone else is tuning in, but they’d have to hit the right frequency.

I can picture someone now, tuning into what they think is a pretty cool music station, only to have a podcast come up next in the playlist. This morning, I went from New Pornographers, to Aberdeen City, to a CNN news update, to a NPR news update, to the Onion Radio News, to the Daily Breakfast. That would completely throw off the unsuspecting.

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All You Need is a F2

I’m still getting reports trickling in from the homefront.

I’m going to give all the credit for these photos to the Iowa City Press Citizen. In fact, I still have some pals back there that took some of these shots. This is amazing stuff. I used to live right near some of these places.

[mygal=iowa_tornado_apr2006]

The Dairy Queen! It’s completely gone! It was probably one of the most ghetto, little ice cream stands in Iowa City, but when you wanted to get a frosty blizzard on the way back to the radio station, you didn’t care. The bugs would chew at your skin while you waited in line, but you waited until those folks inside peered at you through the window screen to ask you what you wanted. Continue reading “All You Need is a F2”

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Cut And Cover?

There is an interesting post about the Canada Line on Beyond Robson that feeds my hunger in terms of more information about the project. As with anything that is constructed in this magnitude, politics is always the story.

There is no doubt that additional SkyTrain service is going to be beneficial to the Vancouver area. I think we all agree that mass transit is a great benefit to any, major metropolitan city and its surrounding communities. What’s hard for everyone to agree upon is how it’s done, who will be responsible for it, and where the money will come from.

It is incredibly interesting that for a long time, the building of the underground portions of the Canada Line was going to be done by bored tunnel. Unless you were paying attention, the project has switched to a cut-and-cover operation, shutting down portions of Granville for approximately two years, starting at the end of April.

And you think that area was struggling for business before?

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San Thornton

Talk about a painful way of watching our hopes of making it to the playoffs come to an end. I’m not sure that it could have come in any better fashion, but the fact that there wasn’t a shootout allow my blood pressure to remain low and pants not be peed in.

Canucks lost tonight to Joe Thornton and his San Jose Sharks, Edmonton and Colorado get their places secured for the playoffs, and I’m left with an all too familiar feeling of waiting for next year.

I have to say thanks to Dave for part one and part two of the Canucks Outsider for helping me understand the history of what tonight led up to. It’s been a long time of fighting tooth and nail to get into that last playoff spot, only to not shine very brightly once the Canucks got there.

As a Cubs fan(that’s baseball), we know how this feels. I dare to make a comparison, but is that what being a Canucks fan is like? It won’t change my dedication either way. I’m all about next year.

However, there’s one last game to play on Saturday. I’m all about making that one a good party! That is, just as long as I don’t have to hear the name Joe Thornton during the broadcast a hundred times.

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Life Back In the Rolling Prairie

Got an IM from my brother tonight while watching the game.

Major storm damage in the Iowa City area. Anamosa got hit bad, as well, where they have called out the Red Cross… someone must have lost their home.

Iowa City Menards had a roof collapse. University Heights homes damaged. I’m sure more stories will come out by tomorrow morning.

Probably about four confirmed tornados since about 7:30ish.

It’s spring time in the midwest. A far cry from the constant rain that we’ve had in Vancouver all day long.

To tell you the truth, it’s kind of a rush. Big, rolling storms in the Iowa countryside. I kinda miss it.

Update: The Iowa City Press Citizen has a story about the big storm. Also check out their site for photos. You can also check out the Cedar Rapids Gazette Online for their coverage.

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Len & Bob’s Weekly Podcast

I am a Cubs fan. Pure, plain, and simple. Ever since I was wee, I’ve been a fan of the biggest losers in baseball. Say what you will, but I am what I am. There is very little you can do to change that.

What has me more excited is Len & Bob’s Weekly Podcast.

Every week, WGN Sports broadcasters Len Kasper and Bob Brenly will discuss the latest happenings about the Chicago Cubs.

Freaking sweet! We get WGN on digital cable here in Vancouver, but no Comcast SportsNet unless we upgrade to a dish. I always thought that WGN should have more games than Comcast, but that reigns more true now than before.

I did get a subscription to MLB.com’s gameday audio last season, the main reason being that my office at the radio station was horrible for getting any reception. Yes, I listened to another radio station to catch Cubs games, but you do what you have to do. Plus for the price, it’s pretty hard to beat.

MLB.com is a pretty great service, and there is large part of me that is really missing the sound of Ron Santo and Pat Hughes doing the games on radio. It’s always better to watch the games on TV and listen to Ron rip on the Cubs when the games get pretty awful.

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Ogopogo

Sign for sighting Ogopogo at the Gray Monk WineryIt’s no secret to people who know me that I have an affinity for the supernatural. There is this magical, magnetic draw that will suck me in things that seem so rediculous to some people that there is part of me that thinks there might be truth in the story somewhere.

Ogopogo is just that. This is a legend that has just recently come to my attention, and I find it to be fairly fascinating. A mythical creature that lives on the bottom of a lake. Dragon or serpent like, the legend has been around for hundreds of years. Now I will admit that I still don’t grasp the reality that I am living in Sasquatch country and the legacy of that myth, but that’s another topic for later.

I had heard Rebecca’s mom mention the name before we left, but I wasn’t sure what they were talking about until we set out on our wine adventure. That’s when I started getting more and more curious. Continue reading “Ogopogo”

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And Now For OT In Game 7

The Canucks needed to win last night.  It was considered game 7 of a playoff, but the game was over in the first period.  Now we head into sudden death overtime in the next three games, and it will not be easy.

Coming up, back to back games with San Jose, and then Edmonton.  Could we make this anymore of a nail bitter?  Yes, we can!  We’re going to need help in the forms of losses for Edmonton and Colorado.  Everything needs to slide into place for Vancouver to make the playoffs.

If we don’t, what happens next?  Crawford, Nausland, and Bertuzzi are names people keep talking about in very negative terms.  I’m not going to point any fingers now or later, but you have to think that something is going to happen.  The league has changed a lot this season.  Don’t be surprised when things shift in your own neighborhood.