Got a blog tip? Contact us

« Documentary films and fair use | Main | More Postcards from Hawaii »

Clear Channel: truth in broadcasting?

You've got to love Clear Channel. Ever the trend-setter, the company has started selling naming rights to the newsrooms of some of its radio stations. Come January, listeners of WIBA-AM in Madison, Wisc., will begin hearing reports from the Amcore Bank News Center, while WISN-AM in Milwaukee offers reports from the PyraMax Bank News Center (and has, in fact, for the past two years).

With corporations sponsoring everything from city parks to school gymnasiums these days, this move should come as no surprise. But I don't know whether to blast Clear Channel or thank them. I mean, hey, as long as you're going to sell out your newsroom you might as well be upfront about it. And when it comes to shameless grabs for cash, I much prefer this to launching bogus pirate radio stations and pretending to have local DJs.

(Via Center for Media & Democracy)