New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer has been going after the underground, illegal payola practices of record labels and radio stations; the first target to crumble is Sony BMG. The company settled all charges for 10-million dollars. According to this report, payola was rampant, and Sony executives were fully aware of it. The company broke federal law, essentially lied to its customers, participated wholeheartedly in the corrupt whoring of the airwaves, and attempted to cover up its activities. Sony's response to this scandal? "SONY BMG looks forward to defining a new, higher standard in radio promotion." Shove it hard, Sony. How can the majors continue taking the high moral road in their anti-P2P rhetoric? Spitzer claims that payola is utterly pervasive, thoroughly corrosive, and is "driving the industry." If half of that is true, how can the labels possibly plead any righteous case to the media? Yet they have the damnable audacity to express outrage over file-sharing. Their execrable hypocrisy and arrogance should be shouted from the rooftops.

Actually, though, it seems to me that radio takes the bigger hit. Not only do station employees lose their perks as Spitzer's crusade rolls along (he is continuing to pursue other major labels), but the radio stations have arguably betrayed consumer trust even more than the labels. It is the stations that have auctioned air time to the highest, sleaziest bidder. This LA Times piece reports on a radio programming director who accepted a plasma TV in exchange for putting Jennifer Lopez's albuym on the air, using a fictitious giveaway contest to cover the payoff. Where is that program director, and others like her, in this settlement? Another station manager is documented as saying: "I'm a whore this week. What can I say?"

Spitzer is involving the FCC in this, so there's reason to expect more retribution. The Commissioner, Jonathan S. Adelstein, has launched an inquiry that could result in radio licenses being revoked. However, Adelstein also wimps out with this quoted statement: "If it turns out there is massive and widespread violation of the rules, I don't see how we can't take extreme actions against the guilty licensees." Why, because the entire industry would topple? Well, do it! I challenge anyone to suggest one categorical benefit to society provided by the depraved cartel of major labels and consolidated broadcasters. The FCC has been shamedly timid in investigating payloa, and should be mortified that Spitzer has to do its work, and has uncovered mountains of easily obtained evidence. In fact, let's take out the FCC while we're at it.

VP for Promotion at Epic Records is fired