More proof "public airwaves" are totally screwed

Radio stations have found a new and completely slimy "legal" payola scheme. Stations are accepting cash in exchange for playing records by artists such as Avril Lavigne, Sheryl Crow, Black Eyed Peas and A Perfect Circle, by playing their songs as "advertisements."

According to this Houston Chronicle article, "the practice is legal as long as the station makes an on-air disclosure of the label's sponsorship - typically with an introduction such as "And now, Avril Lavigne's Don't Tell Me, presented by Arista Records."

That's how Lavigne's song "Don't Tell Me" aired 109 times in on week on WQZQ in Nashville and ended up on Billboard magazine's top 10 national pop radio chart (...more)

Thanks to slashdot's music section for bringing this to my attention.