Posted on 07/03/2004 6:11:22 PM PDT by ovrtaxt
My sentiments exactly, pick. Oh for the days before syndication, when every single station on the dial had its own individual and distinctive personality. The problems started with the Top 40 concept, which limited playlists, and grew increasingly worse to the point that no DJ above the college station level has any say on what they can play. I have hoped for years that at some point the public would rebel against this restrictive policy, and satellite radio offers our chance.
You're right on that one, Bosco, I don't recall much in the way of traditional European music on either XM or Sirius. As one who also likes certain kinds of music that are well off the charts, I sympathize, and understand there is a point where CDs are the only solution.
The broadcasters, like the recording industry better wise up. People do not want to listen to the homogenized no talent pap played on top 40 radio and will willingly seek other alternatives. Does anyone seriously want to listen to Madonna's latest trash or Britanny's no talent bubblegum pop or howling DJ's with mindless contests and trash talk?
I have had Sirius for about 4 months and love it. I'm in my car from 3-8 hours a day and have Fox News, cnn, bbc, etc.,local weather/traffic and any kind of music you want to hear. Now I can leave the house in the morning when something big is happening in the news and pick it up in the car without missing anything. I can't get Rush, but I can catch Laura Ingraham on delay on the TalkRight channel, as well as other talk radio shows. I can tune to Rush on my local A.M. station, so all is right with the world. (excuse the pun) I highly recommend it.
These Clearchannel stations clog the air waves with zero-depth. ex-DJ nitwit, talk show hosts like Sean Hannity and Glenn Beck. What ever happened to local talk shows?
KFI640 (Los Angeles) -- they bcst Rish and Dr. Laura, other than that pretty much 100% local -- and funny and very, very good.
I've had XM radio for almost 2 years now and I can't live without it. The morning FM radio in my area is all fluff-talk with maybe 2 or 3 songs an hour! And half the talk is syndicated! XM is continuous music - no DJ or commercials. THey also carry the audio feed from Fox News. It was great to hear O'Reilly and H&C when I was in Canada where no-one knew who they were (except now I have the reputation of being a right wing nut for listening to Fox). THe local broadcasters are now running commercials about how many people dropped satellite radio becasue the FM and AM was better. To me, this is a sound of desperation for the traditional broadcasters.
We have a local morning talk show. Real guests too. And, of course, the loser Congressmen that we have.
The local CC talkstation (AM/FM pair) has Imus.
I like shortwave. Lots of variety, but mostly limited in broadcast times, and you do have to sort through all the faux
religious broadcasts, bad "world music", etc.
I've had XM for 3 years and have it in the house and 3 cars for $15 a month AND it has FOX News Channel live, so if you're on the road, you don't have to miss your regular programs. You can listen to one station from coast to coast if you like.
Trust me. It's worth it. Go talk to anyone who's got it. They'll tell you the same.
I had a chance to drive a couple days with XM equipped vehicles. Awesome in LA traffic!!! It was amazing!
Regular FM radio is pretty much totally unlistenable for me. I love XM.
Another bonus - the right wing talk radio station they have now, has Laura Ingram, who wasn't available on any of the local broadcast stations.
I'd rather listen to silence, than pay for radio....
I'm big on talk radio and sports. Does the XM provide these channels?
I remember being a kid, hearing the DJ say something like 'the new such-and-such album hit the stores today-- here's side 2.' After it was over, they would play a block of commercials.
Remember the king biscuit flour hour? GREAT live music! sigh...
I almost exclusively listen to AM these days, but even then, the commercials get overwhelming. Plus, in Tampa, we only really have 2 news/talk channels. the 3 to 6 pm slots are a total wasteland on both, so I actually end up listening to sports talk.
If it's anything like the digital music on my cable service, I will probably get it soon.
Thanks for the input. Thats one of my concerns, the availability of talk radio. I see listings like BBC radio or CNN and oh, please. That's the last thing I want to subject myself to. But if they have real, live call-in talk radio, with good hosts, that's a different story. Seems to me XM and Sirius could both benefit from at least one dedicated channel for talk radio only.
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