Bob Baker's The Buzz Factor

Hey, I wanted to share some good news. I was featured in a short radio piece today on Morning Edition, which is broadcast to more than 12 million people on 600 NPR stations across the U.S. and beyond.


You can listen to the three and a half minute segment here:
www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=11250011

It was about the recent FCC payola ruling (which I wrote about last week) and, more specifically, Clear Channel's new attempt to give more exposure to local and independent musicians. But the agreement they ask artists to make is raising a lot of questions.

Reporter Neda Ulaby used quotes from three people in this great piece, so she could only use sound bites from each of the interviews. While I take a "pro exposure" stance, don't think for a moment that I devalue the worth of an indie artist's music.

I don't think musicians should always give up everything or "play for free" just for the "exposure." You should read and be concerned about the legal agreements you enter into. But don't let these concerns scare you and keep you from taking advantage of true exposure opportunities.

I've found that a lot of independent musicians are overly paranoid about people -- and corporations -- stealing their stuff. But in reality, their biggest problem isn't copyright infringement. It's obscurity.

If Clear Channel (or any commercial radio station) is willing to give you airplay in an attempt to improve its image as a do-gooder, I think you should strongly consider it. As I mention in the NPR piece, the worse case scenario isn't really all that bad, in my opinion.

-Bob


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