Last week Media Guide [Media Monitor] changed a policy that once gave non-commercial, college stations free access to weekly airplay reports. Suddenly and without warning the free access that has been used for years as a baseline for 'spincount' is now denied. College radio is being put in a position where other will now know the true airplay a specific artist/title is getting at a station, but the programmers there, if it's a non-comm won't. Although a dollar figure to re-new access has yet not been named by Media Guide, it may have the effect of reducing music reporting to just a few titles [that can be kept track of with paper logs, in-house].
With the increasing national rank of the Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill Market, often a single stations reporting [or lack of it] can effect an artists position by several slots on industry charts. I feel this 'shut-out' of college radio may have the effect of shrinking the access of progressive/independent artists and denying every artist real credit for airplay they've earned.
With the increasing national rank of the Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill Market, often a single stations reporting [or lack of it] can effect an artists position by several slots on industry charts. I feel this 'shut-out' of college radio may have the effect of shrinking the access of progressive/independent artists and denying every artist real credit for airplay they've earned.