Skip to content
quotesby

I don't listen to anything on the radio but NPR and occasional oldies programs. I can't comment on the content or format of most commercial radio but I have read the statistics about the step-by-step deregulation of FCC rules that has allowed monopolies like Clear Channel to buy up massive shares of the airwaves. This has damaged our business (music) and our culture (American). The internet is offering bold alternatives but a transistor radio is only $25.00 and not everyone is hooked up through a computer and high speed connection.

Natalie Merchant#56

MediaAccessCultureEqualityInternetRadio

About this quote

What does it mean?
The speaker critiques radio monopolies and notes that access to the internet is not universal.
In plain terms
Radio rules hurt music culture and not everyone has internet access.
What can you take from it?
Media monopolies harm culture and access is unequal.

Where it applies

  • media criticism
  • tech access
  • policy

Putting it to work

  • supporting local radio
  • advocating for net neutrality
  • using offline resources

Questions to consider

  • Is internet access a privilege?
  • Who controls what you hear?

Another view

It overlooks that radio remains a vital resource in some areas.

More from Natalie Merchant

  1. After spending nearly 20 years contracted to a major label, I have mixed feelings about their demise. These companies have profited immensely from your insatia…

    Permalink to quote #55
  2. I don't want to overdo discussing my experience of motherhood, its too private and profound to parade around. I will say that carrying a child, giving birth to…

    Permalink to quote #57
  3. It's pretty obvious to everyone that the revolution has happened. The People can now easily cut out a hoard of middlemen (record companies, radio stations, mus…

    Permalink to quote #54

Related quotes

  1. A lack of a workable means of cultural consumption has killed off the Internet boom and lost AOL Time Warner $54 billion dollars in just one quarter. It's a bi…

    Bruce SterlingBruce Sterling quote #4
  2. ...after all we don't want the radio star to kill video.

    Katie MeluaKatie Melua quote #15
  3. The common stock of intellectual enjoyment should not be difficult of access because of the economic position of him who would approach it.

    Jane AddamsJane Addams quote #18