Commuters in certain stretches of Boston’s subway system will now be subject to music, weather chatter, and eight to ten minutes of commercials an hour–whether they like it or not–via T-Radio, which began broadcasting in three stations in the city’s mass-transit system yesterday. The transit authority says the station will play “music to appeal to Boston’s multi-cultural T-rider demographics,” which apparently equals “top 40, Motown, classic rock, [and] Latin pop,” according to the Boston Globe. (Also Red Sox games, although you probably figured as much.) Anyway, the MBTA is claiming that T-Radio’s Jack-FMy blend of music and banter (which will be, as if it needs to be said, pretty much hard-news-free) will “break up the humdrum experience” of waiting for a train, although I suspect that it’ll result more in people buying headphones and portable-media players so they can shut out the 7,958th 6:30 a.m. play of “Sweet Caroline.” But whatever’s good for the local economy, right?
T gives music a test run [Boston Globe]
That’s wicked retahded.
I think the odds are good that within three years, they’ll just replace all of the music with revenue-producing ads.
The combination of hobo-piss and “Hotel California” is the perfect way to get your day off to a shit start. As if the citizens of Boston weren’t a bunch of cranky SOBs to begin with…
Meh, granted I have no particular love for a 6:30am “Life in the Fast Lane” but maybe it will drown out that godawful accent. Choose your poison: “Screw Gay-Rod, go sawx!” or “Living on a Prayer.”
In other news Bose noise-canceling headphones sales up 40% in New England…
Dear MBTA,
You know what would be an awesome, easy-listening format? All sports
call-in shows, all the time. Boston fans are both rational and
well-spoken.
Sincerely,
Lucifer
PS BECKETT PWNS SABATHIA! EFF YOU JD DREW!
It’s perhaps the worst way to commute home from your already unfulfilling job at 6PM. It’s loud enough to hear over the weak Apple earbuds (now I have a real reason to upgrade!). It was in fact mainly ads and talk, and I have a hard time believing that this improves their post 9/11 alert/announcement system at all, seeing as most of us were just trying to ignore the chatter the way we generally avoid eye contact.
Sigh, Boston. Nevertheless, yay Sox. Or something.
@dickdogfood: actually, T-Radio is already about 70% ads.
A pretty extensive “feedback”-writing campaign has already begun (not that it’ll do much good, since the MBTA already willfully ignores anything its ridership cares about).
They already do this on both the subway and buses in Atlanta. And it sucks.