Payola and the Radio : Scandal on the airwaves Payola is defined as paying (record label) money or gifts for airway. This money was given to the DJ’s as a bribe so songs could be played more and could become hits quicker. Starting during the 50’s, payola became a major problem in the radio industry. The only problem was that it was hard to really prove that money or gifts had been actually exchanged. The Federal Communication Commission (FCC) and the Federal Trade Commission held a series of investigations starting in the 50’s through the 70’s. One of the main targets of the investigations was radio personality Alan Freed, who was the top DJ of the time. Freed was famous for coining the term “Rock and Roll”. When he was at WINS in New York during 1960, his career was all but ruined when he was found guilty on charges of commercial bribery. While early investigations focused on the disc jockeys, the investigations of the 70’s went after record companies. It was called “Project Sound” and it involved the U.S. Attorney’s office of Newark, NJ investigating CBS Records for bribery allegations. At the end of the investigation, 19 people had been indicted but no one was actually sent to jail. The allegations and investigations would continue throughout the 70’s. After that the investigations started to end and payola wasn’t seen as a threat to the FCC as it once was. Payola continues to run through the radio industry but, like earlier stated, it is hard to find solid evidence to prosecute the guilty parties.
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