I just read yet another article about the current Jack/Bob/Mike radio format explosion in North America. I've written about Jack before, a format that claims to "play what we want". In most of these articles, there's always some Jack FM PR guy who says it's just like listening to your iPod on shuffle.
Ok, whose iPod are we talking about here? It's certainly not my iPod (or iRiver as the case may be). Most of those tunes aren't on my iPod, in fact, they seem to be missing about 99% of the tunes I do have on my iPod. And besides, if someone wanted to listen to their iPod on shuffle, they could do just that, right?
In reality, this is a carefully selected mix of safe songs that are systematically aired in a seemingly random sequence that's anything but. It's not your iPod or my iPod, unless your iPod is full of Elton John hits, sappy Phil Collins tunes and a few "best of the 80s" compilations. Sure, once in a while they really go crazy by throwing an AC~DC tune or (gasp!) Bob Marley song in the mix, but it's still well orchestrated and not your iPod on shuffle.
That is all. I'm going back to my iRiver...on random.
