Bruce-

I really like what you have to say here about radio giving time to local bands. I think that people who spend most of their time thinking about music - or at least those in my demographic - tend to be internet-centric and were brought up in a time when radio was nearly as uninteresting as it is now. Uninteresting, but not irrelevant. And I think that music hipsters tend to understimate the power of broadcast radio, at least for now.

I like the idea of the legal local airtime mandate, but it does strike me as a bit French (or at least, as you say, Canadian). It's a solution, but I wonder if you don't lose as much in terms of relationships with the radio stations and DJs as you gain in terms of new listeners. We've been pleasantly surprised by local radio's support of the PDX Pop Now! comps in the past years, and I do think that major stations (e.g. 94.7) have begun to turn a bit more towards local music. In part, I think it's because most people are responsive to the idea of local culture here in Portland, even if they aren't acquainted with it yet.

I guess all I'm getting at, is I wonder if there aren't more interactive and cooperative ways of achieving the goal of more local music on the radio than legislating it. Of course, I don't think centralized programming ala Clear Channel leaves much room for this, but it seems to me the implication then is that we should do everything in our power to keep stations here in Portland locally programmed and, ideally, locally owned. This is definitely a factor in the amount of airtime that local music gets.

How has the Canadian mandate worked out? Do the stations and DJs harbor animosity about it? Are they supportive? In America, could this kind of thing be legislated regionally, like you talk about, or would it have to be a federal deal, what with airwaves and all? Maybe an incentives program for stations playing local music, rather than something punitive?

Anyhow, kudos for bringing this point up. Definitely interesting.