Now, a cynic might say that New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer needs to keep his high profile attack on payola in the news for a few more months because it's proving good for boosting his own profile in the lead up to his bid to become Governor Of New York later this year. But we have no time for cynics here. We don't even let them through the door.
Either way, Mr Spitzer has confirmed he is continuing with his investigations into so called 'payola' in the US music radio sector. As previously reported, the Attorney General has been looking into allegations that record labels, or their agents, bribe their way onto radio playlists. Most effort so far has been focused on the music companies. Both SonyBMG and Warner Music admitted last year that some of their promotions staff had used payola-esque techniques to secure radio play in the US. They both pledged to stop such activities from continuing, and to pay fines for past contravention of payola rules.
With rumours that other record labels are to make similar admissions in the coming months, Spitzer is now seemingly turning his focus to the radio stations where executives are accused of accepting the bribes. The Attorney General has already subpoenaed internal correspondence from many of the major players in US Radio, but further demands have reportedly been made on the likes of Clear Channel Radio, Infinity Broadcasting, Cox Radio, and Cumulus Broadcasting.
The new focus on the radio sector may be a sign that Spitzer has become frustrated with the seeming failure of US media regulator the FCC to tackle payola, despite announcing its intention to investigate bribery accusations after the Attorney General's office started to report its findings last year.
The new investigations are likely to focus on the ways that certain specific songs found their way on various stations' playlists. It's not clear yet which songs will be investigated, but Spitzer told the New York Post this week: "A lot of the major songs have been implicated in this, and it showed how pervasive the payola infrastructure had become."