I've been getting my radio music from the Internet for a few months now. I've been going to iHeartMusic.com, though I gather there are other sites. There's nothing earth-shaking about it, I live near enough to Chicago that I have no problem finding as many stations with different formats as I want. But there is a convenience in having it right on the computer instead of having to go in the other room and find a new station when I tire of the one I'm on (or when a Katy Perry song comes on).
Even within formats, there seem to be slight regional differences in the playlists between, say, Austin and Anchorage, but I haven't chronicled exactly how. But the major difference to me comes between songs. If I'm listening to a Chicago station, and a weather or traffic report comes on, I tend to pay attention. Even if I'm not going out in the near future, I still listen. If I hear about an accident on 294, I have a slightly higher level of concern, because I know where it happened.
But I can blow by all that when listening to Akron. The weather means nothing to me, traffic tie-ups exist on roads I've never heard of. Commercials are played for stores I'll never visit on streets I'll never drive, and, somehow, that's all strangely relaxing. I can just let the noise wash over me and concentrate on what I'm doing in a way that's hard to do when I'm getting local information. Not the most profound thought for a Sunday, just a personal experience.
Even within formats, there seem to be slight regional differences in the playlists between, say, Austin and Anchorage, but I haven't chronicled exactly how. But the major difference to me comes between songs. If I'm listening to a Chicago station, and a weather or traffic report comes on, I tend to pay attention. Even if I'm not going out in the near future, I still listen. If I hear about an accident on 294, I have a slightly higher level of concern, because I know where it happened.
But I can blow by all that when listening to Akron. The weather means nothing to me, traffic tie-ups exist on roads I've never heard of. Commercials are played for stores I'll never visit on streets I'll never drive, and, somehow, that's all strangely relaxing. I can just let the noise wash over me and concentrate on what I'm doing in a way that's hard to do when I'm getting local information. Not the most profound thought for a Sunday, just a personal experience.
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