Quit Jacking With My Radio

On my way back from Orlando, Florida I discovered the "Jack Radio" format, which is no format at all. This "unformated" station had Black Sabbath next to, say, The Carpenters. The rough sounding DJ ("Jack") told us he had absolute power and would play whatever he wanted. I just hoped and prayed it wouldn't come to Houston and, if it did, it wouldn't show up on a station that I listened to.

I didn't pray hard enough. One of my favorite stations, Rock 103.7, was recently "jacked." It joined 20+ other stations who have moved to this approach in a desperate attempt to counter the growing influence of MP3 players. In essence, Jack plays the role of the "shuffle" you experience as the music changes.

It sounds good in theory, but in practice it is an audio nightmare. Why? It is really quite simple, I didn't get to choose the songs in the shuffle. If I put this eclectic selection together, it works. But if each selection is a surprise, it is terrible. In spite of what appears to be a rapid shift, I don't see Jack Radio working. People simply don't like it when others Jack with their radio.