Driving my kid to school today, I was shocked by the absence of DJ banter while listening to 92.5 (KZPS). The station is owned by Clear Channel so I figured they were testing the waters with something new.

Sure enough, at the end of the song, an even-toned voice said that the hour of “LoneStar 92.5″ was sponsored by Southwest Airlines. Checked it out on the Internet at the office and confirmed the format change.

It will be interesting to see how well this fares. Looks like Clear Channel is going to do sponsor product placement in this format…an audio version of what one sees done in the movies all the time. According to Andrew Adam Newman in a NYTimes.com article, the limited DJ talk will be promotional plugs conversational style for the corporate sponsors (presently AT&T, Coors, Guitar Center, and Southwest Airlines).

Although I wish this new venture the best, one has to wonder if technology is surpassing broadcast radio. Even those drivers who don’t listen to XM/Sirius are starting to carry commercial-free music libraries to listen to on automobile mp3 players.