Jammin’ with Jelli

Traditional radio will never be the same. On June 28, CBS Radio is launching a 100 percent user-controlled radio program on KITS-FM, out of San Francisco. Listeners will be able to take over the airwaves via a web service called Jelli, whose motto is “No Suits. No DJs. No Kidding.”

Every song that airs on the station between 10 p.m. and midnight on Sundays will have been chosen and voted upon by listeners. Anything goes, as long as enough people agree. Not only can you vote for your favorite song to be played on the air, but you can also vote for a song to be taken off the air. All this happens in real time.

What will this mean for the radio station’s ratings? With the format fluctuating from country to rap to adult contemporary, will the station be able to keep a loyal audience? Will people enjoy listening to Eminem, followed by Miley Cyrus, followed by Lyle Lovett? (Granted, Lyle Lovett probably would not make it on Jelli’s playlist, but that’s another story).

It’s an interesting experiment that may shed light on listener profiles, but personally, I would rather use Pandora or Slacker, which allow you to customize your own personal radio station on the web. These services allow you to expand your horizons without having to endure formats that are on the opposite end of your own musical spectrum. Radio would truly be revolutionized if we could figure out how to transfer these custom stations to live radio.

--Tessa G.