Detroit radio hosts protest pay-to-play fee
Popular radio personalities Reggie Reg of Hot 102.7, Mildred Gaddis of Mildred in the Morning on AM 1200 and Spike of Channel 9-5-5′s Mojo in the Morning were among 200 people protesting a fee today that would make radio stations pay performers for the right to play their songs on the air.
The House Judiciary Committee, led by Chairman John Conyers, D-Detroit, passed the Performance Rights Act today, moving it on to a vote in the House.
The Detroit News, May 13: About 200 marchers joined local radio hosts Mildred Gaddis and Reggie Reg outside of Conyer’s office in Detroit, chanting, “No to the bill on the hill,” and, “Save black radio,” as supporters honked as they passed. Branding the new fee a “tax,” many critics argued it could destroy small broadcasters, including minority and women-owned stations that provide valuable diversity on the airwaves.
“This is crucial; this is critical,” Gaddis, host at WCHB-AM (1200), said. “(Conyers) is generally 95 percent of the time on the right side. He’s on the wrong side on this one.”
