In recent days, I've been eating my meals with the same short wave radio station playing in the background. Say what you will about the station's monotony, but there's something comfortably predictable in a station with an all-time format. I hear the ticking of a clock, followed by a voice saying, "At the tone, 13 hours, 52 minutes, coordinated universal time." A beep then sounds, without fail, when the announced time strikes.
I've heard that some radical listeners have attempted to throw a spanner in the works by sneaking incorrect times and wind chimes into the mix. That won't do, of course. People, alas, usually want to hear the hits--and that's especially true with an all-time format. If ever there were a station in which the format has to be followed to the letter...
