payola

(pā ō)

noun

  1. the practice of paying bribes or graft for commercial advantage or special favors, as to a disc jockey for unfairly promoting one recording over others
  2. this kind of bribe or graft

Origin: pay + -ola, as in Pianola (trademark for a player piano) > Tin Pan Alley pianola, slang term for the music business

See payola in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun
  1. Bribery of an influential person in exchange for the promotion of a product or service, such that of disc jockeys for the promotion of records.
  2. A bribe or a number of bribes given to an influential person in exchange for a promotion of a product or service: “I do not mean to imply that most Wall Street analysts typically receive payola for touting particular stocks” (Burton G. Malkiel).

Origin:

Origin: Probably pay(off)

Origin: + -ola, suff.; see crapola

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