When Grey's Anatomy became a must-watch television series, The Fray's "How To Save A Life" became an anthem.

Used during a key scene and later in commercials for the show, the song and band skyrocketed in popularity thanks to new fans of ABC's medical drama. With popular teenage melodramas cramming new music into their episodes, this song-and-television relationship has become a source of musical discovery.

Brian Zimmerman (senior-political science) said he no longer tunes into the time-honored format for popularizing music -- radio.

"There are no more DJs that play what they want to play," he said. "They put on what they are told is popular. You can't hear anything obscure anymore."

Brandon Peach, general manager of Penn State's student radio station The Lion 90.7 FM, said people may not be as inclined to listen to the top networks but they will listen to small local networks because it provides subjects that the audience can relate to.

"It depends on the scale," he said, adding that radio is still a reliable source for new music because it provides specific information to a specific audience.

For TJ Cornwall, singer and keyboard player for State College band Cloverleaf, there's no doubt about which format is better suited for a rise to fame.

"Radio is a lost cause," Cornwall said. Cloverleaf submitted themselves for a mtv-U Best Music on Campus contest in 2006 while still living in University Park dorms. As a result of their success in the contest -- they made it to the quarterfinals -- the band's music was chosen to be a part of the score for mtv-U's "2006 Woodie Awards." Recently, the piano-rock band has been working on a second CD.

Peach explained that TV is a popular music source because the audience members have a closer connection to an artist than they would have by just hearing that artist on the radio.

"You don't have to be a top-selling artist on the Billboard chart to be popular," Peach said.

Cornwall said he would recommend the TV route over radio for anyone trying to break into the mainstream, but added that budding rock stars should "look for every single outlet for breaking out."

C. Michael Elavsky, an associate professor in film-video and media studies, said production and distribution of music was once controlled by four or five major record labels. Now, he said, performers are finding more outlets and don't have to rely on labels.

Eric Shirke, a member of former State College band The Disconnect, said "music discovery on TV is a huge thing these days."

MTV asked The Disconnect for the rights to use the band's music on the station's shows.

"We signed a contract that gave them the rights to use the music on certain TV programs and in promotional material for the shows," Shirke explained about the experience. An MTV employee found the band on MySpace, which Shirke called "the ticket" for new artists that want to be discovered.

Letting your music be used for commercials or TV shows used to be considered "selling out," but it's no longer a bad thing, Elavsky said -- it is now the goal.

Many music consumers would never have heard of Canadian singer-songwriter Feist if not for the help of television, Elavsky said. Each time her hit single, "1234," comes on, he said, most listeners equate it with the popular iPod commercial.

In fact, Apple.com has a list compiled of all the songs used for iPod commercials for your downloading pleasures. Elavsky said this resource of discovery is not necessarily a good thing.

Instead of first-time musical experiences being linked to hearing a song on the radio while at a party or performing an everyday task, Elavsky said that, for many viewers, memories of musical discovery are now framed by the TV shows and commercials through which they are first hearing the tunes.

"I'll never forget the day I was studying in the HUB [Robeson Center] and I heard Explosions in the Sky ... I was like 'Where is this coming from?' " Shirke said. "It took me a minute to realize it was being used in a Cadillac commercial."

In an online video interview, Alex Patsavas, owner of music consulting firm Chop Shop Music Supervision, talked about the musical production unit for the new hit series on The CW's Gossip Girls. She explained that the team likes to employ a method known as the "Sode" in which they use one artist for the entire episode.

One of these lucky bands was The Virgins, which despite not having a label affiliation, had its entire EP album used for one of these episodes. Interest in the band exploded, Patsavas said, and now it's on tour with another band, Tokyo Police Club, promoted in Gossip Girl.

Elavsky said The Virgins are a classic example of how artists are exploring their own means of production, using not only the Internet but the realm of television as well.

Courtney Crowley (freshman-journalism) said she doesn't enjoy listening to the radio anymore because she feels like it is forcing her to listen to certain types of music. She turns to television shows like The Hills, The OC and One Tree Hill for her musical discovery.

"I downloaded the entire OC soundtrack after I watched the first season," Crowley said.

Old-fashioned music television still does its part, with VH1 and MTV promoting unknown and original bands in programs like You Oughta Know, which features "essential new artists." Crowley said when she watches shows like that she downloads "anything that catches [her] ear."

As for the radio, Peach said the future is in independent radio stations because they harvest a new audience and provide "local flavor."

Shirke disagreed.

"I don't know that radio's really viable anymore," he said. "Radio's so corporate for the most part. And they all play the same stuff. Who wants to break through on the radio anymore?"