plugola

plugola

An illicit payment made to have something promoted on TV or radio without being disclosed as a sponsorship. Let's see if they'll take a plugola to use our product in the movie. The station is being investigated for receiving plugolas from various companies over the past 15 years.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

plugola

(pləgˈolə)
n. a bribe paid to get a free advertising plug (worth far more than the amount of the bribe). The announcer was charged with accepting plugola.
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions
See also:
  • payola
  • stolen fruit is (the) sweetest
  • stolen fruit is sweet
  • stolen fruit is sweetest
  • stolen pleasures are (the) sweetest
  • line one's pockets, to
  • keep (one's) hands clean
  • get (something) out of (someone)
  • not put (something) past (one)
  • not put something past someone
References in periodicals archive
quiz and giveaway shows presented many opportunities for plugola:
deejay's patter about a recording become plugola? The Committee
variant, "plugola," can be used interchangeably but usually
provision dealing with the disclosure of payments--payola, plugola, and
payola and plugola. Deceptive Practices in Broadcasting, supra note 107,
(177.) Confusion on 'Plugola' Notice, BROADCASTING, Apr.
66; Industry Group Meets FCC on 'Plugola' Rules, BROADCASTING,
July 3, 1961, at 51; Plugola Extension, BROADCASTING, Aug.
Unmasking hidden commercials in broadcasting: origins of the sponsorship identification regulations, 1927-1963
But the unfettered, anything-goes plugola atmosphere is harder to sustain as Hollywood searches for subtle and creative ways to deal with the issue in a tougher atmosphere.
Pic promos face perplexing plight: fantasy fare daunts marketing partners
While many critics lamented the wall-to-wall plugola in "Minority Report," that film wasn't exactly a watershed.
Hollywood keeps plugging along. (Reel Life)