Cenorship
Do Americans want their thoughts and feelings being suppressed? These are feelings felt with music censorship. Censorship of music is the practice of restricting free access to musical works. This censorship may come from a wide variety of motivations, including moral, political or religious reasons. . Censorship is against the First Amendment’s right of free speech. Censorship is controlled by the Federal Communications Commissions by radio, television, wire, satellite and cable in all 50 states (What We Do). The FCC controls censorship of all kind, they censor obscene, indecent, and profane broadcasts (What We Do). For example, Jason Derulo’s current hit single “ Talk Dirty” has many lyrics that require censoring on the radio. Another example of censorship at it’s “best” is Hip-Hop artist YG’s hit single “My Nigga” has many lyrics that require censoring on the radio. The Audio Division of the Media Bureau licenses all AM,FM radio stations. Legal analysis of broadcast, technical, and engineering radio filings and recommends appropriate disposition of applications, requests for waivers, and other pleadings are provided by this Division (Audio Division). The Media Bureau develops, recommends and administers the policy and licensing programs relating to electronic media, including cable television, broadcast television, and radio in the United States and its territories. The Media Bureau also handles post-licensing matters regarding Direct Broadcast Satellite service(Office of the Bureau Chief). Three points against censorship are: the freedoms guaranteed in the First Amendment, it limits the artist’s creativity, and the vulgarity of music is not as bad to some people as it might be to others.Censorship is taking away our right to freedom of speech by limiting what an artist can say on a single or a recorded album. Since the dawn of rock 'n' roll, radio stations, TV networks and even entire countries have sought to silence controversial musicians by making their music, videos, and, in some cases, the artists themselves less accessible to the public (Banned Music).
Censorship takes away an artist’s creativity. Given its ability to inspire and unite people, music can be a positive and get people involved in their communities or it can be a threat to governments and religious groups.
"M.I.A., is no stranger to censorship. In 2007, her hit single "Paper Planes" was censored by MTV and "Late Night With Dave Letterman" due to its use of gunshots in the rhythm track. (In fact, the song itself is a response to the U.S. government denying her a visa in 2006). So she couldn't have been too surprised when the video for her 2010 single "Born Free" -- which showed red-headed youth being round up and brutally murdered -- was initially rejected by Youtube due to its violent content. Maya was not to worry; fueled by the controversy, the video spread across the Internet like wildfire" (Banned Music M.I.A).
"In the late '30s, American jazz legend Billie Holiday took a poem by Abe Meeropol, which was inspired by the author's horror over lynching of two African-American men, and set the words to music. Holiday was forced to release "Strange Fruit" on a specialty label, as her main record company refused to allow her to record it. The social and political context of the song ignited a firestorm of controversy, and U.S. radio refused to touch it. Still, the song became the singer's biggest hit and was even added to the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress in 2002"(Banned Music).
"They're often cited as the greatest band of all time, but not even the Beatles were impervious to the power of the BBC. Back in 1967, the Far Four were banned from British radio not once, but twice! Both "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" and "A Day in the Life" from their genre-defining 'Sgt. Pepper's' album were forbidden airply, as they were thought to encourage drug use" (Banned Music).
"Original British punks the Sex Pistols weren't afraid of anyone -- and that included Her Royal Highness. In 1977, the band released "God Save the Queen," which called out the "Fascist regime" of the British government. The song was quickly denied airplay on the BBC, but still became one of the Pistols' biggest hits, peaking at number two on the charts. It is speculated that the group did actually have the best-selling single the week of its release, but the powers that be fixed the charts to keep them out of the top slot -- which seems royally unfair "(Banned music).
In many countries, musicians have been tortured and killed in an effort to silence their words (Polter). “When a government or powerful religious or ethnic group tries to turn off the music, the stakes are high” (Polter).
Censorship can stifle the artist. “‘Music is a mirror and hip-hop is a reflection of the environment we grew up in, the harsh realities,’ said hip-hop artist 50 cent‘ If I ask you to paint a picture of the American flag and not use the color red, you’d have a difficult time’”. Music can be a powerful tool. Music can control people not literally but mentally. For example, certain songs can affect some people’s emotions. Evidence of this is found in society today. If a high school teenager was at a house party people would be playing loud, upbeat music to keep people dancing rather than Beethoven’s symphony 5. America is not the only country fighting against censorship. In fact, in Somalia “the government’s argument is that music only distracts from prayer and destroys Islamic beliefs; however, music always has allowed people to express themselves creatively. Banning music strips people of their individuality and their right to self-expression” (Saxton). In the last 40 years many newspapers have been shut down, journalists have been imprisoned and media stations smothered beneath stifling government control. Now musicians are fleeing the country for fear of being beaten, imprisoned or killed for their art (Saxton).Taking away music is part of American culture. Censoring music makes it hard for artists to effectively tell their stories of how they grew up and what they saw around them.
Individuals have different taste when it comes to music. For example, a teenager probably would not mind the vulgarity in a song by hip-hop artist Meek Mill versus a 75 year-old woman. We should aim to change hearts and minds, rather than laws. The music industry is more influential than anything that happens in Washington, which is why the responsibility of censorship falls upon the parents not the government. As parents they should be able to teach their kids right from wrong and be able to show them which music they think is appropriate for them to listen to. “Everybody has to make those decisions according to their own family values and how they want to teach their children” Gore told NPR’s Robert Siegel (Siegel).
The cons of censorship outweigh the pros overall. People will try to make a case that censorship is good since a lot of the music being censored is derogatory. They will also state that today’s music has lost a lot of its taste and it’s impressionable on children. These are all good reasons to censor music, but the long term effects of this could be dangerous. As a human race we do not have a good history of dealing with power. We could start out with only censoring music, but in fifty to sixty years censorship could grow to all aspects of life. An example of a negative effect of censorship is Adolf Hitler and the banning of Jewish books. Hitler used censorship as the first step into brainwashing people to believe that Jews were the source of their problems. That event arises the question that how far is too far when it comes to censorship?
The solution or compromise in the case of censorship starts with the radios. On the radio everything is completely censored, but the derogatory meaning in songs are audible to the public ear, this creates two problems. The first problem is that the parent trying to keep their child’s ears “clean” can not do so. The second problem is that the artist struggles to get their message across to the public. The solution to this problem is to have an uncensored station on the radio. That way the people have an option on what they decide to listen instead of forcing them into censorship. This is one way that we can give the people the power again.
Many pros and cons are to censorship but three main points of con censorship are: the First Amendment, it limits the artist’s creativity, and listeners have different taste. The most evident issue with censorship is that it violates our rights guaranteed in the first amendment. Censorship takes away an artist ability to depict their story effectively. Censoring music could lead to protests and riots. For example, in Somalia people are being killed, tortured and abused, all because of music. Music has been nationally based subject for a while on censorship. But no one really knows what is good. Overall the idea of censorship is a bad one. It could set off a chain of reactions in the future which could lead to censorship in all aspects of our lives
Do Americans want their thoughts and feelings being suppressed? These are feelings felt with music censorship. Censorship of music is the practice of restricting free access to musical works. This censorship may come from a wide variety of motivations, including moral, political or religious reasons. . Censorship is against the First Amendment’s right of free speech. Censorship is controlled by the Federal Communications Commissions by radio, television, wire, satellite and cable in all 50 states (What We Do). The FCC controls censorship of all kind, they censor obscene, indecent, and profane broadcasts (What We Do). For example, Jason Derulo’s current hit single “ Talk Dirty” has many lyrics that require censoring on the radio. Another example of censorship at it’s “best” is Hip-Hop artist YG’s hit single “My Nigga” has many lyrics that require censoring on the radio. The Audio Division of the Media Bureau licenses all AM,FM radio stations. Legal analysis of broadcast, technical, and engineering radio filings and recommends appropriate disposition of applications, requests for waivers, and other pleadings are provided by this Division (Audio Division). The Media Bureau develops, recommends and administers the policy and licensing programs relating to electronic media, including cable television, broadcast television, and radio in the United States and its territories. The Media Bureau also handles post-licensing matters regarding Direct Broadcast Satellite service(Office of the Bureau Chief). Three points against censorship are: the freedoms guaranteed in the First Amendment, it limits the artist’s creativity, and the vulgarity of music is not as bad to some people as it might be to others.Censorship is taking away our right to freedom of speech by limiting what an artist can say on a single or a recorded album. Since the dawn of rock 'n' roll, radio stations, TV networks and even entire countries have sought to silence controversial musicians by making their music, videos, and, in some cases, the artists themselves less accessible to the public (Banned Music).
Censorship takes away an artist’s creativity. Given its ability to inspire and unite people, music can be a positive and get people involved in their communities or it can be a threat to governments and religious groups.
"M.I.A., is no stranger to censorship. In 2007, her hit single "Paper Planes" was censored by MTV and "Late Night With Dave Letterman" due to its use of gunshots in the rhythm track. (In fact, the song itself is a response to the U.S. government denying her a visa in 2006). So she couldn't have been too surprised when the video for her 2010 single "Born Free" -- which showed red-headed youth being round up and brutally murdered -- was initially rejected by Youtube due to its violent content. Maya was not to worry; fueled by the controversy, the video spread across the Internet like wildfire" (Banned Music M.I.A).
"In the late '30s, American jazz legend Billie Holiday took a poem by Abe Meeropol, which was inspired by the author's horror over lynching of two African-American men, and set the words to music. Holiday was forced to release "Strange Fruit" on a specialty label, as her main record company refused to allow her to record it. The social and political context of the song ignited a firestorm of controversy, and U.S. radio refused to touch it. Still, the song became the singer's biggest hit and was even added to the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress in 2002"(Banned Music).
"They're often cited as the greatest band of all time, but not even the Beatles were impervious to the power of the BBC. Back in 1967, the Far Four were banned from British radio not once, but twice! Both "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" and "A Day in the Life" from their genre-defining 'Sgt. Pepper's' album were forbidden airply, as they were thought to encourage drug use" (Banned Music).
"Original British punks the Sex Pistols weren't afraid of anyone -- and that included Her Royal Highness. In 1977, the band released "God Save the Queen," which called out the "Fascist regime" of the British government. The song was quickly denied airplay on the BBC, but still became one of the Pistols' biggest hits, peaking at number two on the charts. It is speculated that the group did actually have the best-selling single the week of its release, but the powers that be fixed the charts to keep them out of the top slot -- which seems royally unfair "(Banned music).
In many countries, musicians have been tortured and killed in an effort to silence their words (Polter). “When a government or powerful religious or ethnic group tries to turn off the music, the stakes are high” (Polter).
Censorship can stifle the artist. “‘Music is a mirror and hip-hop is a reflection of the environment we grew up in, the harsh realities,’ said hip-hop artist 50 cent‘ If I ask you to paint a picture of the American flag and not use the color red, you’d have a difficult time’”. Music can be a powerful tool. Music can control people not literally but mentally. For example, certain songs can affect some people’s emotions. Evidence of this is found in society today. If a high school teenager was at a house party people would be playing loud, upbeat music to keep people dancing rather than Beethoven’s symphony 5. America is not the only country fighting against censorship. In fact, in Somalia “the government’s argument is that music only distracts from prayer and destroys Islamic beliefs; however, music always has allowed people to express themselves creatively. Banning music strips people of their individuality and their right to self-expression” (Saxton). In the last 40 years many newspapers have been shut down, journalists have been imprisoned and media stations smothered beneath stifling government control. Now musicians are fleeing the country for fear of being beaten, imprisoned or killed for their art (Saxton).Taking away music is part of American culture. Censoring music makes it hard for artists to effectively tell their stories of how they grew up and what they saw around them.
Individuals have different taste when it comes to music. For example, a teenager probably would not mind the vulgarity in a song by hip-hop artist Meek Mill versus a 75 year-old woman. We should aim to change hearts and minds, rather than laws. The music industry is more influential than anything that happens in Washington, which is why the responsibility of censorship falls upon the parents not the government. As parents they should be able to teach their kids right from wrong and be able to show them which music they think is appropriate for them to listen to. “Everybody has to make those decisions according to their own family values and how they want to teach their children” Gore told NPR’s Robert Siegel (Siegel).
The cons of censorship outweigh the pros overall. People will try to make a case that censorship is good since a lot of the music being censored is derogatory. They will also state that today’s music has lost a lot of its taste and it’s impressionable on children. These are all good reasons to censor music, but the long term effects of this could be dangerous. As a human race we do not have a good history of dealing with power. We could start out with only censoring music, but in fifty to sixty years censorship could grow to all aspects of life. An example of a negative effect of censorship is Adolf Hitler and the banning of Jewish books. Hitler used censorship as the first step into brainwashing people to believe that Jews were the source of their problems. That event arises the question that how far is too far when it comes to censorship?
The solution or compromise in the case of censorship starts with the radios. On the radio everything is completely censored, but the derogatory meaning in songs are audible to the public ear, this creates two problems. The first problem is that the parent trying to keep their child’s ears “clean” can not do so. The second problem is that the artist struggles to get their message across to the public. The solution to this problem is to have an uncensored station on the radio. That way the people have an option on what they decide to listen instead of forcing them into censorship. This is one way that we can give the people the power again.
Many pros and cons are to censorship but three main points of con censorship are: the First Amendment, it limits the artist’s creativity, and listeners have different taste. The most evident issue with censorship is that it violates our rights guaranteed in the first amendment. Censorship takes away an artist ability to depict their story effectively. Censoring music could lead to protests and riots. For example, in Somalia people are being killed, tortured and abused, all because of music. Music has been nationally based subject for a while on censorship. But no one really knows what is good. Overall the idea of censorship is a bad one. It could set off a chain of reactions in the future which could lead to censorship in all aspects of our lives