During the mid 1980s Tipper Gore and the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC), which she co-founded, brought Dee Snyder of "Twisted Sister" fame in front of the United States Senate. The goal of the PMRC was to establish a set of rules, much like the MPAA and films, for music that was deemed inappropriate for people, especially children.
Many famous musicians at the time including Frank Zappa, Dee Snyder and John Denver all testified and were not in support of the actions made by the PMRC. Eventually, the PMRC managed to convince a variety of stores, including Wal-Mart and J.C. Penny, to remove rock music and magazines about rock music from the stores shelves. Additionally, a list creatively called the "Filthy Fifteen" was released which, basically, contained the songs the PMRC found the most offensive.
Personal Note: What I really hate about hearings like this, is that these people, Tipper Gore, feel that they know what is best for everyone. Music is meant to be interpreted and Mrs. Gore sure does seem to find a lot of stuff about bondage in this music! ;)
I believe that Dee Snyder said it best at the end of his testimony, "The full responsibility for defending my children
falls on the shoulders of my wife and I, because there is no one else
capable of making these judgments for us."
I've gone ahead and posted a few videos from that hearing that I think are very interesting and funny below. If you don't want to or don't have time to watch them, watch the first video, please.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veoYcsH7Wrs - Dee Snyder vs Tipper Gore
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgSjjD6rRu4 - John Denver Senate Hearing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lxB-ZePpS7E - Frank Zappa Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNZdMxkKcBw - Frank Zappa Part 2
I find your topic so interesting because censorship in itself is based off of the idea that the group of people deeming it "right" or "wrong" are interpreting it correctly. I think that often times, even the artist does not know what they are trying to imply in their work and so the idea of censoring something because it appears to be inappropriate is just crazy. Like you referenced, music, is up for so many different interpretations so censoring it just seems like nonsense.
ReplyDeleteOn a different note, I like how you are using other situations to draw parallels with your topic. I think it definitely makes it a stronger case. Good job!