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Music censorship argumentative essay
Music censorship and freedom of speech
How constitutional and necessary is censorship in the music
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Lastly,music censorship also gives the impression that people are not mature or responsible enough to handle this type of music. Even with some kids listening to the music, there is no reason the censor it because chances are they have heard the words or phrases that are censored. There are people over 18 who can control what they are and aren’t listening too. In the article “Most Valid Pros and Cons of Music Censorship” it states, “People have the right to listen to the kind of songs they want ”, it also says in the same article “Children will be learning about sex, violence and drugs from other means and at a certain point of their lives” (Most Valid Pros and Cons). Censoring the bad things in music protects kids from things they will learn anyway, and people have a right to listen to the kinds of music and things they listen to and watch.
Americans hate the word censorship. It puts fire into the eyes of any self proclaimed, speaker of the people. but is censorship that bad, or that wrong? Censorship is an enormous part of the stability of society. One of the many types of censorship takes place on the airwaves. Comedians, George Carlin, Howard Stern, and Mncow Muller had an enormous effect on the ideals of censorship in this era, trying to prove that the FCC had no right to censor radio airwaves. They questioned why words we all hear at home cannot be spoken on the radio if listeners are given a proper warning. However, there is no need for young children to be exposed to such lude material and the American people must be more reasonable about morals and stop worrying about our “First Amendment” rights.
Censorship in music is a very controversial subject in today’s society. What is considered a form of artistic expression to some is also considered vulgar and inappropriate to others. But who ultimately gets to decide what is considered vulgar and what is not? Who decides who hears what in the music industry? The RIAA is responsible for applying the Parental Advisory stamp on every album that is released in the United States. The FCC is responsible for making sure that no vulgarities or controversial comments are aired on radio or television. But why is some content edited and other content not? I will try and explain these questions in our article.
Music is one of the most popular ways of expression and has been for generations. It makes us want to dance, inspires, soothes, relaxes, and sometimes tells us a story. Music is something the whole world shares and has brought together different kinds of people. However, there has been a question on whether some music has affected society negatively and crossed the line with some of its lyrics, content, and the persona of the artists. Certain music has been boycotted and even banned in the U.S. Pro-censorship supporters say that music is something that can deeply affect our society especially children who should not have to be subjected to things like violence, sex, drugs, or hate. However, being that music is a form of expression, censoring it would just be violating everyone's right to freedom of speech and expression.
The First Amendment to the Bill of Rights exists because the Founders of our country understood the importance of free expression. The First Amendment states "Congress shall make no law . . . abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press . . ." (Commission on the Bicentennial of the United States Constitution 17). One of the ways the American people use this freedom of speech and expression is through the creation of the art form known as music. Music's verbal expression bonds our society through our emotions and experiences. This fundamental right of freedom of expression is being threatened by public and governmental groups who believe they have authority to monitor and decide what others should experience. The censorship of music lyrics is a violation of our First Amendment right, and public groups should not be allowed to bypass this right to censor obscene lyrics produced in the music industry.
Music censorship has been debated since the beginning of recording history. The censoring of music is the practice of restricting free access to musical works. Songs with strong language, racist views, or harmful references will have warning labels on them. There are currently no laws regarding the censorship of music. Censorship originated from a wide variety of motivations, including moral, political, military or religious reasons. The censoring of music is incorrect and should be eradicated. Music has been prominent in culture for thousands of years; it is a big contributing factor to moral compositions, for some it is a personal refuge, for others it is enjoyment, music is an important aspect and to censor music would be racially discriminative, insensitive, and detrimental towards society.
...from the other side of this argument is the fact that profanity and sexually explicit material shouldn’t be exposed to young children without their parental permission. But telling teenagers and young adults who are mature enough to choose what they want to listen to is completely wrong and unjust. The key word here is choice. As stated earlier, the thing that makes this country truly great is the idea that we have the right to listen to whatever we choose we want to listen to, not what a censor thinks you should be exposed to, it’s ridiculous.
"Turn that music off! I don't want you listening to that kind of music." Many teens these days are experiencing this kind of thing almost every day. Many parents, in general, have complained and tried to regulate the music that teens are listening to these days. They complain that the music industry shouldn't be able to sell and produce the explicit CD's.
Many bills have been passed to stop explicit messages in music from getting out. Censorship limits the amount of lyrics that get out to the community about violence. (History of Music Censorship) It may also limit anything in music that a community might find offensive to its values or beliefs. The lyrics presented in some songs are not appropriate for young adults. Some say music censorship goes against the First Amendment. It stops artists from expressing how they may feel. The profit on albums often goes down because of censorship. Censorship constantly targets rap and hip hop, and they are usually hit the hardest. (Forms of Music Censorship)
Many people say yes, that there should be censorship because lyrics from songs are telling our youth it is acceptable to participate in illegal actions such as murder, rape or drugs. These people believe that the lyrics actually drive people to become social deviants. In one case, the parents of John McCullom sued Ozzy Osbourne, because his song "Suicide Solution", "aided, advised and encouraged" McCullom's suicide (Nuzum 1).
Benjamin Franklin once said, “If all printers were determined not to print anything till they were sure it would offend nobody, there would be very little printed.” Censorship is the practice of officially examining books, movies, etc., and suppressing unacceptable parts. Therefor, someone decides what is offensive and what is not. Nevertheless, what is offensive? Offensive to whom? When are lines drawn on what is deemed “dirty”? The history of musical censorship dates back to Plato’s vision of an ideal society in the Republic.
Music has always been a basic form of expression. From Antonin Dvorak, to Eminem, to even ancient, tribal music, it has been a medium through which individuals convey their thoughts and expressions. Today this medium is under attack. Everywhere we turn, everything we do and say is being scrutinized. We are being told what to say. We are being spoon-fed our emotions. No longer are we allowed to think freely, openly. All the censors out there are on the prowl for another piece to rip to shreds because it doesn't fit their description of what is decent and moral. What they fail to realize is that we don't make the music for them... We do it for release.
In 1965, a Rolling Stone song, Satisfaction, was not allowed to be played because a couple critics thought that it contained sexual content (A). Recently, hip hop and rap music videos appear to have more sexual conduct, drug-use, and violence. People believe that children should not see or listen to these sort of things because it can influence their young minds. Music is way to express feelings and thoughts. Some may feel that it 's inappropriate but in reality what is appropriate these days? Yes, songs contain cuss words, people having different views of life and/or different dance styles but does that give people the right to censor it. The artists do things to entertain and to give people a voice. Plus music is not the only thing that contains inappropriate things, there is the internet, some television shows and movies that do more indecent actions.. There are better ways of handling things. Yes, blurting out words helped but its not like people do not know the words already. So whats the point if censoring out words when we know them, when we say them. Children are sure to hear things like that whether it is caused by music or not. I think that music censoring should be handled better than how it
Censorship has always altered the lives of many people, whether they know it or not. People are constantly exposed to the censored version of entertainment. The movies they watch, the music they listen to, and the games they play have all first been screened through different rating systems to find anything in them that can be interpreted as “obscene”. Once someone finds something, the creator of the work has no choice but to delete, edit, and basically censor the offending portion, otherwise it never gets to see the light of public consumption. Censorship has been used for all different kinds of works, for all different kinds of reasons. The many examples of album covers provided at TabooTunes show different types ...
There has been controversy as to whether music should be free or not. As for the people who love to listen to music all the time, they would agree that the music should be free of charge. Benefits of free music are that you can listen to music fan free, helps out bands to be known, and reaches the crowds in less time and boots the popularity of the song; however, there are drawbacks, such as CD & MP3 gross sales decline, it’s an insult & harmful to artist and in all actuality, you are paying the record labels.
Censorship affects our society in many different ways, it affects the music we listen to, the movies we watch, the books we read, and many other aspects of our everyday lives. Even though many might argue that censorship doesn't really have a place in a society that emphases freedom of speech and the freedom to express oneself, but censorship is an essential and needed part of our growing society, it's needed in the television industry, the Internet, and the music industry. Censorship helps to make our world a better place because it creates a better environment for us to live in.