Music Censorship
Healthy debates have been caused by today's music. Generally, foul language has rapidly increased within modern popular song lyrics, especially among rap and heavy metal artists' songs. An increase in explicit violence and misogyny in popular music lyrics has been recorded. These lyrics have been judged to be inspirations for violent, suicidal, and criminal acts. For example, Mr. Raymond Kuntz referred to his son's incident. ''When his wife went to wake their son for school, they found him dead of a gunshot wound, still wearing his headphones with Marilyn Manson's Anti-Christ Superstar CD still in the player. The boy's favorite song was ''The Reflecting God (Nina Crowley, ''Senate Hearings on Music, Newsgroup at page 2, November 15, 1997).'' However, the artists and producers defend the musical lyrics, and claim that these acts come purely from self-inspiration, not extrinsic influence such as their music. If this were true, then why would 59 % of substance abusers name heavy metal as their favorite type of music? ( Javier Martin, ''Separating Fact from Fiction: Rock Music and Violence'' November 28, 1997, page 2). Most teenagers listen to popular music, and learn from the words of the artists. Therefore, if an artist sets an example of being ''cool'' and performing harmful acts, a listener may reproduce his learned actions. ''Rappers call on their fans to kill, dismember, and smash the heads of teachers, and dumb cops (Peter Viles, ''Bulgaria's racist rap.'' World Press Review June 1996: Page 41).'' The entire world is affected by this reoccurring theme, since adolescents are influenced by music on a daily basis. Although almost everyone is directly affected, some people do not admit to profane music having a personal influence. ''People perceive media content to have greater impact on others than on themselves.'' (Douglas M. McLeod, ''Support for Censorship of Violent and Misogynic Rap Lyrics.'' Communication Research, April 1997: page 153). Naturally, the majority of youth is heavily influenced by music, and needs to be protected from the harm of obscene artists. Due to its negative affects upon society, I believe the government should further restrict music that has been specified as dangerous to the well being of the listeners.
Contrary to many assumptions, modern youth is not protected enough from harmful music, even though ther...
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... new laws to help harmful media reach younger listeners and viewers.
New laws would essentially create a better future for society's youth. They would help prevent children from learning violent acts through example, and keep innocent people from being offended by foul language.
The lyrical content of modern music has had a noticeable affect on the actions of all society. Few limitations have been applied to the availability of these horrid songs, so the ears of young children are still exposed to them. These children do not realize the affect it has upon them. ''People perceive media content to have a greater impact on others than on themselves (McLeod 1).'' Because the nation's youth is being subjected to these types of songs, children and teenagers are committing crimes, drinking alcohol, using drugs, and forming racist or sexist opinions. These actions are learned actions, and are based upon the words written for obscene music. Our country needs to evaluate this music carefully, which can protect our youth from further harm. ''Understanding the nature and extent of the influence of music violence may well be the first step for ensuring a more civil society (Crowley 2).''
This paper will discuss the different stages of thought processes the former Nation of Islam minister, Malcolm X went through during his lifetime in terms of how he viewed white people, but more specifically “the white man” in America. The reason the focus is on White Americans is because these were the people outside of the Nation of Islam that shaped his life good or bad and put him on the path where he eventually transformed from Malcolm Little to Malcolm X who was one of the most polarizing and controversial figures during his lifetime and even nearly 50 years after his death the name Malcolm X causes certain people to shudder. Malcolm X became a well-known figure during the 50’s and 60’s during the civil rights movement which involved figures such as Martin Luther King Jr. This was a pivotal era in American history because for the first time that there was major push towards full rights for African Americans. When Malcolm X came on the scene he put fear into White people because they weren’t used to hearing the truth about race relations in America and many of them felt that things were just fine because they themselves were living life high on the hog while at the same time exploiting Blacks. Because this type of talk from a black person was new to them they misinterpreted his views as “hate speech” and accused him of trying to incite violence when he was simply trying wake his people up to properly deal with what was happening to them.
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.
Against Music Censorship Music censorship has been a major problem plaguing America for over fifty years. In 1957, Elvis Pressley was only allowed to be filmed from the waist up on the Ed Sullivan show (Nuzum 1). Plenty of controversy has taken place between then and now, but more recently it has become much more prominent in the media, and people and organizations are beginning to actually take a stand. For example, Island Records (owned by Disney) dropped the Insane Clown Posse just after their release of The Great Milenko and MTV actually refused to play Madonna's video for Justify My Love because it was considered too sexually explicit (Nuzum 1). Music content is just one of the many issues that put the First Amendment of our Constitution to work.
Since CEO Gary Kelly took the reins of the company back in 2004, Southwest has maintained and enhanced the company’s ability to offer customers a great flying experience for low fares. This effort start early in Mr. Kelly’s tenure when he identified four success factors
Is music powerful enough to incite antisocial and violent behavior? According Johnson, Jackson and Gatto’s study on the deleterious effects of exposure to rap music, subjects in the violent exposure conditions (rap music) expressed greater acceptance of violence. Subjects in the violent exposure condition also reported a higher probability that they would engage in violence (Johnson). Music plays an i...
Teenagers have for long been a constant bother to many parents, for many years. It is during this stage that a large number of individuals engage in rebellious acts and are anxious to try out almost everything they lay their hands on. It is clear from the illustrations that music does have a great effect on teenagers. Parents should therefore combine effort in instilling a sense of responsibility and good morals to their young ones since they are the future leaders of the world.
Imagine our youth all over the country being exposed to this explicit kind of language. There is no need to imagine, because it is already happening. Ever since the rise of Rap and Hip Hop music, teens have been turning to them to help solve their problems. However these kinds of music can be very destructive to teens. It is not the youth’s fault; it is the content that the music contains. Although Rap and Hip Hop music can be a force for good, they can also have an extremely negative impact on the attitudes and behaviors of our youth.
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.
The lyrics of many rap songs encourage violent and aggressive thoughts in teenagers. Many teens don’t realize that the music they are listening to affects the way they think. According to Morrison, a columnist whose writings focus on the impact of the choices people face every day, “Words do have meanings, meanings suggest thoughts, and thoughts lead to action” (Morrison). Even if the person isn’t affected right away by the violent lyrics of most today’s rap songs, eventually they will become more prone to certain thoughts. As Morrison stated, “In experiments on over 500 college students . . . subjects were found to experience an increase in aggressive thoughts after listening to songs with violent lyrics. Those subjected to the mean music were more apt to connect hostile meanings to words deemed to be violence neutral by the researchers” (Morrison). In time, words that aren’t intended to cause malicious thoughts, suddenly take on new meanings. Travis L. Dixon, who studies Communication at the University of ...
If you have ever been tense before an exam, a date, or a job interview, you have some idea of what anxiety feels like. Increased heart rate, sweating, rapid breathing, a dry mouth, and a sense of dread are common components of anxiety. But episodes of modern anxiety are a normal part of the life for most people. But what anxiety is so intense and long lasting that it impairs a person’s daily functioning is called an anxiety disorder. It is a general term for several disorders that cause apprehension, nervousness, fear, and worrying. These disorders affect how we feel and behave, and they can manifest real physical symptoms. Mild anxiety is vague and unsettling, while severe anxiety can be extremely debilitating, having a serious impact on daily life.
Teens and the human populous have been draw to music, and the relief it gives off. As recent as the 1990’s, we’ve seen an increase in explicit and violent lyrics and deviant behavior in the music industry surrounding such genres as heavy metal, rock, rap, and gangster rap. During this past decade, lyrics are becoming more violent and sexually explicit. It is approximated that teens listen to an average of 40 hours of music a week, and somewhere along the way, a child will hear something derogatory, or cruel. Along with this, teens don’t necessarily interpret what is said through lyrics in the right manner. In one study, only 30% of those somewhat questionable lyrics by popular bands were comprehended by the teen population.
Anxiety is an emotion; it is the feeling of fear and uneasiness about some future event or a situation. Anxiety differs from fear as it is not due to a danger in present but a feeling of threat to the future or certain situation soon to arrive in life. It leads to imminent feelings of dread over events. The people facing anxiety have uneasiness, fear in certain situations that makes them withdraw from every place that seems to trigger the same feeling again. Anxiety can be both short term and long term, when experienced frequently; the person can be suffering from Anxiety Disorder. Anxiety disorder can be genetic, withdrawal due to drug use etc.
Anxiety is a normal reaction to stressful situations that helps in the coping process for individuals. On some occasions, anxiety may become so severe that it impairs the ability to cope and can create psychosocial impairment. High levels of anxiety that interfere with daily activities and social interaction are considered a psychiatric disorder. Anxiety disorders are treatable and can have profound effects on the psychosocial aspect of the individuals life.