Corporate Hush

Pop music has undoubtedly played a large role in determining the history of the United States. In particular, it has been a pivotal force with regard to political and social issues in decades past, especially from the late 1960s all the way through the 1980s. Much of the music produced in the late ’60s through the early ’70s protested against the Vietnam War, while the late ’70s through the ’80s served as a breeding ground for anti-nuclear music. Performers like Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young, Bob Dylan, The Beatles, U2 and others voiced an ardent opposition to military action, while becoming some of the biggest names in music. They did this with protest music.

But the times, they are a-changin’. With an 8-year-old Telecommunications Act, a subsequent corporate monopolization of tens of thousands of radio stations across America and a disloyal Dixie Chick, musical artists who express any sentiments that oppose our involvement in the Middle East are being hushed.

In 1996, the Telecommunications Act passed with the “goal” of letting anyone and everyone in the business of communications promote fair competition among communications businesses. While beautiful in theory, this act failed to achieve its goal. Conversely, the Telecommunications Act of 1996 made it possible for corporations to buy out dozens of radio stations, limiting the diversity of the airwaves. Because of the corporate takeover of radio stations, the top two owners own about 1,600 stations, the same songs can be heard on most radio stations, as if on repeat.

Even more disheartening is the censoring of the mega-popular country outfit, the Dixie Chicks. The all-female trio saw huge commercial success before last March, when singer Natalie Maines spoke on behalf of her group, and on behalf of many Americans,when she said she was “ashamed” that our president called Texas home. Clear Channel Communications promptly banned the group’s music from playing on any of their stations because of the singer’s opposition to our president.

Because of the censoring of protest music and protest rhetoric, listeners of popular music are blind to the existence of both. While protest music of the ’60s and ’70s helped promote peace by reaching millions of listeners, protest music of the new millennium only reaches listeners who dig deep into the depths of the music catalog. For the last 40 years, The Clash, Public Enemy, Rage Against the Machine and Bob Marley, along with the groups stated in the opening paragraph and countless others, have garnered huge success via protest music. However, in a recent online list of the top 10 protest songs by popular artists, only two of the songs had considerable success , Madonna’s “American Life” and Outkast’s “Bombs Over Baghdad.” But let’s face it, no one buys their albums for political or social commentary. They buy them because they cause white people with two left feet to engage in what can hardly be interpreted as dancing.

Protest music is alive and doing missile dropkicks off the top rope. Bands like Pearl Jam and System of a Down seem to maintain booming success in pop culture while making protest music, the message is often lost. Most artists who are brave enough to engage in musical protest only have cult followings, like Ani DiFranco, Mr. Lif, Sleater-Kinney and Sage Francis of the Non-Prophets. Mr. Lif’s latest EP, “Emergency Rations,” prompted President Bush to say he was “disturbed” by its political awareness. While the ’60s and ’70s are deemed the era of protest music, modern music has just as much, if not more, protest music.

You’ll be hard-pressed to hear the above-mentioned artists on any mainstream radio stations though. Clear Channel Communications owns nearly one in every nine radio stations, and if they’re banning artists for what they say at a concert and organizing not-so-crowded pro-war rallies, you can bet your savings that they won’t be airing any protest music. However, many legislators are working to limit the power of Clear Channel. The Republican Senator from Arizona, John McCain, leads the train aimed at dismantling the monopolists.

Still, protest music in general gets no press in mainstream pop culture. Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder blames this on America’s need for “escapism” after Sept. 11, 2001, which is often found in pop music failing to touch on issues outside of bad champagne, huge rims and qualifying womanness in terms of buttocks size. As long as the White House defines pop music, Americans should do all they can to support any legislation that could potentially put radio back into the hands of independent owners.
Source: Technicianonline.com