I want my MTV war video
: After 9.11 and during the Afghanistan war, there were many reported rules — many false — about what could and couldn’t be played on radio stations for fear of offending. Now here’s a memo allegedly from MTV Europe saying what videos can’t be played [via Internal Memos and Adam Curry]:
Examples include:
System of a Down “Boom!” – anti-war video containing facts and figures about, amongst other things, the projected casualties in the war in Iraq.
Aerosmith “Don’t want to miss a thing” – contains footage from the film “Armageddon”.
Manic Street Preachers “So Why So Sad” – contains footage of soldiers being killed and man throwing a hand grenade.
Passengers/U2 “Miss Sarajevo” – contains missiles, guns and buildings being blown up.
Bon Jovi “This ain’t a love song” – contains war scenes and victims in distress.
Iggy Pop “Corruption” – contains wars, riots, guns and captions “we love guns” and “we love rifles”.
Paul Hardcastle “19” – contains war footage.
Radiohead “Lucky” – contains war footage including injured children.
Billy Idol “Hot in the City” – contains an atomic explosion.
Armand van Helden “Koochy” – contains an atomic explosion and ships being blown up.
Trick Daddy “Thug Holiday” – contains soldiers being killed at war.
Furthermore, videos with words such as “bomb”, “missile”, “war” or other sensitive words in the artist or song title should not be shown at the moment.
Examples include:
Outkast “B.O.B (Bombs over Baghdad)” – song title may offend.
Radiohead “Invasion” – song title may offend.
Megadeth “Holy Wars” – song title may offend.
Gavin Friday “You, Me and World War Three” – song title may offend.
B-52s videos.
The problem I have with this is that it treats us, the audience, as if we’re boobs who need to be protected: Oh, my, I heard the word “bomb” on MTV and I think I shall swoon (that is, if you can understand the lyrics at all).
Note there’s no reference to videos by the Dixie Chicks.
: Also… who will be the first to use “shock and awe” (a very lyrical phrase, by the way) in a song: rap or country?
