News stories world-wide News 2009 News 2008 News 2007 News 2006 News 2005 News 2004 News 2003 News 2002 News 2001 About music censorship Artists on censorship About Freemuse Publications Study room Activities Links Press room

NEWS05 March 2003 The day the protest music died Pop music played a crucial role in the national debate over the Vietnam War. By the late 1960's, radio stations across the country were crackling with blatantly political songs that became mainstream hits. "The Trouble With Corporate Radio: The Day the Protest Music Died". Editorial from New York Times Related reading USA: The US rock group Pearl Jam’s anti-Bush statement censored on webcast Parts of a Pearl Jam live concert webcast was left out by the main sponsor AT&T. When the lead singer sang “George Bush, leave this world alone” transmission was interrupted 15 August 2007 USA: Dixie Chicks' triumph over censorship: Five Grammys It was a victory over censorship and death threats when Dixie Chicks 'swept' the most prestigious honours in the global music calendar, the Grammy Awards 12 February 2007 Freemuse report on censorship in post 9/11 USA ’Singing in the Echo Chamber’. Music censorship in the U.S. after September 11. New report published by Freemuse 13 February 2006 USA: Anti-Iraq war rock song claimed blacklisted by US government American rock musician Mick Star claims that his anti-Iraq war song 'Jets' is not getting air time due to pressure on radio stations from the White House 25 October 2005 USA: 'Crash into me, baby!' America’s implicit music censorship since September 11. Read the chapter from 'Shoot the Singer!', by Eric Nuzum on how the September 11 terror attacks have affected freedom of musical expression 03 June 2004 USA: What if they gave a culture war and nobody came? Extensive article on the history of music censorship in the U.S., detailing the occasions when judicial and legislative authorities have focused attention on popular music as expression 28 January 2003 Clear Channel: September 11 & Corporate Censorship Corporate censor no. 1, or just the market leader? A collection of articles on Clear Channel - including the debate on the infamous list of 'potentially offensive songs', which Clear Channel suggested its 1.300 radio stations not to play following the September 11 terrorist attacks in the US 01 December 2002 Music during wartime An extensive collection of links to articles related to how the war on Iraq affected freedom of musical expression - from American country albums being burned to the rise in protest music 10 June 2003 USA: Opera composer says he is 'blacklisted' by US authorities Composer John Adams told BBC he is now 'blacklisted' and followed by US security forces because he wrote the controversial opera 'The Death of Klinghoffer' 23 October 2008 Kris Kristofferson Video interview with American folk singer Kris Kristofferson about his personal experiences with music censorship in USA - and in Russia 31 March 2008 3rd Freemuse World Conference on Music and Censorship 200 professional musicians, scholars, and composers from 22 countries met at the 3rd Freemuse World Conference on 25-26 November 2006 in Istanbul, Turkey 18 December 2006 USA: Dixie Chicks film about censorship censored The American tv-network NBC and the CW Television Network has refused to air ads for the new Dixie Chicks documentary, ‘Shut Up & Sing’ 30 October 2006 USA/UK: Media giant claimed to threaten British music “Texan media firm Clear Channel Communications is increasingly casting its shadow over the music scene in Britain,” writes Granville Williams 23 February 2006 USA: Rock superstars censored for their lyrics On February 5, 2006, rock music veterans The Rolling Stones were censored during their performance at the Super Bowl - one of the most-watched events on US tv 10 February 2006 Musical responses to 9/11: From Conservative patriotism to radicalism This article poses the question: What would a suitable American popular music response to the events of 9/11 sound like? Read the chapter by Martin Cloonan, from the book "9/11 – The world's all out of tune" 09 December 2004 Musical responses to 9/11: List of allegedly 'banned' songs A list of "lyrically inappropriate" songs banned from some US radio stations in the wake of the World Trade Center attacks in 2001 09 December 2004 Mixing Pop & Politics: Music Making Change Forthcoming conference on popular music’s important place in the struggle for human rights and democratic freedoms. Panel discussions will examine topics including: Music as a Human Right; Bridging the North / South Divide Through Music; and Musical Activism 20 September 2004 USA: Politician seeks musician Bruce Springsteen boycott Upset with Bruce Springsteen's effort to oust President Bush from the White House, the New York Conservative Party's candidate for the U.S. Senate is launching a "Boycott the Boss" television commercial 16 August 2004 Venue expels Linda Ronstadt after political remarks The singer was booed and removed from a Las Vegas casino for praising film-maker Michael Moore and his film Fahrenheit 9/11 during a show. Ronstadt called Moore a "great American patriot" and "someone who is spreading the truth" 20 July 2004 Elton John attacks new 'era of censorship' in America The British singer has attacked what he calls a McCarthy-like "era of censorship" in America. Entertainers who speak out against the Bush administration or its policy on Iraq, he claimed, risk scorn and damage to their livelihood 17 July 2004 Shoot the Singer! Book "Shoot the Singer! Music Censorship Today". The first worldwide presentation of contemporary cases of music censorship, with cases from i.a. Burma, Mexico, Middle East, France, Algeria, Zimbabwe, USA, South Africa, Turkey. Edited by Freemuse director Marie Korpe, published by Zed Books, May 2004. 25 May 2004 Singer 'strips' over censorship Wearing a "nude suit" on stage to complain about censorship in the US, Alanis Morissette criticised a radio station for forcing her to change strong language in one of her recent songs 06 April 2004 Singer Lee Jones attacks Bush American singer Rickie Lee Jones has attacked the policies of the Bush administration on her latest record - despite the potential risk to her career. “I usually reflect things totally internally. But I think what is happening in America is so disturbing to me, it becomes internal” 07 January 2004 Viva Corporate Control!? European independent music companies slam Universal’s alleged payola deal with Viva to guarantee video-time for Universals’ artists in return for payment 12 December 2003 Making Marx in the Music: A HyperHistory of New Music and Politics Classical music and jazz seem to have a more long-term, measured, even sublimated approach to political protest, slower to react and more deeply embedded in the structure of the music itself 07 November 2003 The day protest music died Pop music played a crucial role in the national debate over the Vietnam War. By the late 1960's, radio stations across the country were crackling with blatantly political songs that became mainstream hits 05 March 2003 Public Enemy vs MTV MTV will not show the video for 'Gotta Give the Peeps What They Need' 14 October 2002 9/11: Is protest music dead? Music used to be the dominant voice against war. Now it's easier to shut up and get paid. What's really going on? Extensive article on 9/11 effects and media concentration, by Jeff Chang 16 April 2002 UK: Britain at War Extensive article on how music was "restricted" during the Falkland and Gulf war, with focus on UK legislation and corporate censorship. Presented by Martin Cloonan at the 1st World Conference on Music and Censorship, 1998 01 January 2001 USA: Banned music showcased in concert series in New York A concert with the exiled Pakistani singer Haroon Bacha on 9 December 2009 marks the start of 'Impossible Music Sessions' in New York showcasing banned music 09 December 2009