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August 23, 2004
Beenie Man
Hey, Much Music. I see you are hosting music samples by Jamaican dance hall artist, Beenie Man. Perhaps you are unaware of Beenie Man's repeated calls to murder lesbians and gay men.
For example:
"Kill dem battybwoys haffi dead, gun shots pon dem ... who want to see dem dead put up his hand" (Kill them, the queers have to die, gun shots in their head ... put up your hand if you want to see them dead.)
And then there is this:
"Hang chi chi gal wid a long piece of rope" [Hang lesbians with a long piece of rope] and "Tek a bazooka and kill batty-f***er" [Take a bazooka and kill gay men].
This is bad enough but considering the recent killing and mutilation of Jamacian gay activist, Brian Williamson, I am appalled your station thinks it is appropriate to promote music by Jamaican artists calling for more of the same.
Shame on you.
And then... Shame on you too, MTV.
And then... MuchMusic replies, September 24, 2004. Their position boils down to something like, "While we don't support all of Adolph Hitler's positions we like to run with his popular speeches. Just not the nasty ones where he talks about the Jews."
Hi Nicholas,
Thank you for taking the time to contact MuchMusic with your concerns.
I believe you are referring to audio samples in MuchMusic's Listening Lounge, selected from Beenie Man's albums "Back To Basics" and "Tropical Storm" (five 30 sec. tracks were selected from each album). All tracks chosen for our Listening Lounge are carefully screened by our web team before being posted on our site, to ensure they are in keeping with the broadcast codes MuchMusic (and all Canadian broadcasters) must follow. None of the samples chosen for our website contain the problematic lyrics you refer to below, or any other material that we think would make them unsuitable for our website.
Although the internet is not subject to regulation by the CRTC and does not have to follow the guidelines that broadcasters must follow, generally speaking we have chosen to have the content on our site conform with what we determine to be suitable for telecast on MuchMusic. The MuchMusic website is used by more youth than any other in Canada (excluding search engines), and we believe we have a responsibility to ensure that the content on our site is in keeping with the values of our television station.
Because the Beenie Man clips we selected for our Listening Lounge did not contain any of the material you refer to below, we think they were suitable for inclusion on our website. The objectionable material you excerpt in your email is from songs other than the ones we chose for our website. We determine the suitability of material for broadcast - on our station or on our website - based on the content within the video or audio clip, not on anything external to its content.
Your email suggests that by airing any of Beenie Man's videos or audio clips, we condone the other sentiments as well, even though they are not expressed in our broadcast material. While we do agree that some of Beenie Man's lyrics are highly objectionable, we do not agree that by airing Beenie Man's non-homophobic material we are supporting his viewpoints. Throughout history many musicians have created songs expressing violence towards women, brutality, and expressions of intolerance. Rather than banning everything that artist produces, we think it's better to try and educate our viewers by providing critical analysis of the issue and provoking debate about all of the implications of an artist's messages or behaviour. We've done this on issues ranging from the presentation of women's sexuality in music videos to sweatshop conditions in Bangladesh, and the programs are subsequently made into commercial-free versions that we supply to educators to use in the classroom, free of charge, as part of Canada's Cable in the Classroom initiative.
In this vein, we have also tackled the issue of homophobia. MuchNews recently produced a story about Beenie Man that examined the tension between free speech and the promotion of hatred and how Canadian law deals with both issues. The NewMusic has also recently produced a segment about homophobia and hip hop music, as well as an entire show examining what it means to be gay in the music industry, called "Queer and Now" (this show is also part of our Cable in the Classroom lineup).
MuchMusic has always taken an overt and firm stance against discrimination of any kind, and we have always been known as a gay-positive station. This is corroborated by Canada's gay community which has commended us for such things as: our annual coverage of Gay Pride Day and the parade ("MuchComesOut"); the presence of openly gay people as on-air personalities on our station; our special programs exploring issues of homosexuality in music and media which I've reviewed above. Promoting the acceptance of differences and countering negative stereotypes about people of all different cultures and backgrounds is a fundamental part of our broadcasting philosophy. We do not air programming that contravenes these values, and that includes material that is derogatory or demeaning to any group or individual based on their gender, sexual orientation, religion, or race.
I hope that the information I've provided has been helpful.
Sincerely,
-----------------------------------------------
Calla Dewdney
Audience Relations Coordinator - MuchMusic/MuchMoreMusic
Public Affairs Coordinator - CHUM Television
Thank you for taking the time to contact MuchMusic with your concerns.
I believe you are referring to audio samples in MuchMusic's Listening Lounge, selected from Beenie Man's albums "Back To Basics" and "Tropical Storm" (five 30 sec. tracks were selected from each album). All tracks chosen for our Listening Lounge are carefully screened by our web team before being posted on our site, to ensure they are in keeping with the broadcast codes MuchMusic (and all Canadian broadcasters) must follow. None of the samples chosen for our website contain the problematic lyrics you refer to below, or any other material that we think would make them unsuitable for our website.
Although the internet is not subject to regulation by the CRTC and does not have to follow the guidelines that broadcasters must follow, generally speaking we have chosen to have the content on our site conform with what we determine to be suitable for telecast on MuchMusic. The MuchMusic website is used by more youth than any other in Canada (excluding search engines), and we believe we have a responsibility to ensure that the content on our site is in keeping with the values of our television station.
Because the Beenie Man clips we selected for our Listening Lounge did not contain any of the material you refer to below, we think they were suitable for inclusion on our website. The objectionable material you excerpt in your email is from songs other than the ones we chose for our website. We determine the suitability of material for broadcast - on our station or on our website - based on the content within the video or audio clip, not on anything external to its content.
Your email suggests that by airing any of Beenie Man's videos or audio clips, we condone the other sentiments as well, even though they are not expressed in our broadcast material. While we do agree that some of Beenie Man's lyrics are highly objectionable, we do not agree that by airing Beenie Man's non-homophobic material we are supporting his viewpoints. Throughout history many musicians have created songs expressing violence towards women, brutality, and expressions of intolerance. Rather than banning everything that artist produces, we think it's better to try and educate our viewers by providing critical analysis of the issue and provoking debate about all of the implications of an artist's messages or behaviour. We've done this on issues ranging from the presentation of women's sexuality in music videos to sweatshop conditions in Bangladesh, and the programs are subsequently made into commercial-free versions that we supply to educators to use in the classroom, free of charge, as part of Canada's Cable in the Classroom initiative.
In this vein, we have also tackled the issue of homophobia. MuchNews recently produced a story about Beenie Man that examined the tension between free speech and the promotion of hatred and how Canadian law deals with both issues. The NewMusic has also recently produced a segment about homophobia and hip hop music, as well as an entire show examining what it means to be gay in the music industry, called "Queer and Now" (this show is also part of our Cable in the Classroom lineup).
MuchMusic has always taken an overt and firm stance against discrimination of any kind, and we have always been known as a gay-positive station. This is corroborated by Canada's gay community which has commended us for such things as: our annual coverage of Gay Pride Day and the parade ("MuchComesOut"); the presence of openly gay people as on-air personalities on our station; our special programs exploring issues of homosexuality in music and media which I've reviewed above. Promoting the acceptance of differences and countering negative stereotypes about people of all different cultures and backgrounds is a fundamental part of our broadcasting philosophy. We do not air programming that contravenes these values, and that includes material that is derogatory or demeaning to any group or individual based on their gender, sexual orientation, religion, or race.
I hope that the information I've provided has been helpful.
Sincerely,
-----------------------------------------------
Calla Dewdney
Audience Relations Coordinator - MuchMusic/MuchMoreMusic
Public Affairs Coordinator - CHUM Television
Posted by Ghost of a flea at August 23, 2004 08:12 AM
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