Lexie+M.+-+POSITION+PAPER

REVOLUTION, REACTION, REFORM-- HOW DOES REVOLUTION CHANGE SOCIETY? Does music cause social change? Does music cause social change?  Music is important in our lives. We encounter music on a day to day basis. After life changing events throughout history people have always been able to turn to music to express themselves. New music evolves with new generations, but it produces a negative reaction from parents (Encyclopedia Britannica). New styles have been revolutionary in the music industry and have paved the way for many other styles. They all have one thing in common; they came after revolutionary changes in society and caused revolutionary reactions. Music influences society as much as society influences music. Music changes and it evolves like anything else. New types of music and artists are either accepted or rejected by society. Take Elvis and the rise of Rock and Roll for example. He was accepted by younger generations but not by the parents of those that accepted him. New styles reflect social change; Bob Dylan’s music, for example, reflected political change that so many American citizens craved. He was one of the prominent political artists of the 1960s. His music was considered liberal because it focused on society, war, and political change, and “showed how meaningful songs with surrealist imagery could be wedded to popular music" (University of Washington). Many did not appreciate his controversial outlook on life social issues though. When a new style of music comes out there is an older generation going against it; they like to stick to what is familiar and what they grew up with. People like Richard Pollak, a newspaper writer who grew up as a kid in the 1940s, have a different outlook on pop music than my generation does. He complains that we are bombarded with pop music and culture now, but it was not always like that. He writes that when he was a young man society went “crazy for classical music, they couldn't get enough of it” (Pollak). But today classical has faded out and has been replaced by more upbeat, pop music. Pollak believes that the transition from classical to pop was because "[the corporate music industry] for at least three decades now... has been seducing kids with such a steady beat of pop tapes, CDs, MTV and movie scores that most can no longer hear anything else" (Pollak). He believes that society is being bombarded with pop music and culture. Pollak is a part of the older generation that refuses to accept a change in music. To him, his generation’s style of music is the best and always will be. Others argue that with new generations, music should be allowed to evolve. It's only a matter of time until the next style of music hits, and chances are that the generations before it will not appreciate it for its true art form. Hip-Hop is one of the newer styles of music that does not appeal to older generations, which is understandable because of the controversial lyrics, pounding bass, and racy music videos. Rapper Mack 10 "defends his lyrics about murder and mayhem by saying: 'My music is 110 percent the truth. It's not fairy tales. If I talk about 10 people getting killed in my neighborhood, that's because it happened. Why can't I speak freely about it? John Wayne is a hero, and in every movie he was in, he had a gun on his hip and shot people'" (Clark). Rapper Mack 10 has a valid point. In America we have protected rights and those rights allow us to speak freely about our reality, even if it makes other parts of society uncomfortable. Creativity and freedom of speech and expression should always be allowed in our society. Rock and Roll was a ground breaking new genre in the 50s; it paved the way for many styles of music while incorporating past genres in its sound, such as blues. Rock was not accepted by parents because it “challenged mainstream American social and cultural traditions. The new music was loud, rebellious, sexy, and widely embraced by white youth, even though it was initially created by and for African American listeners” (Hajduk). Parents did all they could to stop the growth of rock and roll by censoring TV performances and radio music, not allowing their kids to go see their favorite artists in concert, and not letting them listen to rock and roll albums (Kaledin ). These attempts failed to contain the scope of influence that rock music caused in society because kids went wild for the new genre; it caused society to take a turn for a rock and roll inspired era. The problem today is that parents still want to limit what is allowed to be heard and seen in the media, music, music videos, and anything else of the sort ( PTC ). When parents have this kind of attitude toward a genre of music it does not allow it to grow as quickly, or sometimes it does not allow it to grow at all because of all the restrictions they put upon the music industry. Parents want there to be absolutely no profanity or controversial/explicit language. Recently, explicit language has not been a big problem because of the parental advisory warning label on cd’s. But now there are problems arising with songs such as Britney Spears song “If U Seek Amy”, because it does not have any swear words in it but the title spells out one particularly bad word. “The spelled-out profanity puts the song into a legal gray area for radio stations” (Kaufman). When a song is in the top 40 on the billboards, the top 40 stations have to figure out if they are willing to risk playing the inappropriate song or if they are going to skip out on playing it for the sake of the listener. Patti Marshall, a program director for a pop station in Cincinnati said, “it’s not about us. It’s about the mom in the minivan with her 8-year-old” (Kaufman). Tim Winter, President of the Parents Television Council said “It's one thing for a song with these lyrics to be included on a CD so that fans who wish to hear it can do so, but it's an entirely different matter when this song is played over the publicly owned airwaves, especially at a time when children are likely to be in the listening audience” (Kreps). Ever since this song has hit radio stations “parents [have been] lining up to demand radio stations cease playing the song between the hours of 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. as it ‘violates the broadcast indecency law’" (Kreps). A similar problem occurred with The Black Eyed Peas song “Don’t Phunk With My Heart” a few years earlier. Listeners tuning into the radio thought they were saying something different than “phunk”; the intended meaning of the song was the word everyone thought they were hearing in broad daylight on the radio. Stations were forced to cease playing the song until the word “phunk” was changed to “mess” (Kaufman). After the radio edit version of the song was released, there were no further problems with them playing “Don’t Mess With My Heart”. The artists of these songs are trying to get a point across and it is not acceptable to have society want to censor these artists and their messages. Another controversy that seems to be never ending is controversial music videos. Lady Gaga went under fire for her music video for her song Judas. The Catholic community did not approve of the music video or the lyrics, to which Lady Gaga replied “it’s a metaphor… it’s not meant to be a biblical lesson” (Marquina). This is not the first time one of her music videos has gone under fire. She should not be prosecuted for trying to get a point across; we do have freedom of speech in America because of the first amendment. Music should be able to evolve, not held back because it is different. If an artist wants to use explicit language or a play on words to get a point across then let them. If they want to shoot a racy music video let them, because it is the artists’ choice of how they want society to view them and their music. An artists rights are protected by our founding documents. If music cannot evolve, neither can society. Whenever society changes music is often an early reflection upon the change. Rock and roll in its early days was rejected by parents because it was "the devils music". Elvis, the king of rock and roll, got his big break when he performed on the Ed Sullivan Show. He had appeared multiple times on the show and by the third visit the CBS cameramen “had been instructed to shoot him from the waist up” because “the gyrations of ‘Elvis the Pelvis’ had upset [CBS viewers]” (Batchlor). They censored his hips because of the provocative dance moves he made while performing (Kaledin). Parents would not have their kids listen to this music or watch performances like Elvis' on TV, which drove kids even further to listen to it. The parents saw it as sexual innuendo and decided it had to be stopped. Parents couldn't look past the physical part to appreciate the music behind the dancing, where as their kids could. "A phenomenally successful recording artist, Presley and his flamboyant style sent shock waves across America" he inspired many other bands and individuals such as The Beatles who built off of his style of music (ABC-CLIO Elvis Presley). The edgy music caused teens to be rebellious and make their own decisions, which was a major change in society. Racy dance moves and lyrics began to become accepted in society by the younger generation. But the parents of these kids wanted to stop this rock and roll movement. They did all they could to censor it, resulting in many restrictions on TV and radio. We should continue to play the clean version of a song on the radio and keep overly sexual videos off of TV. But when an issue like the song "If U Seek Amy" or "Don't Phunk With my Heart" comes up the radio, stations should be able to play it if they wish to. Listeners want to hear these songs; parents should not be able to control the radio. Instead of completely disregarding the song, I suggest that before playing a song like these, there be a warning. Such as a beep or the radio deejay can give a warning that an "inappropriate" song is about to be played. As for networks like MTV playing racy music videos, I think they should be allowed to continue what they are doing. If parents do not want to have their children to watch it they can block the channel on their TV with the Parental Block. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Parents have always been protective of what their kids can see and hear. It has been taken a step further with the Parents Television Council (PTC). The PTC works with government officials and the media to make sure kids are not being corrupted by sexual images or violence on TV and the radio. When the song “If U Seek Amy” by Britney Spears came out, parents put many complaints in to their local radio stations, “the PTC believes… the song… would violate the broadcast indecency law if aired between the hours of 6:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m.” (PTC). The PTC wants for any and all songs like “If U Seek Amy” to be played after “prime time”, when kids are most likely to be listening. They get government officials involved in their protests’ with the media to ensure that they are able to get what they want, which is to keep sex and violence out of the public eye. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">It is a radio stations’ choice if it wants to play songs like this, not the parents of America. If a parent is in the car with their 10 year old daughter then they can easily switch the station. It is unnecessary to have the station cease to play “If U Seek Amy” or any other song like it. Having a warning come on before an inappropriate song allows the parent to know that it is time to change the station instead of calling in to complain about the content of the song after it has already been played. Not allowing a station to play songs like this is a form of censorship and contradicts our freedom of speech. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Hip-hop artists typically use degrading music videos and lyrics in their music; it is not a good representation of the African American community. Poet, Heru Ofori-Atta said "I care about my people more than I care about hip-hop. I care about the minds of black children more than I care about my freedom of speech" (Katel). Ofori-Atta wants hip-hop artists to create socially uplifting music to represent the African American community as a whole. He believes that these artists are just dragging down society and holding back African Americans from earning respect from the white community. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Mark Lamont Hill argues that hip-hop artists should be able to produce whatever kind of music they would like to make. He thinks it is unrealistic to expect everyone to create socially uplifting music; while it would be nice, it simply just is not going to happen. "They should feel compelled not to create any music that degrades, assaults or otherwise contradicts the values and goals of our respective communities. But they should also feel empowered to produce art that reflects their own feelings, desires and beliefs about the world - uplifting or not" (Katel). Hip-hop is an African American dominated music style; it has given the opportunity to many African Americans to make their voices heard. While hip-hop artists may sometimes make degrading music it is their choice and if that is how they wish to express themselves then they should be allowed to do so without being ridiculed. If parts of society do not want to hear this style of music then they have the option to listen to it or not by changing the radio station, or not buying the artists music. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Lady Gaga’s music video for “Judas” has offended many Catholics. The music video is the story of Mary Magdalene, Judas, and Jesus. She does many things that have offended the Catholic Church, for starters portraying the 12 disciples, Jesus, Judas, and Mary Magdalene in this video. Catholics think that Gaga did this stunt to attract attention. "Bill Donahue, spokesperson for the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights [said]... 'This isn't random, we are getting closer to Holy Week and Easter'" (LeClaire). Donahue says that Gaga continuously aims "to shock Catholics and Christians in general" (LeClaire). <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">But Lady Gaga has a different opinion on the whole "Judas" music video controversy. She says "I don't really view the video as a religious statement. I view it as a social statement. I view it as a cultural statement" (Sun). Lady Gaga wants to set the record straight in saying that "the video really is just a metaphor" and not a "biblical lesson" (Sun). If people cannot accept the fact that artists have freedom of expression then they just should not watch her music video or listen to the song, no one is forcing them to watch the “Judas” music video. Music videos like these are played all the time on MTV because they are the current most popular song. If parents do not want to have their children watch videos like these, or watch them themselves, they can simply block the channel. Everyone wins because Gaga gets to keep her freedom of speech and expression, while people that do not want to watch her controversial music videos do not have to. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">With new music comes controversy. If society wants to limit what is available for artists to make then that is censorship. Censorship holds back society by not allowing it to evolve. Lady Gaga should be allowed to make any kind of music video she wants and Britney Spears should be able to sing any kind of song that she would like to sing. If they are not allowed to have freedom of speech and express themselves that is violating our first amendment and putting radio stations in a tough position. Limiting creativity and the message of a song creates many problems, censorship for one, but in a bigger picture it does not allow music to evolve. Artists want to create new songs and styles of music, that is what happens with music. Music is ever changing and should not be controlled. The beauty of music is that even if you can not sing or play an instrument, you can still connect with the emotions of the song; people turn to music in the good and bad times. “Music is your own experience, your thoughts, your wisdom. If you don’t live it, it won’t come out of your horn” – Charlie Parker.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">WORKS CITED <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Batchelor, Bob. "The Birth of Rock and Roll (Overview)." Pop Culture Universe: Icons, Idols, Ideas. ABC-CLIO,2012. Web. 19 Apr. 2012. http://popculture.abc-clio.com.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Clark, Charles S. “Sex, Violence, and the Media.” CQ Researcher Online. N.p., 17 Nov. 1995. Web. 3 Apr. 2012. <http://library.cqpress.com>.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Daniel, Kreps. “Britney Spears’ Racy ‘If U Seek Amy’ Hits the Radio, Angers Parents.” Rollingstone.com. N.p., 22 Jan. 2009. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. [|http://www.rollingstone.com].

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">"Elvis Presley." World History: The Modern Era. ABC-CLIO, 2012. Web. 15 Apr. 2012. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Hajduk, John C. “U.S. Congress Investigates Payola in Pop Music Industry.” Salem History. Salem Press, n.d. Web. 15 Apr. 2012. <http://history.salempress.com>.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Kaledin, Eugenia. "Elvis Presley's Appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show (1956)." Pop Culture Universe: Icons, Idols, Ideas. ABC-CLIO,2012. Web. 19 Apr. 2012. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">[|http://popculture.abc-clio.com]

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Katel, Peter, Marc Lamont Hill, and Heru Ofori-Atta. “Debating Hip-Hop.” CQ Researcher Online. CQ Researcher, 15 June 2007. Web. 21 Apr. 2012. <http://library.cqpress.com>.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Kaufman, Gil. “Britney Spears’ ‘If U Seek Amy’ Poses Censorship Problems for Radio.” MTV.com. MTV, 12 Jan. 2009. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. <http://www.mtv.com>.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Krebs, Daniel. "Britney Spears' Racy 'If U Seek Amy' Hits the Radio, Angers Parents." Rollingstone.com. N.p., 22 Jan. 2009. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><http://www.rollingstone>.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">LeClaire, Jennifer. “Lady Gaga, Catholic Church Exchange Blows.” Charisma 20 Apr. 2011: n. pag. Web. 23 Apr. 2012. <http://www.charismamag.com>.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Marquina, Sierra. “Lady Gaga’s Controversial ‘Judas’ Music Video Debuts Online [VIDEO].” Ryanseacrest.com. Ryan Seacrest Productions, 5 May 2011. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. [|http://ryanseacrest.com].

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">"North American music." World History: The Modern Era. ABC-CLIO, 2012. Web. 8 Apr. 2012. http://worldhistory.abc-clio.com

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Parent Television Council. “PTC Cautions Parents and Radio Stations about Indecent Britney Spears Song.” Parentstv.org. Parents Television Council, 21 Jan. 2009. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. <http://www.parentstv.org>.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Pollak, Richard. “Pop Invades Classical Space.” Academic Search Premier. N.p., 1 Sept. 1997. Web. 3 Apr. 2012. <http://web.ebscohost.com>.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Sun, Eryn. “Lady Gaga’s ‘Judas,’ Anything but a Religious Statement?” Christianpost.com. Christian Post, 7 May 2011. Web. 24 Apr. 2012. <http://www.christianpost.com>.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">"United States." Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica Online School Edition. Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 2012. Web. 8 Apr. 2012. <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><http://www.school.eb.com>.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">University of Virginia. "Rock Music '60s." Www2.lib.virginia.edu. U of Virginia, <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> 16 Dec. 2009. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. <http://www2.lib.virginia.edu>.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Encyclopedia Britannica is an online encyclopedia that is used and trusted by schools throughout the country. Britannica is a secondary source encyclopedia that gives an overview of many different topics. I used Encyclopedia Britannica for my first paragraph to get a general overview of the controversy of new styles of pop music.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">ABC-CLIO is an online database that is also used by schools throughout the country. It is a secondary source that gathers information from many different credible scholars, websites, etc. I used ABC-CLIO to see where pop music got its start and how it impacted society because it gave an overview of how it changed the 1900s.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Richard Pollak is a writer for a web article on EBSCOhost. In this case he is a primary source because he is referring back to his time where classical music was popular and pop music wasn't. EBSCOhost is used and trusted by many schools across the country. This article shows what life was like before pop music and how it has changed. Pollak's article provides a different side to my story, one that we have all heard before from many older complaining generations, but nonetheless it provides a different outlook on whether moral standards should be applied or not.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Charles S. Clark, senior editor at the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, and veteran Washington Journalist, wrote a web article for the CQ Researcher. The CQ Researcher is an online database that is known for its unbiased, primary source articles. This article has many facts on whether moral standards should be applied or not, there are pro's and con's in this article. Clark interviewed a primary source, Rapper Mack 10, to discuss some of his controversial lyrics.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Salem Press is an e-book with many different controversial areas throughout history covered; one of the e-book sections was music and musicians. This is a secondary source article written by John C. Hajduk, a main writer on the writing staff at Salem Press. This article was written about how influential radio dee jay’s were in the 50s and 60s, I used it to get a background on how society was influenced by music back then. This was a great source to use because the article itself had many different sources used in it.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">MTV is a pop culture website about all things music, Gil Kaufman interviewed many primary sources that were facing many problems with playing certain songs on the radio; Gil Kaufman is the Senior Writer at MTV and works in their writing and editing department. This article about the song “If U Seek Amy” is helpful because it shows all of the controversy involved in playing the song on air. I used this article because it gave me many primary sources and secondary sources so I could find out more of the controversy around the song.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Rolling Stone Magazine has been widely popular for many years because of its insight into the pop culture and political world. This article has many radio dee jay interviews making it a credible primary source article by Daniel Kreps, one of the main pop culture writers on the staff at Rolling Stone. This article has multiple interviews with dee jays and the PTC showing the controversy behind playing this song in broad daylight on the radio. I used it because it provided lots of intel on the subject that I never would have thought of.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">ABC-CLIO is an award winning online research database base used by students across the country, filled with secondary source articles. I used an article written by Bob Batchelor, it was about Elvis’ controversial dancing on public TV and how parents and TV broadcasters alike tried to contain his sexual innuendo filled performances. I used this because it provided me with lots of information on the topic of Elvis’ rise to fame and how hard it was for him to do anything without being criticized by society.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">I found an article written by Eugenia Kaledin on ABC-CLIO also about Elvis. The article goes more in depth than the one by Bob Batchelor and talks about Elvis’ third and final appearance on the Ed Sullivan and how they censored his hip movement on camera by only filming him from the waist up. This was a great article about containing the influence of music on society.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">This online article is from the Parents Television Council’s website, it is a primary source. It is credible because this is information written by the board of the PTC, it is available online for free so parents can stay informed on the latest media controversies. This article contributes to my debate because it is the opposite of what I want; it gives a different perspective on what the radio should be allowed to play. It was written by parents for parents.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">The CQ Researcher is an online database; this article by Peter Katel has many primary sources to the effect of hip-hop culture like Heru Ofori-Atta and Mark Lamont Hill. Katel is a long time journalist who wrote for Time magazine, Newsweek, and The Miami Herald’s El Nuevo Herald, he has written articles for the government and for the public. The CQ Researcher is an online database with many primary as well as secondary sources; the articles are filled with many quotes. There is also a Pro/Con list in the articles which shows different perspectives to the researched question. I used this because it has a good pro/con list with valid points on each side and made a good argument against my case.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Charisma magazine is a Christian based and led magazine, it has primary source interviews with many Christians and priests. Jennifer LeClaire is a reader that sent in an article she had written (how all the articles in the magazine are written) the magazine picks articles that they know will catch the attention of fellow readers. This article gives a different more conservative perspective on Lady Gaga’s “Judas” music video; it uses many primary sources to get the point across that many Christians have been upset by this music video. I used it because of the primary sources, and different outlook on the issue worked well against my argument.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">“The Christian Post presents national and international coverage of current events affecting and involving Christian leaders, church bodies, ministries, mission agencies, schools, businesses, and the general Christian public”. This is a primary source article. The author, Eryn Sun, has been a writer for the Christian Post for many years and has written about many controversial pop culture topics. I used this article because it was still written by and for Christians but it shows both sides to the argument, but it is mostly biased towards my argument.