Donna
27-03-03, 18:00
MTV drops war-themed pop videos
Jason Deans
Thursday March 27, 2003
MTV: 'Content should reflect audience sensitivities at this time of war'
MTV has banned music videos with war-related titles, lyrics or images, including Paul Hardcastle's 19 and Outkast's Bombs over Baghdad, for the duration of the conflict in Iraq.
The leading music channel will not show pop promos that feature "war, soldiers, war planes, bombs, missiles, riots and social unrest, executions and other obviously sensitive material", according to an internal memo seen by MediaGuardian.co.uk.
Songs removed from the MTV playlist include Boom! by System of a Down, an anti-war video containing facts and figures about predicted Iraq war casualties.
Aerosmith's Don't Want to Miss a Thing, which features footage from the asteroid disaster movie Armageddon; Radiohead's Invasion; You, Me and World War Three by Gavin Friday and anything by the B52s has also been deemed inappropriate for the duration of the Gulf conflict.
Billy Idol's Hot in the City and Armand van Helden's Koochy will not be shown because they feature images of atomic explosions.
"MTV, like many other broadcasters, feels content should reflect audience sensitivities at this time of war," an MTV spokeswoman said.
"Any changes to playlists are only a temporary measure," she added.
The memo was issued on the day the conflict began and reminded all MTV staff to be aware of independent television commission guidelines.
"There will be heightened public sensitivity to representations of war, soldiers, bombing, destruction of buildings and public unrest at home," stated the memo from Mark Sunderland, the broadcast standards manager of MTV Networks Europe.
"The ITC programme code requires us not to broadcast material which offends against good taste or is offensive to public feeling," Mr Sunderland added.
BBC Radio 1 also removed potentially contentious songs from its playlist when the war began.
These include Diamonds and Guns by the Transplants and Bandages by Hot Hot Heat.
Radio 1 producers have been asked to play music with a "light, melodic" feel before and after news bulletins, especially if they contain distressing news.
Jason Deans
Thursday March 27, 2003
MTV: 'Content should reflect audience sensitivities at this time of war'
MTV has banned music videos with war-related titles, lyrics or images, including Paul Hardcastle's 19 and Outkast's Bombs over Baghdad, for the duration of the conflict in Iraq.
The leading music channel will not show pop promos that feature "war, soldiers, war planes, bombs, missiles, riots and social unrest, executions and other obviously sensitive material", according to an internal memo seen by MediaGuardian.co.uk.
Songs removed from the MTV playlist include Boom! by System of a Down, an anti-war video containing facts and figures about predicted Iraq war casualties.
Aerosmith's Don't Want to Miss a Thing, which features footage from the asteroid disaster movie Armageddon; Radiohead's Invasion; You, Me and World War Three by Gavin Friday and anything by the B52s has also been deemed inappropriate for the duration of the Gulf conflict.
Billy Idol's Hot in the City and Armand van Helden's Koochy will not be shown because they feature images of atomic explosions.
"MTV, like many other broadcasters, feels content should reflect audience sensitivities at this time of war," an MTV spokeswoman said.
"Any changes to playlists are only a temporary measure," she added.
The memo was issued on the day the conflict began and reminded all MTV staff to be aware of independent television commission guidelines.
"There will be heightened public sensitivity to representations of war, soldiers, bombing, destruction of buildings and public unrest at home," stated the memo from Mark Sunderland, the broadcast standards manager of MTV Networks Europe.
"The ITC programme code requires us not to broadcast material which offends against good taste or is offensive to public feeling," Mr Sunderland added.
BBC Radio 1 also removed potentially contentious songs from its playlist when the war began.
These include Diamonds and Guns by the Transplants and Bandages by Hot Hot Heat.
Radio 1 producers have been asked to play music with a "light, melodic" feel before and after news bulletins, especially if they contain distressing news.