Preview

Should Music Be Censored Research Paper

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1026 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Should Music Be Censored Research Paper
Josh Opening Statement-

Boris Opening Statement- Censorship in music is a topic that has brought about much controversy in the past two decades. There have been many different arguments on the topic, however the question still remains as if it should be censored or it should not be censored. Before you can form an opinion on this, you must hear both sides of the argument on this much-debated topic. Some people believe that music should be censored so all audiences can hear it without it containing any controversial lyrics. Others believe it should not be censored and musical artists should be able to speak, sing, rap, or rhyme freely without anyone censoring them. Preventing speech is a clear violation of the First Amendment. When you really think about it, it is a violation of the First Amendment, which says: "Congress shall make no law… abridging the freedom of speech or of the press". The First Amendment guarantees the right to freedom of speech, and censorship is violating peoples' rights to say whatever they
…show more content…
When a parent hears foul language on their child's stereo or television, they should not complain to the network or record company, they should complain to themselves. The government is doing all they constitutionally can to protect the children's' young ears from the foul language that is out there. If a parent hears their child listening to foul language, they should not complain to anyone but themselves. If they do not wish for their child to hear foul language they should have supervised their children more closely. If they take their child to a record store and buy them a new tape or c.d., the parent should have listened to the music by him or herself and scan for anything questionable. If they don't like the content, they can always return it to the store. This way they can be positive that their child is listening to music that is acceptable to their

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Best Essays

    Ml 3534 Research Paper

    • 331 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Bleep!: censoring rock and rap music, 1999. Edited by Betty Houchin Winfield and Sandra Davisdon.…

    • 331 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Better Essays

    But that music is considered art in the musicians’ eyes. Also the artists are exercising their freedom of speech by singing these lyrics. Also, why do they not just let the music industry regulate this songs and albums, since they know the artists better than the PMRC…

    • 1307 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In an attempt to maintain a balance in a free society the court has developed several guidelines to which they apply to freedom of speech cases including objectional song lyrics. They include definitions of obscenity, libel, dangerous tendency, clear and present danger, and censorship. In addition, the court has also recognized that 'the thoughts we hate', the language that promotes an alternative sometimes ugly perspective must also be protected. We live in a free society where the freedom to express oneself is as valuable as the air, however our freedoms are liken to a balancing act between majority rule and individual rights. In conclusion rap songs should be protected by the first…

    • 267 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    PMRC Controversy

    • 1797 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Obscenity is not protected by the amendment and that is where a lot of controversy was caused. The line between what is obscene and what isn't obscene is hard to determine. Many proposals were made throughout the hearing, after all the debates, witnesses, and testimonials the case was finally settled. Even before the trial was complete the PMRC and RIAA had made a compromise. "Following the Hearing, on November 1 of 1985, the PMRC, and its ally the National Parents and Teachers Association, reached an agreement with the RIAA on the voluntary record label. The agreement stipulated that the printing of lyrics remained optional and, because of space limitations, cassettes were exempted, bearing only the imprint "see LP for lyrics". Since then, different record companies designed their own label containing the words "Parental Guidance - Explicit Lyrics" or some variation thereof"…

    • 1797 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    the past two decades. There have been many different arguments on the topic, however the question still remains as if it should be censored or it should not be censored. Before one can form an opinion on this, one must hear both sides of the argument. Some believe that music should be censored so all audiences can hear it without it containing any controversial lyrics. Others believe it should not be censored and musical artists should be able to speak, sing, rap, or rhyme freely without anyone censoring them.…

    • 963 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    According to the First Amendment, artists should be protected by the freedom of speech which by law should protect the artist from any censorship. For example, if a rapper uses vulgar language in one of their songs and raps about fighting or killing their enemy, it doesn’t necessarily mean that whoever is listening will go out and commit a murder. If you’re an adult, you can’t blame a song or an artist for your actions. Whatever an artist says in their music isn’t mean’t to be taken verbatim, in most situations the lyrics are just for entertainment, nothing more. Most people that support the censorship of music are only supporting it for personal reasons. Most people are willing to give up their freedom of speech just because they don’t agree with 21 Savage’s views on religion and how he lived his life or how Lil Wayne chooses to be in a gang or smokes weed.…

    • 596 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Music carries many trends from generation to generation, but one of the oldest forms of censorship is what can and can’t be read on paper. Banned books are usually illegal because of certain information that could be a threat to someone or security. Censorship in today’s society can get out of hand real quick on both ends of the issue. It seems like there is always someone who is personally offended by something and tries to take whatever offended them away from everyone else. Then again, if there was no censorship, perhaps collective morals would cease to exist in society. What is not obscene to one person could very well be to another and that is one main reason why censorship does exist. However, that something is obscene to one person shouldn’t forbid another from seeing or hearing that form of expression if they want. Censorship helps gives the right to parents to raise their children in an environment in which parents feel comfortable and it helps parents decide what materials their children can be exposed to and what should be withheld. “We are living in a time when flowers are trying to live on flowers, instead of growing on good rain and black loam,” said Faber. What Faber is talking about is that censorship can also…

    • 1270 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    From comedians on television to radio hosts on the morning radio, it seems every person if expressing their use for these words. As profanity grows more common to daily life, the use of it is more often used with the expanding media. Varying in so many media communications, the effects of those words can cause more damage than expected, as the chances of the younger youth following the trend are also much greater. Allowing swear words to be used so commonly, and broadcasted worldwide, is almost saying that it's okay for anybody to use these words anywhere, anytime. Children need to be protected from such vulgarity, so that they can preserve their innocence for as long as possible. Having profanity used so regularly brings up a lot of concern about how much more it could be used, making it seem okay to bring into younger and younger generations media. One day on television, a child might be watching Barney and the next thing they hear him say might be how "good of a f------ day" he's having. With the profanity becoming so common, who knows how far any media technology will go to fit in with the growing…

    • 556 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    What if you were told that you could no longer listen to your favorite song anymore because the message that it sends does not conform to someone else’s way of thinking? What reasons are given for the censoring of music, or why have musicians been tortured, jailed, exiled or even killed? Why have certain forms of music been silenced? Music is an expression of ideas and emotions that reflect hopes, dreams and aspirations not only for the artist creating the music but in the listener as well. Music has been used as a form of expression of thoughts and emotions for centuries. People in power sometimes view these expressions conflicting to their current way of thinking what is proper lyrical content or negating to current governing practices. The implementation of music censorship has been done by governments, religions, educational systems and even families. In most cases this censorship is a violation of international conventions of human rights, (Freemuse.org). George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), said “All censorships exist to prevent anyone from challenging current conceptions and existing institutions. All Progress is initiated by challenging current conceptions, and executed by supplanting existing institutions. Consequently the first condition of progress is the removal of censorships.” (Freemuse.org). Although music censorship is imposed for various reasons, music is a form of artistic expression and censorship violates the artist 's human right of expression.…

    • 1485 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    What Effect Does the Music Censorship Has on today’s Society? This Topic Interest Me A lot Because A lot Of Society Problems Comes from the Censorship in Todays Music. I Have Many Questions about the Censorship in Today’s Music, Is Half of the Violence That Is Going on in the African American Community’s From the Censorship in Today’s Music? Is The Music Censorship Influences The Lives Of Many People? Is The Censorship In Todays Music Is The Cause Of Violence All Together? Do Many People Try To Do What The Censorship In Todays Music Says Because Of They Think That Person Is Cool, So They Think They Should Do It? I Think The Question Of: Is The Censorship In Todays Music Is That The Cause Of Most Of The Violence In Today’s African Americans Communities ,I Think This Question Can Be Turned Into A Research Question Because Many People Would Like To Know What Is The Cause For All The Violence In The African American Community’s . This Research Question Will Be Very Useful in a Research Paper Because It Can State a lot Of Facts That People Would like to Know About. This Research Question Is Very Relevant to A lot Of Community’s more specifically The African American Community’s, Because More African American’s Listen To Music With A Highly Amount Of Censorship That’s Why This Research Question Is Very Important To These Community’s. There is a lot Of Background Information That Leads up To the Main Topic of the Research Question, For Example: They Use a lot Of Rappers and Signers for Advertisements Because They Figure If They Can Convince Us to Buy It Because A lot Of Rappers in Singers Are Using It Then We Would To. So that’s Why I Stated Earlier That Most of the Violence in the African Community’s Comes from the Censorship in Todays Community’s. They Think That If The Rappers In Singers Are Saying That They Are Doing It They Would Want To Do It To. This Is In Article Negative Effects of Rap Music on Teens Written By: Expert Amie Taylor An how Contributer, Clearly…

    • 462 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Whether they are stay at home parents, work from home, or are retired. According the United States Census Bureau, about 25% of American of married couple families what have children under the age of 15 have a stay at home mother (United States Census Bureau). If a mother is at home with her children who are under the age of 15, that mother does not want them to be exposed to hearing profanity on the television. While she may not be intentionally exposing her children to profanity on the television, at any given moment the child can take the remote and accidentally change the channel to a show that is not teaching the child positive things. In today’s times there are many people who have the opportunity to work from home, their companies have provided them with the necessary equipment needed to get the work done in the comfort of their home. While they are working, they may not be interested in hearing profanity while completing their work. Most people who are retired are over the age of 50, in most instances they have little to no interest in hearing a ton of profanity on the television.…

    • 921 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Almost all school districts have a system for complaints, which helps protect academic freedom for their teachers. Censorship can be prevented by explaining to parents why controversial works were selected and to discuss how these materials will help students understand what is going on in class. Censorship degrades creativity, not to mention removes entertainment. Nonetheless, schools cannot be compared to a public area where one would give a speech, although censorship limits a student’s, or anyone’s, learning…

    • 456 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The United States Constitution gives Americans many rights. One of those rights is the freedom of speech. A controversy has erupted in the United States because the government is unable to determine the limitations on this right. "In early America when our forefathers wrote the Constitution, profanity was not accepted" (Shoeder 72). This makes determining the true definition of "speech" difficult. A majority of people believe profanity is an acceptable form of language. These people feel that they are free to say what they want without worrying about the rights of others. Due to this insensitivity, a child has a hard time walking down a street without hearing offensive words. For example, there is a man standing on a street corner harassing another person. The child hears profane words used by the man, and from this the child relates anger with profanity. Another example is a woman seen arguing with a cashier using profanity in an attempt to get her way, and the child with her begins to believe that to get your way you must cruse. A third example is a waitress having a bad day, and taking it out on the customers the child in the booth next to the customers and the waitress is thinking that this is a proper way to communicate. All of these examples are using improper language for children to hear (Shoeder 72). Parents are then expected to explain and make excuses for the vocabulary being used by others. Profanity has become uncontrollable and has had a great role in the moral decay of our society. The main goal for parents and government officials should be the regulation of profanity in the United States.<br><br>Adults are formed through the experiences of their childhood. The way a person acts and speaks is often determined at a young age. When a parent uses profanity, a child may feel free to also use these words. For instance, a mother may not intentionally use profanity when cutting her finger while in the kitchen. As a result of the mother 's action, a child…

    • 1764 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Arts Censored

    • 896 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Censorship is the regulation or suppression of writing or speech that is considered harmful to the common good or a threat to national security. The Arts have always been involved in the world, but there has always been someone behind the scenes that censors what is shown. Lately, people believe that more is shown than necessary. It has seemed in the past that nude portraits have been acceptable, but now if that was shown in, say, a public school people would be offended. “No one has come up with a workable definition of art that can universally separate garbage like Karen Finley 's body goo from Michelangelo 's David.”(Shapiro) Art is truly in the eye of the beholder, and these different opinions create conflict over what material is appropriate and what should be censored. Both sides have valid points: one idea being that the arts are, and always have been, be free expression, but the world has changed and now some people believe that the arts have crossed boundaries which must be re-created by censorship.…

    • 896 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Popular Music Under Siege

    • 859 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Dissatisfied with the RIAA's labels, many would-be censors have demanded even more limits on the sale of music with controversial lyrics. As a result, legislators have introduced bills in more than 20 states in recent years that would require warning labels far more detailed than the RIAA's. Some proposed laws would go beyond mandatory labeling and actually ban the sale to minors of music deemed to be objectionable.…

    • 859 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays