 |
|
 |
USA: Music tv channel bleeps the word ‘suicidal’
American rapper Sean Kingston’s song ‘Beautiful Girl’ is about a girl so beautiful that he is afraid that their relation will never work: “You’ll have me suicidal, suicidal – When you say it’s over.” But on the MTV show ‘Total Request Live’, Sean Kingston’s summer hit is less dramatic since ‘suicidal’ is left out in the chorus.
S-word According to the American newspaper the Daily News the reason why you will never hear the s-word on MTV is that suicide might be something many members of the channel’s audience are struggling with. “We do not take any references to suicide lightly”, a spokesman for MTV told the Daily News.
MTV also informed the Daily News that they don’t have a list of words that are automatically censored. Instead, the lyrics are studied contextually to avoid racial epithets, obscene language, illegal or violent behavior. ‘In denial’ Sean Kingston’s record label has produced two versions of ‘Beautiful Girl’ – there is the original and also a version substituting ‘suicidal’ with ‘in denial’. Most radio stations play the original version, but some has chosen the changed version. However – when MTV asked the label if they wanted them to audio drop ‘suicidal’ or rather would submit an edited version of the song themselves, the label chose to audio drop ‘suicidal’.
Source
NY Daily News – 20 Aug 2007 “'TRL' uses censorship with TLC”
|
|
 MTV silenced Sean Kingston's lovesick lyrics |
|
 |
| Related reading |
| Morocco: Rapper El Haked is finally set free |
| After spending more than four months in jail, rapper Mouad El Haked is finally a free man. His supporters claim that the assault charges were a setup to muzzle the popular singer |
| 12 January 2012 |
 |
| Senegal: Freedom of speech record under fire |
| Senegal's enviable freedom of expression is under threat. Musicians are being harassed and recieve death threats for expressing their opinions through their music. |
| 22 December 2011 |
 |
| Morocco: Surprise hearing of Mouad El Haked |
| After being held in custody for three months, the court in Casablanca opened the case of El Haked on 6 December – without informing his lawyers, or his family. Supporters are organizing solidarity manifestations. |
| 16 December 2011 |
 |
| Norway: Rap duo threatened with violence |
| The rap duo Prayaz from the Norwegian capital Oslo sing about violence against women, and they are themselves threatened with violence because of that, reported NRK |
| 14 November 2011 |
 |
| Cuba: Two hip-hop musicians arrested |
| Julito and El Primario, two Cuban hip-hop musicians who started the label Sin Censura Records (Without Censorship Records), were arrested at an anti-government protest |
| 03 October 2011 |
 |
|
|
 |