Profanity on the air?
Dan Hughes
Several top hit songs now use the f-word and the s-word, and many
commercial stations around here are playing them unedited. Have the
rules changed, or is the envelope being pushed a bit farther than it
should? Can't these folks get in trouble for this practice any more?
Thanks, ---Dan
--
NewsRadio
Dan Hughes wrote:
>
> Several top hit songs now use the f-word and the s-word, and many
> commercial stations around here are playing them unedited. Have the
> rules changed, or is the envelope being pushed a bit farther than it
> should? Can't these folks get in trouble for this practice any more?
> Thanks, ---Dan
> --
Depends on how tolerant your audience is. On an AOR or Modern
Rock/Alternative format, its probably ok. Stations only tend to get into
trouble when folks complain. When I used to work at a campus station, we
regularly got called to the CRTC (MUCH worse, I think, than the FCC!) to
explain why we played a song that had explicit lyrics in it (Try
explaining to commissioners why the "Yeasty Girls" is artistic :) and we
often could justify it by explainting who it is we were programming to
and the context of the song (EG explicit lyrics in a song played as a
bridge during the feminist talk show that dealt with rape/abuse). On the
otherhand, about a year ago, CFNY (102.1,Modern Rock/Alternative,Toronto)
was running a promo on air for themselves that featured a bunch of clips
of people saying "theres no good music on the radio in this city" etc..
that was interupted with the morning drive announcer in a deadpan voice
saying "BULLSHIT - CFNY 102.1 THE EDGE". I'm all for "cool" radio but I
remember thinking that this was just unnecessary.
--
------------------------------------
Southern Ontario Radio News and Broadcast Engineering Homepage:
www.interlog.com/~jmckay
Talk1370
'f-word')?"
This is an interesting question. Fellow radio salary slaves,
tell me if you agree with this...Isn't there an unwritten rule
that says if the announcer at the station says a cuss word
live, it's a no-no, but if it's buried in a piece of popular music
that the station had nothing to do with producing, it's essent-
ially a free pass, especially if the song is a hit? (Thou shalt
not, of course, allow ANY no-nos on the air if you're a talk
station, because you then are supposed to have full control of
content...)
Seems to me we've been talking a lot about this ever since
Alanis Morrisette clicked with"You Oughtta Know," haven't we?
And with her four Grammys, a lot of stations will be putting
that one back in the recurrent bin...
Bob Smith, middays WXXI-AM 1370 Rochester NY
Steve Work
NewsRadio (jmc...@interlog.com) wrote:
: > Several top hit songs now use the f-word and the s-word, and many
: > commercial stations around here are playing them unedited. Have the
: > rules changed, or is the envelope being pushed a bit farther than it
: > should? Can't these folks get in trouble for this practice any more?
: Depends on how tolerant your audience is. On an AOR or Modern
: Rock/Alternative format, its probably ok. Stations only tend to get into
: trouble when folks complain....
Is it really true that the f-word was craftily embedded in a live Beatles
recording of "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band". At one point in the
song the singer counts one-two-three-f***. The person listening is pretty
much going to expect (and probably hear) the word "four" there, not it's
four-letter replacement. And the Who's "Who the f*** are you", this one
seems to have been played unedited for quite some time.
Charles P. Hobbs
gdne...@nickel.ucs.indiana.edu (gregory david newton) wrote:
>
>Interesting indeed. I can't think of any stations ever cited for playing
>uncut versions of the Who's *Who Are You* or *Precious* by the Pretenders
>(to name just a couple of rock radio faves from earlier years that
>include one of the original deadly seven words).
What are the lyrics like on those songs? I don't really remember
anything bad about the Who song, and am unfamiliar with the Pretenders
tune.
> On the other hand...wasn't
>a Las Vegas CHR one of the first stations fined when the FCC revved up
>indecency enforcement in the late 80s, for playing a Prince song who's title
>escapes me, essentially because the FCC declared the lyrics included f--- in
>various permutations (although the station argued that the word in question
>may have been funk)?
I don't remember this case, but I think I know what song we're
talking about (Erotic City)
As to the word in question . . .one radio programmer put it this way:
"That's the first time that I've ever heard 'funk' rhyme so clearly
with 'duck'". . .
>
>And I know one of the cases in '87 that marked that renewed Commission
>interest in more than just seven words was a commercial recording (the
>infamous *Makin' Bacon* by the not really famous Pork Dukes, aired by a
>California student radio station).
>
That was at UC Santa Barbara; I was going there when that brouhaha
took place . . .now that song had some serious 4-letter words in it.
David A. Kaye
Dan Hughes wrote the quoted material below:
" Several top hit songs now use the f-word and the s-word, and many
" commercial stations around here are playing them unedited. Have the
" rules changed, or is the envelope being pushed a bit farther [....]
At Disney/ABC's KGO, top talk host Ronn Owens regularly uses words like
"bullshit" and on sister "hot-talk" station, KSFO, another veteran
broadcaster, Lee Rodgers, uses words like "God damned" and "piece of
crap". I believe this is Disney's attempt to become hip, since I only
remember the uses of theses invectives coming since the purchase of ABC
by Disney interests. The situation has gotten so bad that op-ed pieces
and letters to the editor are appearing in the local press asking when
this will stop. Will it? KGO is #1 and KSFO is about #20 or so. I
don't think it shows any sign of letting up.
Needless to say, I've tempered my listening with the local NPR stations.
Much more informative and much less irritating.
--
(c) 1996 Unions once made America the richest country of the world.
David Kaye
SidS1045
when we would regularly get complaints about language, including a few
forwarded from the FCC. At that time, virtually anything said in song
lyrics was defensible on "artistic freedom" grounds.
Now, I get the feeling that it's a double-edged sword. The law on
language over radio and television(18 USC 1464) is, supposedly, strictly
enforced 24 hours a day(with the exceptions the courts have made for
indecency, which has been defined as protected speech), but enforcement
only happens when a complaint is made. The FCC simply doesn't have the
manpower to monitor stations for programming content(and, increasingly,
for technical standards), so unless there's a complaint made, I think the
"free pass" is still the rule.
Sid Schweiger, C.E.
WXLO/Worcester, MA
71514...@compuserve.com
sids...@aol.com
Jeremy Lansman
>Reply-To: dhu...@prairienet.org (Dan Hughes)
>Several top hit songs now use the f-word and the s-word, and many
>commercial stations around here are playing them unedited. Have the
>rules changed, or is the envelope being pushed a bit farther than it
>should? Can't these folks get in trouble for this practice any more?
> Thanks, ---Dan
>--
Today I heard G. Gordon Liddy say "finger up his ass", in regard to
Clinton. I would not permit that on my station in regard to anyone.
Of course, we are a family station.
Jeremy
KYES
Bill P
} VUB...@prodigy.com (Drew Durigan) wrote:
}
} It's also the first time I've ever heard 'funk' in the line immediately
} proceeding "making love 'til (uh...another word for "cat") is gone"
Just for everyone's edification, you are under absolutely no
prohibition against using profanities or cuss words in these pages, as
long as doing so is in the context of discussion of issues pertaining
to words such as them.
Please don't use them in gratuitous or unnecessary ways, just in the
name of keeping discussions on a mature and professional level.
Thanks
William Pfeiffer
Moderator: rec.radio.broadcasting/AIRWAVES RADIO JOURNAL
w...@airwaves.com * w...@wwa.com * airw...@woodtech.com
Web: http://radio.aiss.uiuc.edu/~rrb/
El Ray de Disco
I once heard a story that when Elton's "The Bitch is Back" came
out, Dj's could not say the title, even though Elton said the
word at least 2 dozen times.
Working at a classic rock station, there are lots of songs with
profanity. And people complain about rap lyrics today. ha!
--
Ray Smith, playing all your favorite Joan Baez hits on 92.7 WUVA FM!
Jack Savage, The Croatian Flatulation, Chewy, Droz, Tony Fox, Old Man Kensey
Goose, Hep Cat, Passion Girl, Bob Mirhakakakakakak and all your favorite
personalities are on 92.7 WUVA FM, One Great Song After Another
Donna Halper
As a consultant, what I always advise my stations is "when in doubt,
don't". Some classic rock anthems do indeed have the F word buried or
mixed in somewhere, and custom in many places seems to now say hands off
on a classic, but in some cities, the song was never played or was
played in edited form-- the record company did provide an edit for "Who
Are You", for example. As with the definition for obscenity, the
issue is 'prevailing community standards'-- in some places, Howard Stern
can discuss his penis with no problem, while in other cities, any
station airing him is going to get deluged with complaints. It depends
on how strong the conservative factions in your town are. It also
depends on how strongly the 'dirty word' is flaunted. Many stations
stayed away from Jill Sobule's "I Kissed a Girl" because they felt that
a pro-lesbian song would offend their market. Some stations avoid the
Guns & Roses song with the line about 'niggers and gags'. I've always
believed that unless your image is to be nasty and rude, you're never
hurt by what you don't play. I'd rather be entertaining and
adventuresome in ways that are not an invitation for some right-wing
group to go after my license... donna
Mark Guidotti
In article <4i5g5d$k...@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> d...@crl.com (David A. Kaye) writes:
>
>Dan Hughes wrote the quoted material below:
>
>
>At Disney/ABC's KGO, top talk host Ronn Owens regularly uses words like
>"bullshit" and on sister "hot-talk" station, KSFO, another veteran
>and letters to the editor are appearing in the local press asking when
>this will stop. Will it? KGO is #1 and KSFO is about #20 or so. I
>Needless to say, I've tempered my listening with the local NPR stations.
>--
>(c) 1996 Unions once made America the richest country of the world.
>David Kaye
>
practiced by Howard Stern would have been muzzled immediately according to
prevailing community standards. Since the same First Amendment that protects
these transgressions also protects political speech, we're stuck with the smut.
The shame of it all is that it causes people who earnestly want intelligent,
respectful language to call for censorship. Once any one becomes successful,
it would be a matter of time until the slippery slope allows the government
to control what we say. So, speaking from an opinionated group of 1, I wish
they would quit insulting the audience and exercise restraint. In the long
run, the self-restraint will strenghten the First Amendment. I agree with
David -- as a one-time listener -- I now rarely tune to KGO.
Mark Guidotti, PE
--
----------------------------------------
Mark Guidotti, P.E. guid...@netcom.com
----------------------------------------
Michael Hagerty
El Ray de Disco wrote:
>
> I once heard a story that when Elton's "The Bitch is Back" came
> out, Dj's could not say the title, even though Elton said the
> word at least 2 dozen times.
>
and we said it...if memory serves, KFRC, San Francisco and KHJ, Los
Angeles did, too.
I'm sure other stations did censor their jocks on that
one....and many stations either held off on playing it until it peaked
...or didn't play it at all.
Checking my Joel Whitburn books, "The Bitch Is Back" was, at that time,
Elton John's lowest charting single in 2 years. It peaked at #4, was the #56 record of
the year and spent roughly half the time in the top 10 that "Bennie and The Jets",
"Daniel" and "Crocodile Rock" did. It also did not go Gold. This was arguably
the hottest phase of Elton John's career...it seems likely that airplay(or lack of
it)played a part. Different times...although...nobody else has gone top 5
with a record that has "Bitch" in the title in the 22 years since.
Michael Hagerty
Bill P wrote:
>
> } VUB...@prodigy.com (Drew Durigan) wrote:
> }
> } It's also the first time I've ever heard 'funk' in the line immediately
> } proceeding "making love 'til (uh...another word for "cat") is gone"
>
> Just for everyone's edification, you are under absolutely no
> prohibition against using profanities or cuss words in these pages, as
> long as doing so is in the context of discussion of issues pertaining
> to words such as them.
>
> Please don't use them in gratuitous or unnecessary ways, just in the
> name of keeping discussions on a mature and professional level.
>
> Thanks
>
> William Pfeiffer
Okay, with that understood....Drew....Prince sings "cherry", not "pussy".
Just FYI.
Dangerboy
On 16 Mar 1996, Paul Grosso wrote:
> slw...@netcom.com wrote:
> : Is it really true that the f-word was craftily embedded in a live Beatles
> : recording of "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band". At one point in the
> : song the singer counts one-two-three-f***.
> doing live shows long before the release of this album.
True, but two possibilities present themselves:
1.) The recording in question might have been an outtake from the
Sgt. Pepper sessions. Thousands of Beatles bootlegs are out there, and
it might have happened.
2.) It could be a live recording from after the Beatles broke up. I
know that Paul has performed the song live (at least in his "Flowers in
the Dirt" tour...any others?), and any of the others might have as well.
Anybody with more knowledge care to speak up?
Later....
Sam
Co-host, "Breakfast with the Beatles"
WICB-FM
----------------------------
Sam Meyer
sme...@ic3.ithaca.edu
(also samm...@vivarin.pc.cc.cmu.edu)
President, Ithaca College chapter, Militant Gardening Club
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Every jumbled pile of person has a thinking | "I'm not God...I was
part that wonders what the part that isn't | just misquoted."
thinking isn't thinking of." | --Dave Lister,
--They Might Be Giants | RED DWARF
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Drew Durigan
>nobody else has gone top 5
>with a record that has "Bitch" in the title in the 22 years since.
Yeah. The only one I can think of is Rod Stewart's "Ain't Love a Bitch?"
in 1979, and that peaked at #22 (the follow-up to "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?".
.which was #1 for 4 weeks)
-Drew in Sunny Central Florida-
PvtJoker2
>slw...@netcom.com wrote:
>
>: Is it really true that the f-word was craftily embedded in a live
Beatles
>: recording of "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band". At one point in
the
>: song the singer counts one-two-three-f***.
>
>There is no live version of the Beatles doing Sgt. Pepper - they stopped
>doing live shows long before the release of this album.
>
Maybe he's thinking of "I Saw Her Standing There". Supposedly the rumor
has been passed about that one, although I don't quite see why..._I_ sure
never heard the word in it.
Lou Kolb
He could be thinking of the "one two three four" count which is done in
staccato fashion in the reprise, just before "a Day in the Life."
Mark Taylora
In article <4idktn$9...@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu>, slw...@netcom.com (Steve Work)
wrote:
> El Ray de Disco (rd...@curry.edschool.virginia.edu) wrote:
>
>
> There's obviously a difference in "levels" of profanity. It doesn't
> matter if the "f-word" is used but how many times is used. Lots of
> stations play "Who Are You" with the f-word only once in the song. But
> these same stations are not going to play tracks from NWA's "EFIL4ZAGGIN"
> where every second or third word uttered is the f-word. It's very true
> that indecency rules are enforced on a complaint basis.
>
> In fact, has the above NWA record (or any part of it) EVER been played on
> the air? Other than a highly sanitized version on one track which was
> put together. Was this the first or only album ever to reach #1 on the
> charts without airplay?
In May 1991 I came to Hawaii to work for Radio Free Hawaii (KDEO-FM), a
commercial station with music controlled by a listener ballot system to
this day. It was just prior to start-up for the new format and the PD was
concerned because NWA's "Fuck the Police" had made the initial playlist
and he didn't know how he could play it. Having never heard the song I
volunteered to get out the blade and reverse a few "fucks" (the station
had only the bare essential equipment at that time). Well there are
somewhere around 150 or so "fucks" in that track (I lost count) and that's
how I spent my first working day in paradise. They carted it up, called
it "FCC the Police" and played it for months until the cart broke. I
think they later recreated it using a Harmonizer. I have never
voluntarily listened to an NWA song again.
MICHAEL HAGERTY
In a previous article, pa...@wco.com (Paul Grosso) says:
>
>slw...@netcom.com wrote:
>
>: Is it really true that the f-word was craftily embedded in a live Beatles
>: recording of "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band". At one point in the
>: song the singer counts one-two-three-f***.
>
>There is no live version of the Beatles doing Sgt. Pepper - they stopped
>doing live shows long before the release of this album.
>
> - Paul
>
McCartney's "four"s have always sounded like that...and fueled
speculation...both on the Sgt Pepper reprise that segues into "A
Day In The Life"...and on the earlier "I Saw Her Standing There."
There is a neat little trick buried in the track-out grooves of
the British pressings of Sgt. Pepper(on vinyl)...maybe 15 seconds after
the long final chord of "A Day In The Life" trails out, there's about
:03 of gibberish...music and voice....played backward, it screws up
your stylus...and sounds like the boys singing "he will f--- you like
a superman". If I'm not mistaken, the track is on CD's issued in
America...but there's no easy way to play it backward.
###
[Moderator's Note: You can record it on a wav (or similar) file on
your hard drive, and easily reverse it. Bill]
Talk1370
That story has had a lot of different versions...but it probably
started with the one! two! three! FOUR! countdown at the start of
the early Beatles single "I Saw Her Standing There." A lot of kids
(especially) THOUGHT they heard that last "four" as the big F when
it first played on their tinny transistor radios (and on a bad radio
even now, it kind of sounds like that). But it isn't...
Dangerboy
That's interesting, at our student station, we couldn't announce the
title of the "Kiss My Ass" Kiss tribute album, though we *could* say the
name of the band the Ass Ponys. Go figure...
We did play songs with all kinds of words in them, some of which we edit
out. I was told to edit Liz Phair's "Supernova" ("...and you f*ck like a
volcano..."), but not the Pogues' "Rain Street", or Heather Nova's "Walk
This World", both of which also have the same word.
Since we are a student station, though, we have more than just the FCC to
worry about...we've also got to keep the Dean and the Board of Trustees
happy as well.
Sam
Production Director, WICB-FM
PvtJoker2
> That's interesting, at our student station, we couldn't announce the
> title of the "Kiss My Ass" Kiss tribute album, though we *could* say the
> name of the band the Ass Ponys. Go figure...
Well, why not...isn't "ass pony" an accepted term for a young donkey?
John Hayward-Warburton
> the British pressings of Sgt. Pepper(on vinyl)...maybe 15 seconds after
> the long final chord of "A Day In The Life" trails out, there's about
> :03 of gibberish...music and voice..
There's another trick just before this (which also appears on UK-issed
CDs of Sgt. Pepper); a high-pitched whistle designed to annoy
listeners' dogs! Check it out; it's there on the early pressings and on
my CD which is of UK manufacture.
--
John Hayward-Warburton
Vics here
Here's a really strange one--from 1985-87, I worked at an AM/FM combo in a
small market in the western US. AM was teen-oriented top-40, FM was
country. We later flipped the country to AM, and went hot A/C on the FM.
At no time, on either the top-40 or the hot A/C, were we allowed to play
Madonna's "Like A Virgin!"
The GM was young as GM's go. He had lived in that town his whole life.
Other than a brief stint in college radio, he had never worked anywhere
except at these stations in his home town. He started as a teen-aged
weekender, and wound up running the place. He said he thought the lyrics
of the song weren't appropriate for the market. Odd, since this place has
some of the youngest demographics in America. I always thought it was
really because his Mom and Dad--old country Europeans who still had their
accents after 30 years in America, and worked as the stations' janitorial
staff!--told him not to play it!
Vic Doucette/vics he...@aol.com