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Classic Dire Straights Song banned for the use of the word 'Faggot'

Discussion in 'Entertainment and Technology' started by Shevanel, Jan 13, 2011.

  1. Shevanel

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    http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news...ts_classic_banned_25_years_after_release.html
    Said song.
    [YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwDDswGsJ60[/YOUTUBE]

    I think this is quite horribly stupid. One Complaint and the song is banned from air play? The bold part is where Mark Knopfler explains the use of the word faggot in the song, and why it's there, and I agree with him that he should be angry.

    There is a ton of really worse shit going on the radio right now, Dire Straights is actually a really great band, yet a classic song like this gets banned?

    What are your thoughts, guys?
     
  2. ArcaneVerse

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    I quite agree with your opinion but that's political correctness for you and the power of fearing a lawsuit.

    Im not one for censorship in the arts so I don't think it should be banned at all but there are other options, like late night playing only or giving a quick 5sec warning that some people may be offended.
     
  3. MusicIsLife

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    I don't see why people are so pissed about it. The original version is banned, but if "Faggot" is bleeped out, they can still play it on the air.

    It's the same thing with playing songs ont he radio that include shit, fuck, nword, whore, etc etc etc, but you don't hear people pissing themselves over that aspect of censorship, do you?

    Additionally (and the american members can correct me if im wrong) but aren't the words drugs/suicide/damn and god also censored on songs on the radio? oh mah gawd, censorship!
     
  4. SlickyPants

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    I`m generally opposed to censorship, especially when it comes to art but this doesn`t bug me that much. It`s not like they`re censoring it from the source and you`ll never be able to buy the Brothers in Arms album or the song with the original lyrics. Like many movies and songs on TV and the radio they sometimes bleep certain words. This is nothing new. So I hear a few split seconds of silence during the song when I hear it on the radio. No big deal.
     
  5. Shevanel

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    Oh I know, it's just one song on one radio station, I just thought it was silly and all.
     
  6. midwestblues

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    Ultimateguitar.com must be really hungry for news if they're going to write an article for every song that receives an unoptional radio edit. And if that constitutes a song being "banned", we have a lot of banned songs in the U.S. Top 40 right now.
     
    #6 midwestblues, Jan 13, 2011
    Last edited: Jan 13, 2011
  7. Beachboi92

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    the thing i don't get is that the way he uses faggot is actually ironic. I mean for god sakes he basically sais yeah you call him a faggot but he is better than you. In all honestly it doesn't even necessarily have to be directed at gay people. Even though the undertone is there it speaks towards making fun of anyone....
     
  8. SlickyPants

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    This thread has got me thinking. I don`t think I`ve ever heard Money by Pink Floyd censored on the radio. They seem to leave it alone despite the lyric: ``Don`t give me that do goody good bullshit.``

    Being in Canada and the requirement that radio stations are required to play 35% Canadian content the local stations always seem to play a lot of Tragically Hip and I never did pay attention but I`m pretty sure they never censored the lyric ``I remember every single fucking thing I know``in The Hundredth Meridian.

    P.S. My keyboard has been acting up. I think I might have inadvertantly switched it to some French setting because all my apostrophes and quotation marks are screwed up.
     
  9. Shevanel

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    I have a couple times. But I could swear that I've heard it uncensored too.

    ---------- Post added 13th Jan 2011 at 11:14 PM ----------

    UG News can actually be quite bullshit. Ironic you say that, lotsa members of the forum complain often and rate down the news stories they post, but others are pretty decent.
     
  10. Pepsi

    Pepsi Guest

    This. I think censorship is ridiculous and all.

    However I honestly love that they are making them bleep out faggot. They shouldn't be bleeping out anything but if they're going to be censoring some offensive words then they better censor all of them. It has to be all or nothing. I get furious when I hear the radio bleep something out because its offensive to someone and then I hear an offensive gay slur on the same station two seconds later. It doesn't matter what the artist meant by the word. Rappers use the n word to describe friends in countless amounts of songs and they always bleep it. It's a good thing that faggot is being censored. It's a step forward towards equality not an attack against an artist.
     
  11. Darkwing65

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    It is very silly. I'm not sure what they think they accomplished.
     
  12. officialtom

    officialtom Guest

    It's been banned from being played on Canadian radio stations but quite a few are still playing it, including K-Rock 105.5 in my (small) hometown. One of the hosts did an on-air survey asking if the original song should still be played, and she got over 500 people saying it SHOULD be played and hardly any saying no.