Clear Channel is attempting to silence Bruce Springsteen
By John Amato Monday Oct 29, 2007 5:30pm(Radio Nowhere)
Here we go again. The Dixie Chicks redux! Bruce has the #1 record in all the land called " Magic," but Clear Channel has sent out a memo saying:
Alas, there’s a hitch: Radio will not play "Magic." In fact, sources tell me that Clear Channel has sent an edict to its classic rock stations not to play tracks from "Magic." But it’s OK to play old Springsteen tracks such as "Dancing in the Dark," "Born to Run" and "Born in the USA."
Republican owned corporate media once again is attempting to silence progressive positions. I'm trying to contact Springsteen's camp for a comment.
Howie Klein has much more...
Clear Channel is a big-time and very consciously right-wing power player with a goal of changing American pop culture. They have done all they could to stifle progressive voices and to dumb down and trivialize the culture...read on
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TIME TO START THE REQUEST CALLS!!!!
ADRIAN PASDAR was so angered when a stranger made a rude remark about his DIXIE CHICKS star wife NATALIE MAINES, he knocked the man to the ground. The Heroes actor was wearing a 'Free Natalie Maines' T-shirt, in the aftermath of the singer's anti-war comments in 2003, when the incident occurred in a supermarket. Pasdar says, "This big guy said, 'F**k your wife,' as he passed me, and I couldn't help myself. I pushed him back into a rack of Tootsie Rolls, and he fell down. "I'm not proud of that, but I'd do it again in a minute. There's a real hurt when you see somebody getting so attacked by the media so viciously for something that was so innocuous initially. It destroyed their career for a while. "With Nat, it was just one of those things where you reconvene every night and support each other. It was difficult. We went through arguments about it. I can't say it was one big love fest. There were some differences of opinion on how to handle what happened."
Thats ok John...lets see if this works.My Comment:I thought they did this sort of thing in the USSR.(when it was)...Remember radio free europe....We need radio free US now!..Geez...their spying on us on telephones,internet and now silencing opinion in music(again)....I thought that was why we were at odds with Communism?!
John Amato @ 1:
Ignore my comment in the Colbert post C and L.
Anyway, I think it's kind of funny. Censoring the Chicks is one thing but censoring an icon to the Baby Boomers is another. As a fan I think people should be outraged. But this is what we get when we allow the airwaves to be controlled by a majority who votes Republican. I was Born in the USA but lately not very proud to say so.
clear channel is just another attempt of the gop reichwingnut pediophiles to turn everyone into sheeple and then work them all from the rear end. pun intended.
Check the great lyrics to this Prince Myshkins song dealing with Clear Channel's banning of certain songs after 9-11.
http://www.princemyshkins.com/lyricslist.html
BONUS: Song ALSO portrays Joe Lieberman in a less-than-flattering light!
At least there's no irony about the name of his song..
dadams @ 6:
Ain't that the truth.
L.A. Confidential @ 3:
When the Chicks came up to Canada they played to nothing but sold out shows,two of them in my city...
L.A. Confidential @ 3:
The Big guy deserved it.....I don't know any men that would tolerate that being said about their wives.........he's just lucky it didn't get out of hand.
I've never been a big Boss fan, but I have made 3 requests to hear his music so far today!
Truth & Beauty
http://clearchannel.com/radio/StationSearch.aspx
This is the link to finding all stations owned by CC. Don't be afraid to send them an email or 10 song requests a day!
I emailed WDVE in Pittsburgh to see if they are following Clear Channel's directives. WDVE is the station for us old folks to get past the Blink 182's and hear real music. No offense to Blink 182 fans, I enjoy some of their shit.
Clear Channel just showed us a classic example of how the repug wing likes to shoot it's self in the foot.....I hope Springsteen gets very vocal about this..I'd enjoy watching the fallout.
Not sure if this is the correct link but from Stewart....
http://www.comedycentral.com/motherload/player.jhtml?ml_video=121921&is_...
They seemed to have no problem playing the hell out of Neil Young's "Let's Roll" on classic rock stations, even though it was a new song at the time. Anyone know if Neil's played that stinker in recent years?
Wow. Where I grew up, someone within reach that said, "Hey mister. F*ck your wife!" would pretty much be attempting suicide. I don't advocate violence myself, but have know plenty of people in my hometown to actually die for exactly that.
But to the point, I wonder where the middle material stands? Like this one:
Released in 1995. But pretty appropriate today, I'd say...
Screen door slams.
Mary's dress sways.
Like a vision she dances,
Across the porch,
While Roy Orbison is banned.
Tonight ....
In ...
Bush/Cheney Land.
followed by killer sax solo
I will say this:
It's a shame that we in the middle, left, and way left can't organize a good old fashioned boycott the way the batshit crazy right can. Because at the end of the day, ClearChannel wouldn't be in business if we didn't let them.
Just bought the album on amazon... I REALLY like this song. I heard it on some time back once on the radio ( a clear channel station). After I told my wife that I bought the album she wondered why she hadn't heard the song anymore.
I have no idea how the music world works. I don't know how radio stations are allowed to play music and what the mechanism for compensation is to the artist. That said, if I were Bruce Springsteen, I would get a building full of lawyers and I would do everything in my power to issue a cease and desist order was delivered to every Clear Channel station everywhere in the world banning them from playing any of my music EVER again. Not even in voice overs, commercials or public announcements. Never again. It's that simple. Either you play all my music, or you never play another note of my music ever again.
There is nothing offensive, obscene or substandard about the current album. It's number 1. That kind of speaks for itself. So I don't know how much control over all his music he has, but I would at least hold a HUGE press conference on MTV and invite the rest of the puke news networks and I would tell the world to stop listening to all the Clear Channel stations. Create a web site with a list of every one and their address, phone number and call-in-line to tell my fans these are the stations you NEVER want to listen to again.
The only thing these fucking thugs understand is money and force. If you don't use one of those weapons, you will never stop them.
L.A. Confidential @ 3:
Proves what pussies the right-wing really are. They think they're so badass and macho, but when someone fights back, they can't do shit.
PurplePatriot @ 21:
We should be talking with Bruce's press people and organizing a media incident. This thing need to be turned on them, and turned on them bad.
from the stepped up fascist efforts all across the board by the nut cases supporting war, Israel and shutdown of freedom of speech. Here is a great link of a short, funny but true video hammering that lying bastard Bush in an easy to watch format. Enjoy :)
http://www.glumbert.com/media/roleplay
It's not just the Dixie Chicks. I've not heard a CC station in our area play Pink's "Dear Mr. President" either. In fact I've only heard it played recently on one station . . . guess someone's finally gotten fed up and they are not with CC.
Clear Channel is a legal monopoly, which we let happen. I assure you, this corporation could not care less about our protests. The union that CC belongs to (the republican party) will make sure that CC lives free and prospers.
We have a very sick culture here in the U.S. They waved the stars and stripes in our faces, and now they're wiping their asses with it.
The only remedy, once again, is not negotiation but, rather, destruction of the monopolies: They harm the people, they harm the culture, they harm freedom...period.
Remember when rock was the music of rebellion, iconoclasm, dissent, individualism?
Now it's just marketing and filler, like everything else on the corporate media. It's been co-opted, marginalized and commoditized into meaninglessness.
I'm glad the music business is falling apart and everybody with a laptop and an iPod is downloading tunes for free. They don't deserve our money (except the upcoming artists, they're the ones getting screwed). Fuck 'em all.
Around the time of the Born in the USA tour, George Will wrote a column about going to a Springsteen concert. He said it was too loud, but he liked it otherwise. Back then I guess the Boss wasn't such a threat to the wingnuts.
Ah, the good old days.
Clear Channel has sponsors. Write the sponsors directly and tell them you will no longer be in the market for their products as long as Clear Channel is punishing Springsteen. Ask them to advertise elsewhere or you will not purchase what they sell or you find other products.
Springsteen is a con.
letters to the fcc appear to be necessary. While you're at it, complain about rush limbaugh and his hateful tirades.
swarmofkillermonkeys @ 18:
One of my fav songs from one of my fav albums.
Let's put this in perspective...
a) If you listen to a Clear Channel station you deserve what you get.
b) Bruce Springsteen's new record went to #1 without Clear Channel - why do we need Clear Channel to play it?
c) There are plenty of smaller radio stations who deserve support. Clear Channel does not.
d) There is only one way to voice your opinion to a giant corporate radio conglomerate. Change the station!
Don't call them, don't write them. Abandon them and their ilk and never look back.
Thank you.
Went looking for the G. Will column mentioned above, but found some pertinent quotes instead:
"You measure a democracy by the freedom it gives its dissidents, not the freedom it gives its assimilated conformists." - Abbie Hoffman.
"The difference between a democracy and a dictatorship is that in a democracy you vote first and take orders later; in a dictatorship you don't have to waste your time voting."-Bukowski
In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act - George Orwell
KNBR in San Francisco is a Clear Channel station.
Just the other day Bob Fitzgerald, one of their noon-3 sportstalk hosts, could hardly contain his love for Bruce and (anticipation for Oakland show).
L.A. Confidential @ 3:
adrian is a real hero
My wife and I saw him in Chicago last week. I agree with Jon Stewart, best night of my life. Bruce is happy, energized and determined to do whatever he can to help get America back on track.
Another gem from Bruce. Thanks for posting, John.
mark harvey @ 37:
knbr is owned by Cumulus Media...not sure where you got that they are owed by clear channel
what amazes me is that clear channel is so myopic, they are willing to run themselves into the ground
they have helped to push personalities like howard stern off of terrestrial radio and their corporate mindset has pushed more and more people to podcasts and other ways of listening to radio
in 10 years, there wont be a clear channel corp
as an aside...isnt this album proof that with good product you can get past the pirates?
Clear Channel denies it censors artists. Hmmm.
http://clearchannel.com/Corporate/PressRelease.aspx?PressReleaseID=1167&...
I haven't seen any reference to the Boss on their website but in reading the article it seems to say it's more or less age related. Now that Springsteen is 58, Clear Channel owned stations don't seem too interested in playing aging Rockers.
These guys running Clear Channel don't care about music. They are selling skoal, beer, and pickup trucks.
Does anyone still listen to the radio? Seriously, I don't know a single person who does. Not for music anyway. I realize that's anecdotal, but who doesn't know that the radio is shit now and has been for years? If you're looking for decent new music, you're certainly not going to find it on any Clear Channel station and I think everyone over the age of 16 knows this. It's hopelessly sad that this is the case, but it is. Commercial radio is meaningless and it's the huge comglomerates themselves who are responsible for that state of affairs. Thank god we have alternatives now.
Well radio sucks these days, and clear channel is a big reason why. We need the return of pirate radio!
The Boss calls out Clear Channel in the first fucking cut: "All I heard was a drone/bouncing off a satellite/Crushing the last lone American night. This is Radio NOWHERE- Is there anybody alive out there?"
http://youtube.com/watch?v=XmLt6kcZ72Q
John or Howard might know the answer to this question. Would it be possible for Bruce to pull his catalog from ASCAP etc. so that Clear Channel could play no Springsteen songs at all on any stations?
The reason I asked that question was that if you can pull your catalog then a whole bunch of artists could simultaneously pull at the same time. The thought of leaving Clear Channel with Glenn Miller on a 24/7 basis is thrilling.
There was a station Clear Channel put up a few years back. They hid the fact it was Clear Channel by setting up a under another company and calling it Indie 103.1. But it was just set up to take some ratings away from KROQ.
What they probably didn't expect was people were interested in listening to DJs that knew something about the music they were playing. They ended up killing the station by insisting on the Clear Channel way of doing radio.
the telecommunications act of 1996 needs to be repealed asap
I am a Viet Nam Vet. Before I hit the Nam, in Jan 1968, there was a song "The Eve of Destruction", by Barry McGuire, a Green Beret. The song was banned from mainstream radio, and most bars. Me and friends would go to the few places where you could hear it. We would scream along to the tune. There was a hell of a lot accomplshedd by keeping it off of the airways. For all of you utes, try and find it, try and revive it, have fun with it, cry with it, get layed with it, break windows with it, change your country with it, I'm too old.
Martie Maguire (fiddle player) was insulted for her group directly in her face while playing blackjack in Vegas in 2006 during their Nevada stop. Fortunately her husband Gareth was there to straighten the individual out (in a more non-violent fashion).
Thanks for the interview clip on Adrian, I hadn't seen that before. I've been a huge Chicks fan since 1999 and their defiance of corrupt establishment has only strengthened that.
And by the way, what was most foremost on my mind. FUCK bush, cheney, their kindred, their pets, the fucking creeps that pimp for them, and anyone who does'nt preface their names with ASSHOLE.
Magic is a pretty great album. There's some duds, but the songs dealing with uh, the current state of the nation make my spine tingle.
Re: C.C. Radio
They fired me.
I billed $1,000,000 for them. (2002).
Helped pay Rush's salary.
But I was a registered Democrat.
Worst radio operators I ever worked with.
They make sure their PD's are total tories.
seems that Bruce's own words in that song are quite telling: radio nowhere.
also here's a great line from "Last to Die":
Kids asleep in the backseat
We're just counting the miles, you and me
We don't measure the blood we've drawn anymore
We just stack the bodies outside the door
Oh hey. They've bought every "heritage" FM rocker.
Every market.
They give you Bob & Tom (ha ha ha ha ha) plus the worst most tired rock music all over the dial.
All over the USA.
This subject is painful, as my dad was a deejay during the golden age of rock and roll. He invented album cuts with a show called Beaker Street -- it was on a.m. radio at the time and broadcast 100,000 watts at night. People from Cuba have told me they listened to the midnight album cuts show, and Paul Shaffer used to listen to it... but when computers entered the picture, it was the beginning of the end for the deejay and the program director. Time's pendulum will swing real music back to the airwaves, I hope and pray.
mark harvey @ 37:
KNBR is not a music channel. Huge money maker in talk.
Complaints to the FCC must request specifically that your letter, email, whatever, become part of the station's permanent record which is supposed to be available for public inspection and influential at license renewal time. However the republithugs at the FCC over the years have made it increasingly harder to challenge a station's license.
Boycott the stations and never, ever mention that you listen to one of CC's station to an Arbitron survey.
They bore old guys with their FM so that (they hope) you check out their AM fascist talk radio.
This is why Hip Hop sells.
These white male radio execs' cut Rocks throat.
I was there.
mark harvey
That's good.
But come to Ohio. Dig our FM.
Bob Fitzgerald?
We just get Bob & Tom.
Plus the worst music ever.
Have you heard ZZ Top do "Tush" twelve times a week?
Clear Channel will soon discover that they are in fact a dinosaur.
The strange thing about Clear Channel's hatred of Howard Stern is that his list of political endorsements reads like a who's who of New York Republicans (including Rudy Giuliani for mayor and Mario Cuomo for governor over Hillary Clinton). But he starts to seriously question Dubya and how a small group of his people have so much influence over the FCC and suddenly he's enemy number one.
Cut to a few years later, Stern gets a quarter billion dollar contract...well, CC, you really showed him...
This is the kind of shit that these people have been playing on the American people sense Bush took office.
I have screamed about this crap forever and FCC will NOT step up to the plate and put a stop to this shit.
These people are the reason we are currently at war with a country that did nothing to us and still nothing is being done to stop this kind of crap.
They know dame well they should not have all these right wing fools all over these networks caring this foul agenda they promote, yet when you complain about it they act as if nothing is being said at all.
We own these networks and deserve good honest news coverage and at best the truth.
The new dem preznit needs to unleash a trustbustin AG on Newscorp, Clearchannel, all the communications companies. I lilke the era when content couldnt be owned by the networks or stations. Radio or TV. Lets get stations back into community ownership that relies on its viewers. Lets make Tom Petty happy with music programming by creative folk not bean counters and bush hacks.
Clear Channel is a glimpse of what a zombie apocalypse would look like.
There should be open rebellion against them. They haven't done anything good for public communication. Especially when it comes to news broadcasting. They have also been EXTREMELY anti-artist.
Clear Channel hates the the arts. They hate people. They hate free speech, freedom information and they hate the free market (where they would have to compete based on their performance).
Figure it out. Clear channel hates you. They want you to be a walking-dead Zombie who totally predictably tunes in whatever station they tell you to and listen to the mindless, soul-eating chanting of the undead all day and night.
Get rid of those clowns.
San Diego is losing its Clear Channel Air America station KLSD to sports. We are GRIEVING. The Reader had a good article about it -- Jocks Talk Liberals Walk.
My comment disappeared! Trying again: KLSD in San Diego, Clear Channel Air America, is being flipped to sports talk, to our great anguish. Insight from the Reader, Jocks Talk Liberals Walk:
One thing that hasn't been mentioned - they sent this missive to CLASSIC ROCK stations. As most classic rock stations NEVER play new music, it seems to make sense that they wouldn't play the new Springsteen song - plus CC said it was fine to play his older (aka "classic") music. Any mention of them not allowing programming of the songs on contemporary rock and pop stations? No. Just classic rock. It's easy to hate the big bad wolf, but overall it seems to be much ado about nothing this time around.
nickmagoo @ 68:
I think this shows what "classic rock" really is: These corporate raiders hoover up radio stations and then they're too cheap to buy any new music which is why their playlists are so old and tired! Remember the blackout a couple of summers back? It took me all day to get a ride back home out of manahattan and I couldn't get a clear handle on what had actually happened until I got WBZ-AM out of Boston on the car radio. Everything else was automated...
Damn! I stopped buying CDs about 2002, and then I had to buy the Neil Young and Dixie Chicks albums in 2003. Now I gotta break my moratorium again and buy the new Springsteen album. Damn!
This an obvious commercial ploy to create a multiple-platinum album and multiple Grammy awards for Bruce Springsteen. Count me in!
J.C. @ 45:
I listen to radio for music, but I manly stick to "oldies" stations. There is one CC music station I listen to, WHJYand while they won't play Springsteen, etc. some of their djs get in some nice rants. especially about the war and who's in office. I took on to task though once, through email, of working for the very company that censors and won't let alturnative voices on the radio, which was the subject of his audio blog that day. (Charles )
One of my friends, a professional photographer, said a few years ago that Rock and Roll was dead ---- listening to the homoginized sound CC puts out, I would agree and that CC is one of it's murders.
BTW CC does stations are; country, rock, talk, probably Christian too. They are the largest group that are dumping progressive talk radio stations. They did in Boston, where we now have a Latino music station in it's place. That would be okay if there weren't five already AND in the almost one year since the switch the stations new sound is a ratings looser, with the former progressive talk stations book beating it in every quarter - the numbers aren't even close.
CC has also switched the progressive talk station in New Haven, CT and San Diego is next!
Conservatives want to spread the meme that talk radio doesn't sell and can't compete commerically, but that's a lie -comparisions between ratings books prove that it's not about ratings/money... it's about who owns that stations and the message/voice they want to squelch.
Keep watch http://www.nonstopradio.com/
I wrote the post below before I saw JC's post and think JC is absolutely correct.
How can Clear Channel "silence" Bruce Springsteen if people don't listen to their stations in the first place? That would be people like me, who buy CDs (I have both the new Springsteen and Joni Mitchell CDs - try both!!) and don't listen to radio. Radio is a medium that is becoming increasingly irrelevant, except among the Limbaugh dunderheads. So Clear Channel, you can try to silence the message, but you won't succeed. Springsteen is likely to win at least one Grammy without you, illustrating perfectly your irrelevance!
After 40 years of putting on (arguably) the greatest live shows rock and roll has ever seen, Springsteen has little need for clear channel. The E-Street Band can make more money and reach more people through sold out concerts than they can through album sales. For the next year the live shows will sell out every night. Between 20k and 70k fans will gladly hand over $100 per ticket and enjoy the time of their lives.
The model for the current Springsteen organization is essentially the album supports and enables the tour. There are few bands that have reached this level of rock nirvana and profitability.
To Bruce, Clear Channel is inconsequential. The real loss is all the other voices that have been silenced. How many and who they are? we may never know.
When Magic came out, I thought few republicans would be smart enough to figure out what I think Bruce was saying. Most right wingers haven't figured out that Born in the USA isn't a jingoistic anthem. Repubs can usually figure out the words they just can't process what they mean.
What I am saying is don't worry about Bruce, he'll get his message of desperation, hope and redemption to the masses. With or without media monopoly. I worry about artists who will never be heard.
From Long walk home:
My father said "Son, we're lucky in this town,
It's a beautiful place to be born.
It just wraps its arms around you,
Nobody crowds you and nobody goes it alone"
"Your flag flyin' over the courthouse
Means certain things are set in stone.
Who we are, what we'll do and what we won't"
It's gonna be a long walk home
Anais @ 72:
While that might be true, to abandon the medium gives the right free reign to say and do what they llike. For many people land based radio in their cars or their work will still be the model for the next 10 years or so .... and progressive talk radio is acknowledged as one of the reasons the 2006 elections went so well for the Dems.
The progressive message got out to Joe Average who has been Dittoheaded and Hannitized brain washed. This is a medium we MUST stay in and fight for,
If you haven't listened to MAGIC, it's a great fucking album. The Boss is starting to really get under the skin of repukes. God forbid he should speak his mind and have an opinion about the world we live in!
And here I thought Springstein was irelevant. Haven't listened to him in a long time but if Clear Channel thinks he is worth baning I'll check him out on iTunes.
kablooie @ 59:
Wow, that takes me back to high school, doing homework while listening to KAAY. It had a huge signal out of Little Rock that bounced off the ionosphere, so you could hear this AM station from hundreds of miles away. It's probably safe to say that Beaker Street turned a lot of people on to serious music, the kind you didn't hear on Top 40. Say hello and thanks to your father from a fan.
Just boycott the fucking assholes...there no better way to hurt them than though the wallet. JCB
Clear Channel actually OWNS the Rush Limbaugh franchise. They pay his salary, produce and broadcast that feculent, daily affront to reason. It is relatively easy to knock out a radio transmitter, btw...Not that I would EVER suggest such a thing...
I guess the best way to say f-u to clear channel is to buy it online and for xmas presents for my brother and sisters.
JustSickOfIt @ 25:
I agree, ClearChannel sucks!
I don't listen to commercial radio at all, I can't stand it. This is a shining example of all that is wrong with radio.
woody @ 79:
I thought he was owned by the "EIB" network or something?
The Right Wing-Nut Whacko's are laughable if they ever think for a minute that they can silence any progressives.
Limp-Dick Blimpaugh @ 83:
The more they try, the louder we're gonna get!
I've been a Bruce fan since his early days.... and Magic is a great album. But at least like most big fans, I bought it the day it came out, and listened to the CD on the way home from "Best Buy". In fact, I have yet to hear a single track on the radio, though I'd be surprised if the [only] local mainstream rock station out of Philly, WMMR, doesn't play it.
But that's because I'm lucky enough to be in a radio area not entirely dominated by Clear Channel. They recently opened a new modern rock station in the area, and it's not even bad. But after this, I'll be sticking to WMMR, or the Zune ;-) But there very much are cities in which Clear Channel absolutely dominates broadcast, and they possibly could shut down that source of information.
This is precisely why I think it's foolish to count on radio, or any other single source, for all your news... you can get boxed in, and not even know it. While it's impossible to imagine a Springsteen album not being played on every mainstream rock station in the country (including even those "classic" rock stations that also play new music from "classic" artists), if they're doing that, it's not really going to stop the music. Fans watch TV, they surf the net, they read "rolling stone".. they're going to know about this. Thus the #1 rating for "Magic".
This needs to backfire on Clear Channel, in a big way. I'm not holding my breath, though... some of the crap they've pulled all these years should have put them out of business long ago, and it hasn't. But I know they're aware of this.. that new modern rock station in Philly never once mentioned "Clear Channel", and I'm sure they try to keep that as secret as possible, particularly for that audience. Others probably are unaware they're listening to radio's Evil Empire. Clear Channel needs to be outed, bigtime. Active opposition... and all that'll require is information -- they'll hang themselves though their actions, once people know.
mo_dems @ 82:
There is no such thing... that's just his trying to sound more important than he actually is. Ok, almost. EIB essentially IS the Rush Limbaugh show, it seems to be the official business entity owned by said comedian, broadcast on 544 radio stations across the country. And, it seems, also owned by Premiere Radio Networks, the largest radio syndication company in the country, programming on over 5,000 radio stations. They also handle Ryan Seacrest, Dr. Laura, Glenn Beck, Jesse Jackson, Fox News, Fox Sports, and National Lampoon Radio, as well as dozens of lesser known content, on broadcast and satellite radio. They are a wholly owned division of ClearChannel. Lookie here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Premiere_Radio_Networks
This pseudo outrage over Clear Channel "not playing" the new Bruce is akin to being angry because you can't get a Whopper at McDonald's. Music radio is hanging on by a thread and faced with competition from satellite, CD, audio books, and iPods. There's no conspiracy here. Classic rock stations hardly ever play new tracks from core artists, not even the Stones, but Triple A (Adult Alternative / Adult Rock) stations do. Here in Atlanta we have 929 dave fm, and there are several others around the country. Alternative rock stations can't play Bruce because he just wouldn't sound right mashed up with Linkin Park.
As evidenced, radio play (or the lack thereof) had no bearing on 'Magic' or Springsteen's ability to sell records and sell out shows.
Just to clarify...The Program Director of a Clear Channel station fired me last October because my position was eliminated, not because I'm a life-long (and vocal) Democrat. We even played the Dixie Chicks on the morning show...
Okay, I had to do a little digging on this one. Turns out that it's very likely FOX Noise was pulling our leg (surprise, surprise). There are a few CC stations airing Springsteen's new album (though only a couple or so classic rock stations). And they even put a response on their website, claiming that no such memo exists or has ever existed.
And if CC banned Springsteen for his political views, they're 35 years too late. One listen to the Nebraska album will tell you that! If CC were to blackball every left-leaning musician on their stations, there'd be nothing left but Ted Nugent, Sammy Hagar and some country bumpkins.
Needless to say, FOX Noise lied. There appears to be no memo. But there is a problem with classic rock stations that feel we'd rather hear 30-year old REO Speedwagon songs or garbage like Nickleback instead of the latest from one of this country's greatest musicians. Read more at the link:
http://ltradio.blogspot.com/2007/10/radio-nowhere.html
Greg @ 5:
Yeah, it's almost the exact same thing that the leftwingers are doing to the print media. I say let's throw them all out and start from scratch.
Clear channel is evil. This country is getting completely out of hand.
Lyrics for "Operation: Mindcrime" by Queensryche:
Seven years of power
The corporation claw
The rich control the government, the media the law
To make some kind of difference
Then everyone must know
Eradicate the fascists, revolution will grow
The system we learn says we're equal under law
But the streets are reality, the weak and poor will fall
Let's tip the power balance and tear down their crown
Educate the masses, We'll burn the White House down
Absolutely hillarious!
1. Everybody leaps on a story by a Fox News columnist, which is proven to be false (no such memo).
2. Everybody believes a story about some guy who claims someone cussed at him because his wife is Natalie Maines, as if anybody knows or cares
3. Everyone believes that Clear Channel has it in for "progressives," as if there would be ANY popular music on the air if such people were banned.
4. Champions of free speech advocate (in a backwards way) knocking down transmitters of right-wing broadcasting radio stations
5. Clear Channel is a monopoly driving all record sales-this must be the reason why the record labels are doing so well, and concert ticket sales soaring.
soooo funny. if it's "right-wing" everyone flips out but no one says anything about extreme left-wing hollywood, left-wing universities, left-wing media except fox of course omg they're soooo evil. even the nyt ombudsman stated that the nyt is liberal dem and that 90-some percent of all media is liberal dem. omg a company that's righty. run for the hills. it's called left wing fascism. liberals are the most intolerant closed-minded people i've ever met.
ron paul forever!
It about time, a-holes such as Springsteen gets silenced. You are an entertainer not a politician. If you want to be a politician, run for office, otherwise shut up and sing. No, one care for your politic, let alone your view on the world, keep it to yourself, cause no one cares!!! It about time someone show some ball and not play these a-holes views of the world. Clear Channel Rules!!!!
Serious problems with your reporting here.
#1 Since when did you decide that Faux news is a good source? I mean, seriously, when was that decided? Because if you think anything they say is valid, I'll just delete you from my favorites right now.
#2 "Radio will not play..." FALSE. I program a station in the AAA Format. Bruce was at #2 for several weeks with the single "Radio Nowhere" on the chart for this format. He's dropped to #4... wait for it... bacause so many stations are now playing MULTIPLE CUTS from the album. At my station we're even playing "Last To Die".
#3 Some Clear Channel Classic Rock stations ARE playing the single. Not a lot of stations, and not a lot of spins, but enough so it's clear there isn't a blanket policy at Clear Channel against playing it.
What you have to understand is the fact that "Classic Rock" is an OLDIES format. They just don't play much new music; that's the whole point of the format. It's for people who get up and go for a beer when The Stones play a new song in concert.
Clear Channel is frequently said to have banned the Dixie Chicks. But that isn't true either; they left it up to local programmers to decide, as they should have. It was another comapany, Cumulus, that banned The Dixie Chicks nationwide.
And that 9/11 list from Clear Cahnnel you've heard so much about? It didn't ban anything; it was just a list of songs they thought local programmers should consider in context before playing.
I'm not big fan of Clear Channel, but we need to be fact based in our criticsm of, welll, everything. So please stop the stupid hysterics.
Full disclosure: I work an hour a week as a subcontrator for a Clear Cahnnel Claissic Rock station... that does spin the new Bruce. But my full-time job is for an independent owner.
And I know what I'm talking about. I've been in radio over 30 years, and I checked with an electronic monitoring system before stating the fact that some Clear Channel Classic Rock stations are spinning the new Bruce.
Here in Vegas, they have "Wake up with Whoopi" on a clear channel station. Even though I don't listen to that station, I emailed Whoopi. And, for good measure, I emailed Olive Garden and the local Ford dealership because they had ads on the station's website. Bruce is an American icon. We have a Clear Channel station here for almost every genre of music, so there are plenty of sponsors to email.
In the past, this would have been much more ominous. Now, people can get thier music from many places. (streaming radio on the internet and I-tunes) If Clear Channel takes over the internet, then I'll worry. Fox News and Clearchannel should just change thier names to "Pravda".
Lollimom @ 28:
See, this is what I'm talling about. Poster, while perhaps someone I would agree with on many issues, doesn't know anything at all about the business of radio.
Clear Channel isn't a monoply, not even in specific cities or towns. They own more stations that I think any owner should be allowed to own, but they operate within the law. Don't blame them for the law; de-reg was pushed by repugs, but signed into law by Bill Clinton.
In fact, Clear Channel is crumbling. Their revenue projections when they built up their number of stations were way too rosy, even for the state of the business at that time. Now there is Sattelite radio and Internet radio to compete with. The Internet in general is getting a lot of advertising, taking cash flow away from Radio.... and TV, and Newspapers.
So now Clear Channel is selling off a LOT of radio stations. Essentially, they're selling everything in all markets ranked 100 or higher in terms of population. If memory serves, it's 40% or more of the total number of stations they own. Since they're concentrating on larger markets they won't lose 40% of their audience. But the idea that they're all powerful is laughable. They're a failing corporation.
I worked at Cox Radio during the Dixie Chicks ban - and it was direct from Corporate to program directors to eliminate all Chicks songs and spin the story that it was done at the request of listeners - a lie pure and simple. It was a corporate decision and we NEVER had consumer demand to ban the Chicks.
Love it or leave it? I'll leave it. I'm moving back to Canada.
Clear Channel Communications are FAMOUS for doing this. The list of musicians they have tried to do this to and failed is probably as long as the Titanic. I make sure that if I am listening to a radio channel broadcast from the good ole usa that it is not owned, nor a subsidiary of clear channel.
J.Goodman @ 100:
That sounds about right for Cox. Cumulus actually came out and publicly said they were banning the Chicks. At that time I was working part-time for Clear Channel in Santa Maria California, and the country station in the cluster continued to play The Dixie Chicks. No heads rolled as a result.
The Fox article claims the R&R reports that Springsteen's record is receiving no spins at all, but it's #23 on the R&R Rock Chart. 17 spots down from geriatric rocker Ozzy Osbourn. This Fox article is full misstatements - Cumulus Radio was the corporation that banned the Dixie Chicks, not Clear Channel. A simple search on Classic Rock Stations reveals that quite a few are using Magic CD graphics in their web pages. Sales are off 44% for Magic this week from the previous. Maybe it's has run it's course? Someone source the 'edict' from Clear Channel, because i don't believe it exists. My local contacts/DJ's at my cities Clear Channel classic rock stations gave me a big "Huh?" when I queried them. The Liberal Blog-O-Sphere has taken a page out of the Rights playbook and made much political hay out of nothing.
This is a very ineffective ban if clear channel has page available on all of the station's websites.
http://700wlw.com//cc-common/mfeatures/brucespringsteen3OD/
http://www.wibafm.com/cc-common/mfeatures/brucespringsteen3OD/
http://www.z100.com/cc-common/mfeatures/brucespringsteen3OD/
http://www.ktlk.com/cc-common/mfeatures/brucespringsteen3OD/
http://www.newstalk1130.com//cc-common/mfeatures/brucespringsteen3OD/
Imagine that... Faux News, Foxed Up.
Clear Channel only owns less than 10% of all radio stations or approx 1200. How can anyone consider that a takeover?
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