Ethics & Music Videos

Ethics & Music Videos by John Lenox Cope

The image to the right is from a music video entitled "Lessons Learned" by Matt and Kim [FADER Label, Popfrenzy Records]. The newly released video is certainly not the first to consist of full nudity, but it is a current example that highlights the issue of ethics and music videos. Though the video is edited for broadcast, it still most likely offends certain people.

Music Videos have caused controversy since their introduction. Whether it be due to violence, drug use, sexuality, or offensive language, music videos have never shied away from pushing limits. Most of the literature concerning ethics in music videos has centered around the portrayal of stereotypes. Steven Seidman published an article titled, "An Investigation of Sex-Role Stereotyping in Music Videos" which was published in the Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media in 1992. This is one of many articles published concerning stereotyping in music videos.

Even though fairly little has been written specifically about ethics concerning music videos, it is still common to hear or read complaints about certain music videos via the news. On May 9, 2008, CBC published an article about the 10 most controversial music videos of all time. The videos were chosen based on their violent, sexual, or otherwise objectionable content. Most people probably would not be surprised to see Madonna and Marilyn Manson's videos on this list, but Michael Jackson and Duran Duran have also stirred up controversies with their videos.

I recently attended the South By Southwest Music Festival and Conference in Austin, TX. One of the performers I was able to catch was Amanda Palmer of The Dresden Dolls. She spoke about the video for her single "Oasis" and how it was refused by MTV and NME. The video was refused "due to it making light of rape, religion and abortion." Strangeglue.com posted an article about the video/song and its controversies. I personally find it interesting that certain videos are refused while others that include graphic violence, sexuality, or drug use are aired with little hesitation. It would be interesting to see if the the video and song would receive the same treatment if they were recorded by a more notable artist.

It's impossible to discuss music videos and ethics without discussing YouTube. This is a popular source for many people to watch music videos today. In March the BBC posted an article detailing the blocking of music videos from YouTube. YouTube blames increasing licensing fees for the blocking of the music videos. The idea of licensing and royalties for music videos is a complicated subject but it can't be ignored when discussing ethics. As popular networks like MTV and VH1 show less and less music videos, the internet has become a popular place to view such media. As with other media content, piracy and illegal viewing of music videos has become a concern. Some record labels and artists fear they are losing money due to this trend. With this in mind, Univeral Records and YouTube announced plans for a new music video site.

When I direct a music video for my graduate project, I will keep in mind all of the ethical controversies that surround this particular artform. I don't plan on pushing the boundaries too much with this project, but it is still important to study the role of ethics in relations to music videos.