March 19, 2003Silent Chicks
Here's my view (what, you thought you weren't going to hear MY view??): America is all about freedom. Freedom of speech is at the forefront of those "freedoms". The Dixie Chicks, just like anyone else in America, are allowed to express their opinion freely, no matter how popular their view may be. And it just amazes me that radio stations are deciding FOR their listeners if they are "allowed" to hear Dixie Chicks music...censoring them in a sense. If people are not happy with what the girls said, that's fine - they have the freedom to not buy their albums, not go to their concerts, change the station when they come on the radio, etc. But when the radio station decides FOR the listeners is where the problem comes in. Play on, Silent Chicks! Comments
I definitely think that Dixie Chick f**ked up with her comment, not for any freedom of speech reasons, but for PR reasons. She's a public figure, and unfortunately her "free speech" can be very detrimental to her career if it is not well-received. I'm sure she's regretting it now big time, and if people want to smash her CDs or burn them, I think that's great because right now we could use a little "Pro-America" rallying. But the radio station thing, I am totally with you Jeff. I'm surprised there isn't some regulatory committee or something that hasn't seen it the way you do and put a stop to that. Posted by: Lauren at March 19, 2003 10:17 AMI heard that Natalie Maines one time said that she didn't like to eat cheese. This offends me greatly. I LOVE to eat cheese. I am angered by her comments, and I vow to never listen to another Dixie Chicks song ever again! LONG LIVE CHEESE!!!!!!!!!! Posted by: Top at March 19, 2003 10:18 AMOh and another thing. Radio is dying anyway. My prediction - radio (as we know it) will have gone the way of the 8-track, by 2010. Posted by: Top at March 19, 2003 10:20 AMFill me in... what was said? Posted by: Brian at March 19, 2003 11:35 AMhttp://www.cnn.com/2003/SHOWBIZ/Music/03/14/dixie.chicks.reut/ Posted by: Jeff at March 19, 2003 11:40 AMAh okay. yea, this looks like a hangable offense. I say we hang em! (yea!) I say we hang em, then we kill em! (yea!) :::Natalie whispering::: "I say we let them go" (nooo!!) Posted by: Brian at March 19, 2003 12:54 PMhey. that's my line. I'll sue! Posted by: Pee Wee Herman at March 19, 2003 02:24 PMActually a lot of radio station are doing exactly what there listeners are asking them to do. Don't play there music. And I agree with the radio stations. Yes, in this country you have the freedom to voice your opinion but what she said wasn't an opinion. If she thinks the war isn't the right way to handle things then say that. Maybe she should live in France or Russia they have the same opinion. Posted by: Mark at March 19, 2003 03:09 PMMark, how is what Natalie Maines said NOT an opinion? She said that she was "ashamed that the president is from Texas". That is her opinion. Some people, I'm sure, are NOT ashamed that Dubya is from Texas. Me? I don't give two shits about where Dubya is from, and I'm not ashamed he is our president....... and that is my OPINION. Posted by: Top at March 19, 2003 04:14 PMMy opinion is that this was a very, very BAD PR move for the Chicks. Too bad. Posted by: Jennifer at March 19, 2003 10:23 PMI absolutely don't agree with her statement, but come on! Thats pathetic to make such a huge deal over it. Was what she said really that horrible that everyone is up in arms over it? Garth, take your Ritalin. I've heard much worse. After 9/11 Jerry Falwell said that we derserved it and God let it happen because he was pissed at us. Now, thats pretty harsh in comparison. Then there was the Bill Mahar remark. And as much as those statements made me irate, they still have the right to voice their opinions. But, all Natalie said was that she was ashamed that Bush is from Texas. I can see why people would be offended by it. But, as it was mentioned before, if you don't like it, turn the station, boycott their conerts, merchandice, etc. But don't make decisions for us. Its a great point, Jeff. Come on. We're a democracy, not a dictatorship. Thats why we're in Iraq anyway: to fight for democracy in a country ruled by a dictator so that one day the Iraqi people will be able to say, "I'm ashamed that Sadam is from Bagdhad. Posted by: Jack at March 20, 2003 12:19 AMWell said, Jack!! Posted by: Olivia at March 20, 2003 10:38 AMHELLO! Radio stations have owners, they are not federally funded like schools. They are allowed to put what they want on thier stations. They did the same thing with R. Kelly songs when he was accused of sex with minors. I support business owners being able to choose thier programming, that is differance between America and Cuba. This is free speech at its core. Think of it like this way.... Back in the 80's texaco executives were accused of being racist. People all over the country stopped using texaco gas and store owners removed those products from the shelves because they fundamentally disagreed with giving money to a company they morally disagreed with. Now we have the dixie chicks who are opposed to the ELECTED leader of our country. The Dixie chicks decided to use the open mic granted to them as a celebrity to publically denounce the leader the people of this country chose. They should expect that business leaders who want to sell stuff to the majority of America, 75% of which support Bush, will decide not to stock thier product Oh, and about radio stations making decisions for us.... They are not, they are flexing thier right to free speech and protest not unlike other media outlets like Newspapers and News programs. If you call for Government regulations, Lauren, you are calling for limits on free speech to journalists as well as radio DJs. You are basically stripping your own rights. So... The Dixie Chicks have the right to say what they want, but corporations, media outlets and citizens have the same rights to protest them. Posted by: Mike at March 24, 2003 11:24 AMPost a comment
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This whole thing with the Dixie Chicks and their comments at a recent show in the UK is totally ridiculous. If you haven't heard, certain radio stations (including a few Richmond-area stations) are boycotting their music ever since that incident. They refuse to play Dixie Chicks music because the girls voiced their opinion on politics. And now it's causing a big ole' stink.
