Last Wednesday (July 10th, 2013) the BCJ hosted a forum with media practitioners to examine problematic language in particular ‘near-sounding’ words in song lyrics beamed over our airwaves and on television.
We’ve noticed an emerging trend where potentially offensive lyrics are edited by producers and replaced with ‘near’ sounding words in an attempt to make them fit for airplay. Please note that the Television and Sound Broadcasting Regulations (30 (d)) prohibits transmission of any indecent or profane matter. In some cases the ‘near’ sound of the words and their juxtaposition, the nature of the editing effect used, and the speed with which the line is delivered, is such that as a listener, you could reasonably conclude that the word is in fact the known expletive.
Take for example, the lyrics of the following songs:
- Chris Brown – Bomb
- Kalado – You Make Me Feel
- Aidonia – Fi Di Jockey
Did you hear “mothersucka” for “mother!@#$%&”, “come inside wid yuh” for “come inside a…” and did “jockey” sound very much like something else? We thought as much. The effect on young, impressionable children could be subliminal conditioning to accept as normal, a word that is regarded as profane and offensive to accepted social norms.
We want to hear from you:
- Do ‘near-sounding’ words in song lyrics offend you?
- Should near-sounding words be treated similarly to profanity in broadcast media?
- Should we schedule songs with ‘near-sounding’ words after watershed (9:00pm), differently on weekends and holidays when children listen/watch later?
- Should our media librarians carefully listen and evaluate the ‘near-sounding’ words before providing clearance for airplay?
- Are there any “swear words” or terms used in Jamaica that you believe should not be treated as profanities or are acceptable after the watershed (9:00pm)?
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