TRAGICALLY UN-HIP Greg Diamond As part of my daily regimen, I scour the net each morning for relevant stories to put on our website. One of my normal stops is the CBSC site. It was with interest that I recently saw a new post with the less than vague title of “Broadcast Of Song Containing F-Word During Daytime Hours In Breach Of Broadcast Standards, Says Canadian Broadcast Standards Council.”
This is nothing new as the CBSC has rapped the knuckles of several stations over the years for airing unedited songs containing an F-Bomb or assorted other verbal niceties. This time, however, I grew increasingly disturbed as I read through the release.
The decision regards Standard Radio’s Montreal classic rocker, CHOM-FM, and their airing of the Tragically Hip’s “Locked in the Trunk of a Car” at 3:15pm. The CBSC’s Quebec Panel reviewing the complaint ruled CHOM in breach of the Code of Ethics, which requires stations to play edited versions of songs during times when children are likely to be listening or simply daypart the unedited record into the late evening and overnight.
While the requirement seems straightforward, the theory is supposedly not. There are criteria that should come into play in these situations.
For instance, the council claims to understand the need to keep up with the times as illustrated in the following excerpt from their decision:
The CBSC claims to consider each complaint as unique, but like the legal system, precedent plays a major role in the ruling. This is also pointed out in the decision:
In this instance precedent won out… but should it have?
Is the process in need of examination?
Let’s look closer at the song in question.
“Locked In the Trunk of A Car” was released over a decade ago (1993) and like many Tragically Hip songs (particularly the earlier ones) it has become part of the soundtrack of the lives for a generation of Canadians. How? Airplay – lots of it!
In 2004 (the year Mediabase started keeping track of yearly spins on Canadian radio stations) “Locked…” was aired 2,298 times. It should be noted that is the total for only the rock stations monitored by Mediabase. Typically, ‘Hip’ songs cross over to other formats. Whether this is the case or not here, the figure still doesn’t cover spins on stations not detected by Mediabase. Regardless, let’s be very conservative, round down, and say this track is still being played 2,000 times annually over 10 years after its release!
Trying to put a figure on exactly how many times the song has aired since its debut is impossible. In discussions I have had with various individuals it seems even a ‘ballpark’ consensus does not exist. Numbers ranging from 10,000 to 50,000 have been thrown out. By doing my own non-scientific, ‘guesstimate’ calculations I put the total at around 30,000. Again, I consider this figure to be erring on the side of caution.
If you now think what 30,000 spins means in total audience impressions, the number gets so large my humble mathematical skills fail me. Suffice to say, the number of people that have heard the song is enormous.
I’ve heard this piece of music myself in almost all the provinces of Canada and a few times in the northern United States. I can tell you, without hesitation, I have never heard an edit of this song on the air – not once.
Now, there probably are a few stations that took it upon themselves to make their own edit, but the key word here would be ‘few’. The low-ball calculations above should more than cover off spins from these stations.
So, after a decade, a song that most everyone who has ever listened to Canadian rock radio has heard countless times received a complaint – one complaint.
In a democratic society, should one person be able to dictate to millions?
One side of the argument would give an emphatic “no” stating precedent was set in this instance by the millions of ears that have heard the song over the years and chose not to complain. Conversely, the other side would point out the CBSC’s mandate is to uphold broadcasting standards, regardless of mitigating factors. The “anti” side would counter with the question “Who sets the standards?” They would point out that ‘standards’ are a reflection of society’s ethics at a given time. Therefore, would not the millions have already defined that particular standard? The “pro” side would likely reply with the argument that should the CBSC have ruled in favour of the station, the entire process would then be rendered ineffectual in all future cases. Further, the CBSC, as the “devil we know” is still preferable warts and all to the alternative – the CRTC. On and on the debate would (and does) rage.
It’s possible some of the background on this song explained earlier was not properly explored before the decision was handed down. Would it have made a difference in the outcome? Under the present system it is doubtful. Could they foresee the ramifications of their decision? No. Are there ramifications? Yes.
As it happens, this is not the only example where the Tragically Hip uses the f-word (or other profanities) in their lyrics – far from it. Numerous “classic” ‘Hip’ songs do the same.
With this decision, the CBSC forces all rock stations in the country to re-examine their entire active library of Tragically Hip songs. Any rock PD will tell you that the list will be the longest of any Canadian artist on their station – by far.
So, should the apparent rigidity of the CBSC be tempered somewhat to account for these types of circumstances? More plainly put, when do ‘rules’ succumb to ‘common sense’? Isn’t that the real question here?
For all who have made up their minds as to whether the decision was just or not and are now wondering how a differing opinion could possibly exist to that of their own, know that this is just another example of the saying – “There’s nothing ‘common’ about ‘common sense’.”
When handing down their decision, no doubt the CBSC did what they believed was right. The CBSC is an important self-regulating mechanism that provides a great service to our industry. This time, however, they may have got it wrong.
Regardless, the decision has been made and like a good hockey referee, the CBSC doesn’t normally change its mind. It’s time to start combing your library for instances where you could be at risk. Decisions also need to be made as to what should be done with the records when found. ByrnesMedia can assist you in this process and offer suggestions on dealing with the situation. |