AT&T Admits Error In Pearl Jam Censorship

Band's Criticism Of President Bush Silenced In Webcast Of Lollapalooza Show

(AP)  Lyrics performed by Pearl Jam criticizing President Bush should not have been censored from a webcast by AT&T Inc., a company spokesman acknowledged Thursday.

AT&T, through its Blue Room entertainment site, offered a webcast of the band's headlining performance Sunday at Lollapalooza in Chicago. The event was shown with a brief delay so the company could bleep out excessive profanity or nudity.

But monitors hired by AT&T through a vendor went further and cut two lines from a song to the tune of Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall." One was "George Bush, leave this world alone" the second time it was sung, and the other was "George Bush find yourself another home," according to the band's Web site.

AT&T spokesman Michael Coe said that the silencing was a mistake and that the company was working with the vendor that produces the webcasts to avoid future misunderstandings. He said AT&T was working to secure the rights to post the entire song — part of a sing-along with the audience — on the Blue Room site.

Blue Room offers live concerts, sports interviews, video game advice and other entertainment content that requires a high-speed Internet connection. Although viewing the content is free, San Antonio-based AT&T uses the site as a way to promote its DSL broadband services.

Besides Pearl Jam's show, AT&T showed 21 other performances ranging from Pete Yorn to G. Love and Special Sauce during the three-day Lollapalooza music festival. Coe said no other complaints have been made about censoring.

Pearl Jam said in a posting on its Web site that in the future, it would work harder to ensure live broadcasts or webcasts are "free from arbitrary edits."

"If a company that is controlling a webcast is cutting out bits of our performance — not based on laws, but on their own preferences and interpretations — fans have little choice but to watch the censored version," they said.

The alternative rock band and Internet advocates were also using the incident to try to draw attention to the prospects of Internet service providers like AT&T deciding to give preferential treatment to content they favor or have deals with, leaving the rest on slower-moving Internet bandwidths.

Jenny Toomey, executive director of the Future of Music Coalition, said that although net neutrality wasn't being violated in this case, it still raises questions about whether AT&T and other service providers can be trusted not to hurt artists.

Internet speeds that depend only on the size of files, not the kind of content that's in them, is a democratizing force, she said.

"We've got to protect that, and artists get that," Toomey said.

AT&T and other providers would like the ability to charge more for transmitting certain kinds of data, like live video, faster or more reliably than other data but have insisted such premium services would help, not hurt, consumers.

Coe said, regardless, the issue of net neutrality is entirely separate from the mistake during the Pearl Jam show.

"This was our own Web site," he noted.

[bobnjersey]

at&t has turned out to be quite the subsidiary of the bush admin and their preferences ... warrantless taps, handing over phone records, censoring undesirable content ... other yet unknown favors ...

let them have access to all the 'currently written works' so they can be updated and 'brought into conformance'.

[marcpcbs]

I guess AT&T now feels that Pearl Jam has the right to promote drug abuse, spew profanity and anti American sentiment at very young children.

[lochlan-2009]

What's up with China, those communists censor anything that is against their government. Who do they think they are the United States?

[cepe10-2009]

How much did att give to Bush anyway - and how much does they give back... obviously it was a non trivial amount.

[pepperp1]

AT&T spokesman Michael Coe said that the silencing was a mistake.


If ATT would not have made this decision, I for one would have canceled all services. I will not tolerate censorship of free speech or art from any Corporation at any time, Jet Red is an example of not an option.

Corporations need to understand that this is not business as usual, this Administration and their Congress have attacked people of this country calling them traitors, supporters of terrorism, generally degenerates and evil sinners and I can assure you that these hateful reckless attacks have not been accepted as political rhetoric. This arrogant reckless RNC behavior and hate speech was intended to marginalize people not like them their version of the N word for Dems and if you aid this Administration and their party your risk the wrath of most of the country which rejects there attempts, they have no good will in reserve from us, none.

[gunownerdan]

ooooFoooooooooooooooooooooooUoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooCooooooooooooKooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooCoooooooooooooEoooooooooooooNooooooooooSooooooooooOoooooooooooooooooooRoooooooooooooooSooooooooooooooHooooooooooooooooooooIooooooooooooooooooPoooooooooooooooooo

[bareemperor]

"I guess AT&T now feels that Pearl Jam has the right to promote drug abuse, spew profanity and anti American sentiment at very young children.
Posted by marcpcbs at 10:32 AM : Aug 10, 2007"

No, NeoCon - Pearl Jam only wished to exercise free speech and not to worship Bu$h like you.

[gunownerdan]

"Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. This is easy. All you have to do is to tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifist for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in every country."
- Hermann Goering, Hitler's Reich-Marshall
at the Nuremberg Trials after WWII

"If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State."
- Joseph Goebbels, Nazi Propaganda Minister

[bobnjersey]

[I guess AT&T now feels that Pearl Jam has the right to promote drug abuse, spew profanity and anti American sentiment at very young children. ]
[Posted by marcpcbs at 10:32 AM : Aug 10, 2007]

yes ... and it's all that guy elvis' fault ... that's where it started ... shaking those hips wildly ... singin' crazy songs ... corrupting the minds of our innocent young children.

of course ... you can turn it off it doesn't suit your tastes ... remotely no less ... just a push of a button ... a total movement of about 1/16th of an inch.

[mnelsonix]

""AT&T and other providers would like the ability to charge more for transmitting certain kinds of data, like live video, faster or more reliably than other data but have insisted such premium services would help, not hurt, consumers.""

I WANT TO KNOW HOW THIS WILL "HELP" CONSUMERS.

I agree with bobnjersey. At least Google put up a fight when asked to hand over searches. AT&T gladly hands over private data. AT&T was broken up a few years back and like the "Terminator 2" has reassmbled itself. It takes friends in high places for a corporation to pull this off. GWB and AT&T are good ole boys.

[infidel_us]

I don't think it was an error. If the loser wants to whine about Bush, let him put it on a CD and see if anyone buys it.

[mnelsonix]

infidel_us'

If you don't think it was an error, are you OK with the censorship?

[wdrussell1]

mnelsonix there was a time conservatives cared about American rights. That all ended the gutless Bush era.

[infidel_us]

If you don't think it was an error, are you OK with the censorship?
Posted by mnelsonix at 11:53 AM : Aug 10, 2007

Not really. But I think there's a time and a place for everything. He may have the right to say it, but that doesn't mean we have to listen to it.

AT&T should not have censored. People should have been allowed to decide....ala The Dixie Chicks.

[thinkharder-]

WOW...this was certaintly some shady work by AT&T. I agree that profanity, to an extent, and nudity hae no placein an open public forum. But, what are they thinking bleeping out a few lines about George Bush from a Punk Floyd cover? Seems silly to me. Here you have an entire song devoted more or less to promoting individualism and anti-establishment (to a degree), yet they bleep out two lines because Bush is sighted? Rediculous.
That song can be interpretted as entirely being about the Bush administration, if that is how you choose to accept it. There are many lessons to be learned in that tune, yet they feel its the mere mention of GW that threatens? Again...rediculous...and frankly a little insulting with regard to our intelligence. It's as if At&T thought we may just miss the message if they take out a direct cue to our own time in history.
Shame on them.

[last121868]

Why do you call him a loser, infidel? Because he has a different opinion than yourself?

[ianlou]

I guess AT&T now feels that Pearl Jam has the right to promote drug abuse, spew profanity and anti American sentiment at very young children.

Posted by marcpcbs at 10:32 AM : Aug 10, 2007

What, are you 90 years old or just an extremely up-tight bible thumper?

[pj_420]

I was at the concert on sunday and the majority of the people there, including the other artists, were of the same mindframe as Eddie. If most of the crowd were against it you would not have heard anybody singing along to these comments about Bush. The fact that they could get a crowd that big to listen and take part in their free speech is a powerful achievement. Censoring a singer is one thing but when you have a whole crowd of people at lollapalooza singing along with him you are censoring everyone there as well.

Anybody who has followed Pearl Jam since George Bush was elected the first time would have been aware of their political views beforehand. The lyrics of almost every song on their last album make negative references to the Bush administration - if you don't agree with them then that is fine but if you still choose to listen to them live now then it's your own fault for surrounding yourself in an anti-gov't atmosphere of a typical PJ concert.

[omega39-2009]

At&T was wrong for censoring, still, I bet 75% of the public says far worse of Bush on a regular basis.

[cantshutup]

F*CK george bush!!! someone please buy my att/cingular contract so i can dump these nazi's!!!! they can apologize all they want but it won't change what they did...oh, att, i need to go take a huge dump, i'll be wishing george bush was at the bottom of my toilet getting it all in the face...is that ok with you???

[azmka]

Censorship of political views is so anti-American. That type of thing is suppossed to only happen in dictator type regimes. OH! WAIT! I almost frgot, that's what we have.

Hope the gov. likes listening to my phone calls.
I say such nice things about them.

[jetranger7]

I got rid of AT&T a long time ago, when I caught them trying to pad my phone bill several times ! They also contributed to Bushes Presidential campaign back in 2000, when running for election !I say everybody Dump AT&T, Boycott these Corporate Fraudusters, and let them know it ! They knew exactly what they were doing, when censoring that concert, they're just playing dumb about it ! They also turned over millions of documents to the government about your phone calls and privacy information, willingly to the government so they can spy on you and others ! They lie, they're part of the Conspiracy to bring this country down . Boycott them !

[fascistusa]

The Land of the Fr---

Oh, Wait. Oopps. My mistake.

ZEITGEISTmovie.com

System of a Down is on break... after calling America "FASCIST".

Disturbed is nowhere to be found after remaking "Land of Confusion/Fascism".

The *** played on the Radio nowadays if HIGHLY CENSORED. New bands are NOT supported unless their music is bubble gum pop lyrics.

Mos Def/Eminem/Immortal Technique "Bin Laden". watch it on youtube.

[revolted-2009]

I am neither a bible thumper (in fact, I am not religious at all) or a right-wing conservative. I am an American citizen who is outraged and disgusted by ignorant bands that choose to make ugly comments like the ones that Pearl Jam made. I am even more sickened by those who choose to support this egotistical, self-indulgent trash. Maybe they should move to Iraq, hang out with the terrorists that slaughtered thousands only a few years ago. I am ashamed that I used to like Pearl Jam. I hope ATT DID censor them - it would encourage me to continue my service.

[brianbwb-2009]

Profanity, nudity, anti Bush sentiments expressed in song, it is art folks, Michaelangelo's statues, or the nudes of the great painting masters would not exist if the prudes had power in their day. The works of Dante and Shakespeare were considered profane in their day, but like true artists, the creators didn't care about what the prudes said or thought.

So what will be the great works of art from modern times for future generations, if the fascists have control over what you and I may say, draw, or sing? I'm afraid the Monkees won't do...

[brianbwb-2009]

Posted by Revolted,

You express satisfaction that a information service would presume to censor that which they (and you, in this case) don't like, or agree with?

You are more of a right wing extremist than you admit.

[simpleguy234]

The First Amendment....Pearl Jam and the entire music industry should BAN AT&T from any future broadcast. Using their corporate superiority to "censor" things they dont agree with.. a HUGE shame on them and all this country stands for. Music has always been about freedom of speech, and if you dont agree with it, you dont have to listen..or for that matter agree with the lyrics. It is up to us as Americans to decide. The imposition of censorship like the Chinese in state run broadcasting seems like a fair comparison......

[keithle1]

Mistakes were made. Uh huh.

Not sure how many of you have Music Choice on your cable tv. Each channel plays music (not videos) in a different format: Classic Rock,
Rap, Blues, Jazz, Country, Classical, etc.
They give you the name of the band, song & album it came from.

When they play the Stones song title that's a word for a female dog, they show it as:
"B***H." You still hear Mick sing the word.
Pink Floyd's "Money"-you don't hear the
word for bull excrement. Dire Straits "Money For Nothing"-they bleep out the "f" word for homosexual gentleman.

[tucano2]

When the you have paid for the microphone you can pretty much say anything - Ronnie Regan

[bobnjersey]

[Maybe they should move to Iraq, hang out with the terrorists that slaughtered thousands only a few years ago. I am ashamed that I used to like Pearl Jam. I hope ATT DID censor them - it would encourage me to continue my service.]
[Posted by Revolted at 01:00 AM : Aug 11, 2007]

yes ... censorship and banishment to a foreign country ... now that's definitely something to be proud of.

[my2centss]

You can do what CBS did(Don Imus) and not censor, or what AT&T did. Either choice and you are wrong.

[my2centss]

You can do what CBS did(Don Imus) and not censor, or what AT&T did. Either choice and you are wrong.