On Wednesday, CBS This Morning did its best to hype how Republican presidential candidates have faced backlash from musicians for using their music, but downplayed the liberal political views that dominate the music industry.
Fill-in host Anthony Mason promoted how liberal “rocker Neil Young claims billionaire Donald Trump misused one of his songs to kick off his presidential campaign” before he turned to reporter Jan Crawford to play up the “long-running conflict between candidates and artists.”
The CBS reporter detailed the riff between Trump and Young, who‘s a supporter of Socialist presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, as evidence of how “picking the right song can be tricky especially if the musician isn't happy about it, as Trump and a lot of other politicians have found out.”
While Crawford was quick to play up the spat between Young and Trump she completely ignored that the liberal musician has a history of using his work to bash Republicans. In 1989, Young wrote a song that President George H.W. Bush’s “thousand points of light” phrase aimed at encouraging private non-profits to help poor communities across the country.
The CBS reporter then turned to Ted Johnson of Variety who further trumpeted the supposed controversy between Republican politicians and musicians:
When a musician kind of pushes back, it’s embarrassing for the campaign...Donald Trump joins a long list of Republicans who’ve kind of gotten in trouble with artists because the first thing in their minds is I don't want to make it look like I’m endorsing a candidate that I don't agree with.
Nowhere in the segment did the CBS reporter mention that, unlike TV shows or movies, political candidates do not need to receive permission from a musician to use their music at campaign events. Instead Crawford continued to provide examples of lefty musicians opposing Republicans’ use of their work:
After Scott Walker used music from the Dropkick Murphys, they tweeted at him “we literally hate you.”...The auditory dust-up has been part of the political landscape for decades. In the 2008 election, Jackson Brown, The Foo Fighters and John Mellencamp asked John McCain to stop using their music. And George H.W. Bush’s 1988 campaign ran into a hiccup when Bobby McFerrin objected to Bush's use of his feel good song.
Towards the end of the one-sided segment, Crawford once again turned to Ted Johnson who made sure to downplay how liberal the music industry truly is and chalked it up to it being “merely a function of where the music business is.”
Crawford then insisted that the “function of where the music business is” explains why “Democratic candidates, who tend to have a similar ideological leaning to the musicians, sometimes have an easier time with the music.”
The CBS reporter concluded her report by gushing over singer Katy Perry’s support for Hillary Clinton’s candidacy:
Singer Katy Perry even offered to write a theme song for Hillary Clinton’s campaign and Clinton tweeted back to her, “You already did. Keep letting us hear you Roar.” That song, by the way, is on Clinton’s official Spotify playlist.
See relevant transcript below.
CBS This Morning
June 17, 2015
ANTHONY MASON: Political campaigns used to march to the beat of the brass band. Now they use pop music, country, and classic rock. But rocker Neil Young claims billionaire Donald Trump misused one of his songs to kick off his presidential campaign. Jan Crawford’s in Washington with the latest number in a long-running conflict between candidates and artists. Jan good morning.
JAN CRAWFORD: Well good morning. So you know music can set the style, the mood, even the theme of a campaign. But picking the right song can be tricky especially if the musician isn't happy about it, as Trump and a lot of other politicians have found out. For Donald Trump, the song playing at his presidential kickoff may have seemed like the perfect choice, and anthem trumpeting freedom.
But Neil Young didn't see it that way. He said Trump's use of his song "Rockin' in the free world" was not authorized and that he actually is a supporter of Bernie Sanders, a candidate on the opposite side of the political aisle. A campaign spokesperson said Trump “paid for and obtained the legal right to use” the song but “we won’t be using it again.” Closing with a compliment that “Trump likes Neil very much.”
TED JOHNSON: When a musician kind of pushes back, it’s embarrassing for the campaign.
CRAWFORD: Ted Johnson is a senior editor at Variety.
JOHNSON: Donald Trump joins a long list of Republicans who’ve kind of gotten in trouble with artists because the first thing in their minds is I don't want to make it look like I’m endorsing a candidate that I don't agree with.
CRAWFORD: After Scott Walker used music from the Dropkick Murphys, they tweeted at him “we literally hate you.” Some campaigns have gotten creative over what supporters hear at rallies.
At his presidential announcement last month, Dr. Ben Carson hired a gospel choir who belted out Eminem’s "Lose Yourself." Nearly two weeks ago, Republican Rick Perry took the stage to a personalized version of a country rap song “Answer to No One.” Perry even made a push for sales of the song.
RICK PERRY: Well, go to iTunes and buy it and get a little country tap going.
CRAWFORD: Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich were both criticized for playing this song.
[Playing “Eye of the Tiger”]
CORDES: The auditory dust-up has been part of the political landscape for decades. In the 2008 election, Jackson Browne, The Foo Fighters and John Mellencamp asked John McCain to stop using their music. And George H.W. Bush’s 1988 campaign ran into a hiccup when Bobby McFerrin objected to Bush's use of his feel good song.
JOHNSON: It’s more often than not that Republicans get in trouble and not Democratic candidates and I think that’s just merely a function of where the music business is.
CRAWFORD: And that’s why Democratic candidates, who tend to have a similar ideological leaning to the musicians, sometimes have an easier time with the music. Singer Katy Perry even offered to write a theme song for Hillary Clinton’s campaign and Clinton tweeted back to her, “You already did. Keep letting us hear you Roar.” That song, by the way, is on Clinton’s official Spotify playlist. Norah?
NORAH O’DONNELL: Jan, thank you. What a fun story. Well, music in campaigns go together like hand in hand. I mean, I've been to so many campaign rallies where you’ve got to wait for the candidates, so you listen to about 45 minutes of music before they appear.
GAYLE KING: But you’ve got to check so the people don’t write you notes like ”we hate you.” So just check ahead of time. Music is fun.
O’DONNELL: It is fun.
