Is LWW Being Blacklisted?
So is Neil Young's newest album LIVING WITH WAR being blacklisted at some retail stores?
It would seem that we're seeing artistic censorship judging from recent letters published on MSNBC's Altercation. Here are a few letters:
Name: Withheld
Hometown: Albuquerque NM
Comments:
Just thought you'd like to know that Neil Young's album is not available at the local exchange (military BX) here. I had to buy it at the local CD store. I asked the manager and was told that the album wouldn't be carried. Apparently someone is afraid that we will get to hear what free speech is, even though they protect it. (I am an active duty AF officer and would prefer not to have my name used. Thanks)
Name: Marty
Hometown: Boulder
Comments:
Eric, I went out this afternoon to buy the new Neil Young album, LIVING WITH WAR. I thought you might be interested to know that the first two stores I visited, Target and Circuit City, did not have the album. Thinking that both stores might have been sold out of the copies they received yesterday, I asked at both stores if they had any left in stock. I was told at both stores that they did not receive the album.
Furthermore, workers at both stores told me that they do not expect to receive the album, as it is not on the release sheet listing new material being sent to the store. At first, I wondered if something delayed the album's release. After all, it is not uncommon for the release date of an album to be pushed back at the last minute. However, when I finally found (and bought) LIVING WITH WAR at Barnes & Nobles, I realized that the album had indeed, been released on schedule. I can't help but wonder if both Target and Circuit City have refused to stock LIVING WITH WAR due to the album's anti-war and anti-Bush message. I wonder if other people had trouble finding LIVING WITH WAR. If that is indeed the case, this is an outrageous example of corporate censorship!
Name: Lynn F
Hometown: Atlanta, Georgia
After reading your two letters today about the unavailability of Living with War, I searched the Internets to see of Circuit City or Best Buy carried the CD online. While Circuit City does sell it, I could not find the CD at BestBuy.com. I thought only the service in their stores was terrible, but now I have to add their censorship policies to the list of poor business practices.
Drop a comment below if you have had a similar experience (or not).