Pitchfork

"I have recently come under what can only be called extreme censorship," No Age guitarist Randy Randall writes in an email today about a little dust-up he allegedly had with the folks at CBS who put on "The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson".

No, Craig didn't ask the guys to switch up the "shit you made" line in "Eraser" or anything like that; rather, the brass at CBS insisted that Randy either remove his shirt-- emblazoned with the image of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama-- or face not appearing on the show. This shirt, in fact:



No Age had already rehearsed for the cameras at the show's studios and were minutes from stepping onstage for the final taping when a CBS representative allegedly told Randy he would have to find a change of clothes. According to Randy, the rep cited the Equal Time Rule from the FCC-creating Communications Act of 1934, a rule designed to give political candidates equivalent airtime on most U.S. television and radio broadcasts.

The band briefly considered walking away from the gig, but, crafty fellow that he is, Randall instead scrawled "Free Health Care" on the shirt while obscuring the image of his candidate of choice. The band wound up playing, and the episode will air October 27.

"I felt it was important to voice my choice for presidential candidate, Barack Obama, seeing as the episode would air eight days before election day," Randall writes. But failing that, "Dean and I decided that it would be better to take advantage of the stage we had at our disposal... Access to affordable health care is an issue very near to my heart for many personal reasons and I am sure that many of you can relate. I have lost and stood by as many of my close family members have battled with terrible illnesses. I have myself gone through traumatic hospitalizations only to come out the other side alive but horribly in debt."

Interestingly, Randall also points us to an Arthur Magazine editorial by Jay Babcock that discusses the FCC's since-abandoned policy known as the Fairness Doctrine. This policy ran parallel to the Equal Time Rule (but, unlike the Rule, was not law) and called for a fair and balanced presentation of controversial issues in broadcast media. It was dissolved during the Reagan administration on the grounds that it violated First Amendment rights. Curiously, however, its dissolution has since been cited to make a case for allowing certain candidates and issues more airtime.

Quite frankly we don't have the legal expertise (nor a phalanx of lawyers at our disposal) to fully endorse Babcock's conclusion that "Randy's Obama shirt was perfectly broadcastable under every existing law," but it's certainly something to think about. And Randall is spot on when he notes a longtime concern of many: that the current broadcast conditions vastly favor major party candidates with more money-- and that includes Obama as well as John McCain.

No Age will no doubt bring their message of free speech and cheap noise to their upcoming tour, which sees them palling around with Times New Viking and Los Campesinos!. The band's own "Teen Creeps" 7" is due from Sub Pop November 4, and Dean and Randy will issue a joint single with their tourmates once those dates commence next week.

No Age:

10-12 Los Angeles, CA - Echoplex !
10-14 Brighton, England - Komedia +
10-15 Liverpool, England - Academy 2 +
10-16 Leeds, England - Irish Centre +
10-17 Dublin, Ireland - Whelans +
10-18 Glasgow, Scotland - School of Arts +
10-20 London, England - Electric Ballroom +
10-21 Bristol, England - Fleece +
10-22 Manchester, England - Picadilly Records (in-store)
10-22 Manchester, England - Academy 3 +
10-23 Lisbon, Portugal - ZDB Gallery
10-24 Madrid, Spain - Moby Dick ^
10-25 Barcelona, Spain - Nitsa ^
10-27 Ravena, Italy - Bronson
10-28 Rome, Italy - Init
10-29 Milan, Italy - Music Drome
10-30 Lyon, France - Grnd Zero ^
10-31 Nancy, France - L'autre Canal ^*
11-01 Paris, France - Point Ephemere ^
11-04 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Paradiso ^
11-05 Groningen, Netherlands - Vera ^
11-09 New York, NY - TBA
11-10 Purchase, NY - SUNY Purchase
11-10 Brooklyn, NY - Market Hotel #
11-11 Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church #
11-12 Washington, DC - Black Cat %
11-13 Asheville, NC - Grey Eagle Tavern #~
11-14 Athens, GA - 40 Watt Club #~
11-15 Knoxville, TN - Pilot Light #~
11-16 St. Louis, MO - The Gargoyle #~
11-17 Madison, WA - Club 770
11-18 Chicago, IL - Reggies Rock Club
11-19 Columbus, OH - Wexner Center #
11-20 Cleveland Heights, OH - Grog Shop $
11-21 Toronto, Ontario - Lee's Palace #
11-22 Montreal, Quebec - Theatre Plaza #
11-23 Worcester, MA - The Grind at Clark University
11-24 Cambridge, MA - Middle East (Downstairs) #
12-02 Los Angeles, CA - TBA
12-04 San Francisco, CA - TBA

! with David Scott Stone, the Tyde
+ with Los Campesinos!, Times New Viking
^ with White Circle Crime Club
* with Busdriver
~ with Titus Andronicus
# with Soft Circle
% with Diplo, Abe Vigoda, Telepathe
$ with Matt & Kim