The World Music Awards air tonight on My Network TV, and the ad I saw last night had a “viewer discretion advised” warning.
The awards have already been handed out, so the winners are no secret: Lady Gaga wins in every category she was nominated.
But I have to wonder what the music industry has come to when a music awards show has to warn viewers that what comes next might not be suitable for all viewers.
There were, of course, many moments on this season of “American Idol” when viewers should have been warned about the raunchy crap we were about to be shown. So a disclaimer would have been welcomed.
Or better yet …
How about we just don’t show the crap?

Honest. We don’t need it.
I did an interview once with a movie producer in Hollywood who also happened to be a Christian. He said that the reality is that Hollywood doesn’t give a rip about what viewers want. The goal of producers and other folks in the industry is to see who can push the envelope the farthest, and the only opinions that matter are those on the West and East Coast. The rest of America is what they call the “fly over zone.”
I think the same is true in music. We buy the crap that the industry tells us is hot, which reaffirms the industry’s assertion that it’s hot, which makes wanna be hip music fans buy it because it’s hot, and on and on. (Did you know that the top singles aren’t even on top because of what listeners are requesting? Seriously. It’s all chosen by folks in the radio industry. Radio DJs don’t even pick the music they play.)
So what do you think? Is a “viewer discretion advised” warning appropriate for a music show? Or is it time we just stopped airing what often amounts to soft porn?
The 2010 World Music Awards air tonight at 8 PM on My Network TV and is hosted by actresses Michelle Rodriguez and Hayden Panettiere. But you can see the winners right now on the 2010 WMA website.