May 16, 2007
Nipplegate! ME-TV Slaps Big Black Box Over Big Black Box Tasteful Cartoon Tee
We're OK when television networks choose to curb the amount of gratuitous "adult" content in prime-time programming, but we've always figured that such stuff, within reason, was fair game on cable networks. After all, Comedy Central has a sketch comedy show starring a naked trucker, FX's Nip/Tuck once had one of its stars engaging in gross raunchy sex with a mother-daughter duo, and Fox News regularly gets away with putting Bill O'Reilly on the air. Recently, though, a far less scintillating scandal has hit local airwaves, and we're a little confused as to what the fuss is all about.
One of our favorite shows on ME-Television, the excellent Austin-based network that promotes some of the best music that Central Texas has to offer, is Red River Rocks. Hosted by the adorable duo of Emmy Robbin and J.J. Castillo, the show airs daily at midnight, and prides itself on its edgy, sometimes shocking coverage of local buzz bands. We should point out that this is a program that's regularly broadcasted videos by bands named Gorch Fock and Goblin Cock, and songs with titles like "Death of a French Whore." In other words, this probably isn't a show for the kids.
Last night's episode featured British transplants and Austinist favorites IV Thieves (formerly Nic Armstrong and the Thieves), who brought their signature swagger and love for libations to the set of Red River Rocks. Bassist Shane Lawlor enjoyed a beer on camera, while guitarist Glynn Wedgewood joked about the okay-ness of offering a toddler whiskey. All of this was fair play for the studio execs.
Lawlor's appropriately rockstar ensemble included a white t-shirt, on whose front was a wild-haired naked lady—not unlike the Sharpied efforts of a budding young Basquiat to replicate Botticelli's Birth of Venus. Unfortunately, said image included one or more visible, if cartoonish, nipples.
Shit and fan met, exchanged pleasantries, and after what we can only assume was a drawn out exchange between studio honchos and the folks producing the show, a decision was handed down to paste a gargantuan black box over Lawlor's entire chest. The net effect suggests that what lies beneath is something truly sinister, like perhaps kittens being vivisected by cloven-hoofed demons. Or this guy.
Because we still have no idea how to work our TiVo, we're not able to include any video footage from last night's broadcast. Luckily, an anonymous confidant inside ME-TV was able to provide us with video stills comparing the edited and undoctored shots of said tittilating tee. You can check it the naughty version after the jump.
What do you think, Austin? Cheesy censorship or unnecessary paranoia?
|
That looks more like an ear than a nipple to me.
I like that show but that girl is so annoying. To be fair, I thought J.J. was annoying too until he got busted on Fox 7 News Edge at 9.
shane is a hero
The shirt is by amazing designer Elisa Jimenez. You can only find her stuff at Factorypeople. She is an artist and a designer and should never be censored. I wish they would censor some of the crappy videos they play instead of super-cutie-shane's clothing choices. Does he have a girlfriend?
Yeah. I'm his girlfriend and we do it all the time in his Camaro at the park.
Wow! I didn't expect such a furor!
The T-shirt was hand-drawn by Elisa Jiminez (a fantastic artist and designer) specifically for me, inspired by a dream of an angel who watches and waits for me- All very trippy stuff i know, but It's something of a personal treasure for me and i love that Elisa created it for me.
As well as a little bit of tit, enscribed are such words as "peace, strength, happiness, love" - all of which i believe are fantastic and certainly non-offensive (including boobs...they're possibly the best out of all of them actually)
I think it's a jolly nice shirt indeed! Luckily i didn't wear my Michelangelo's David T-shirt...I may well have gotten arrested
We all know you don't have a girlfriend pappy.
ME Television (esp. obnoxious vj's like JJ Castillo) is the same as Tyler's Sports saying they're "keeping austin weird" when they are really the ones spearheading this city into trendy, glossy, MTV-bullshit.
ME was created by a woman from California who has come here in the hopes to sweep in where AMN left a void, only to sell the channel into syndication? They are merely using Austin as a launching point.
AMN 4 life!
Hiiiiiiiii Shaaaaaaaaaaane.... 'member me?
wink-wink
I have a girlfriend some nights, laughingatyou.
ME TV is syndicated? Do other cities get 22 hours of the Schneid c. 1997 with one hour of that Emmie girl changing her personality every 30 minutes and another hour of tejano?
I've always found Shane Lawlor offensive. ALWAYS.
(joking)
My sisters got better lookin' tits than that.
I can't shut up.
anon, the coolest thing I ever saw on Austin news was the night that an old woman plowed down an old woman friend of hers at the vaccuum cleaner store on South Congress. J.J. popped over there to film it (because I guess he's a sick freak) and while he was standing around filming, the Fox 7 news crew caught him on tape getting arrested for filming. So he was arrested for filming something going on in public while another news crew was filming him getting arrested. Talk about a rabbit hole.
So then the cop is arresting him and the cop pulls out a pinch hitter from his pocket and the kid is like, "Oh fuck" but he took it in stride and got his ass arrested and he was hamming it up a little but but overall, it was just very very funny and it made me like that kid a little more.
Maybe if Emmie got arrested for selling ass on SoCo I would like her a little more too.
Yeah she does, Milkman.
Red River Rocks has singlehandedly taken channel 15 out of my channel flipping rotation.
JJ Castillo is tool, and should be put on SubText
I can't keep MUM. THis is J.J. and I thought the whole thing was RETARDED. I said at least put the cover of a CD on his shirt, and someone else said well we could write "under this black box, there are boobs' but instead they decided to go with a Black Box.
ALSO:
I get that people are gonna knock on Me and The Show...But lemme just say after moving here 4 years ago from a shit small texas Town, AMN to me, was the coolest thing ever. I Loved Nadia, called in all the time, and when I met her at ACL i drooled and geeked out when i talked to her. When AMN went away, I was another kid saying...Well HERE COMES THE CORPORATE BULLSHIT, Fall out boy, and all that charmin worthy crap.
I love Old Austin, and I Love NOW Austin. At the Moment, I am working on the LOMITA and DANIEL JOHNSTON Music video. (JoseJonesFilms) I'm trying my fucking hardest to keep our show, as shocking, and silly as AMN was.
That guy on the show (ME), is a character, who is modeled to spout out information and random banter in spurts of 2-3 mins of camera time. Trust me If i met that hyper and silly of a dude in real life...I'd make him bite the fucking curb...it's TV folks. Im sure Regis is also more Lax in person, ya know.
Trust me when I say, no one at the channel cares about the red river scene, or any bands that aren't MAINSTREAM or aren't on KGSR's playlist.
So when you see me at Emos, or the Mohawk and I'm filming the show. I'm doing it on my own time, with my equipment, for zero dollars, just to put it on the show, for the viewers, and for the kids who otherwise would never know who ATTIC TED was. (from San Marcos-check em out)
(cont.)
No matter how long were on the air, people will always be nostalgic over AMN. And think in thier Heads, how much better AMN was then ME-TV. But really try to remember it. It only had about 2-3 hours of watchable footage, at night, and the rest of the time the channel was pure shit, and Archival footage. People who worked for AMN come up to me at bars, wanting to get jobs for ME-TV saying how it's so much better quality-wise.
This is Austin, and Austin is all about what was, and not what is. Let me end with my favorite AUSTIN joke that totally sums up you sour folks always looking to the past.
Joke: How Many Austinites does it take to change a lightbulb?
Answer: Three. One to actually change the lightbulb, and two to stand around talking about how cool the old lightbulb was.
-JJ
That time you got arrested on the Fox 7 News Edge at 9, that totally was way better than that time you told that lame old joke about everybody pining for the old days, J.J. Castillo.
Touche, Ol' Pappy, Touche.
Also if I don't mention our great Rock Programmer Valli Irvine who works for the channel, and finds some really out there Obscure and awesome videos that we play on our show, I'll feel like a total douche...She really is the coolest Music Snob you will ever meet.
Shane's 'wardrobe malfunction' is just a publicity stunt.........
I used to feel the same way about M*E when it first started. I was a huge fan of AMN and thought that there was NO WAY that this new "corporate" channel could be better. Well, I was wrong. Thank god for M*E! If it wasn't for M*E, there would be NO video channels and none playing new & underground/local bands. You can hardly call MTV "Music" television...
btw, lay off JJ!! I think he's adorable and a great vj whether he's getting arrested or not! ;)
sorry I missed seeing Glynn & Shane on the show. Looking foward to the M*E Live taping tonight tho!
oh yeah...about Shane's shirt...
C'mon! it's late night TV and this is Austin. Ease up a bit. Geez.
This whole conversation is retarded. I can't believe nobody is asking WHY on earth ME TV would feel the need to censor a line drawing of a naked woman on a t-shirt that's partially covered by a jacket. It's the lamest move any network could have made, especially a music network, especially in Austin. ME TV, please grow a pair and lighten up on the big black box.
That's probably because nobody really cares.
True that, Ol' Pappy.
I miss AMN too -- and I don't think a single of METV's VJs are as charming as Nadia M. was -- but them's the breaks. AMN really didn't get their shit together until very shortly before they left the air, and while there are things about ME I don't like they still do a good amount for the local scene and show a decent amount of local videos -- and a ridiculous amount of local live performances on ME Live -- so they deserve some props.
And the shirt thing is pretty stupid, but that's television for you.
just for the record I has the utmost pleasure of working as an intern for AMN for two years and was there with them till the very end. Everyone there was amazing and talented...But the music business changes,it becomes mainstrem and different. We cant help that. What happened to AMN was tragic and I miss it very much but ME is a wonderful station that still supports what this city is famous for..Live,local music. I will always support what AMN was about but I must also say that ME deserves mad props too.
JJ...
You are the biggest idiot for fucking this up. A million people would kill to have your job. Period. Youre a great talent but you let it go to your damn head!
Oh yea, it was stupid to censor a freakin boob. Being topless in Austin is legal remember people?
eh?, I cannae even get the telly to work...
Who cares? Nobody (with any brains) watches ME TV anyway.