Why is hip hop spoken about as if its as bad as terrorism?

Question

It seems that respectable new shows are taking time out that they could be using to shed light on under reported situations to criticize hip hop. Why is that? With as many basic issues like war, economy, peace, crime, education. As well as daily issues that come up. Is hip hop really the important to talk about right now? Shouldnt we address more important issues first?

Answer 1

Because people think that Hip-Hop gives the black community a bad name. Not so long ago, the BET Channel held a special titled "Hip-Hop Vs America". In which they had a town hall discussion talking about how rap music contributes to society. The program opened up some eyes on rap music, but their are more important things people should talk about other than the negative factors of rap music.

Answer 2

I agree. I think its because post 9/11 political correctness has dominated our lives, and as with any catastrophe, people look for scapegoats. And because they can’t blame individuals (as in who they are) for EVERYTHING that goes wrong, they look to at influences surrounding those individuals, namely negative influences and then they say its applicable to a whole demographic and that it will lead people within that demographic to do the things that a few select individuals are guilty of. And that these things won’t just lead that demographic to do the things the individual does but will spread to other means of wrongdoing.

To put it simply, after 9/11 and all the school shootings and massacres, people are interested in what drives individuals to do what they do. They look at negative influences that could have led to them to it. For example take Columbine, didn’t they initially say that violent video games had attributed to the killers’ psychopathic tendencies?

The fact of the matter is the content within the hip hop culture exudes negativity in some aspects (as does any genre of music) and because its possibly the only genre that actually is associated with expletives and the like people think ‘well look at what these people are saying, they have money, their successful, these kids are gonna wanna imitate them’ and a lot of songs glorify gun crime and the being ‘gangsta’ and thus people assume that because kids are so susceptible these days, that they’ll latch onto these ideas and imitate them. But reality is if a messed up teenager listens to 50 cent and goes and shoots up a school or whatever, you have to think how far gone this kid actually was in the first place to listen to something and then act it out and that if it wasn’t 50 cent it’d be the next violent video game. Plus people underestimate the intelligence of today’s youth, a kid would have to be extremely retarded to listen to something and then go and do it. I mean do people seriously believe that all kids are deluded to the point where they can’t distinguish reality from fiction? Because they’re not.

Basically people criticise hip hop because they say it’s the cause of society’s problems but really, its society’s way of avoiding destructive issues within itself rather than dealing with them.

Answer 3

It may be an exaggeration to say that Hip Hop is spoken of in the same breath with terrorism but I feel the negative effects of the musical genre has also been exaggerated.

Each generation of youth has had a rebellious form of music that made old folks uncomfortable. Jazz and Frank Sinatra were once reviled as tools of the devil. Have you ever seen that 1950's clip of the guy pounding the table saying "no rock and roll, no rock and roll". In my day it was Heavy Metal that was going to turn us all into cultish, devil worshiping, serial killers. Instead I am a mild mannered Chemist.

To sum up; some old sh!t, different day.

If rap is guilty of anything it is of making young black men look a little silly.

Answer 4

Blacks and libs shout all day if a white person uses the N word, but get upset when reasonable people point out that black urban rap culture is a cancer in America. Blacks commit 52% of the murders in America, and have killed for more Americans than have been killed by terrorists. Blacks, driven by the rap urban culture, have destroyed our inner cities, and their violence and ignorance has followed them into the suburbs, and even to the college campuses.

Black violence, and hip hop is a big part of that violence, is the biggest threat America faces. Terrorism unites Americans against a common enemy. Black violence is the enemy within, a cancer destroying our society.

Answer 5

You are so right...There are so many social issues in the United States that needs to be address but the Media plays a big part on what social issues gets talk about.

Answer 6

I and my wife are 69 years old. We were introduced to "Hip hop" through "Can you dance" a product of American Idol, something we learned to love. It was different to say the least but, we came to like it.
I vote for it, I like it. "Crunch" on the other hand, is to different, it might take awhile.

Answer 7

hippity hoppity is worse than terrorism........