Paramount Global (previously ViacomCBS)[1] is an American multinational entertainment conglomerate that was the subject of criticisms and controversies about its products and services.
The company was not only dealing with a stagnating stock price, but also the rivalry between Leslie Moonves and Tom Freston, longtime heads of MTV Networks.
In July 2008, the case generated controversy when District Judge Louis Stanton ruled that YouTube was required to hand over data detailing the viewing habits of every user who had ever watched videos on the site.
Public Enemy rapper Chuck D,[8] journalist George Curry,[9] writer Keith Boykin,[10] comic book creator Christopher Priest,[11] filmmaker Spike Lee,[12] Syracuse University professor of finance Boyce Watkins[13] and cartoonist Aaron McGruder (who, in addition to numerous critical references throughout his series, The Boondocks, made a particular episode criticizing the channel), all have protested BET's programming and actions.
Music Television (as MTV was originally known) was originally a channel devoted to popular music videos upon its launch in 1981, but began adding entertainment and reality programs geared toward a young adult audience in the 1990s, beginning a progression toward its current focus of reality and scripted programming targeted primarily at teenagers and young adults.
Video Hits One likewise began as an outlet for adult contemporary music before transitioning to an urban pop culture channel as VH1; Country Music Television drifted to southern culture and general rerun programming as CMT; and The Nashville Network, perhaps the most dramatic, drifted to a male-heavy program lineup now known as Spike.
[21] Portions of the content of MTV's programs and productions have come under controversy in the general news media and among social groups that have taken offense.
Those who were in MTV's rotation included Eddy Grant, Tina Turner, Donna Summer, Musical Youth, Herbie Hancock, Grace Jones, and Prince.
The very first non-white act played on MTV in the U.S. was UK band The Specials, which featured an integrated line-up of white and black musicians and vocalists.
[22] MTV rejected other black artists' videos, such as Rick James' "Super Freak", because they did not fit the channel's carefully selected AOR format at the time.
Rock legend David Bowie also questioned MTV's lack of black artists during an on-air interview with VJ Mark Goodman in 1983.
[23] MTV's original head of talent and acquisition, Carolyn B. Baker, who was black, had questioned why the definition of music had to be so narrow, as had a few others outside the network.
It was difficult for MTV to find African American artists whose music fit the channel's format that leaned toward rock at the outset."
Writers Craig Marks and Rob Tannenbaum noted that the channel "aired videos by plenty of white artists who didn't play rock."
"[25] MTV senior executive vice president Les Garland complained decades later, "The worst thing was that "racism" b------t... there were hardly any videos being made by black artists.
"Billie Jean" was not added to MTV's "medium rotation" playlist (two to three airings per day) until after it had already reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
MTV has edited a number of music videos to remove references to drugs,[32] sex, violence, weapons, racism, homophobia, or advertising.
[34] This policy led MTV to ban music videos such as "Jesus Christ Pose" by Soundgarden in 1991[35] and "Megalomaniac" by Incubus in 2004.
[50] This has led to criticism from the right, with Jonah Goldberg opening that "MTV serves as the Democrats' main youth outreach program.
"[51] Comedy Central has been a frequent target of criticism from the conservative group Parents Television Council (PTC), which accuses them of bigotry and blasphemy.
On November 5, 2007, an open letter[56] was written by VideoSift to protest publicly the blocking of Comedy Central's embedded video content for non-American viewers.
[64] The channel as a whole has begun to receive negative reputations and controversies over the late-2000s to early-2020s, since they, since 2006, would frequent burn offs various Nicktoons that are not considered to have a ratings on the par of the more successful animated series SpongeBob SquarePants.
Following the box-office success of the first film in 2004, various allegedly low-rated Nicktoons would often be pushed to the sister channel and be outright cancelled after the last few episodes.
The Parents Television Council (PTC) and other sources believed that "Sailor Mouth" was an implicit attempt to promote and satirize the use of profanity among children, but reports cited otherwise.
[68] "SpongeBob, You're Fired" was infamous for dialogue referencing the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Food Stamps benefit).
It eventually sparked a political debate when Media Matters for America and Al Sharpton on MSNBC accused both the New York Post and Fox News of using the episode.
[78] Joe Murray noted that the season one episode "Leap Frogs" received "some complaints from some parents" due to its sexual humor, leading to Nickelodeon removing the episode from air for the remainder of the show's run, although it later aired on the cable channel Nicktoons and was made available on DVD and video streaming sites such as Netflix, and ultimately Paramount+.
Schneider had worked as a writer and producer at the network since 1995 and had created several Nickelodeon series including The Amanda Show, Drake & Josh, Zoey 101, iCarly, and Victorious.
"[82] In her 2022 memoir, former child actress Jenette McCurdy wrote that the cast and crew underwent emotional abuse on the set of the series iCarly.
[83][84][85] In August 2022, former Zoey 101 actress Alexa Nikolas protested outside of Nickelodeon studios in Burbank, alleging that the network had failed to provide a safe work environment for her and other child actors that she knew.