Liberal entertainers express sense of urgency to oust Bush
Even previously neutral entertainers such as Bruce Springsteen are taking sides.
By TONY HICKS
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
INDA RONSTADT STOPPED TOURINGlast month, and her critics thought they'd won a brief reprieve from politics intruding on entertainment.
Maybe on Nov. 3.
That's the day after what's proving to be a close and hotly contested presidential election that -- along with polarizing national views on war, terrorism, faith and freedom -- is sending politically charged entertainers screaming into venues near you.
The onslaught of politically oriented entertainment events nationally is fueled by a sense of urgency not seen since the '60s, when the Vietnam War was the dividing line. Though a controversial war is certainly an issue in 2004, most of this fall's performances are aimed directly at the country's commander in chief.
This fall, conservatives will have a harder time finding live entertainment that doesn't offend their political views, never mind anything specifically pro-Bush. Outside of a Kid Rock here and a Toby Keith there, most active entertainers diving into the fray are Democrats.
Nationally, even the usually ambivalent Bruce Springsteen is taking sides, leading an all-star lineup in a series of Vote for Change concerts in states that are up for grabs. The lineup includes Pearl Jam, Dave Matthews, Crosby, Stills & amp; Nash and many others.
Reaching fence-sitters
"This year it's different," says Bill Maher, host of HBO's "Real Time With Bill Maher," whose stand-up tour includes plenty of political references. "If there's someone in that on-the-fence demographic, you can affect them, especially the ones who don't vote. If you keep telling them 'Bruce Springsteen is doing this' or 'Dave Matthews is doing that,' after a while, they're saying, 'All right, get off my [butt]. I'll vote."'
Meanwhile, the organization Punk Voter is staging shows around the popular compact disc "Rock Against Bush," released by San Francisco label Fat Wreck Chords.
Add the flurry of political films out this year, ranging from the controversial "Fahrenheit 9/11" to the upcoming political satire "Silver City," and you have a steady drumbeat of entertainment aimed at ousting Bush from the White House.
"We will make a difference, because we'll get young people out to vote that [Republicans] can't," said David Crosby, the famed singer-songwriter and member of Crosby, Stills & amp; Nash. The group is part of the Vote for Change tour. "It's very heartening to me, because we're seeing guys whose managers would normally deny them from [taking political sides]."
Politics 'part of the job'
Crosby says he's aware it's become fashionable the past few years to mock entertainers for getting political, even though he asserts that it's "part of the job" that "goes back thousands of years."
He predicts this year people will pay attention, thanks to the volume of opposition from trusted familiar faces not normally associated with politics.
Performers also feel they have an advantage in being able to air their politics while entertaining people.
"American people don't want to hear a lecture -- they can get that on C-SPAN," says comedian Jeff Kreisler, touring with "Bizarro's PolitiComedy-A-Go-Go." "But if you can do it where you're singing and dancing, people will think."
Some fans would prefer their favorite performers stay out of politics, something Ronstadt discovered on tour last month. Her nightly dedication of "Desperado" to "Fahrenheit 9/11" filmmaker Michael Moore sparked a backlash that led her to end her tour early.
Conservative project
One project of a more conservative mind-set is under way at the Antioch, Calif.-based SRM Records, which next month plans to release a CD of patriotic music by local artists called "One Nation Under One God." Proceeds go to the Mission of Freedom Alliance, promoting a strong national defense by encouraging military service.
"Regardless of how you feel about the war, these people are sacrificing and standing in for me," SRM vice president Sheila Taylor said. The CD is not overtly political, Taylor says, but "the Bible tells us that we're supposed to revere the people in office. That says I have an obligation to pray for my President."
Why is the political entertainment coming so overwhelmingly from the left?
Michael Schudson, a professor of communications and sociology at the University of California, San Diego, said the lack of conservative voices in the arts may be simply a matter of hard-wiring and inclination.
Beyond the profit motive
"I think people in the arts do tend to be liberal because they see themselves as artists and, hence, not driven by or attracted to the profit motive, naturally inclined to the unconventional," he says.
"They're willing to recognize that some activities that the marketplace does not successfully support may still be worthwhile activities that deserve government support -- like education and the arts."
On the other hand, when Schudson looks over the political landscape, he doesn't see it lacking conservative faces from the arts.
"Don't forget," he says, "the contemporary world's most influential Hollywood figures -- not Barbra Streisand but Ronald Reagan; not Paul Newman but Charlton Heston."
9/11 changed things
Cartoonist Dan Piraro says his interest in politics has been piqued by the direction the country has headed since 9/11.
"When I started, people were comfortable and I wasn't that into politics," says Piraro, the "Bizarro" cartoonist and author of "The Three Little Pigs Buy the White House."
The same thing has happened for filmmakers since "Fahrenheit 9/11" became the most financially successful documentary ever released. Now even more political films are on the way, including the re-release of the anti-war "Hearts & amp; Minds," "Orwell Rolls in his Grave," and at least two others about the government's using 9/11 for political advantage.
"If you would have released these [political] movies two years ago, no one would have showed up," said Banning. "Now all these films are doing pretty well."
At least until November.