When the allegations against actor Kevin Spacey were raised last year, Netflix decided to shoot the last season of "House of Cards" without him; Director Ridley Scott cut the actor completely out of a movie - all this happened without Spacey being convicted in court.
Now there is a similar case: radio stations are discussing whether they want to play his songs after the abuse allegations against Michael Jackson, which are being rewritten in the documentary "Leaving Neverland" - a complex ethical decision: On the one hand, the allegations in the documentary crushing, on the other hand, Jackson was once freely acquitted in court. The question of whether and to what extent the work of an artist can be detached from his person also plays a role here.
Most recently, the Canadian media company Cogeco had announced that it would not play any more Jackson songs in its 23 radio stations until further notice, and the Dutch radio station NH Radio had banished Jackson songs on Tuesday.
German broadcasters urge restraint
In Germany, however, many broadcasters urge restraint: The Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR) told SPIEGEL inquiry, currently planning any deletions of Michael Jackson songs from the program. Rather, it is important to wait and see whether the allegations described in the documentation will lead to a new legal assessment. "When making such decisions, one should always look closely at the individual case and ask whether the artistic work needs to be re-evaluated by justiciable processes," said a spokeswoman.
The station argues in much the same way as the Norwegian radio NRW, which had announced on Monday, first to renounce Jackson songs, but then retracted the decision: "The decision was wrong, we have to distinguish between art and artists," had broadcasting director Thor Gjermund Eriksen explains. One did not want to find fault or innocence of the King of Pop at any time.
Warnings of Quick Shots
Antenne Bayern clarified on SPIEGEL's request that the songs of Michael Jackson are first and foremost art "that our listeners love". "Consistently, museums should also depend on the works of Paul Gauguin, who married a 13-year-old," said program director Ina Tenz. She also said, "Playing Michael Jackson in the program does not mean we can tolerate child molestation." A boycott at the present time is indeed effective in the press, but does not contribute to the prevention or prosecution of child abuse.
Many stations warned at the same time before quick shots. "It is still too early to make a final assessment," said about the North German Broadcasting Corporation (NDR). And the Südwestrundfunk explained: "According to the current state of knowledge, the SWR sees so far not prompted to take titles of Michael Jackson from the program."
Radio NRW is also presumed innocent until the allegations are confirmed. "This in particular against the background that Jackson was freely spoken in the second trial against him for lack of evidence," said radio NRW spokeswoman Ina Pfuhler.
Similarly, the program director of Antenne Niedersachsen, Carsten Hoyer commented: "If the allegations against Michael Jackson substantiate or new details become known, we will internally certainly advise on our approach." It is conceivable then to let the listeners decide whether Michael Jackson should continue to be played.
To see in Germany in April
And Radio ffn relied on current market research results: "The titles that we play by Michael Jackson, continue to achieve very high popularity and approval ratings," said music director Niklas Gruse. Should something change because of the documentation, you will react.
On Sunday and Monday, HBO had shown the documentary about the abuse allegations against Michael Jackson, before she had been seen at the film festival Sundance. In Germany, "Leaving Neverland" will air on April 6 at 8:15 pm at ProSieben.