What do the Boston Non-bomber and the DJ Drama drama have in common?
Two common characterists to the Boston Non-Bomber and the DJ Drama Drama:
1. Wildly inaccurate media reporting
DJ Drama was not selling bootleg CDs, he was selling mixtapes. A bootleg would not be sanctioned and encouraged by artists or labels.
The “packages” were neither “packages”, nor “bombs”, nor even “hoaxes.” In order to be a “hoax”, there must be an intent to decieve.
2. Allegedly criminal activity executed with corporate approval
This is the sticking point. Both arrested artists were working in cooperation with very powerful media structures. DJ Drama with tacit major label approval. Boston Non-Bomber was in a relationship acknowledged by Turner Broadcasting:
“The ‘packages’ in question are magnetic lights that pose no danger. They are part of an outdoor marketing campaign in 10 cities in support of Adult Swim’s animated television show Aqua Teen Hunger Force. They have been in place for two to three weeks in Boston, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Seattle, Portland, Austin, San Francisco, and Philadelphia. Parent company Turner Broadcasting is in contact with local and federal law enforcement on the exact locations of the billboards. We regret that they were mistakenly thought to pose any danger.” — as quoted by Wikipedia on the Turner Broadcasting page, seen 31 January 2007, 23:39 EST.
It’s as though various incompatible strains of culture are beginning to intersect and cause strange ruptures. Unfortunately, institutions of power do not take embarassment well. There is a clear hierarchy here. Mass media corporations are untouchable at the top, artists are defenseless at the bottom, and a confused collection of state organizations flounder around blindly in the middle.
Help out on Wikipedia: 2007 Boston magnetic light scare.
