Piracy no stranger to Christian tunes

The Dallas Morning News ^ | April 17, 2004 | SUSAN HOGAN

[Between the Lines]

Christian teens are stealing Jesus music.

They're doing it through Internet downloads and CD burnings at nearly the same rate as secular music is being pirated by non-Christians, according to a new study done for the Gospel Music Association.

The findings were a jolt to many in the evangelical music industry, who expected churchgoing teens to be mindful of the Commandment, "Thou shalt not steal."

"I'm surprised and disappointed that the behavior isn't that ardently different between Christians and non-Christians," said John Styll, president of the Gospel Music Association, the leading trade group for evangelical music.

But not everybody thinks the pirating is a bad thing. After all, some church leaders say, isn't getting the Gospel out more important than getting paid? How can it be wrong if it saves souls?

"That's convoluted logic," said Barry Landis, president of Word Records, a major Christian label. "You would never steal Bibles to give them away. You shouldn't steal Christian music to give away either."

Christian music is in the spotlight next week as artists, fans and vendors converge in Nashville, Tenn., for Gospel Music Week. The festivities are a backdrop to the April 28 Dove Awards, the industry's equivalent of the Grammys.

Last year, sales of Christian albums fell by 5.2 percent, to just over 47 million. The major labels cut their workforce by 10 percent, Mr. Styll said. He blames the economy, downloads and CD burnings.

Even with the dip in sales, Christian music is big business. Last year, its artists sold 68 CDs for every 100 in country music. The $800 million in sales topped that of classical music and jazz combined ? and at least as much money was generated in merchandise and concert tickets, Mr. Styll said.

Musicians say the piracy issue is particularly thorny for them to broach. Many fear being seen as greedy, the backlash faced by the heavy metal band Metallica when it sued Napster, once the most popular file-sharing software system.

"We can't be like Christina Aguilera and get all attitudy," said Jaci Velasquez, a platinum-selling singer originally from Texas. "We're supposed to be like Christ and turn the other cheek."

Panheads, the name given to fans of the Christian band, Skillet, routinely ask for autographs of the group's CDs. After one concert, a fan raved about how he had all of Skillet's music and that it had changed his life.

"Then he asked me to sign the CDs and they were all burned from a computer," said band member John Cooper. "I always sign because I don't want to be rude. But sometimes I'm tempted to say, 'Man, you've got to buy it.' "

Like their secular counterparts, Christian music executives say digital music theft is hurting sales. But they've kept a low profile in the war being waged by the Recording Industry Association of America against piracy ? a battle that includes more than 1,000 suits against illegal downloaders. (The music industry said sales have improved in the first quarter of this year, in part because of its suits.)

Mainstream music sees piracy as purely as a legal issue, Mr. Styll said. The Christian industry frames the issue differently, even though its major labels are owned by mainstream companies.

"We take it further and say it's a moral issue," he said. "But we're not going to sue people. It just doesn't seem right. And nobody really has the will to do it."

The industry is grappling with how to discourage piracy.

"It's going to take an enormous educational effort," said Mr. Landis of Word Records. "Maybe we've missed this generation. We all know they shouldn't take the music. We all know they do. How do you put toothpaste back in the tube?"

Warning labels about copyright laws ? part of a "do unto others" strategy ? have begun appearing on some Christian CDs. But research shows the task of changing minds, much less hearts, is Herculean.

Many Christian teens simply don't think they're stealing.

Scott Ferguson, a junior at Fort Worth Christian Academy, said he has never burned a CD but has received them as birthday gifts. He considers burning CDs morally wrong, but he said many of his buddies don't.

"If a CD comes out and you like a couple of songs, they'll burn it for you," he said. "It's what friends kind of do for one another. It doesn't take long and it's easy. That's how they look at it."

Others say they do it for religious reasons.

"A lot of students think it's, like, a cheap way to witness to the Gospel," said Scott Flagg, 22, who belongs to the Christian fraternity Beta Upsilon Chi at the University of North Texas. "They go out and buy a CD, then burn several copies to give away."

Youth minister Scott Burks said he regularly confronts youths at Pantego Bible Church in Fort Worth about the issue. But they have a hard time understanding how they could be stealing when the music is readily available on the Internet.

"They'll literally say, 'Really? Come on.' " he said. "They're surprised. But when I'm able to help them understand the truth behind it, a student is typically remorseful."

Robert Noland, an executive with Student Discipleship Ministries in Burleson, said the message must first reach Mom and Dad.

"Usually the parents don't know its wrong and think it's just something all kids do," he said. "Or they do know and they think, 'What's the harm?' "

Christian pollster George Barna recently completed a study on teens and piracy for the Gospel Music Association. The study hasn't been made public, but key findings were shared by Mr. Styll with The Dallas Morning News.

He said the most alarming results showed that only 10 percent of Christian teens considered music piracy to be morally wrong. Of those, 64 percent have engaged in downloading or CD burning anyway ? virtually the same percentage as non-Christians.

"A lot of these people don't see it as any more wrong than speeding," he said. "I would say to you that speeding is wrong. But I would also admit that I have probably violated that law today."

[Between the Lines]

It is our job to teach our children better than this and we teach best by example. Does your chruch copy Christian music or software? Does your small group copy bible studies? Do your friends copy movies? Children don't learn these things on their own....

Just something to think about.

"A lot of these people don't see it as any more wrong than speeding," he said. "I would say to you that speeding is wrong. But I would also admit that I have probably violated that law today."

Thou shalt not speed is not one of the big 10, but thou shalt not steal is! You can read it in Exodus 20:15. How can one compare a trivial man made law with one written by God's own hand? While breaking a minor law may be justifiable in truth or just in one's own mine, one should never even try to justify a sin.

[dsc]

"one should never even try to justify a sin"

That's certainly true, but there's more going on here than that.

I think what we're seeing is the obsolescence of an industry, and that obsolete industry seeking government help to maintain its position after outliving its usefulness.

What is "the music industry?" Is it musicians?

I'd venture to guess that far and away the bulk of it is composed of useless parasites, who can only get paid if they grossly overcharge for CDs.

What do they do for me that I need done, and that I can't get done better and cheaper elsewhere?

I'd much prefer to download music from the Internet after a payment directly to the musicians.

The unwillingness to condemn piracy stems, I think, from resentment at the fact that the music industry is taking lots of money for services people don't want to buy, and certainly don't want to buy at those prices.

If we were dealing with a government agency, it would be civil disobedience.

People resent being told that in order to by a CD that cost a couple of bucks to make, they have to pay 15 bucks, of which about a buck goes to the musician, while the "music industry" converts the rest to cocaine and shoves it up their noses.

What does the "music industry" do to justify its existence? What does it do to justify those prices?

But with the power of the government behind it, the music industry thumbs its nose at us and says, "If you're not willing to be gouged by us--not by the musicians, by us--then you can't listen to the music other people produce."

If the "music industry" vanished tomorrow, you'd still have people recording and selling music, and you'd still have concerts. I'd venture to say most musicians would be better off than they are under the current system, and the public certainly would.

[HarleyD]

I agree with dsc. What you're seeing is a major shift in how music (and movies) will be distributed. Something the industry is resisting because of greed. If you don't think so there are very few artists who have signed up to sell their songs at 99 cents each as some sites have tried to do.

I don't advocate stealing but there is something to be said about buying a CD, downloading the music onto your computer and being able to cut a CD anyway you want. I have multiple CD players around the house. It is unreasonable for the industry to think I should either "pull" the CD out of my car to load it into the home theather or buy two, one for each player, when I can simply cut a copy and use it in both places. Plus I can edit out songs I don't like and replace them with the ones I do. The industry considers all this stealing (not just downloading from the Internet). In good conscience I do not.

This is not unlike the development of the printing press. It will take some time to sort all this out.

[Between the Lines]

What does the "music industry" do to justify its existence? What does it do to justify those prices?

It matters not what the music industry's justifications might be. The point is, it is not our right to decide under what conditions we can be copy a piece of music, that right belongs to the copyright owner. The fact is, unless the record company is giving it away, the person who downloaded or copied something has taken money out of someone else's pocket. If you haven't bought it then more than likely you are ethically, morally and legally in the wrong, no matter how you rationalize it.

As Christians, we are called to try to live lives of ethical and moral purity. When we copy or distribute Christian music without permission, we do more than break a petty little rule. Perhaps the biggest risks are to one's integrity and Christian testimony. Are you any less of a thief if you steal $1 or $1,000? When Christians cheat or steal, even in instances when everyone else seems to be doing it, they erase the line of demarcation that separates how Christians and non-Christians live. All unbelievers know "thou shalt not steal." Yet when they see a Christian stealing (to any degree) they feel that the Christian is no different than they are, so why should they wish to emulate or become a Christian? It not only kills the one who is stealing's witness but all Christian witness. Pirating also takes a toll on the one who participates. Growing calluses on their conscience in this area of one's life is likely to desensitize one's conscience in other areas too. Anytime we override our conscience we lessen the intensity of its voice to our spirit.

Allowing the precedent (legal, moral, or otherwise) that it's okay to take anything one wants without paying for it is clearly bad for the Church, bad for society and a bad example being placed before our children. When we copy music for what ever reason that we do not wish to pay for it, we show a willingness to sideline our morals, ethics, integrity and Christian witness, and place mammon above them all.

If you do not like the way someone does business you have the right to choose not to do business with them. And if enough people do so then maybe they will be forced to reconsider their business practices. Yet we live in a "I can't live without it" society where the ends seem to justify the means more often than not. We are called not to conform.... but to be transformed...Romans 12:2

[HarleyD]

I agree with you on downloading music that one needs to be careful of their Christian testimony.

But how about music that we do pay for and just want to make a back up so the original doesn't get ruin? Very much like software. Is this stealing? The music industry says so.

[dsc]

“no matter how you rationalize it.”

When a law is this widely and blithely ignored, you can’t write it off as “rationalization.” Something is happening. I think that what is happening is that people are thinking on some level that this system exploits them rather than serving them.

“As Christians, we are called to try to live lives of ethical and moral purity…Perhaps the biggest risks are to one's integrity and Christian testimony…they feel that the Christian is no different than they are…Growing calluses on their conscience in this area of one's life is likely to desensitize one's conscience in other areas too. Anytime we override our conscience we lessen the intensity of its voice to our spirit.”

All that is true, but there is another side to this that I think you’re not considering.

After you subtract the cost of making a CD and the musicians’ royalties, the biggest chunk of the price goes to the “music industry” people. They earn it by…by…hey, they don’t earn it. All they are is an 800-pound gorilla sitting astride the music pipeline, between musician and audience, saying, “If you don’t give me a big chunk of money, I’m cutting off the flow.”

They are able to do that because the force of law backs them up, but where is their moral entitlement to do it? What service or good are they providing to justify doubling or tripling the price of a CD? Does the public have an alternative, or is this in fact a state-sponsored monopoly?

This is no more moral than a labor union demanding kickbacks from its members. Many people refuse to obey this law because they sense that it is an unjust law. The music companies have no moral right to demand that tribute, so refusing to pay it is not stealing.

Then there is the musician. Does he have a right to demand money every time one of his recordings is copied? Without going into the subject of how out-of-control our copyright laws are, I think most people would be willing to pay musicians a fair amount in return for the use of that digital data. But the musicians are getting pinched in the struggle between the record companies and the public.

I think the public is essentially saying to the musicians, “Find a better and cheaper way to get your music to me, that doesn’t involve my enriching a pack of dope-huffing record company executives.” Some musicians already are. As much money as kids stick into video games, they’d sure pay three or five dollars to download a CD, and that’s more than the musicians are getting now.

“Allowing the precedent (legal, moral, or otherwise) that it's okay to take anything one wants without paying for it is clearly bad for the Church, bad for society and a bad example being placed before our children.”

That’s true if what is being taken is someone else’s property, rightly held. I would argue that the music companies have no moral right to demand that money.

“When we copy music for what ever reason that we do not wish to pay for it, we show a willingness to sideline our morals, ethics, integrity and Christian witness, and place mammon above them all.”

If you want to say that it’s not appropriate for a Christian to oppose a law by disobeying it, well, there are some strong arguments to be made for that position. I don’t necessarily agree.

“If you do not like the way someone does business you have the right to choose not to do business with them.”

Actually, not. The “music industry” is a government-protected cartel, which among its members engages in price-fixing and profiteering. Where are you going to legally obtain a new CD except from a member of that cartel?

Copyright was originally intended to ensure that the original composer or performer was able to make some money. Now, though, it is a bludgeon in the hands of the 800-pound gorilla that monopolizes the supply of music.

Copyright was never intended to ensure that third parties would be able to sit on the pipeline and profiteer by jacking up the price, but that is how it is being used today. With a copyrighted recording, there can be no competition. You must pay what the holder of the CR demands.

If these demands issued from the musician, then there would be some justice in it if he demanded a high price. But the high price is being demanded by the record company, which keeps the lion’s share and passes along only a fraction to the musicians. They keep the lion’s share, and they do nothing to earn it. The musician doesn’t get it, and the public doesn’t get anything extra for it. This is fundamentally offensive.

“And if enough people do so then maybe they will be forced to reconsider their business practices.”

I don’t think so. Without the armed force of the government behind it, the “music industry” could not survive in its present form. People would not pay them for doing nothing.

It is not a change in their business practices that is at issue; it is their very survival.

“Yet we live in a "I can't live without it" society where the ends seem to justify the means more often than not. We are called not to conform.... but to be transformed...Romans 12:2”

That argument rests on the premise that the music industry has a moral right to tack on their Dane geld as the music flows past them. I don’t agree.

[dsc]

"The music industry says so."

The music industry became obsolete with the advent of the first affordable CD burner. They're dead, but unwilling to admit it, and trying to use the power of government to prop themselves up.

Their monopoly on recording equipment kept them in business during the era of vinyl and cassette tapes, but only government intervention can keep them in business now.