Eminem's Mosh Video
conspiracy ? more against Bush ?
The original version of our video for Eminem’s Mosh was a cultural phenomenon beyond our wildest dreams. The video hit number one on MTV’s Total Request Live within 24 hours of its premiere on October 25th. Internet message boards talked of grandmothers crying while watching it. There were (unconfirmed) reports of runs on black hoodies at Foot Lockers across the country. New York magazine called it “the most important piece of mainstream dissent since the 60s.” The Asia Times’s terrorism expert Pepe Escobar wrote, “For an 18-year-old voting for the first time, Mosh provokes the same impact that the barricades of May 1968 in Paris did on the ‘children of Mao and Coca-Cola,’ as film genius Jean-Luc Godard put it.” But not everyone loved it. Some lefties derided what they called its simplistic “get out the vote” message, saying it played into the system it alleged to attack. New York Press film critic Almond White wrote, “This isn’t a plebiscite; it’s a mob…the video presumes all young people think alike, leaving no room for choice in the election or in lifestyle.”
Regardless of how you felt about Mosh, the video sparked emotions that had been suppressed for four years. There were certain things you just could not say in George Bush’s America. Like Fahrenheit 9/11, Mosh seemed to be one of the lone pieces of mainstream media to be saying (at least some of) them. And in the week leading up to the election, those inside the media who felt burned by the administration took off the restraints and wielded their power to promote America’s most popular (and despised) artist’s statement against the Bush Administration. It was a safe way for the all to speak out by joining the mob of Mosher’s from their Times Square offices.
But did it make a difference?
It’s a question I’ve been asked a million times since the video premiered: “But did it turn out the youth vote?” Released too late to influence voter registration in almost all states, there is no clear way to gauge the effect, if any, it had.
We do know this: Despite early misleading reports, the youth vote did show up on election day. According to CIRCLE , 20.9 million Americans under the age of 30 voted in the election. That’s 4.6 million more than cast ballots in 2000. This turnout represents a 9.3% increase nationwide and in the battleground states turnout was even higher, up 13% over 2000. But young people weren’t the only ones who showed up. Voters of all ages also showed up in record numbers and the 18-29 demographic was the only group to favor the Democratic ticket (54% – 44%) in the presidential race.
The original version of the video ends with Eminem’s black hoodie mob casting their vote in an act of defiance against a corrupt and illegitimate regime. But voting was only part of the video’s message. It was a larger call to arms for a generation alienated by a system that only sees young people as consumers, criminals or cannon fodder.
In this alternative ending for the video, we remind all those who were inspired by the first version to not give up the fight. In our corporation-controlled duopoly, sometimes you have to take other measures to have your voice heard. So if you are still searching for answers, know that our opinions still matter. Our hope is that it will show our battered teammates and the rest of the world that we are not here to say sorry but instead, the fight continues and we will be heard…
Taken from Here