eBay Banning Sale Of Black Metal Albums?

[Veive]

http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=58406

Paula Hogan of MANIC Music & Distribution and Candlelight Records USA has contacted BLABBERMOUTH.NET to report that "eBay is [allegedly] currently starting a ban on black/extreme metal. A few of our vendors who have sizeable eBay stores are now finding their items pulled down by eBay directly. The list we have compiled so far that have been pulled for sale via any eBay stores or auctions is noted below. I'm sure there are more."

Added Dan Ferguson of Indianapolis, IN's Abyss Records: "I had a number of items removed and account suspended by selling black metal. It seems a group of so-called Christians have been reporting black metal bands (even though eBay has black metal as a search genre) as all racist and hateful and discriminatory."

The items that were allegedly removed by eBay because they "violated the eBay Hateful or Discriminatory policy" are as follows:

BURZUM - Complete 6 LP SET
EMPEROR - IX Equilibrium ORIG. LP
WOTANORDEN - From The.. CD
BURZUM - s/t / Aske DOUBLE LP
1349 - Beyond The CD
DARKTHRONE - Panzerfaust CD
MAYHEM - Collection 4 LP SET
PANTHEON - Krihapentswor CD
DARKTHRONE - Total Death CD
BURZUM - Draugen CD DVD
BURZUM - Daudi Baldrs LP
BURZUM - Daudi Baldrs CD
ZYKLON B - Blood Must Be Shed CD
ARMAGGEDON - Imperium CD
EMPEROR - Demo LP
1349 - Hellfire DOUBLE LP
DARKTHRONE - Hate Them CD
BURZUM - Filosofem DOUBLE LP
BURZUM - Hlidskjalf LP
BURZUM - Det Som Engang Var DIGI CD
CAMULOS / AINSHVAL - Split CD
BURZUM - Hvis Lyset Tar Oss LP
BURZUM - Det Som Engang Var LP
NOKTURNAL MORTUM - Weltanschauung CD
SATYRICON - Now, Diabolical CD

In eBay's e-mail to Ferguson explaining their decision to remove his listing, they write, "eBay doesn't permit sellers to list items that promote or glorify hatred, violence, or racial intolerance. Items that promote organizations with such views are also prohibited.

"eBay will judiciously disallow listings or items that promote or glorify hatred, violence or racial intolerance, or items that promote organizations (such as Nazis, neo-Nazis and Aryan Nation) with such views. This policy also applies to listings that offer shipping to countries where certain items may be illegal."

Wonder if they're going to start banning rap albums.

 

[Astrum]

no fuckin way. holy gay-ness.

 

[Wires & Waves]

sounds more like a group of overzealous idiots reporting stuff + ebay not bothering to check their facts before removing auctions rather than a conscious banning

sucks that ebay has a policy like this in the first place but theyre entirely within their rights to do so - the best course of action would be for all metal fans, bands and labels to boycott ebay entirely, not that that'll happen.

 

[Blue_Jay]

HOLY CRAP!!!! BULLSHIT!!!!! I can't believe they would ban black metal albums. This is a disgrace!!!

 

[Impudent]

This is stupid.

 

[Astrum]

sounds more like a group of overzealous idiots reporting stuff + ebay not bothering to check their facts before removing auctions rather than a conscious banning

sucks that ebay has a policy like this in the first place but theyre entirely within their rights to do so - the best course of action would be for all metal fans, bands and labels to boycott ebay entirely, not that that'll happen.

uke:
people..........

they tell us black metal is offensive and bad, yet look at the content of half the shit on the radio?
uke:

 

[Zephyrus]

This is intolerance against intolerance, one could say.

 

[The Heartbreak Kid]

HOORAY!

 

[Nemesis_lxix]

bullshit !

 

[cookiecutter]

I'm just glad my government has no right to do this.

 

[IWP]

gay

 

[unknown]

that is complete horseshit

 

[Wires & Waves]

This is intolerance against intolerance, one could say.

i think this is lame but lets not start with this classic pseudointellectualism

 

[TylerTheNuke]

It doesn't surprise me in the slightest. The concept of free speech only applies to popular ideas. There are incredibly few politicians and an incredibly low % of the population that understand that free speech is for everything. Our forefathers would be ashamed

 

[Astrum]

HOORAY!

:Smug:

 

[Wires & Waves]

It doesn't surprise me in the slightest. The concept of free speech only applies to popular ideas. There are incredibly few politicians and an incredibly low % of the population that understand that free speech is for everything.

Actually no free speech is freedom from censorship by government, as eBay are not government it's perfectly legal for them to do this (and that's a good thing too imo). The real problem is that one online auction company is in such a position of power that subcultures with little consumer power (e.g. black metal fans) pretty much have to like it or lump it with regard to their policies. The idealist in me says the solution in such situations, rather than complaining about corporate censorship (which is a slippery slope imo because any legislation on it leads to excessive limits on how a business can be run which is a restriction on freedom itself), is to DIY: the black metal scene should create its own avenues of distribution rather than using ones already in place that are inevitably going to bow to the will of profit to the detriment of minorities like black metal listeners.

 

[Stormwatch]

Well those albums still seem to be on eBay Uk.

 

[Matt]

I don't see any Deicide, Gorgoroth, xxx maniak, or other bands like that. Why just ban a few and not all of it?

Somebody on the Ebay board of idiots really screwed up here.

 

[cookiecutter]

I agree completely with Spectacular Views

 

[Wires & Waves]

I don't see any Deicide, Gorgoroth, xxx maniak, or other bands like that. Why just ban a few and not all of it?

because nobody has "banned" anything