60 Minutes is an American newsmagazine television program that is broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt, who chose to set it apart from other news programs by using a unique style of reporter-centered investigation. In 2002, 60 Minutes was ranked at #6 on TV Guide’s 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time. The New York Times has called it “one of the most esteemed news magazines on American television”. (More from Wikipedia)
Opposition to the unfair imprisonment of two women in Pussy Riot became a cause célèbre of many Western celebrities plus musicians from every genre imaginable: Bryan Adams, Beastie Boys, the Black Keys, John Cale, Peter Gabriel, Green Day, Nina Hagen, Kathleen Hanna, Paul McCartney, Moby, Yoko Ono, Pet Shop Boys, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Patti Smith, Sting, Pete Townshend, etc. Pussy Riot was featured on 60 Minutes as well.
For their part, the bandmembers in Pussy Riot that were not in prison distanced themselves from all of this attention and were quoted as saying: “We’re flattered, of course, that Madonna and Björk have offered to perform with us. But the only performances we’ll participate in are illegal ones. We refuse to perform as part of the capitalist system, at concerts where they sell tickets.”
(December 2013)
Dave Grohl and Foo Fighters have been traveling to music meccas across the country, making short films of their stays there and writing and performing a song to mark the occasion. They are now playing on HBO, and 60 Minutes also had a piece on their efforts a week or so back. Their sojourn to New Orleans is particularly enjoyable; they tell the history of Preservation Hall and how it is now fulfilling its mission of preserving jazz in the city. Highly recommended.
(June 2015)
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