{"id":59323,"date":"2026-03-03T23:40:36","date_gmt":"2026-03-03T23:40:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/03\/billy-corgan-thinks-the-cia-colluded-with-mtv-to-tank-rock-hes-wrong\/"},"modified":"2026-03-03T23:40:36","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T23:40:36","slug":"billy-corgan-thinks-the-cia-colluded-with-mtv-to-tank-rock-hes-wrong","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/03\/billy-corgan-thinks-the-cia-colluded-with-mtv-to-tank-rock-hes-wrong\/","title":{"rendered":"Billy Corgan Thinks the CIA Colluded with MTV to Tank Rock. He&#8217;s Wrong"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tLast week, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/t\/billy-corgan\/\" id=\"auto-tag_billy-corgan\" data-tag=\"billy-corgan\">Billy Corgan<\/a> made a wild assertion on his podcast, <em>The Magnificent Others<\/em>: \u201cI think \u2014 \u00a0and I will say it overtly \u2014 I think that rock has been purposely dialed down in the culture.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tHe then expounded on this belief, explaining just who he believes deflated rock\u2019s potency: \u201cIf you were at MTV or around MTV [in] 1997, \u201998, suddenly they decided rock was out, when rock was still very, very high up in the thing and it was replaced by rap, right?\u201d he said. \u201cTheir standards and practices immediately shifted. \u2026 Some people assert that the CIA was involved in all that, again, above my pay grade, but I saw it happen. I did witness it happen.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Conrad Flynn Pt 2 | The Magnificent Others with Billy Corgan\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/laaofgUMsBs?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tAside from the eyebrow-raising belief that the CIA colluded with MTV\u2019s parent company, Viacom, to torpedo rock\u2019s omnipresence, it seems Corgan either has his facts wrong or doesn\u2019t remember the Nineties as well as he thinks he does.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tFirst off, perusing a random issue of <em>Billboard\u2019s<\/em> <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=IQoEAAAAMBAJ&amp;lpg=PA100&amp;dq=billboard%20%22video%20monitor%22&amp;pg=PA105#v=onepage&amp;q&amp;f=false\">\u201cVideo Monitor\u201d chart<\/a> from November 1998 shows that MTV\u2019s Top 10 that month included plenty of rock videos by Alanis Morissette, Barenaked Ladies, Korn, and Hole. Nearly a year later, in October 1999, the same chart <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=dQgEAAAAMBAJ&amp;lpg=PA85&amp;dq=billboard%20%22video%20monitor%22&amp;pg=PA89#v=onepage&amp;q&amp;f=false\">reported<\/a> on an MTV Top 10 that included Limp Bizkit, Bush, Kid Rock, and the Offspring. The Number One song of the week was Blink-182\u2019s \u201cAll the Small Things.\u201d Say it ain\u2019t so, rock did not go.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tSecond, there are a couple of bitter pills Corgan needs to swallow. One is that MTV\u2019s programming, like that of most TV stations, has always been more or less dictated by advertising. (Yes, apparently, that many people watch <em>Ridiculousness<\/em>.) To sell commercials, Viacom needed to broadcast music videos that attracted consumers between the ages of 12 and 24, and that meant constantly changing with the times. Music fans who were 16 when the Pumpkins helped shape the sound of alternative rock in 1993 were 23 when the band put out <em>Machina\/The Machines of God<\/em> in 2000, and rapidly aging out of usefulness to MTV\u2019s bottom line. Why wouldn\u2019t they give more airtime to Fred Durst, who was capturing teens\u2019 imaginations on the question of whether wearing a red baseball cap could attract more \u201cNookie\u201d?<\/p>\n<section class=\"brands-most-popular \/\/ editors-pick-module lrv-u-margin-tb-2 lrv-u-border-a-2 u-box-shadow-5-5 lrv-u-padding-lr-1 a-span1 u-padding-b-1@tablet u-overflow-hidden\">\n<h2 id=\"section-heading\" class=\"c-heading larva  lrv-u-text-align-center u-border-color-black a-font-theme-primary-xxs lrv-u-color-black lrv-u-text-transform-uppercase u-letter-spacing-0063 lrv-u-padding-t-050 u-padding-b-0375@tablet lrv-u-padding-b-050@mobile-max lrv-u-border-b-2\">\n<p>\t\tEditor\u2019s picks<\/p>\n<\/h2>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tAnd related to that, Corgan needs to accept that the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/t\/smashing-pumpkins\/\" id=\"auto-tag_smashing-pumpkins\" data-tag=\"smashing-pumpkins\">Smashing Pumpkins<\/a>\u2018 late-Nineties albums just aren\u2019t that good. The band\u2019s ascendency to rock greatness earlier in the decade was perfectly timed, as MTV had just shifted its rock spotlight from sleek, overproduced groups like Cinderella and Poison to a clear alternative: the raw sounds of Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden, which might have seemed not-ready-for-primetime but turned out to be right on schedule.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tThe Pumpkins rode that wave admirably in 1993 with the faux-optimism of \u201cToday\u201d and \u201cCherub Rock\u201d and the wounded-childhood melodrama of \u201cDisarm.\u201d Here came Corgan, bleating a ballad that was genuinely moving, and people wanted to hear it. <em>Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness<\/em>, in 1995, was more bombastic (<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=NOG3eus4ZSo\">orchestral strings<\/a>!), faux-nostalgic (\u201c1979\u201d), and heavy (\u201cZero,\u201d \u201cBullet With Butterfly Wings\u201d) \u2014 and it was pretty great, too, even at two hours long.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tBut then they seemed to lose the plot over the next three years, culminating with the Pumpkins\u2019 limp, forgettable fourth album, <em>Adore<\/em>. Corgan seems to have forgotten that he was grasping at relevance using a trip-hop beat, like many a rock band attempting to stay hip at the time, on \u201cPerfect,\u201d and a hip-hop groove on \u201cAva Adore.\u201d But the songs weren\u2019t hits because, frankly, the hooks that defined the Pumpkins\u2019 big hits were missing. \u201cThe Pumpkins have given up being a Rock Band and devoted themselves to being a Pop Project,\u201d <em>Spin <\/em>wrote in <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=OStTbPbsrNgC&amp;lpg=PA121&amp;dq=spin%20smashing%20pumpkins%20adore&amp;pg=PA121#v=onepage&amp;q&amp;f=false\">a review<\/a>. <em>Rolling Stone <\/em>later called the record <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-album-reviews\/machina-the-machines-of-god-255288\/\">\u201ca dud.\u201d<\/a> And the less said of the poorly mixed, pompous <em>Machina<\/em>, the better. \u201cThe nearly 70 minutes of <em>Machina<\/em> boil down to a handful of recurring ideas: Love is good, drugs are bad, God is everywhere and \u2014 seriously \u2014 thanks for listening,\u201d as <em>Rolling Stone <\/em>wrote in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-album-reviews\/machina-the-machines-of-god-255288\/\">a review<\/a>. The magic just wasn\u2019t there.<\/p>\n<section class=\"brands-most-popular \/\/ recirculation-modules lrv-u-margin-tb-2 lrv-u-border-a-2 u-box-shadow-5-5 lrv-u-padding-lr-1 a-span1 u-padding-b-1@tablet u-overflow-hidden\">\n<h2 id=\"section-heading\" class=\"c-heading larva  lrv-u-text-align-center u-border-color-black a-font-theme-primary-xxs lrv-u-color-black lrv-u-text-transform-uppercase u-letter-spacing-0063 lrv-u-padding-t-050 u-padding-b-0375@tablet lrv-u-padding-b-050@mobile-max lrv-u-border-b-2\">\n<p>\t\tRelated Content<\/p>\n<\/h2>\n<\/section>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"The Smashing Pumpkins - Ava Adore (Official Music Video)\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/9uWwvQKGjLI?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tSo when MTV test-drove the Backstreet Boys\u2019 \u201cEverybody (Backstreet\u2019s Back)\u201d in 1997 and Britney Spears\u2019 \u201c\u2026Baby One More Time\u201d in \u201998 and seemed to get a positive response from teens interested in designer-imposter perfumes or whatever commercials MTV was showing at the time, it only made more sense the network would clear away videos by artists who made less of an impact. Much to Corgan\u2019s chagrin, fewer rock videos meant more room for the Macarena, Aaliyah, and all the women Lou Bega had a little bit of time for.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tWhen Corgan\u2019s theories circulated on social media this week, MTV veteran Kurt Loder <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/kurt_loder\/status\/2028357584890314928\">simply commented<\/a>, \u201cSure.\u201d Filmmaker Joseph Kahn, whose videography in 1998 included clips for Brandy and Monica but also Rob Zombie, provided his own theory. \u201cRock died when it separated itself from sex,\u201d <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/JosephKahn\/status\/2028383621917335990\">he wrote<\/a>. \u201c[I] did a video for a huge rock band and they argued over \u2018the male gaze.\u2019 \u2026 Music is ultimately driven by horny teenagers, and they fled to rap.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tIt\u2019s difficult to imagine anyone at the CIA (even this administration\u2019s iteration of the CIA) being so concerned with the state of pop music to attempt to steer the cultural conversation in the late Nineties. The agency was likely preoccupied with things like the war in Kosovo and hunting a Saudi dissident named Osama Bin Laden toward the end of the Nineties. But at the same time, the odds that they targeted rock &amp; roll probably aren\u2019t <em>zero<\/em>, considering that they did once go full Wile E. Coyote and try to give Fidel Castro an <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2016\/nov\/26\/fidel-castro-cia-cigar-assasination-attempts\">exploding cigar<\/a>. Either way, the CIA did not immediately respond to <em>Rolling Stone\u2019s <\/em>request for comment on Corgan\u2019s claims. If he ends up being right about this years from now when a Freedom of Information Act request reveals MTV and CIA collusion, <em>Rolling Stone <\/em>will gladly buy Corgan a Coke.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tOthers have made similar observations in a less conspiratorial tone, like Garbage\u2019s Shirley Manson, who put it this way last year: \u201cRadio would only really play a certain sound \u2014 a very reassuring, unthreatening, fun vibe \u2014 and these very fierce women from the Nineties just disappeared,\u201d she <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/music\/2025\/apr\/14\/ive-pulled-myself-out-of-a-very-dark-abyss-garbages-shirley-manson-on-depression-sexism-dodgy-hips-and-happiness\">claimed<\/a>, pointing to the post-9\/11 years. \u201cThat was when we started to see the rise of real mega-capitalist pop. We\u2019ve been inundated with those sounds now for 20-odd years.\u201d<\/p>\n<section class=\"brands-most-popular \/\/ recirculation-modules trending-in-article lrv-u-margin-tb-2 lrv-u-border-a-2 u-box-shadow-5-5 lrv-u-padding-lr-1 a-span1 u-padding-b-1@tablet u-overflow-hidden\">\n<h2 id=\"section-heading\" class=\"c-heading larva  lrv-u-text-align-center u-border-color-black a-font-theme-primary-xxs lrv-u-color-black lrv-u-text-transform-uppercase u-letter-spacing-0063 lrv-u-padding-t-050 u-padding-b-0375@tablet lrv-u-padding-b-050@mobile-max lrv-u-border-b-2\">\n<p>\t\tTrending Stories<\/p>\n<\/h2>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tRegardless, Corgan doesn\u2019t have much to complain about these days, since <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/t\/the-smashing-pumpkins\/\" id=\"auto-tag_the-smashing-pumpkins\" data-tag=\"the-smashing-pumpkins\">the Smashing Pumpkins<\/a> have been capitalizing well on Nineties nostalgia. Even as their post-Nineties albums have generally returned fair-to-middling reviews, a reunion with three-quarters of their classic lineup can still headline Madison Square Garden and support fellow Nineties rockers Green Day on a stadium tour.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-line-height-copy  lrv-a-font-body-l   \">\n\tNot that any of that matters to Corgan, who\u2019s still bent on convincing people that <em>Machina\/The Machines of God <\/em>is worth 74 minutes of their time. Last year, he toured as a solo act called Billy Corgan and the Machines of God, playing a selection of songs from that album interspersed with <em>Mellon Collie <\/em>favorites. But no matter what size venue Corgan\u2019s playing, it seems like he\u2019s doomed to feel like a rat in a cage, and that\u2019s no CIA psyop.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-features\/billy-corgan-cia-mtv-rock-conspiracy-theory-1235524545\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Last week, Billy Corgan made a wild assertion on his podcast, The Magnificent Others: \u201cI think \u2014 \u00a0and I will say it overtly \u2014&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":59324,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-59323","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pop","article","has-excerpt","has-avatar","has-author","has-date","has-comment-count","has-category-meta","has-read-more","thumbnail-"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59323","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59323"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59323\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/59324"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59323"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59323"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musicianvoice.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59323"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}