RIAA sues 4 students for bad taste in music

The Recording Industry Association of America filed lawsuits yesterday against four Penn students who were found to have downloaded Sonic Youth songs onto their computers.

Citing "bad taste," officials said the individuals will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. If convicted, the students face a minimum sentence of 10 months in an alternative music rehabilitation center.

Treatment could also include intensive listening sessions featuring musicians of the 21st century, or trips to spring concerts at other universities that plan to feature contemporary artists.

It is unknown whether the songs were downloaded illegally through an Internet file-sharing program or purchased legally through an online program such as iTunes.

"Quite frankly we don't care how they got the songs," RIAA spokeswoman Megan Toal said. "These people clearly need help, and we believe the court will recognize that."

The names of the students are being withheld for their protection.

"We fear that they may in fact be stoned by their peers for having Sonic Youth music," Toal said.

However, the RIAA did issue a subpoena to the University ordering the release of information about the organizers of this year's Spring Fling, which will be featuring Sonic Youth, Cat Power and Citizen Cope.

"Thankfully, we're pretty sure no one on campus has attempted to access any Cat Power or Citizen Cope songs," Toal said. "From what we can tell, no one even knows who they are."

The fate of the Spring Fling organizers remains unclear, but it appears as though the University is unwilling to offer them the same protection they have given earlier RIAA targets.

"We have no obligation to these individuals," University President Amy Gutmann said of the three Social Planning and Events Committee directors. "We just don't support students who endanger the Penn community, and we certainly don't support students who like shitty music."

Lawsuits such as the ones aimed at the four students are part of the RIAA's strategy of suing individual users for their personal music preferences. The trend began in September 2003, when the group sued two Princeton students for downloading entire Ace of Base albums.

"I just liked 'I Saw the Sign' and it got out of control," recovering bad-music addict Bridget Takacs said. Though her police record will forever be branded "stuck in the 1990s," Takacs was grateful for the intervention.

"I'm thankful that the RIAA stepped in and got me the help I needed," the Princeton senior said.

Harvard President Larry Summers blamed innate differences between the Spring Fling organizers and the undergraduate population for the lawsuits.

"Fling organizers just lack the intrinsic aptitude to bring in good bands," he said.

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