In a report published in December, the Southern Poverty Law Center reviewed the history of racist music on internet music sites, and at least one positive reaction – from iTunes – was finally reported.
White power groups, neo-nazis, and skinheads discovered in the 1990s that racist music was an ideal way to recruit and keep young members, and to raise much needed cash. Racist bands like Skrewdriver, the Bully Boys and Max Resist became popular, appealing to the anti-establishment, pro-anarchic tendencies in our restless youth. Promoted by white supremacist websites like Stormfront and other skinhead sites, the bands used their musical talents to spread hatred and their supremacist message to young buyers in a seemingly innocent medium. And a new-found source of wealth was created.
But the movement really took off when the skinheads discovered iTunes. By listing their racist songs with iTunes, these bands could sell their messages under the seemingly approving imprimatur of a major music distributor. Suddenly the internet became a very effective recruiting tool and a lucrative income producer for the white supremacist movement. Other music distributors, like Amazon and Spotify, were quickly infiltrated as well.