Word Spy - Manilow method

Manilow method

n. The discouragement of loitering in public places by broadcasting music that is offensive to young people, particularly the songs of singer Barry Manilow.

Example Citations:

Officials in Australia and Britain are implementing the "Manilow method" in their psychological warfare against juvenile delinquency — but don't expect their Canadian counterparts to follow suit anytime soon.

City councillors in Rockdale, Australia just passed legislation that allows them to pump the music of Barry Manilow through speakers in their town to keep hooligan kids from loitering and revving their car engines in neighbourhood parking lots.
—Jeffrey Hawkins, "He writes the songs that hooligans are said to hate: Manilow method," National Post, June 15, 2006

Yobs in North Lincolnshire could soon be confronted by the ultimate deterrent — and it could be music to your ears.

Ian Welch, the region's anti-social behaviour coordinator, is currently taking advice from the Local Government Association (LGA), about dispersing youths from public places by playing music unbearable to their ears.

The LGA is asking councils like North Lincolnshire to embark on pilot projects for an Australian system, known as the 'Manilow Method'.
—'Manilow method' could help disperse yobs," Scunthorpe Evening Telegraph, June 23, 2006

Earliest Citation:

A Local Government Association memo, seen by The Independent on Sunday, calls for "pilot projects for the Manilow method", a system tested in Sydney, Australia, where the strains of "Copacabana" and "Mandy" were piped through loudspeakers into a car park where youths congregated.
—Marie Woolf, "Cliff vs the Asbo kids," Independent on Sunday, June 11, 2006

Related Words:

dadrock
mallternative

Categories:

Music
Crime

Posted on June 30, 2006