POP/ROCK - June 27, 1988

Little Steven Van Zandt is miffed at being “censored” during the Freedomfest concert in London two weeks ago celebrating imprisoned black South African leader Nelson Mandela’s 70th birthday. Van Zandt wrote a guest column for the New York Times saying the Fox Television Network and the Westwood One radio network apparently decided “that Americans were not interested in learning more about apartheid” when Van Zandt’s call for sanctions and reference to South Africa as a terrorist state were edited out. Fox officials issued a “no comment” on the matter on Friday. “I, for one, would never knowingly have participated in an event that was to be purged of its ‘politics,’ especially when the man being honored is known for his political courage and principles,” Van Zandt wrote.