Gore and other members of the group launched the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC) in 1985. According to PMRC members, music was undermining family ties and values and fostering a nihilistic culture of violence and exploitation. Whenever statistics showed a hike in crime, PMRC linked it to music. The group allied itself with the National Parent Teacher Association and asked the Recording Industry Association of America to adopt a rating system similar to the one used to categorize movies. The organization also wanted the RIAA to print lyrics on album covers, rate concerts and to reconsider contracts with artists and bands whose music glorified sex and violence.
Encouraged by public support and empowered by their ties on Capitol Hill, the PMRC convinced the Senate to hold a hearing on “porn music.” PMRC members testified and targeted heavy metal music and its celebration of sex, suicide and violence. Gore made the case for a labeling system with graduated ratings. Musicians who opposed labels and ratings rallied behind Frank Zappa who slammed the censorship and called the PMRC members the "Wives of Big Brother." Zappa argued that ratings and advisory stickers were a violation of the First Amendment that would hurt the quality of music and do little to protect kids.
By the end of 1985, the RIAA agreed to adopt the parental advisory labels. Major retailers such as Wal-Mart refused to stock albums with a parental advisory label, and rap and heavy metal artists saw their record sales drop. Although RIAA enforcement of the sticker program was lax, states and communities often took on the role of enforcement. Musicians accused the RIAA of compromising artistic integrity to gain favor with Congress, which was reviewing a bill to tax blank tapes and recording equipment. The legislation was meant to compensate record companies for profits lost through customers copying and distributing music.
From the start, parental advisory stickers have been an uneven guide for parents. Records aren’t screened by independent panels and rated according to objective standards. Recording companies and musicians decide which albums or singles should carry a sticker. Music with strong content has hit the shelves without parental advisories while stickers have been attached to albums without any obscenities or references to sex or violence. Retailers also often ignore the stickers. A 2009 survey by the Federal Trade Commission showed 64 percent of minors had no problems buying CDs with a parental advisory. Still, the system is moving forward and advisory labels have been adopted for online music markets and videos.