Lady GaGa's latest music video has ignited a storm of controversy with television networks refusing to screen the nine-minute epic because it is too explicit.
The prison-themed video for "Telephone", released online yesterday, features full-frontal nudity, provocative lesbian sex references, explicit language and a clip showing several people being murdered.
It has already been viewed more than 1.5 million times online and received glowing reviews from critics.
But television networks including MTV believe the content is too inflammatory and have refused to show the clip during regular programming.
Directed by the man behind GaGa's "Paparazzi" clip, Jonas Akerlund, the new video starts with the scantily-glad singer being led into a prison cell by two transvestite guards.
Once inside, the guards strip GaGa of her clothing and she is left wearing nothing but two black stars covering her breasts.
As she thrusts her blurred-out genitals against the bars, one of the prison guards says "I told you she didn't have a d***" — an allusion to ongoing speculation about her gender.
Gaga then shares a raunchy kiss with another woman in the prison yard, with a close-up showing the singer being groped on the groin.
Later, the 23-year-old pop star appears wearing only police tape. In another scene, she parades down the prison ward wearing only a bra and g-string.
The tale sees GaGa bailed out of the prison by Beyonce, who says: "You've been a very bad girl — a very, very, bad, bad girl, GaGa."
The clip ultimately winds up with GaGa and Beyonce poisoning a diner full of people and escaping into the sunset.
GaGa, who co-wrote the clip, said she was inspired by the films of Quentin Tarantino.
"There's certainly always a hidden message in my music videos," she told the Daily Mail newspaper.
"But I would say most predominately, I'm always trying to convolute everyone's idea of what a pop music video should be."
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