What bothers me about this Imus situation.

[PresidentObama]

Well, I personally didn't support the firing on Don Imus. What he said was clearly racist and sexist, and I know that. But Don Imus apologized and bended over backwards to apologize even going on the Al Sharpton show, he didn't bitch about his suspension and offered to tone down the content of the show, and even toyed with the idea of adding a black co-anchor to add perspective to the show. And said he'd make an effort to get more black guest on the show.

But that wasn't enough, was it? While Mel Gibson gets away with his comments about Jews, and still rakes in the millions, Imus gets fired. While the guy from Greys Anatomy gets away with his comments abouts Homosexuals, and his show gets HUGE ratings, Imus gets fired. Imus is not only not racist, he's quite the opposite. He forcefully endorsed one of the leading black Democrats in the last Congressional election, Harold Ford, and even blasted TN for being racist in not electing Ford. This is the voice of a man who is racist? Sure, what he said was racist. We know it, he knows it. He...was...wrong!! But he isn't a news man. He isn't a politican. He's Don Imus, the guy who runs a comedy show.

Someone said yesterday on this board that Imus was a bully. Well, he's always been a bully. That's his JOB!! That's what his listeners expect. And while his comments shouldn't be ignored, this kind of "no man/woman is safe" kind of environment is what the Imus show is about. He's a shock jock, plain and simple. He gets paid for this shit. And the fact of the matter is MSNBC and CBS Radio have known his style of comedy for years, and didn't act until now. MSNBC is a cable television show, and not a network television show. That kind of humor is seen on all kinds of TV shows on cable.

Don't believe me? I was flipping through the channels today, and I came across Comedy Central. They had a re-run of MadTV. This show is on network television in it's original timeslot. In one skit, they had a stereotypical black female snapping her fingers and going "Oh no she didn't" all at the laughter of the audience. I counted three different skits with instances of racism. Wasn't looking for examples of sexism, but I'm sure they were there.

My cousin loves World Wrestling Entertainment. Your blue collar, NASCAR dad kind of television show. One of the tag teams in this wrestling promotion is called "Cryme Tyme" and they mock African Americans wearing "bling bling" with "grills" and stealing stuff from the announcers. Why isn't Al Sharpton or Jesse Jackson boycotting the World Wrestling Entertainment corporation? Why is Imus getting all the outrage?

And Imus said this comment on one show. This tag team is seen by MILLIONS and MILLIONS of children and young people each and every week. What kind of impression do they get of black people when they see this tag team stealing announcers watches and wearing baggy clothes and "bling bling"?

If you look on television, racism and sexism are there....and they aren't going away. It seems like Imus has just became the example to be made. And folks, from a guy with a HUGE heart like Don Imus'....he was the last person I would have expected to get this kind of outrage. Yes, he was wrong. But so is a lot of things on television, things we all ignore!! Things that unfortunately will probably continue to be ignored. Sadly!

[davidinalameda]

1. I don't know if endorsing Harold Ford is something to be proud of

he's a homophobe and let's not forget he's now head of the DLC

[wisteria]

4. I am sure Imus regrets that now. Imus took a lot of heat over that endorsement

and how does Ford repay him? By ignoring him and not even trying to defend him. It makes me wonder why he has a leadership roll in the DLC. Ford has no integrity.

[beachmom]

49. Ford's statement was very decent, considering the hideous thing

that Imus said.

Harold Ford Jr, Democratic Leadership Council chair

"I am a big believer in redemption. Yet, no amount of philanthropy gives anyone the license to offend innocent people. So I'm going to follow the lead of those brilliant and gracious women of the Rutgers basketball team and wait and see how the next two weeks unfold," he says in an official DLC statement.

Hardly a full condemnation, and it gave him some wiggle room to go back on Imus's show if Imus had reformed himself.

I think Imus is asking too much of someone who will most likely run for political office again to defend Imus after what he said.

The fact that Imus singled out Ford over everyone else today is suspect, too, by the way.

[Honeycombe8]

96. Imus' show called Ford for Ford to make a statement on his show...

Ford said yes, then didn't show. Sharpton and others no doubt had gotten to Ford.

Yes, Imus called on the support of his friends, those who know him. Just as anyone would.

That included Ford, for whom Imus had gone to the mat for, supporting him in his campaign for Congress. Imus repeatedly had Ford on his show and gave him a platform to millions of people. Imus slammed that awful ad against Ford, as being racist. He didn't mince words about it, either. Yeah...Ford owed Imus.

I doubt Ford will get another famous white personality to support him and give him lots of air time, if he runs for a political office again. Imus says he took a lot of flak for supporting Ford. But Ford dumped Imus and ran for the hills. Ford could've done what Imus would've done, if Ford had done something stupid. Imus would've had him on the show and told Ford he'd been an idiot, etc., etc. Ford could have done that.

[SayitAintSo]

102. I second that emotion...............n/t

[terisan]

2. Not sure the comparison with Cable is valid in terms of CBS radio.

Correct me if I am wrong.

My understanding is that radio and network television (not cable) are scarce resources and are licensed to companies. Theoretically they are supposed to operate in the public interest or could lose their licenses. I would like to get back to serious ownership in the public interest. I assume CBS radio in NYC is considered prime property and lots of communications companies would love to have the license.

Over half the the public or population of the USA and NYC metro area are probably women.

[huskerlaw]

14. MadTV is originally aired on network TV

Fox, actually.

There are reruns on Comedy Central.

[terisan]

56. My point is that I believe cable is not regulated in the same way as spectrum broadcasting

There is, I think, no issue of public ownership of the scarce broadcasting spectrum regarding cable. The legal and governmental administrative rules of conduct are different. CBS radio has to follow rules of conduct that cable does not have to follow.

The Dept of Telecommunications at MSU has info on this from 2002. Rules of Conduct info is near the end.

http://www.msu.edu/course/jrn/930/scripts/script5.htm#INDUSTRY%20ORGANIZATION

.

[huskerlaw]

58. I'm not saying you're incorrect, but

it's irrelevant, regarding the OP's example.

Yes, the show was on cable. But it was originally on Fox, so broadcast standards would have applied when it was made and originally aired.

[terisan]

69. I am thinking that a show could be originated by Fox, sanctioned as not

meeting standards or applicable law, but could still be purchased by cable and shown without risk. ....or in terms of the Imus comments CBS might be reasonably afraid of legal/regulatory issues and take someone off the air while MSNBC might have no legal/regulatory concerns but be bowing to community pressure.

.....I do consider that CBS may have already been unhappy about certain comments/stances and used this opportunity for doing something they already had considered doing.

[monmouth]

3. I just came back from Freeperland and they are outraged that Imus

is gone. Al and Jesse with way too much power, they now fear conservatives like Rush and that cabal will be the new target in "cleaning up the airwaves." One poster declared they thought Hillary was behind these two firings to get back at Imus. If you want a good laugh go visit there, but they are nervous for Rush. They figure Imus will go to Sirius XM or whatever those stations are..

[PresidentObama]

6. I wouldn't mind if they went after Rush. And yeah, Imus will probably going to XM n/t

[Honeycombe8]

87. Imus won't be going to satellite. His career is over.

Heard a discussion about this on TV, and I'd given it some thought beforehand.

First, satellite radio can't afford any more controversy, what with the merger of XM and Sirius, and having just paid Howard Stern tons of money, and what with Imus being controversial.

Second, Imus is too old. He past 65 years old. Stern was, what, in his 40's, maybe 50, when he went to satellite?

He'll remain a known person, and I suspect he'll continue, in a small way, with his charities. Maybe do some special event stuff on radio or in person. But his career is effectively over. Finito.

[wisteria]

8. Well it was Mr. Freeper himself that gave this story legs- John Gibson on his radio show.

Now, they are covering their tracks.



http://insidecable.blogsome.com/2007/04/05/gibson-on-imus

http://homepage.mac.com/mkoldys/iblog/C168863457/E20070405015829

[Honeycombe8]

88. It started on Af. American radio, then spread throughout the

Af. American community, understandably. Then it seems to have spread to Democrats. And of course it was all over TV on all the stations within a few days.

But I heard the black radio announcer on TV today saying he was the one to first spread the word, on Thursday morning. The incident happened on Wednesday.

[sabbat hunter]

11. Rush,

and hannity, savage, glen beck and even sharpton should have been targets long ago of spewing hate speech. in far more serious tones that Imus's "joke".

[samsingh]

20. coulter should be next

[PlanetBev]

5. On Stephanie Miller this morning...

She said that Glenn Beck and Ann Coulter were talking together about how inappropriate Don Imus's comments were.

Excuse me? HIS comments were inappropriate? This Imus pile-on allows the the biggest slanderers to get away with murder, hiding behind their feigned horror, while Imus gets sacrificed. Total bullshit and hypocrisy.

Randy was talking about Pigboy Limbaugh today, noting that he comes into work every morning with the intent of divided the country. I think Pigboy making fun of Michael J. Fox was just as disgusting as Imus's comments about the Rutgers team. Why isn't he gone?

[PresidentObama]

7. Coulter said they were inappropiate? Didn't she call John Edwards a "fag"? n/t

[doc03]

9. While I don't really care for Don Imus I

think he got a raw deal. The guy insults everybody sort of like Don Rickles. I have heard him say nasty things about GWB and even though he supported and says he likes John Kerry I have heard him talk about his flip flopping and what a duffus he is before. I remember a few years ago I think it was the womens socker team that won in the Olympics and everyone was making jokes about them being lesbians. Now what if Chris Rock would have called them a bunch of bad ass white bitches, it would hardly made a headline if at all.

[wisteria]

10. I agree with you, this whole thing is a shame. n/t

[Raven]

12. Don Imus is a serial racist and sexist and we will all live very well

without him. As others have said here on DU, people are dying in Iraq, e-mail files are disappearing, the country is going to hell in a handbasket. Imus is the least of our worries.

[PresidentObama]

21. He's not a god damn racist. This statement doesn't make Imus racist.

Especially when you run a comedy show. Will you call MadTV and World Wrestling Entertainment racist now, and demand they be removed from your television screens?

[DemReadingDU]

29. another similar thread

by NormanYorkstein

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x639191

[davidinalameda]

71. so calling people what he did was a term of endearment?

[alarimer]

123. He's been saying this same shit for years

He is a fucking racist. Good fucking riddance to that piece of shit.

[DemReadingDU]

25. Enough of Imus

The media needs to talk about how a bomb went off in the green zone, how a bridge got blown up in Iraq, and what about those 5 MILLION missing emails from the RNC/WH!

We need real news!

[Hart2008]

77. Amen n/t

[Honeycombe8]

90. This IS news. I think it will affect the pres. election.

For real. I think there will be a backlash about this. It's being perceived as a double standard and unfair. Too early to tell how large the backlash will be.

On the positive side for Obama supporters, this incident and Obama's response may help Obama out with the Af. American support. I saw a poll indicating that most Dem. Af. Americans are supporting Hillary.

[Dinger]

13. Just Sent This To The Greatest Page, Where It Belongs (nt)

[The Backlash Cometh]

15. Again, to repeat myself:

I think Imus was fired due to a pile-on of comments, beginning with the Cheney-h*nging comment.

And I think that ultimately, black Americans will lose more than they will gain if there is no end to the outrage because Imus will become a symbol for angry white men. Imus probably deserves forgiveness more than most, because of the good things he's done in the past.

[notundecided]

79. You know if they had let Imus continue

with his show we could have had a meaningful dialog on race relations in this country with the movers and shakers that come on his show. That would
have had some real value rather than just canning his ass.

[Honeycombe8]

101. Not just white men. White women, too. nt

[blm]

16. I think Imus deserved backlash but shouldn't be getting the full brunt of

all the pentup anger and years of casual demeaning of women that has gone on for years.

More have done way worse than Imus and who haven't ANY of the redeeming features. Imus alone is paying the ultimate career price for the crimes of MANY.

[PresidentObama]

23. Yes, I agree. He's paying the price for the crimes of many. True!! n/t

[Tom Joad]

17. Imus got away with comments about Jews....

http://www.forward.com/articles/imus-cbs-bosses-money-grubbing-jews/

[Honeycombe8]

103. I guess you didn't watch the show. That was a routine.

That was his schtick. He made fun of everyone. He played this cantankerous old ornery goat who disliked everyone and everything, including his wife.

In actuality, he worshipped the ground his wife walked on. I doubt he could get by without her.

He always said mean things about his supposed various bosses. One of them was recently a guest on his show.

But that was the point of the show. A sort of character. You would have had to watch it regularly to "get it." I watched it regularly. I'm a woman. I never heard him make an overtly racist comment. I watched mainly for the political interviews he had...they were exceptional. He'd have lengthy telephone interviews with all sorts of politicans and political newsmen and pundits.

Bernard, OTOH, was questionable in his taste. I usu. changed the channel when he'd do a routine. I just didn't like the guy.

[Tom Joad]

18. Imus called the Palestinian people "animals" who need to killed.

http://www.cair-net.org/default.asp?Page=articleView&id=1338&theType=NR

[jonnyblitz]

22. well, that explains why "some" that I have noticed are sticking

up for him. snicker.

[Honeycombe8]

106. No, he didn't. You didn't read the article correctly.

It was Sid, not Imus.

Sid apparently said other horrendous things.

Sid was fired. By Imus.

[Tom Joad]

19. shock jocks do not belong on msnbc, a supposed news network.

[PresidentObama]

24. MSNBC is on cable. And MSNBC knew what they were putting on their channel.

This isn't Imus first brush with controversy, after all!

[Tom Joad]

30. Right, they knew it. They will not be forgiven. Do you think it was right to put him on in the

first place?

Where is corporate accountability?

[PresidentObama]

self delete. n/t

[PresidentObama]

32. Absolutely. I don't know why people are outraged so much at Imus, and they don't boycott MSNBC too.

I mean if you're going to bring down Imus, be fair and bring them down too. It seems like Imus is just being made an example of, and it's unfair that racism and sexism on television and radio will continue--but no one will talk about it and they only make an example out of one man. A man who I think is a great guy, who does say a lot of stupid things, but he's a shock jock. They're the ones who made the choice to put him on the air.

[Tom Joad]

33. That would be fine with me..Actually, what we need to do is make sure

the media is accountable to us.
I don't care if imus is a great guy or not. there are many others who deserve the airtime more than him...

[PresidentObama]

34. As long as we're being fair, I'd agree.

Media accountability needs to happen. I totally agree with you.

After all, I don't see many stories about other examples of sexism and racism on television in the news. I don't see MSNBC taking responsibility for putting Imus on the air.

[Honeycombe8]

108. Yes, it was a great show.

I watched it regularly.

I am not a Republican. I don't hate anyone. He pushed the edge...but the interviews were wonderful. He was an edgy, opinionated, old coot, who played an ornery old goat of a character. He asked pertinet, edgy questions, and let his interviewees talk at length.

It was the ONLY program on tv where commentator said outright that Bush and Cheney are yellow-bellied war criminals.

[roody]

26. Thanks for reassuring me that I am missing nothing

by not watching tv.

[PresidentObama]

27. LOL. You really aren't. Minus Colbert and Stewart n/t

[PresidentObama]

28. To those of you bitching about Imus, will you know join me in boycotting WWE and MadTV?

It's only fair, right? Unless we're just making an example out of one man, and it's business as usual from now on.

[Tom Joad]

31. Boycotting MadTV is as difficult as boycotting root canals dispensed by

psychotic dentists.

Believe me, i was there a long time ago. After watching not very much of it. Though i never saw MadTV given daily airtime on a reputedly "news" cable network.

[NYCGirl]

35. You do realize that MadTV is fiction, right? Wrestling has always been racist

and sexist.

[PresidentObama]

36. MadTV is comedy, just like Imus. And wrestling "always" being racist is no excuse.

If you're going to bitch about Imus, why not go after these guys? Or is this about making an example of someone and merely moving on?

[NYCGirl]

37. And the woman who did the sketch on MadTV was black, wasn't she?

Was MadTV carried in the news division?

Imus attacked people who didn't, by any stretch of the imagination, deserve to be attacked. He acted like a bully and got called on it, then started whining he was the victim. Sure there are others who are just as bad — MadTV is not in that company, since it is scripted fiction — but if you spend decades playing with fire, some of these days, you're going to be burned.

BTW, I posted an article earlier today from NY Magazine where Imus was warned back in the 70s about his material, and he hasn't changed:

"There are those who would claim that Imus occasionally lapses into good taste," Mike McGrady writes in New York. "If true, this may well be a result of several lengthy discussions he has had with the station manager and the program director, his 'Mr. Vicious' and 'Mr. Numb.' The upshot of those discussions is that he will never, never, not ever do any more jokes about Chappaquiddick … or, for that matter, anyone else involved in a personal tragedy." McGrady's profile is from the April 3, 1972, issue. The I-Man was 31 years old, freshly arrived at New York's WNBC, and he was a new and jarring force in radio. He was also, it seems, very much the same guy he is now. Which New York radio personalities did Imus admire?, McGrady asked. "David Steinberg —he's very funny for a Jewish person." We've dug the profile from the archives; you can read it as a PDF.

http://media.nymag.com/docs/07/04/070410imus.pdf

[PresidentObama]

38. It doesn't matter her race. They were mocking blacks, were they not?

And I watch MadTV, they have whites insult blacks for the shock value of the humor. It's business as usual for MadTV. Why not the outrage? Why isn't WWE boycotted for mocking blacks and making fun of them?

[NYCGirl]

39. Do you have a problem with Chris Rock? WWE is boycotted all the time.

Every right wing organization at one time has tried to shut them down.

[PresidentObama]

40. I don't like double standards, if thats where you're going with that question n/t

[NYCGirl]

41. Well then, good luck with that. If you can't tell the difference between a shock

jock show that masquerades as some kind of influential salon for presidential candidates, prominent politicians and journalists and a sketch comedy show, then any argument futile.

[PresidentObama]

42. Both are attempts at comedy. I don't buy into double standards. n/t

[NYCGirl]

46. If what Imus and his henchman said was supposed to be comedy, it was surely

a lame attempt. He's been warned before and chose not to listen.

[PresidentObama]

48. Again, you're missing the point. I don't mind Imus being punished.

But why should he be made example of, while these others are ignored? They don't even get slaps on the wrist. And yes, it was comedy. Lame or not. It wasn't a news show, despite being on MSNBC.

[NYCGirl]

50. Interesting, since it was the head of the NBC News Division that fired him. NT

[PresidentObama]

52. Like I said, it's a comedy show...DESPITE being on MSNBC.

You could just as well argue The Daily Show is a news show. And in some ways, it is. They do cover many news stories and present themselves as a mock news show. But it's on Comedy Central despite that fact.

This doesn't change the fact Imus show was not a news show. It never has.

[NYCGirl]

53. The Daily Show covers news stories? That'll come as a great surprise to them.

They make up stuff and satirize news stories, and are on a comedy network. Had Imus been on a comedy network, he might have survived this.

BTW, what's that stuff that guy with the mustache reads on Imus? News from the wires?

[PresidentObama]

54. The fact that you believe Imus show was a news show is rather laughable.

It's comedy. Just like the Daily Show. The Daily Show is as much a news show as Imus In The Morning is.

Don't believe me? Ask Imus himself.

[Warren Stupidity]

59. Not a comedy show.

It was a comedy show once upon a time. Then it morphed into a bizarre mix of rightwing shock humor with a venemous twist and supposedly serious political commentary.

[PresidentObama]

63. Rightwing? Didn't Imus support/endorse John Kerry? Even if he made fun of him, like he does everyone

I believe he did!!

[Warren Stupidity]

74. I really wonder if you ever listened to the show.

Yes Imus endorsed Kerry, and then spent every day until the election catapulting every rightwing attack against Kerry. It was all part of the schtick - Imus played the moderate while the two McGoons ran off way to the right. That you don't understand that the show was yet another right wing hate radio outlet, that you didn't get that his 'Kerry support' was a joke in itself is truly odd, given your id.

[PresidentObama]

76. No assuming, please. I watched him every morning on MSNBC.

And before that, I listened to his show. It's been one of my favorite shows for years. I never missed a morning usually. Imus made fun of Kerry. Just like Imus made fun of EVERYONE. John Kerry himself said he buys Imus green cleaning products. They're friends!! Imus is clearly independent. And yes he endorses some shady characters like Lieberman and Harold Ford, but at the end of the day he was hardly some right wing nut job.

Did you listen to his show? Since you asked me, and I did every damn day. And I think as a listener I'm qualified to speak on what the content of his show was, and wasn't!

[Honeycombe8]

122. His support for Kerry was real.

He was as critical of Kerry as this forum and other Dem. forums were, as time went on and Kerry made mistakes.

Imus was the only forum on TV where I heard pointed and edgey criticism of the Swift Boat attacks on Kerry.

Imus was an equal opportunity criticizer. He was critical of everyone. He was more critical of Bush-Cheney that of anyone else.

I watched the show regularly. I never heard Imus say an overtly racist thing, until this incident (and I didn't hear this one...I flipped the channel during sports segments).

[HughMoran]

44. Start at the top - Fox News

They are the leaders of the hate pack...

[terisan]

57. May have to change law to go after cable-originated shows

Telecommunications Act and other law/Supreme Court decisions treat cable differently than spectrum broadcasters. Check out FCC regs and law.

Imus can probably say some things in a cable-originated show that he can't say on CBS radio. From what I have been reading, I think his attack on the the team may fit the definition of a personal attack entitling the attackees to equal time. Might have made CBS nervous that he opened a big can of worms.

[HughMoran]

43. You really make an excellent point(s)

I have alternately criticized him (mostly because I personally find him offensive) and realized that he was being "made an example of" in an unfair way. I have to admit that after reading your arguments, I am now finding myself feeling a little guilty for "piling on". If I was on a jury, the last voice heard would be my vote. Since the defense gets that last word, I'd have to let him off this time (with a stern warning).

[PresidentObama]

45. I don't mind Imus being punished. I do mind him being made example of, while others get away with it

Doesn't seem fair to me.

[Warren Stupidity]

47. Imus's show this morning made it clear that his 'apology'

was anything but sincere. He most certainly did bitch about his suspension. He most certainly did not get it at all.

Imus's show is not just a comedy act. Imus wanted his show to be a must venue for the punditocracy and political aspirants. He wanted gravitas and hate-inspired racist sexist homophobic anti semitic humor. It seems you can't really have that particular mix and expect to keep your sponsors. What is stunning is the long list of pundits and politicians who kept showing up on his show despite the long ongoing history of vile hateful mean-spirited humor, many of whom claim to be on our side. What is shocking is how long it took for this crackup to occur.

[PresidentObama]

51. Bullshit. He said he'd serve his suspension, and didn't bitch.

What he said this morning is he apologized to everybody he wanted to apologize to.

Imus show IS a comedy act. Nothing you can say will change that. Imus himself said it was a comedy show. And as a listener of his program for YEARS, I can tell you that with a straight face.

[Warren Stupidity]

55. here is contrition at its finest:

"Amid the outcry over his on-air racial slur last week, shock jock Imus said Thursday that he had "apologized enough" and that he will not go on "some talk show tour."

"I'm not going to go talk to Larry King or Barbara Walters or anyone else," Imus said on his flagship station in New York, WFAN-AM, which is owned by CBS Corp. and distributed "Imus in the Morning" nationally.

"The only other people I want to talk to are these young women at the team, and then that's it," Imus said."
http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/TV/04/12/imus.rutgers/index.html

[Honeycombe8]

124. Good for him. He'd spent a week profusely apologizing...

to everyone, going on Sharpton's show where he was surrounded by dozens of people blasting him. He took it. He seemed genuinely sorry to me and shocked at what he'd said.

There simply was no one left to apologize to, except the young women personally, which he did.

The apologies did no good. They meant nothing to those who were calling for his career to be over. Lesson learned: next time, we won't hear anyone apologizing profusely, even if they want to. All it seems to do is add fuel to the fire.

[Evergreen Emerald]

60. I could never stomach Imus or his producer

...due to their non-stop sexist remarks. Every time I tuned in, I would be so offended, I would have to turn it off. His brand of racism and sexism do not deserve to be on my airwaves. And his producer--SUCKS. I do feel sorry for the news and sports reporters, in fact the sports reporter is the voice for, guess which university. Irony that.

[mtnsnake]

62. Same here

I've never been able to watch that show for more than a couple minutes of torture. Never in my life have I seen someone so full of himself, so arrogant, so rotten to the core, and so demeaning to women and other groups as Imus. The thing is, he tries to come off as being such a cool dude when he is probably one of the biggest dorks ever to hit the airwaves.

[jcrew2001]

61. Moralty and Racism

I think at some point MSNBC and CBS have to take a stand against racism and bigotry and do the MORAL thing.

I'm tired of all these repukes blaming PC, but having morality to treat each other with respect is the right way to live life.

We don't need it in the media or the airwaves and CBS is correct in taking a stand for Morality.

It sends a message to all those other bigots out there like Beck and Limbaugh and BOR, that if they don't watch their bigoted remarks, someone might come after them.

[PresidentObama]

64. Do you honestly think Rush or Glenn Beck will be gone after?

I seriously doubt it. Imus was the one sacrificed to make a point. And now, others will get away with the same thing and nothing will be said or done. But if this does lead to Rush and Beck being gone after, THANK YOU GOD!!

[sampsonblk]

72. Dead Wrong, Friend

Glenn Beck and the others are overtly racist. But they don't make off-hand racist comments. Instead, its the content of what they say that is racist. I'd rather Limbaugh or Hannity just go ahead and call me a N----- instead of spending 2 hours ranting about how every single black leader in America is a communist sympathizer and wants America destroyed. If they go ahead and call me something, they will lose their jobs. But if they are allowed to rant as they do, unchallenged, then they gain listeners and money. I can promise you the RW ranters haven't learned anything from this. Imus has taken the fall for a lot of people who are more deserving of a take-down.

[churchofreality]

81. If we allow Imus to apologize and get away with it...

Then we are allowing the elite in our society to occasionally put blacks or women or hispanics "in their place" as long as they apologize for it afterward. There was nothing funny about what he said. Its not a joke to call black women nappy headed ho's. I can't imagine what it feels like to be demeaned like that.

[PresidentObama]

82. The point is Imus is a fall guy.

Would you agree there is worse on television than the Imus joke? Then why is Imus getting all the bad press, but all these examples of racism and sexism on television and radio are ignored? Why isn't MadTV or WWE held accountable? Why aren't African American leaders boycotting rap music for demeaning women, and calling each other the N word?

Imus is far from racist. But he seems to be the new public face of racism and sexism on television, and America is making an example out of Imus and ignoring the other examples of racism and sexism on television. One slip of the tongue from this shock jock is nothing compared to some of the bullshit out there.

[AtomicKitten]

109. a "fall guy" insinuates he isn't guilty

... and he is, repeatedly, and this time he picked on innocent young women.

Your argument has so many holes in it, it's hard to know where to begin.

Who is to say if he is truly racist? That determination is irrelevant.

His racist, homophobic, misogynist comments are what matter, the repetition of these remarks over the years make them most certainly not a "slip of the tongue," nor is this an isolated incident.

He has issued a multitude of apologies and pledges, and has relapsed repeatedly into this pattern of disgusting behavior.

His demise wasn't precipitated by a torches and pitchforks mob response, his sponsors abandoned him.

[ShortnFiery]

65. Imus has been making sexist and racist remarks since the late seventies.

Thank goodness he's FINALLY held to task. :patriot:

First things (thug racists) first. ;)

[jonnyblitz]

66. but don't you know his show was a COMEDY SHOW!!! LMFAO

:rofl: :rofl: UNFUCKINGBELIEVABLE!!

I do believe I have now heard EVERYTHING from the bigot apologists!! :crazy: :crazy:

the only thing comical was that stupid fucking cowboy hat.

[PresidentObama]

67. It was a comedy show. And I assure you, I'm no bigot n/t

[SaveElmer]

68. Well here I think Al Sharpton got it right...something I don't say that often...

If Imus were again let off the hook by simply apologizing, it would send a message that racism and sexism on the public airways had moved into the mainstream...

You are correct that Don Imus is hardly the only example of this (though many of the examples you gave are on cable, which is not regulated by the FCC), but that does not mean the punishment was not correct. He has freedom of speech, but a prime spot on the public airways to spew that racism is not a right...it is a privilege.

And this is not the first time he has made statements as reprehensible as these...

Had a Joe Schmo employee of CBS said these things they would be fired immediately...and rightly so. Don Imus has survived this long because of the money he makes for CBS.

If he wants to continue his charitable work, there will be plenty of opportunities to do so...but that is not reason enough for him to go unpunished in this case...

[TriMetFan]

70. How right you are.

What I think that is getting lost in this whole thing is that We The People shouldn't have to put up with this kind of stuff on our Public Airwaves and that includes Radio, which he was broadcasting on at the same time he was on MSNBC. Now it is time to start making a stink about Rush and the rest of the jerks out there that are on Our Public AirWaves.

[PresidentObama]

73. A two week suspension wasn't punishment?

He was being punished. Being put through the media meat grinder, that's punishment. Hell, having to go on Rev. Sharpton's show (whom I respect, yet disagree on many issues) and go through two hours of his double standards and one sided view is punishment. He wasn't off the hook.

MSNBC and CBS Radio missed an opportunity here. Imus could have came back on the radio, added the black perspective to his show like he said he was, and he could have gotten his listeners to have a conversation about race and where our country is. He could have shown the American people he isn't racist, and far from it. Instead they cracked under pressure, Imus looks like some racist by default, and he has to pay for all the crimes of racism and sexism on television.

And if you want examples of racism and sexism, the Imus in the Morning show isn't the first show to listen to/watch. It's all over the place. And I don't understand why World Wrestling Entertainment gets away with this, why MadTV gets away with this, and why everyone else does. Why isn't Sharpton boycotting the record labels of rap music from African Americans who use sexism in their music, who call each other the N word, and so on?

We need to have this conversation about racism in our country again, and unfortunately instead of talking about it they fired Imus and didn't give him the opportunity to make some good out of the situation and now he was the fall guy for all of television. Like I said until Mel Gibson is banned from moving making, and the guy from Greys Anatomy is fired, why should Don Imus (a non-racist) be made an example of? He should be punished, but his career didn't deserve to end on this note.

And I have no doubt Don Imus will move on, and work on various projects. He's a great guy, and I take offense to some posters here knowing nothing about Imus other than these few examples where as a shock jock he went overboard. Yet they tolerate this bullshit on television every day, and others get away with it. This is wrong!! Whether you're for the firing or not, this is wrong. And America simply can't go back to ignoring this problem because Imus was made the fall guy.

[Honeycombe8]

125. Sharpton is guilty of the same crimes. This was a diversion from the Duke...

fiasco that Sharpton got himself involved in.

Of course Imus gave him the ammunition. But I'm thinkin' Sharpton was ecstatic to see this opportunity to deflect criticism from himself onto someone else.

[Hart2008]

75. This is divide and conquer, a distraction from the big issues.

Imus is a distraction from the big issues. This is divide and conquer.

As long as we let the powers that be divide us by race, gender, religion, etc., we allow them to distract us from the big picture. If the media focuses on Imus, then it isn’t focused on impeachment, the failed Iraq occupation, and other imperialist objectives of the oligarchs.

Imus and his cast have been saying things like this for years. The timing of this uproar at the start of an election cycle is extremely suspect, especially considering the fact that Imus has been calling Cheney a war criminal.

I am more concerned by the proportion of minority soldiers dying in Iraq for a lie than I am about what Imus said.

Let us not lose the big picture here.

Don’t let them distract us with this.

No divide and conquer.

Don't fall for the distraction while they pick your pocket and send more troops into a meat grinder.

[catgirl]

78. You're absolutely right about MADTV

The black actors always get stuck doing stereotyped roles. I stopped
watching it because I was disgusted by it. I'm glad I'm not alone in
that thinking. And you're right about racism (and sexism) being all
over network TV.

[PresidentObama]

80. Thank you. And I'm glad I'm not the only one who sees the racism and sexism in MadTV.

Even if the parts are played by blacks and women. That's no excuse!! I wonder the race of the television writers?!?

[Joe Chi Minh]

83. Remember the old Chinese proverb: "A Journey of a thousand miles

begins with a single step. Because nothing's being done about Rag and Tag, and Bobtail apologised profusely when things got too hot for his liking, there was no sense or justice in lowering the boom on him? Wrong.

[kdpeters]

84. I'm having trouble taking you seriously.

We should ignore racism and sexism since there is so much of it out there. That seems to be the point. Makes no sense to me.

[Major Hogwash]

85. Well said, Kerry2008

During the 2004 campaign, after saying all week that he had a story that would sink John Kerry's campaign, on the eve of February 12th, Matt Drudge said that he was going to publish the entire story that he had that would "prove" that John Kerry had been recently involved in an affair with a young woman on his staff.

On the morning of February 13th, 2004, amid the rumors that were being spread on the internet all week that Kerry had something in his closet to hide, Kerry went on Imus's program and defended himself. Kerry had not been scheduled as a guest for the next day, instead his staff had called the I-man to see if Kerry could get on the air for a few minutes that Friday morning to dispel that rumor.

Imus said "sure".

John went on the next morning and said that, yes, he had heard the rumor, and that there was nothing to the rumor. It was a Friday the 13th I will never forget.

Imus supported Kerry for President in 2004, and he had Kerry on his program many times during the year to discuss the campaign. The one thing that set Imus apart from all of the other political pundits was that Imus didn't interrupt him when Kerry started to talk.
Imus let Kerry defend himself on his program.

Now that the I-man has been fired, there isn't a major radio station or media platform for the candidates to go to in order for them to be able to defend themselves in a timely fashion against such slanderous rumors.

The I-man said he made "a stupid comment" and then he apologized for it for 5 straight days.

But, it wasn't enough.

The pro-war factions in this country needed to get rid of Imus.
The corporate structure that controls the media, CBS, NBC, and MSNBC included, needed to get rid of the I-man because he was against the Iraq war.

Peter Arnett from CNN in 2003.
Phil Donahue from MSNBC in 2003.
Dan Rather from CBS in 2004.
Aaron Brown from CNN in 2006.
Don Imus from CBS in 2007.

All of them were against the Iraq War.
All of them were Bush war critics.


Think about it.
All they needed was a small excuse to get rid of Imus.

They found one.

[NYCGirl]

86. Here's some examples of the wit and wisdom of Don Imus:

On the handicapped:

"Janet Reno's having a press conference. Ms. Reno, of course, has Parkinson's disease, has a noticeable tremor. <…> I don't know how she gets that lipstick on (laughter) looking like a rodeo clown."

On gays:

"I didn't know that Allan Bloom was coming in from the back end." (The homosexuality of the author of The Closing of the American Mind became widely known when Saul Bellow published Ravelstein, a novel whose protagonist was based on Bloom, who by then was deceased.)

"The enormously attractive Chip Reid, I can say without being accused of being some limp-wristed 'mo."

On Jews:

"I remember when I first had on a few years ago, how the Jewish management at whatever, whoever we work for, CBS, or whatever it is, were bitching at me about it. <…> I tried to put it in terms that these money-grubbing bastards could understand."

"Boner-nosed … beanie-wearing Jewboy." (Description of Howard Kurtz of the Washington Post, a frequent guest.)

On Japanese:

"Old Kabuki's in a coma and the market's going up. <…> How old is the boy? The battery's running down on that boy." (Reference to Japanese Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi, who died the following week.)

On women:

"That buck-tooth witch Satan, Hillary Clinton." <…> "I never admitted it when I went down there and got in all that big jam, insulting Bill Clinton and his fat ugly wife, Satan. Did I? Did I ever say I was sorry for that?"

http://www.slate.com/id/2163872/nav/tap2/

[Honeycombe8]

91. Funny, really. That's his schtick. He makes fun of everyone.

Like Bill Maher.

Want some quotes of Sharpton? Google them. They're a riot..oh, wait... Sharpton's comments were not made in spirit of humor...he was serious when he called someone repeatedly a racist with no foundation (Sharpton lost that lawsuit). He was serious when he called that woman who was raped in Central Park a "whore." He was serious when he called some people "rapists" based on the lie of an accuser....Sharpton never apologized. He was serious when he called the Duke Lacrosse college students "rapists," and has not apologized yet, now that we know the story.

Howard Stern has said some pretty gross things.

None of the things you list above are illegal or are about innocent private citizens. They're jokes about famous people...just like Bill Maher makes jokes about famous people.

Were you able to find a list of GOOD things Imus said? I bet there isn't one floating around the internet. But he said, and did, a lot of good things, as well.

[NYCGirl]

95. I don't like Sharpton. But I can't figure out how what Sharpton did excuses

the ugliness and racist/sexist statements of Don Imus.

Sure, Howard Stern said some pretty gross things — that's why the FCC has levied millions of dollars of fines against him.

The "joke" that got Imus canned was not about "famous people", which is why it resonated so sharply. He directed ugly slurs toward people who did absolutely nothing to deserve it, and after many warnings over the years, his employer did the right thing.

I'm sure there must be a list of good things Imus said — probably distributed by Imus himself. The guy is nothing if not self-aggrandizing. Many people do wonderful things for others; and they don't talk about it constantly.

I can only hope that the marketplace was right and we're moving away from Imus and his gang's frat-boy humor.

[Honeycombe8]

126. Sharpton's crimes were against "non-public" people, also.

No, one crime doesn't excuse the other. But for a group of people to follow a pied piper in stoning someone for doing something that the pied piper is himself guilty of is wrong. The pied piper not only has not had to suffer any punishment, he has not even shown or said anything to indicate his regret for his crimes.

Double standard. Blind followers.

I pity the candidate that Sharpton endorses for President, since I think there will be a backlash regarding this incident.

[Major Hogwash]

111. Were you a regular listener to Imus in the Morning?

You may not be aware that Imus donated $250,000 of his own money to a new hospital in Texas that is designed to help Iraq War veterans, especially amputees. It is a world-class facility using the latest cutting-edge technology.

Imus railed against the horrible, deplorable conditions of Walter Reed Hospital and the way the Bush administration takes care of our wounded soldiers.

Imus was instrumental in helping to get the death benefits raised of our American soldiers killed in the Iraq war and in Afghanistan.

There's a war going on in Iraq today where our American servicemen are being killed every 5 hours!

After the war is over, and our troops are home, then we can discuss the tender sensibilities that concern so many people about racial or sexist comments.

Until people are no longer being shot at or blown up in the war that Bush started, we need to get our priorities straight first.

Imus also blasted the Bush administration's extremely poor handling of the relief efforts in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.
Imus even said that Bush must be a racist to turn his back on so many poor, black Americans.

Imus apologized for 5 straight days.
That should be enough for anyone to accept.
The Rutgers girls basketball team did.

[NYCGirl]

112. I watched him about 2-3 days a week on MSNBC, depending on the guests

(although most of the morning before work I watched Countdown on my TiVo from the night before). Although I'd turn it off at the mere sight of Bo Dietl.

He apologized for 5 days? He was doing this shit for decades.

http://www.onthemedia.org/yore/transcripts/transcripts_081801_imus.html

"There are those who would claim that Imus occasionally lapses into good taste," Mike McGrady writes in New York. "If true, this may well be a result of several lengthy discussions he has had with the station manager and the program director, his 'Mr. Vicious' and 'Mr. Numb.' The upshot of those discussions is that he will never, never, not ever do any more jokes about Chappaquiddick … or, for that matter, anyone else involved in a personal tragedy." McGrady's profile is from the April 3, 1972, issue. The I-Man was 31 years old, freshly arrived at New York's WNBC, and he was a new and jarring force in radio. He was also, it seems, very much the same guy he is now. Which New York radio personalities did Imus admire?, McGrady asked. "David Steinberg —he's very funny for a Jewish person." We've dug the profile from the archives; you can read it as a PDF.

http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2007/04/imus_in_the_70s.html

[Major Hogwash]

113. You went clear back to 1972 for that?

Man, I don't think you even want to know what I sounded like back in 1972!!

This wasn't about tolerance, NYCGirl, this was about liberty.

[NYCGirl]

114. No one is curtailing his liberty. He can be a misogynist any damn time he wants.

Imus was not born with the right to have a radio show and an enormous paycheck. His employers pulled the plug, as is their right to do.

Edited to add: No, I didn't go back to 1972 for that — New York Magazine this week did.

[Major Hogwash]

116. And his employers were wrong to pull the plug on his show since he apologized.

Because the effect of his firing is to silence ALL of the Bush War critics!

[NYCGirl]

117. Yeah, Olbermann is trembling in his boots.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x653129

His employers were right. They warned him a number of times before — he was snivelingly contrite and then went right back to his old ways. They finally said, "Enough."

[Major Hogwash]

118. So, Olbermann stopped all racism, sexism, mysogynism, etc. at both CBS and NBC?

That's not true and you know it.

Viacom owns CBS and they own Comedy Central, Bet tv, and many other television cable stations.
Yet, by the standards you seem to be using here, not one of them would pass your level of decency.
Yet other people watch those programs.

I think you are a decent person, but perhaps, not very forgiving.
But, I forgive you for that.

McCarthy talked about the way people should talk.
And that wasn't right either.

[NYCGirl]

120. What does that have to do with anything? This isn't McCarthyism — this is the

market speaking. Imus' show is a relic. No one is saying that Imus can't say anything he wants...except for his employer and that is their right.

And a fat lot you know about my "level of decency." You know what they say about people who assume, don't you?

Personally, I don't give a shit about whether Imus is on the air or not, but I'm not going to say CBS and MSNBC were wrong — they know him better than I do, and they sign his paycheck.

All this talk about Imus being victim of "a lynching" (in other threads) and McCarthyism would be laughable if it didn't minimize the real victims of those blights.

[Major Hogwash]

134. "Are you now or have you ever been a guest on 'Imus in the Morning'?"

It's exactly like McCarthyism!

They'll use this against Senator Kerry next year during his re-election.

[NYCGirl]

141. Quick! Burn all the tapes of Kerry on the Imus show!

:rofl:

[Honeycombe8]

127. Yes, he was vile. So why didn't Sharpton complain about it before now?

I'll tell you why. Because the Duke LaCrosse Attorney General decision was coming down that the young college men that Sharpton had said were rapists were, in fact, innocent, and the young Af. American accuser's accusations were false.

Convenient diversion.

Of course Imus should pay a price. I just think it shouldn't have happened in a hysterical fury. A cooling off period and some reflective thought would have been the better path. I would think that no matter who the target of the mob is..whether it's Sharpton or Imus or anyone else.

Should Sharpton's career be ended because he called the innocent young college students rapists because they are white?

[NYCGirl]

130. That's up to Sharpton's employers. NT

[Dinger]

89. That's Just What I've Been Thinking

Well said indeed.

[Honeycombe8]

93. Interesting. Also...I've seen how easy it is to get a group worked up...

into a frenzy over something. The leaders hold a lot of power and control over that. Had Sharpton and Jackson exercised control and not gotten the nbc employees to get together and demand his firing, and demand the corporations pull their advertising, and then (still not having enough blood) demanding that CBS fire him and end his career....this would not have happened.

So easy it was to get a whole group of people to over-react to a situation and go after a person, while he was begging for forgiveness, without even waiting for a cooloff period. How easy it is for group-think to take over.

What a chill this must be causing over all the airwaves. Everyone being very careful not to say anything that one group or another doesn't like. How ..... well, how bland that will be.

[NYCGirl]

97. How sad that people might have to think before they speak, that TV writers might

have to use their brains and cleverness instead of throwing out insults.

[AtomicKitten]

107. that kind of crap is only entertainment

for the dregs of our society ...
you know, folks that have been Hannitized and the Limbaugh ditto-head types.

[Honeycombe8]

128. I've been far more offended by Howard Stern. We've been Sternitized? nt

[AtomicKitten]

133. I wouldn't know.

I don't listen to that kind of crap.

[Dinger]

135. A Late Addition To Your List: Bill Moyers (nt)

[Dinger]

136. A Kick For Major Hogwash, Just As A Reminder

[Major Hogwash]

137. Not to mention that Moyers has a new expose coming out about the media.

Yee-haw! Yeah, I love Bill Moyers, so thanks for the reminder, Dinger.

Moyers has the kind of voice that could charm a cat out of chasing mice.
His voice and delivery is so smooth it's like listening to my grandfather when he used to talk to my brothers and me when we were kids about farming.
He's one of a kind, that's for sure.

[AtomicKitten]

92. Racism, homophobia, and misogyny aren't funny.

And if our society keeps turning a blind eye to bigotry, we will never evolve.

[Honeycombe8]

94. Yes, we have evolved into a mob.

When someone makes a mistake, is truly repentent, and asks forgiveness, to then, en masse, go after his blood without waiting for a cooling off period...is that evolution? I'm not sure.

It was vile what he said. I know of no other instance where he used that term, though. (I know there have been other racist type skits and such on his program, though...but he personally has never used that term, that I know of). It was a slip of the tongue, using language that is common in the entertainment field (Imus is in the entertainment field).

[AtomicKitten]

98. ah, if it only were an isolated incident your point would be valid

... but it is not an isolated incident. In fact, Imus has over the years been forced to issue mea culpas and pledges to not be an a-hole. At some point, as with good parenting, somebody has to put their foot down and say enough.

Enough.

[NYCGirl]

99. How many times is it now that Imus has been truly repentent? This is not the first

time he was warned by CBS or MSNBC.

[AtomicKitten]

105. his targets this time were innocent civilians

... not anybody in the media that is fair game. He just went too far. The press conference exhibiting the grace and dignity of these young women underscored that.

The "he's not the only one" excuse is lame. Unless someone is proposing a round-up of the serial a-holes spewing their venom onto the airwaves, I'm fully behind the notion of an egregious action being followed by a consequence - one a-hole radio/TV personality at a time.

Enough is enough.

[PresidentObama]

119. Yes, AK. But my fear is it won't be one a-hole at a time.

My fear is Don Imus is simply the fall boy for all the wrongs in television and radio surrounding racism and sexism. And my fear is society will go back to ignoring it until another slip from a celebrity, possibly in months or possibly in years!! I believe no matter if you're for or against Don Imus being fired, this is the best time to examine television and radio and weed out all the bad apples. I'm not talking about a witch hunt. But when Glenn Beck has a mega phone from which to speak, Ann Coulter is still allowed on television, something has to give!! And Sharpton, as much as I respect a lot of the things he's done, isn't an angel himself.

[AtomicKitten]

132. my response to your "fall guy" concerns

posted upthread:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=3213152&mesg_id=3215344

[Honeycombe8]

100. Excellent post, Kerry. The way it came down was disturbing.

It happened so fast, en masse. Hysteria.

There's just something so....disturbing, I guess, about going after someone's blood when they're critically wounded already and begging for mercy. He was, IMO, genuinely sorry. It was, IMO, a slip of the tongue using language that is bandied about in the entertainment field, and Imus crossed the line. Maybe he forgot for a sec that these weren't public figures. Whatever.

It wasn't a Michael Richards angry ranting that lasted several minutes.

It wasn't a drunken philosophical statement like Mel Gibson's that said an entire group of people was the cause of all the wars in the world...said to a policeman of that persuasion.

I would've given him a second chance. But even if he should have been fired, it should not have happened like it did. What I saw was an angry mob going after blood. It was very distasteful.

And it was being run by two people who were guilty of the same crimes, who had not only never paid a price for those crimes, but in some instances had never said or shown regret over those crimes.

It all leaves a bad taste in the mouth. How easy it is to get a group of people either worked up more over something, or to calm them down. Sharpton and Jackson chose to get everyone more worked up over it.

A nice diversion from Sharpton's troubles this week. After having gone to N.C. and made a spectacle about those white Duke Lacrosse college students raping that disadvantaged Af. Am. exotic dancer, the decision was coming down this week that the young men were totally innocent. How much more embarrassing for Sharpton that would have been, had it not been for this Imus thing to detract from it.

[SayitAintSo]

110. Agreed - Interesting tidbit about Rev. Soaries Bush/Republican/Neocon Connections

Hope some folks look at this angle and get a new perspective....

April 13-15, 2007 -- Neo-con alert. DeForest ("Buster") Soaries, the Somerset, NJ preacher of First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens, who, as former New Jersey Republican Secretary of State was the Garden State's version of Ohio Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell in promoting GOP voter fraud by suppressing the African American vote (Soaries was one of the recipients of Ed Rollins' "walkin' around money" in the 1993 New Jersey gubernatorial race to keep parishioners home on Election Day rather than vote for Democratic Governor Jim Florio), was the intermediary chosen by Rutgers University to host a New Jersey Governors' Mansion meeting between fired radio host Don Imus and the Rutgers Women's Basketball team. Soaries' church is attended by Rutgers Women's Basketball team coach Vivian Stringer.

In 2002, Soaries challenged Democratic Representative Rush Holt for his 12th District congressional seat. Holt has long been a proponent of vote reform while Soaries champions the status quo of voter fraud to the detriment of his own race. Soaries is also a strong promoter of Bush's faith-based initiatives.

http://www.waynemadsenreport.com

[primative1]

115. Didnt Know That ... Thanks

The portrayal they had of the guy on TV made one believe he was the local parish preacher. Ya might have thought it would have been good background to include for their viewers some mention of his political background but I guess it slipped the networks mind, huh ...

[BeyondGeography]

104. Advertisers fired Imus, not the networks

Companies lke AMEX, P&G, Staples, etc. saw a firestorm that was bound to link them with racism and sexism and they bailed. They didn't want to be identified with Imus anymore, and neither did a growing number of his guests from the media and politics, all of which made his firing little more than a formality in the end.

Imus lived on the edge for a long time; he was an accident waiting to happen. It was amazing how long he was able to reconcile low-brow humor with high-brow content (and how he had the business sense to come up with the idea in the first). It was a unique balancing act, but he was bound to fall at some point. When he turned his special brand of ugliness toward kids and was called on it, it was game over. I don't see anything sad about it at all.

[primative1]

121. Which is Worse?

Some bumbling has been radio jock insulting kids with a lame unprepared remark at 6 AM, or
a carefully orchestrated barrage by network TV replaying the otherwise unheard insult over and over for the entire news cycle for nearly a week? And for political position and profit?
Those kids were USED.
If you dont see it get glasses.

[Honeycombe8]

129. Yes, that's the spin from Sharpton. But Sharpton's group went after the advertisers.

I heard him and others on TV saying that's what they were going to do. And they did.

Then they contacted MSNBC employees, and got them to go, en masse, to MSNBC and demand that Imus be fired. This is, in fact, what got Imus fired.

I'm not saying he shouldn't have been fired. I personally would've put him on a long suspension and considered the future of his career, but would probably have given him another chance. Because he seemed genuinely shocked by his own statement, and truly regretful.

But I'm just saying that doing something with a mob-like vengeance is not a good thing to do. History has shown us that.

There is already a chill across the talk shows. There are all sorts of groups to offend. People are being very careful in what they say, so an angry group doesn't go after them. Jon Stewart, Bill Maher. This is the consequence of an angry mob reaction, as opposed to careful and deliberate reflection.

[NYCGirl]

131. And there was also the National Association of Black Journalists, who were

asking for accountability BEFORE Sharpton came on board.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17982146/

[zulchzulu]

138. After all is said and done, Imus will land a very lucrative satRadio contract

His name recognition was maybe 10% of the population...now it's 70%. After the dust clears, he will land a nice satellite radio contract or some other media venue for a boatload of money more than he was making.

What he said was stupid and not surprising considering his history over the years, but it wasn't worth firing him for...so many others on the airwaves have said much, much worse and have gotten a free pass.

The real lesson learned after all this plays out is that if you get your name in the news and saturate the media channel for over a week, you're bound to get some nice returns down the road....as long as you don't tip over.

[cleveramerican]

139. Imus stayed the same, the world changed.

[LisaL]

140. I agree.

Why of all people Sharpton was up front criticizing Imus-I always thought people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.

[Dinger]

142. Kick Again, In Light Of This Morning's rw Fest On MSRNC (Except Keith Of Course) (nt)

[PresidentObama]

143. *Smirks* I guess the anti-Imus people got what they wanted huh? He's fired, BUT replaced by a RWer.

Don Imus said a very bad, bad thing. But this guy is bound to say a lot worse. And unlike Imus, he'll most likely mean it. It won't be a cheap attempt at humor, it won't be some nutty shock jock B.S., it'll be reality. This really sucks!!