I can’t link from work (maybe someone can do it for me), but look up Jason Whitlock, a sports columnist for the Kansas City Star (he’s black). He lambastes Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton and even gets on the Rutgers football team, in a column from earlier this week.
Imus already did the Rehab thing. Back in the 80’s for booze & coke.
He’s been “living clean” since then.
The other guy making the comment was Bernie McGuirk, the executive producer of the show. If Imus is being fired by CBS, the show is by definition cancelled, and Bernie is also out of work (along with everyone else who works on the show).
Now people are going into rehab for making racist, sexist or anti-gay comments. Well, in Mel Gibson’s case I guess he blamed in on the booze and rehabbed for that, but then there was Michael Richards and Isiah Washington.
I don’t think we need to be protected from insults. I think obnoxious speech should be just as protected as political speech. I think that there is nothing wrong with deriving humor from race, creed, ethnicity or anything else. I think he has been paid to do that show for a long time and the company should have backed him up. I think no apology was needed. His show is based on cruel humor and thats what they got. On top of that Imus has done more good in the world than AL Sharpton ever will. End of story.
FTR I have heard Imus on occasion over the years but I am not a fan. He actually does some insightful interviews with important political figures. I can probably be pretty safe in saying that I have been to more Rutgers women’s basketball games this year and over the last few years than anyone on this board and I was rooting for them to win.
Although I do think he is well past his prime as a performer, Warhol’s quote does not apply. He has been on the air for 40 years and is a member of the radio hall of fame. Not the target of Warhol’s quote. Think Larry Birkhead.
Worse than Hitler, worse than Stalin, worse than Carter.
I mean, the man called for the deaths of an entire team of innocent college students. This after promising to lay off the racial remarks after his broadcasts spurred the Rwandan genocide.
Or so I understand. I mean, racist or not, worthy of firing or not, this amount of attention given to pretty much anything less would mean that the media is fixating on this issue out of masturbatory sensationalism, not because it’s important. And that can’t be the case.
What kills me is Imus keeps saying he’s a “good person”. Dude, you are NOT a good person. If you make women at your job cry becasue of your comments to them, you are not a good person. I don’t care if you raise a billion dollars for whatever charity, you are not a good person.
And your ranch for cancer kids? This strikes me as free labor- what benefit do kids who are going to die soon get out of hard work? Let them live their last few years enjoying themselves- the things you claim you are instilling in them are going to do them no good when they’re dead by 15. And name me one other charity that helps kids that involves them doing work. Why not treat the kids to a relaxing fun time at your ranch if you’re so goddamned nice?
He wasn’t fired because of what he said. He was fired because sponsors pulled out due to the rucus that was raised about what he said. It’s the money, honey.
Thats exactly what it is, a sweat shop. :rolleyes:
It’s a week long camp run like a dude ranch. Kids are not dying on horseback. There is a trained medical staff. Some of the kids are brothers and sister of children who have died and have never been sick. They are quite upfront about what the ranch is before the kids get there. It is not a slave labor camp.
Oh come on, kids aren’t forced to go to the camp. It’s ridiculous to think that he does it for any other reason than charity.
I have watched Imus from time to time, and I generally appreciate how his guests will really lower their guard and reveal their personalities around him. He really gets people like Chris Matthews to say some interesting things. That they’d never say on their own programs.
I don’t know, but I’m not bothered by the comment. I sure as hell wouldn’t say it, but it’s just words, and Imus has been on the line for years now. That’s why he’s good. He might cross it occasionally, but then that’s the reason why it’s funny.
I don’t think Imus ought to be fired for it although he ought to be criticized.
Too bad he already quit drugs and booze, because a trip to rehab seems to give people a clean slate in the court of public opinion.
Thanks lissener.
I’m glad Imus is gone. Will it eradicate hate, eliminate prejudice, and create a new American nirvana of conflict-free brotherhood?
No.
But making him a high-profile example is a good place to start. Here’s hoping that (a) there will be others who meet a similar fate if they decide anything they say on public airwaves is automatically repercussion-proof, or (b) there will be others who change their behavior so they don’t become the next example.
Imus had been doing it for so long, saying these hateful things so frequently, that he has to still believe that he really “didn’t do anything wrong”. Firing him probably won’t change his attitude (or those of his fans who don’t think he did anything wrong either).
But it will take the toxicity of his attitude and relegate it to private anonymity. Now he’s just another bigot, instead of one who has the freedom to spout his bigotry to millions. I certainly can’t complain about that. He may have been good at what he does, but he wasn’t so good, so irreplacable, that he deserves a free pass on all this. The Rutgers business was just the straw that broke the camel’s back.
You’re right, slave laborers at least get paid something.
No offense, but did you even read what you attached? You say “it’s a week long camp”. The attachment says “it is not a camp”. It is a “summer job”, where you “do chores”. Sounds like free labor to me. The kids know what they are getting into- you tell a poor kid with cancer in the Bronx he can go to a ranch, do you think the “its hard work” part even registers in their head? My point, if he is such a good guy, why not treat the kids to a real summer vacation? Is labor in New Mexico that expensive that a guy making 10 million can’t hire real laborers? If these were troubled teens, I can see showing the benefits in hard work for later in life. Most of these kids are dying, so instilling life lessons in them does no good when they are dead. A lot of famous people treat kids to fun vacations in such cases, this asshole is the only one who makes them do work that benefits him.
I read every word.
Feel free to not agree with it. It is not slave labor. They are trying to instill a feeling of self worth in children that have been beaten down by life. You don’t agree with the philosophy. Fine , don’t send your kids there. To say that it is something else is wrong. Or you are just being Howard Stern’s puppet.
Edited to add:
Something my wife (who teaches business law including torts) said the other day, distinguishing Imus’ remarks from general usage of such terms in rap and such - he was using the term “hos” to describe specific individuals. As such, it wouldn’t be inconceivable for the basketball players to bring an action for damages. Moreover, allegations of sexual promiscutiy are generally considered slander per se.
Just suggesting Imus’s words might be more than just stupid and embarrassing - they may be actionable.
Yes, the one good thing is he does not make the kids pay for the privilege of doing work on his ranch. And I see where they get one hour free time in the afternoon and two before lights out- how benevolent. I also see where if youre too sick to do chores, that’s ok, but not wanting to is not an option. In these cases, do they run a test to determine if the cancer has spread, or do they take the kids word?
I guess one would need to know Imus’ reason for the camp to determine if it is a good or bad thing. If I give PETA 100 bucks to impress a girl who works there, and then go beat my dog, am I a good person?
But Loach, no hard feelings, agree to disagree and all, and I do I find odd that you knew my awareness of the camp was from Howard bashing it in his Imus voice for years. 
I listened to Howard for years. In fact I started listening to him when he was on NBC with Imus. Now his lies and hypocracy make him unlistenable to me.
To me if someone is a good or bad person is irrelevant anyway. I have no problem watching entertainers I dislike as long as it is something I can enjoy. I will watch things from Mel Gibson, Tom Cruise and many others if something catches my fancy and I won’t worry about what they do off screen. To be honest I would probably draw the line at O.J. Like I said before I am not an Imus fan. I did stop now and then when flipping through the dial, especially when he had a good guest.
Thats a stretch. In fact it is streching it beyond all reality. There is nothing in the statement that says he was implying that any of the women were working as prostitutes. The word is used as a generic and derogatory term for a female. It would not be any different if he used the word “bitches”. It’s not nice but everytime someone gets insulted does not result in a tort.
I am very disappointed in Vivian Stringer. I have always had a lot of respect for her as a coach. She did a hell of a job this year with a very young team. She had the oppurtunity to rise above this. Instead she made the team out as victims. A simple “A few stupid words can’t diminish our accomplishments, no further comment” would have been much more affective.
Dang, dude, that’s harsh.
Apparently, it’s the toxicity from the booze and alcohol still seeping out.
Well, if he has been clean and sober for this long, I really do hope that something as big as this isn’t going to push him off the wagon.
I tuned in to our station that carries Imus and Charles was still on doing a fundraiser/radioathon. I didn’t listen long so I don’t know who all was there but I assumed it wasn’t a rerun since they were asking for donations.