On The Sly

So Imus is fired now, as was predicted... What does that solve? Have any of the social and economical problems that plague minorities and women in this country been solved? Can Al sharpton and Jesse Jackson sleep better at night since they made a monumental difference in social equality? Has this miracolously removed all the smut on our airwaves? Who benefited? Who lost? I can tell you one group that did lose. The day before he was pulled off the air, Imus began his yearly radiothon. He normally raises about 3 million dollars to benefit the Tomorrows Children's Fund, the CJ Foundation for SIDS and the Imus Ranch. These are the real losers. You may not have liked what he said, but his heart was in the right place.

Now that Imus is gone ( I won't miss him because I never heard him) why not turn to ousting the Rutgers Coach. To say that Imus took away their joy and ruined the dream , blah, blah , blah is simply irresponsible for any adult , coach to do.
No one person on earth can take away those things. She should be fired. What kind of leader says that some irrelevant person has stolen their lives? She should resign immediately. The press conferences and appearances on her part were no more than grandstanding and promotion of her program.
Best thing she could have done is tell her young ladies that this Imus character is an idiot, and remember that you are in control of your destiny and not some irrelevant white man somewhere.
Stringer should resign.

I am not particularly an Imus fan, but from time to time I watch his show, sometimes he's funny other times not..but he is amusing...and often makes some sense and as proven other times a dip sh@#$@t.
Is what he said appropriate ?Absolutely not.. I do know that if Chris Rock would have said it, most would have laughed it off and said "what a funny guy!" Rick K , pretty much hit it on the head (except for the mannix trashing!) ( probably can't say "Mannix eats crow" anymore.)
I 'm sure CBS will fire him, as money talks and I'm quite sure another 30 or so 19 year old kids will quit college after a year to begin their 3 to 4 year pro sports or music careers...as money talks....I myself would be a little more concerned with the latter.

Foxy,
I was interested in all the debate between commentators about the fact that there's a double standard in who can call who particular names, and that was a constructive product of this event. For instance, Richard Pryor could get away with saying what Imus said, often did and made a good living at it. Public Commentators like Imus know they can slam folks about their gender, job, sexuality, politics and religion, but should know that race is verboten. When I hear someone make a huge gaff like Imus did, I often reflect that they must be thinking stuff like that all the time in order for it to slip out. I'm all for intelligent debate, but viewers also need to be aware that television is all about advertising/selling products. Advertisers have become the standards police of the media and it's all about business. A little controversy is a good thing, too much and you get canned for torquing off the customer base. Imus knows that and yes, he often says inflammatory things to keep the viewers tuned in. It's a gamble he took, and lost. I'm not sure whether it's fair to Mahrer to compare him to Imus, although their predicaments are similar. I guess Imus can get hope from Ellen Degeneres, who was dropped after coming out of the closet and then made a huge comeback a few years later. Anyone who's watched "Crash" should know that folks can be very different than they sound and act, and also that people can really change. We'll see Imus again when this scandel is superseded by the next one looming on the horizon!

I, as many have commented on, do not condone the remarks Imus stated about the Rutgers Womens Basketball Team.

As you stated Foxy, this does not undo his good works for kids with cancer at his New Mexico ranch. He said something he shouldn't have. He has apologized. He was served with a suspension, and now taken off MSNBC. Do we continue to hear how terrible IMUS is? Or do we take his apology at face value and give him another chance to continue his many good deeds? I am for the latter, give him that chance to continue. How many of us live in glass houses? How many of us have said some things privately or in public that we wish we could take back?

His remarks about a politician or a government agency are usually right on the mark. Makes them accountable for their votes or decisions they make that affect our lives, especially those of our children and grandchildren.

!!Good discussion ! I have to strongly agree with Rick K. not with the retort to Mike but with the view about the rappers pro athletes, etc.

Just a question for Mike Mannix

How can you make the following two statements ?

"I am not an Imus fan and never have been. I do not listen to his show and cannot understand its appeal. "

"This time not only Imus must go, but so should that crew of foul-mouth announcers that work with him. MANY TIMES one of them instigates the topic of conversation that ends up with disgusting banter and usually some very derogatory remarks about someone, or some ethnic group, a goverment agency or person"

MANY TIMES ? Seems as though you know an awful lot about the program for someone that does not listen. I thought all you Yankee fans stuck together.

Gimme a break, where do you think a 65 year old white guy came up with the phrase " nappy headed hos" it certainly isnt anything you would hear from lyrics played on good ole 1340. It's straight from lyrics you hear (and much worse) in your typical average rap song.

Reverend's Al and Jesse should be more concerned with cleaning up those same airways that are polluted with trashy lyrics in most rap songs. But then again the dollar signs that dance around the heads of vultures like Sharpton and Jackson wouldn't be there if they were going after the providers of said rap songs.

I think this quote from Jason Whitlock, the fine columnist from the Kansas City Star, sums it up the best " At this time, we are our own worst enemies. We have allowed our youths to buy into a culture (hip hop) that has been perverted, corrupted and overtaken by prison culture. The music, attitude and behavior expressed in this culture is anti-black, anti-education, demeaning, self-destructive, pro-drug dealing and violent. Rather than confront this heinous enemy from within, we sit back and wait for someone like Imus to have a slip of the tongue and make the mistake of repeating the things we say about ourselves."

Whitlock sums it up perfectly when he says " In the grand scheme, Don Imus is no threat to us in general and no threat to black women in particular. If his words are so powerful and so destructive and must be rebuked so forcefully, then what should we do about the idiot rappers on BET, MTV and every black-owned radio station in the country who use words much more powerful and much more destructive?
I don’t listen or watch Imus’ show regularly. Has he at any point glorified selling crack cocaine to black women? Has he celebrated black men shooting each other randomly? Has he suggested in any way that it’s cool to be a baby-daddy rather than a husband and a parent? Does he tell his listeners that they’re suckers for pursuing education and that they’re selling out their race if they do?
No. We all know where the real battleground is. We know that the gangsta rappers and their followers in the athletic world have far bigger platforms to negatively define us than some old white man with a bad radio show. There’s no money and lots of danger in that battle, so Jesse and Al are going to sit it out."

Don Imus is a good person, the money he has raised for charity over the years cannot be matched by any other radio personality. He admits he made a mistake, a mistake that has now cost him his MSNBC program. If you are going to take Imus to task let's not forget about some of Tom Brennan's comments (also made in an attempt at humor) about other student athletes over the past few years on the local level.

Tiffer, I still have nightmares about the Bill Maher firing. Politically Incorrect was the only show on network TV that featured intelligent debate. Shortly after Bill Maher was given the boot, ABC replaced his show with one hosted by Jimmy Kimmel. So instead of the intelligent debates of four unique individuals brought together by Maher, we get to watch the imbecilic comedy of Kimmel, former host of the Man Show. Kimmel might never say anything intelligent, but as long as he doesn't offend millions of people, he'll get to keep his show. We'd rather have stupidity that doesn't offend than intelligence that hurts.

I am going to take the controversial stand and defend Imus. I want to state that I am not justifying what he said, nor am I in any position to do that. It was politically incorrect, of poor taste, and said in the wrong context. I do watch Imus on MSNBC when I don’t have morning classes and I do find the show entertaining.
I am defending Imus from the false allegations of racism and over reaction and/or over sensitivity of the American public. I am not going to restate what he said, but that phrase could have been used for a white, black, Hispanic, Indian, Chinese, etc… person. It just happens that the majority of the team is African American so automatically the connotation of the phrase became racist. Al Sharpton and Rev. Jesse Jackson have jumped at the opportunity to pin all of society’s problems on Imus and MSNBC. With the war in Iraq continuing to escalate, the continuing rebuilding problems in New Orleans (primarily minority neighborhoods), and the widening of the gap between the have’s and have not’s; how can these two civil right leaders justify even spending one second on this issue which has little to no beneficial social ramifications.
Imus is clearly not a racist, the context in which he said it was entirely comedic. The immediate response to that defense is, it wasn’t funny, or that’s a tasteless joke. Imagine if Chris Rock, Dave Chappelle, Eddie Murphy, or better yet Richard Pryor said the same exact quote. Not only would no one care that they said it, but more than likely the audience would be laughing out of their seats. These artists have said far worse things specifically about black women and no one is calling for their heads, nor should they.
Freedom of speech allows the citizens of this country to freely express themselves. If you want to defend that right, then you must defend things said that you may not agree with. You may not have liked it. You may have been horrified, disgusted, or offended, and rightfully so. That is your right to feel that way, but who draws that line on what is acceptable and what is not? Civil liberties is something taken for granted in this country and if we start censoring things that may offend certain groups of people our rights are compromised.
No one makes you watch Imus, or any show for that matter. Rush Limbaugh earlier this year questioned Presidential candidate Barack Obama ethnicity as an African American. Not only did he attempt to discredit his heritage but he went on to call him a “halfrican”. How much media attention was actually given to this as compared to Imus? Is it alright to personally insult the ethnicity of a prominent individual running for the highest office, but its not alright to make a terrible joke on a morning talk radio show? I don’t have to listen to Rush Limbaugh and I choose not to. He has every right to say what he wants, just as Imus does and just as the rest of us do.
This situation reminds of the infamous Bill Maher firing after 9/11. To this date the only prominent person to lose their job specifically because of 9/11 was Bill Maher. He was the host to a show called Politically Incorrect on ABC. The show was as the title stated politically incorrect. He went against main stream thoughts and was not afraid to voice his opinion. He made a statement about the hijackers of 9/11 (which I choose not to repeat) at a time when the wounds of the country were still fresh. Disney, feeling the pressure of outraged individuals, immediately cancelled the show. I hate to say it but with Staples pulling ads and now Proctor and Gamble announcing they will no longer advertise, Imus will more than likely be suspended beyond the 2 weeks if not cancelled outright.
I do want to state that I do feel for the ladies of the Rutgers Basketball team. They have a right to be outraged, they were offended. They are the only ones that should be offended. They are hardworking student athletes for a division 1 school and excelled in their basketball season. They were the underdogs all season and ended up losing in the finals to Tennessee. That is a great achievement and it is sad to see that being overshadowed by a foolish statement. If America truly cared about these young ladies, they would show them respect and let this issue and controversy go away. These ladies want to be known for their hard work and achievement not for Imus in the morning…

(Foxy's note: Mark, your thoughts are interesting and shed new light on this controversy. Thanks for sharing!)

I didn't think much of this controversy until this evening, watching the Rutgers Women's Basketball team at their press conference. They forthrightly said that they were hurt, and why. They declined to call for Imus' resignation, or for any action other than that he apologize to them ... and not just to the public. Most of all, I was moved by a couple of the women who pointed out that they are women, athletes, students, and that they are all someone's daughters. Joke or no joke, Imus went too far, and not for the first time, either. This isn't about free speech or "political correctness", it's about common decency and common sense.

And I'm glad you brought up a controversial topic, Foxy. Don't be afraid to do that from time to time!

Foxy, first I would like to say I am not an Imus fan and never have been. I do not listen to his show and cannot understand its appeal.

That said, like you, I was in the public eye and one slip of the tongue or out of line comment would have been the end of my broadcasting career. What Imus said the other morning is inexcusable. He should have been praising these young women for what they accomplished, instead, he has made them the center of a controversy that they do not deserve to be a part of. This is not first time that Imus haas said some outrageous thing and then asked for his listeners to forgive him. He has even said that he has seen the hurt that he has caused and would work on changing his ways, it usually lasts about two weeks.

This time not onlly Imus must go, but so should that crew of foul-mouth announcers that work with him. Many times one of them instigates the topic of conversation that ends up with disgusting banter and usually some very derogatory remarks about someone, or some ethnic group, a goverment agency or person. Everything and everyone is fair game to this man.

His biggest crime is that he has used radio and the federal license to spread his "so called" humor. I hope this time society says enough is enough. A boycott of advertisers products will do the most harm, not a two week suspension.

(Foxy's note: Well-said by a great North Country broadcaster. Thanks, Mike!)

Foxy: I only have this to say about the Imus incident. It reverts back to your previous blog. "Things I can do without" Imus is one of them. FF

Foxy,
It's not surprising that there are no comments on such a loaded issue. Although Imus can be and usually is a jerk he normally takes shots at whoever or whatever is currently on the show. What he said wasn't nice but neither was the Tawana Brawley incident nor the Hymietown remark. These supposed 'Reverends' are pretty well insulated from any attempts to shut them up, or even to find out how they manage to live so high on the hog.
Buck

Foxy; I watch Imus In The Morning about everyday on MSNBC TV! Imus is self centered and at times becomes overbearing on his views on various topics! He was wrong about his comments about the Girls Basketball players who worked so hard and made it to the ladies finals! They should be praised instead of ridiculed! Imus's show takes no prisoners and at times crosses the fine line! Imus made a serious mistake with the words and actions on that day! What I don't understand is how Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson reacted calling for Imus being fired! They both have done and said things just as bad and yet they jump on the bandwagon to fire Imus! I think Imus will be removed only if people stop listening and watching the tv show! The sponsors that pay several millions of dollars a year will then pull the plug on Imus! Imus raises millions of dollars for children and our veterans for that I thank him! We all have a choice to listen and watch Imus or shut him off!