Free Speech (Part Two)
The other shoe fell today and Don Imus was fired from his CBS radio show.
When describing the Rutgers womens basketball team, Imus used the phrase "nappy headed hos" which has denigrating racial implications. It was a very poor choice of words and in bad taste.
The firestorm that erupted was worse. Imus almost immediately apologized and offered up all sorts of acts of contrition. But the blood was in the water and it was inevitable that the media, spooked by potential loss of revenues, sent forth his head on a silver platter.
I listened to a lot of talk radio today as I was home sick. Every single host I listened to defended Imus and hoped that he wouldn't lose his job. Who did I listen to? Glenn Back, Rush Limbaugh, and Sean Hannity.
What they were defending was principle. No one with a brain would mistake Imus for a conservative and he backed Kerry in 2004 which pretty much seals the deal as a political litmus test.
He said something stupid and inane but no worse than I've heard on Stern or Franken or, for that matter, Savage.
Jesse Jackson, you know, the guy who had a child with his office assistant, and Al Sharpton (the guy who got folks killed inciting a riot in the garmet district of NYC) demand that standards be set for what can and cannot be said on the airwaves.
Meanwhile, I can turn on any urban contemporary music stations and hear "bitch, n-----, ho, etc." literally hundreds of times an hour.
Free speech is just that. You do not have a right to not be insulted by what one says. There are hateful words to be sure. Most people I think, hearing the audio, would realize that this guy used a poor choice of words and wasn't being hateful. Were the words illegal? No.
Is it right to deprive someone of their livelihood for a poor choice? And if the answer is yes, shouldn't Jackson and Sharpton be delegitimized for their use of "hymie" and "cracker" when referring to Jews and whites?
This whole incident should serve as a wakeup call to everyone.
9 comments:
It should be pointed out that he wasn't fired for _one_ choice, but for a long string of them over the years. This was just the straw that broke the camel's back.
Oh, and a random blog post I just read: "Does Imus come off as a racist, misogynistic, insensitive, mean-spirited prick? Hell yeah… that’s his whole schtick! That’s his stock in trade! What part of “shock jock” doesn’t the Times understand?
No doubt Imus should be raked over the public coals for his awful comments, and he deserves whatever punishment the marketplace delivers. But calling on the FCC to pull WFAN’s license? That’s censorship, pure and simple. That’s state control of the media. That’s fascism. And the Times — a newspaper for chrissakes, that owes its very existence to the unfettered rights enunciated in the First Amendment — should be just as ashamed of its offensive statement as Imus should be of his."
Garrett, I could kiss you.
But then I'd be gay, to paraphrase Team America :-)
Your quote "he deserves whatever punishment the marketplace delivers" is DEAD on. The marketplace.
This wasn't just one incident with Imus. It's been going on for years. (And it wasn't just the "nappy" part, it was the "ho" part, too). And his sidekick is worse.
It isn't just race, it's misogyny, homophobia, you name it. And it IS hate speech. Because they have millions of listeners, they confer the right to behave that way to their listeners, who in turn, act out these sentiments.
This is not simply a case of free speech, not when you have the power of the airwaves. It is not a RIGHT to have a radio show, it's a PRIVILEGE.
Of course those a-holes you (finally) admit to listening to all day would defend Imus. They are worse than he is when it comes to denigrating anyone who isn't a white male. So if Imus gets it, hopefully they'll understand that calling people "sluts" and "bitches" might get them in trouble, too. (From my mouth to God's ears)
You tell me anything that comes close to this that Franken said.
Savage is the worst.
We are in total agreement that Jackson and Sharpton have no right to throw stones, as it were. Talk about hypocrisy.
OH, and I agree that the FCC should NOT pull WFAN's license.
The most interesting comments I've read coming from NBC and CBS come from the employees who got the brunt of Imus in person. Read these in Bob Herbert's column:
http://select.nytimes.com/2007/04/12/opinion/12herbert.html?n=Top%2fOpinion%2fEditorials%20and%20Op%2dEd%2fOp%2dEd%2fColumnists%2fBob%20Herbert
If you can't see it I'll post it here.
Actually, I listened to Limbaugh and Hannity more than I normally do because I was home sick and bored and I wanted to hear their take on this.
As our correspondent "Z" will attest to, when we get in the car to go to lunch and Rush is on I yell "Shut up, Rush!" and turn off the radio.
OTOH, I have never, ever, heard Rush or Hannity insult or denigrate anyone solely on the basis of their skin tone or gender. Ever.
Ya know, Suz, it is possible to be a conservative without being racist. It really is.
I have also heard that Imus is a nasty person. But that nasty person has raised millions for cancer research and hists kids of all ethnicities at his ranch. I don't like him but....?
Gonz, do you think that Limbaugh would have called a _boy_ "the White House dog" (multiple times)?
Read that column I just told you about.
I challenge you to listen to Thom Hartmann and Rachel Maddow for at least 2 days. They are amazing. And smart. Thom specifically invites a right-wing person, usually someone who is selling a book - to talk on his show. (You'll never see Rush or ANY of the right wing guys doing that).
He has written many books and is an expert on American History.
You can listen to them both on streaming audio if they're not on in your town.
I will listen to Rachel and Thom, I promise. If they are smart and pithy then I will like them.
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