“Nappy-headed hos?” What the hell was he thinking? You don’t have to be a worshipper of political correctness to be offended — Don Imus’s now infamous quote is clearly racist and cruel.
On April 4, this ex-host of CBS radio show “Imus in the Morning” referred to the Rutgers female basketball team on the air as
Public opinion turned against Imus and his bigotry. The Philadelphia Inquirer covered hoards of Rutgers students who rallied for the shock jock’s removal from the broadcasting network.
They succeeded.
Frank Rich, a columnist for The New York Times wrote that Imus quickly “took full responsibility for his own catastrophic remarks and didn’t try to blame the ensuing media lynching on the press.” However, one apology doesn’t cut it. Imus’s comments were horribly offensive, and both CBS and MSNBC were absolutely justified in removing him from the airwaves.
But reflecting on other recent scandals, there is quite a double-standard muddying American media, what the Rich calls “an astounding display of hypocrisy, sanctimony and self-congratulation from nearly every side of the debate.”
In January, the Times reported that “executives at ABC and its parent, Disney, [were] mulling the future of the actor Isaiah Washington (Dr. Preston Burke),” whose anti-gay slur against fellow actor T.R. Knight (Dr. George O’Malley) appalled the nationwide cult of Grey’s Anatomy. Shonda Rhimes, an executive producer and creator of Grey’s Anatomy, said that the show’s producers “applaud and encourage Isaiah’s realization that he needs help and his subsequent choice to seek immediate treatment for his behavioral issues.’”
Washington’s “realization” is analogous to Imus’s apology but in Imus’s case, it wasn’t enough. Here we find the glaring double-standard. Both CBS and MSNBC removed Imus for his remarks, but Washington continues to thrive on the ABC show.
I admit I love Dr. Burke, and Grey’s wouldn’t be the same without him. However, just as we shouldn’t ignore racial and sexist slurs, homophobic affronts should be equally unacceptable in America. I’m thinking that this thoracic cardiac surgeon needs at least some time off from Seattle Grace Hospital.
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April 16th, 2007 at 9:53 am
The real double standard is not that Burke still has his job, but that Imus didn’t lose his YEARS ago. People forget that Imus has been making racist and sexist jokes for a very very very long time. Were he of any other background, his show would have been taken off the air years ago. His firing was a result of this incident as well as dozens of others over his career.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:47 am
I don’t care what you say, the public outpouring of pressure was another example of the unfortunate censorship that now permeates U.S. society. If someone says something that offends you, fire them, silence them and feel free to use any excuse you can find.
The fact of the matter is, if a radio show says something you don’t like, change the channel. If you think a TV program is too graphic, turn if off and if a book offends you by all means don’t buy it or put it down. Just don’t try to punish/silence/censor anyone whose views/words you disagree with.
Now I am not condoning what Imus said. It was appalling and hurtful and, had I been listening to radio before I certainly would’ve tuned out of his show after that comment. But I am condemning popular efforts as censorship aimed at him, other celebrities and ordinary citizens who are either punished for saying something controversial or too scared to voice it in the first place.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:50 am
We should stop with all the BS pretexts and just speak honestly. He’d tried at a joke and it failed. The same words and worse are said by comedians and entertainers every day and it isn’t a big deal. In this one instance, his humor didn’t take and he came off like a dickweed old man, so we blabber on about bigotry when we already know that isn’t the issue.
April 16th, 2007 at 1:14 pm
Who was hoarding the Rutger’s students?
jesus christ do these blogs never see an editor?
April 16th, 2007 at 1:29 pm
“Rutger’s students”? You could use an editor yourself.
April 16th, 2007 at 2:16 pm
Hey Grammar Nazi - if you don’t know Rutgers from Rutger’s, you shouldn’t comment on hoard vs. horde (and that’s spelling, not grammar, anyway).