Can We Talk About This? Did Sharpton kill Imus?

Good point! I don't know the answer but perhaps time will tell.

Spot on with this article MArty. Imus was a true avenue for democrats to use to reach millions of listeners. Sharpton has now just blocked that highway off by his unending demands.

On most of the radio talk shows, politicians from bot sides of the fence are often given air time. I have heard from many in inteviews on Hannity, Rush, and others that have had equal air time, the problem being many of the Democratic party decline the invites to discuss specific topics, or when they do come on they beat around the bush instead of presenting the arguments. A few that do come on from the Democratic party will actually give good discussions on the subject, even if the host is not in favor, but more people get to see the merits and flaws when they do discuss them openly, and personally I appauld that even if I disagree with them but that they were willing to present themselves in a mature and informative manner.
As far as Imus goes, this was more than one facter, real and media hype. What Imus said was sexist, and wrong, which is self stating by what he said. Second the media ran this in the ground on both sides helping to push his show off the air. Then you had scumbags like Sharpton and Jackson who stepped in and added fuel to the fire with their BS.
I think the more important issue, which I recently found out about, is how will this effect the Children's Hospital which he funds for needy kids of all races? I mean the guy has spent millions a year in support of this hospital from his own pocket.

From what I hear on that, sounds like the DA is going to get disbarred.

That's some of the most convoluted thinking I've seen in a while. While you zoom out this way, I just read an article in the real press somewhere that says that this is just the beginning, and it's being considered a movement and an impetus that may sweep Rush, that skinny witch, what's her name, Coulter?, and a few of the other hatespeech bastions of the extreme right, right on out of the public eye. It has sent a message, that the public is fed up with this kind of racist dialogue, and that sponsors need to take stock of who they are sponsoring. Even if that isn't true, I see no way this does much at all for presidential hopes for the right. That will be decided by more important crap than this. Imus wasn't all that influential in the first place.

I guess my thoughts on the fact that so many politicians enjoyed his audience, tells me they were reinforcing the almost "extreme" attitude that got Imus in hot water in the first place....it also leads me to realize that it gave them the chance to make comments they probably would not make in a "rally" crowd on the street...so to me that's not necessarily a good thing...There is a dishonesty and double standard there.

People who can let their hair down to the point of border vulgarity or discrimination on the air but not in public do not make a good presidential candidate to me.....

And I as a Democrat and others I know who would not give Imus the time of day find your comment that he was a true avenue for democrats offensive - I believe it was just recently Mr. McCain, a Republican (among others) announced his pleasure on returning to some more interviews with Mr. Imus as soon as the air cleared.......but he sure spoke too soon didn't he......Period.

Oh, poor suffering children with terminal illnesses. The ranch may have to close. Maybe there will be other benefactors. I'm sure Al Sharpton didn't really think about harming all of those children when he smelled blood in the water of public opinion. Maybe Don Imus doesn't need the money from his radio program to continue with his philanthropy. But maybe his philanthropic endeavors will have to be scaled back some until he finds other activities.

From what I've seen of the Bill O'Reily Factor show, it is an attack program designed to promote the ideas that the host wishes to. It follows that through time management, an unfavorable portrayal of democratic candidates will be shown.

"!POW! The bastion of reasoned, talk radio is gone. "
Marty, now I know you are brain dead. Donate your organs to someone who can use them.

Ron W, I believe that was satire that you read.

At least, it was wishful thinking. I doubt that Al Sharpton will be able to persuade the backers of Rush Limbaugh that his radio program is detrimental to the fabric of society. I don't think Sean Hannity is going to apologize for offending a decendant of a former slave.

Mugg, maybe you know of a current radio talk show host who is more favorable for the democratic party and has a bigger audience than Imus had? Who? Howard Stern (king of all media, self-proclaimed)?

Donna, yes, McCain was a moderate republican who did not like talking in sound bites. He did not receive a fair shake when he tried to appear on Rush's program, now he won't have an option. There were others who enjoyed appearing on Imus--Dodd, Clinton, Obama.

I'm a little concerned about this article. It's really an opinion piece rather that a news article from a 'Gather News Corrospondent'.

That being said, the arguments in the piece are a bit far fetched. For example, "they may have cost the democratic party the opportunity to capture the White House in 2008?"

The cancellation of one radio shock jock will not sway millions of voters and there are many other forums for debate. Youtube is a popular new political hotbed, viewed by millions and accessible to all candidates.

I have listened to and watched Imus for years. As for his politics, he said he a Republican over and over and over again, and that he voted Republican, including casting his vote for Bush.

He often had politicians of both parties on his show, particulary ones from his primary home states of Connecticutt and New Mexico. John McCain was a frequent guest. Rick Santorum was also a frequent guest.

Bo Dietle or however his name is spelled is no politician but a right-leaning poorly informed and clown of an ex-cop with viewpoints so far right of center he even makes Tom Delay look moderate.

I'm not sure I will miss all of the politicians of either party on his show. I did like the appearance of the news commentators, reporters, and writers. And yes, he had writers of both political parties and right and left leanings on his show.

He also brought attention to a host of singers, muscians and writers. Now, those I will miss.

One reason that rightwing and conservative bashers are now mischaracterizing the Imus show as being liberal is that Imus was very vocal in criticising the botched war in Iraq, citing and harping on what he maintained were the failures of Rumsfield, Cheney, Bush, Rove and the other "lying weases" who have needlessly put our soldiers into an unnecessary (there were no WMD, etc.), illegal (the US withdrew the final UN resolution that would authorized action because other members of the Security Counil threatened to veto it) and immoral war (two Catholics Popes have pronounced it an immoral war).

These were Imus's opinions as they are now the opinions of the majory of American citizens. But here is an interesting fact, John McCain says that the majority of American are wrong in their viewpoints, but that did not keep him from being invited to and going on the Imus show.

He disagreed with Imus but he was friendly and even humorous with his host. The two men had different viewpoints, but they were civil toward each other.

As to the racial/sexist remarks that Imus made, they were inappropriate and they were wrong and he should have suffered some reprobation, but there are those who think the reaction of MSNBC and CBS is overkill.

These are just some observations that I have heard from various people on both sides of the issue.

There are some who find it odd that Staples withdrew its advertising from the Imus show but continues as an advertiser of South Park, a show that is offensive on many, many levels.

Ahh, but South Park does not try to be serious.

That probably is why Richard Clarke wrote his novel warning about what will happen in a future tense under the guise of fiction. "Because people don't read non-fiction."

Daniel S., thank you for correcting his personal political affiliation. I think it said something that he was able to provide a forum for politicians of both parties during his show. I guess being influenced by the western states mentality of New Mexico republicanism was big on his list of criteria. Perhaps I made incorrect assumptions about his politics because he had hoped to engage Sharpton as equals on Sharpton's Radio Program, when Sharpton was clearly in the superior position (on the Sharpton Hour).

Sharpton gets more security after death threats he was stabbed in the chest when he led the protests in Bensonhurst, so people need to take threats seriously. He sued the city for failing to provide adequate security.

I think you may be right. This will have quite an impact.

First I would like to say, I do not like Imus or what he said. Second I would to like to ask, do we really want to go down the road of censorship? As a conservative, how dearly I know how precious little time is given to my side of the arguement, if ever.

As an American, I believe we should have allowed the market to handle this situation. I never had a vote. I do not like that!

Marty, people like you amaze me. Al Sharpton IS NOTHING BUT A LOW- LIFE , RACIAL ARSONIST. I live in NYC , this putrid racist has nine dead innocent people
killed by this Racist own words, that caused riots in Brooklyn, and Harlem.
A Great Democrat, SICKENING, A HEALER.

I don't think Sharpton or Jackson were actually all that instrumental in Imus's fall, although higly vocal. I saw a lot of outcry that had nothing to do with them. I thought there was a general backlash independant of those two yahoos, nationwide. And the article I read was NOT a satire, there are many that would like to see the airwaves cleansed of the BS, including many religious people. They don't appreciate the crude language or racial slurs either. The backers of Rush and others would be just as apt to fold to economic pressure as Imus's was, should it look like it would cost them big money. Fox news might be a different story, Rupert Murdock does things only he understands.

Just for info, Coulter was canceled in quite a few newspapers, after her comments about Edwards, in case you aren't aware of it. Over 29% of her total audience, last I knew, and efforts are still running.

How is calling someone a faggot, who is not gay a homophobic comment-slur.
When i was growing up in the Bronx we would call someone a faggot if
they wouldn't go on a roller coaster, or sleigh ride down a steep hill etc.etc.
Lighten-up people- no???

Obviously, with Coulter, it wasn't probably just the Edwards comments, but they are what caught the wind, and flew. It was an opportunity for her detractors to get some play on getting her knocked out of the saddle, and I wouldn't bet that Imus's situation is that much different, in essence. Give your enemies a loaded gun, and you'll probably get your head blown off. I think it's a real caution message, for all shock jock types, and should be, if they want to stick around.

anything that prevents Hillary or Obama out of the White House makes me happy!

Do you really think that Al Sharpton or Jesse Jackson care about the Democratic plight? They are hardly mainstream, and they are both rabid racists slurring Jewish people without a second thought or an apology.

Um, no micky. It's the intent behind the use of the word which is offensive on two counts.

1. You're ascribing those negative characteristics(being a wuss/wimp) to homosexuals.
2. By calling someone a faggot with the intent to make them feel bad, embarassed or ashamed, you are showing that you believe a person should feel that way if they are homosexual.

Anyone that thinks Imus would have been fired without Sharpton is not thinking very clearly. I have heard many say it though. They are wrong. And we got to see how Harold Ford and Obama handled this, a point not discussed on TV but a huge deal to me. I would like to hear some comments on other people's thinking about that aspect.

I rarely agreed with Imus, loved his charity work, admired him strongly for his support of our troops. I am against pulling out, but he almost convinced me otherwise.

The man gave a confession I feel was genuine. We would have done a lot more by giving him the chance to correct and make up for his comments.

It would have shown us as compassionate and forgiving and I truly believe he would have done it.

The man has done so very much for sick children and our military and with your solution we have lost that voice as well.

Most of the time it is better to fix something instead of throwing it out where you can't replace the good parts of it. He still raised well over a million dollars on his way out the door, met the players after already losing his job and being ridiculed in public by people who were not joking like he was.

I would rather hear someone joke about fat people than have someone say fat people are disgusting, they make me sick just to be around them and really mean it.

He also said the other team was, well, kinda cute. I believe that shows it was not racist or sexist but a comment on them having cornrows and tatoos.

I also bet you anything you want if you check the ipods of those players you will find they hear those words often.

This doesn't make it right, and Imus really meant he was sorry and would have done anything he could to make it up to those girls, I am sure in the future when they played he would have brought positive attn to them..

We done threw the baby out with the bathwater! And lowered our own level in doing so.

I have a flegling website denouncing the firing at http://imuslives.bravehost.com/index.html

A message board is included for your comments.

Very well done article Marty.

I'm glad someone has an interesting theory that "thinks outside the box" (or boxing ring)! In this case, though, the Imus affair is largely a mega-distraction orchestrated by mega-media. After all, they helped create the Godzilla that is Imus, so they can quite easily downgrade him. If anything, it will just hasten his exodus to satellite radio, following Howard Stern there. A logical response would have been to simply stage a boycott of CBS Radio / MSNBC, but like you said they chose to participate in the ritual overkill. In the end we should recognize that nearly everyone has some kind of prejudice, so the more we talk about it, the better. But let's not get overdistracted -- just keep things in proportion. Imus is like an incendiary bomb with a bad fuse; funny at times, but mostly something to steer clear of. So let's honor the denigrated athletes, but don't overdose on the orchestrated bloodletting. There is much more blood being shed overseas, that we desperately need to overturn! Thanks for posting this.

As an American, I believe we should have allowed the market to handle this situation.

It did. It was the beauty of the free market at work. Imus offended his advertisers and they withdrew their support. If we are entering a new time where the racist hate speech of the right is no longer profitable I for one will be glad. Our country is better served by the free and open market and Imus' speech is still free. CBS won't be picking up his tab is all that has changed.

Marty, please proofread yourself. "The bastion of reasoned, Talk radio is gone"
What the heck does that mean. Are you trying to say that talk radio is the last bastion of reasoned debate in a world gone mad? Sorry, I think NPR fills that role. Talk radio is basically a bunch of idiots. Scratch Imus and there are still plenty left.

Well said Brenda. I just want to say one other thing here, and that is I didn't advocate Imus's firing, or think it was necessarily just, myself. In fact on one article on gather I voiced my view that we vote with our radio dial what we expect, and we obviously expect our radio personalities to walk a razor's edge between being controversial enough to attract listeners, and going too far. We encourage outragous behavior, and the right not only encourages it, they expect it. I fully think Rush, Coulter, and others have done much worse in the past, and meant every word of it. I believe Imus was kidding. That's where this should have started, but Imus was the one that got mowed down.

I fully think Rush, Coulter, and others have done much worse in the past, and meant every word of it.

I agree. Cry no tears for Don Imus, He was richly rewarded by CBS to the tune of 15 million dollars. And I expect he will be courted by Faux News very soon.

Oh, I hope you're right. I'd hate to see the last of Imus. He's such a dear man.

Don Imus will probably be offered a $5,000,000 radio contract to be on Sirius radio. That is what Howard Stern makes.


I thought suspension would be good enough for Imus, but the push came to shove when Obama Hussein Barraka (sic), spoke up and demanded Imus be fired from TV and radio. We have suddenly gone from free speach to Political Correctness. What Imus said was an insult to Rutger's BB Team, women in general and Afro-American woman in particular. Even his wife censored his uncalled for words.



I disagree Brenda. Fox was crying loudest against what Imus said. CNN followed. However, it seems the majority of Americans, (even among the Afro-Americans), think that firing Imus was a bit too drastic.



I would imagine that Imus will continue with his charity operations. I am sure he has someone overseeing all that because he gets millions in donations every year.


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Micky D., I wish that Sharpton did not have the supposed following that he thinks he does.

Regarding Anne M comment: anything that prevents Hillary or Obama out of the White House makes me happy!......has what to do with Imus being fired???

imus got himself fired.

BTW Marty, Imus isn't dead and Sharpton didn't "kill" him. I'm sure you'll see him at the next Klan meeting anyway.

Chris, I thought that Don Imus presented a reasonable version of talk radio. At least compared to Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, or others.

Brenda, I was using hyperbole to describe the situation. Which one will I see at the next Klan meeting? Sharpton?

Amylee, If Sharpton didn't make a big deal out of this it would have blown over, if Imus didn't seek forgiveness from Sharpton, it would have blown over.

I used to listen to Don Imus years ago when hew as on 66 WNBC. Althought I do not agree with all of his views, I still enjoyed listening to him.

The first time I heard of Sharpton was in the 80's when he was the "family advisor" for the Tawana Brawley case. (She was an African American teenager who claimed she was raped and sodomized by 8 white men in Wappingers Falls then recanted and said that she made the whole thing up in order to get attention.) It seems that wherever the media spotlight is shining, he makes sure his voice is loud and clear. He took part in the Crown Heights riot in August of '91. An African American child was struck and killed by a Hasidic driver, and a young Hasidic man was dragged into the streets and beaten to death in retaliation...

I'd never agreed with Imus liberal comments. Once he was fired I should have feel "terrific"... But I don't.

Civil rights pundits did not get Imus fired. Imus was fired after sponsor's money threatened to leave NBC. Rosie O'Donnell is controversial, but it is making money to CBS. Therefore she won't be fired soon.

The news media is not controlled by truth and ethics. It is controlled by stock holders and corporate business management.

Anyone who base opinions based on ABC, CBS, or NBC reports are brainly numbed to reality (no offense - just the truth).

First, it will have no effect on the elections. And second Imus, will "rise from the dead", quicker then most people imagine and go back to earning megabucks and helping his charities.

First of all..Imus wasn't fired. His show was dropped by MSNBC and CBS for financial reasons. To say that he was fired is giving way too much credit to Al Sharpton.

Hey, couldn't the MSM have gone to someone other than Sharpton? How could he have dominated this issue if not in collaboration with media outlets? Get a clue, Sharpton is a media creation, and so is Imus. (Nobody is talking about the connection between MSM mogul Merv Griffin and Imus. I have often wondered how Imus, with his meager talent, managed to stick around so log.)

Valid and interesting point.

Sharpton & Jackson are nothing but clowns with an audience...

Don Imus was not taken down by Al Sharpton, as much as he might like to take credit. The sponsors who did not want to be affiliated with sexist, racist remarks are the ones who pulled the plug on Imus, who could hardly be called a supporter for the Democratic candidates. Being a good Liberal, however, I am in favor of free speech. That advertisers don't want to put their money behind such views in probably in their own best interest, letting the marketplace do its job. I'm quite sure that he'll be on the air soon enough with the other Master-of-Nasty Mr. Stern. Let those who want to pay out of their own pockets front for Imus talk. Finally, while all of you Imus supporters are quick to point up his charity work, how about a little support for the victims here. I note from the comments posted that everyone is quick to say how great Imus is with his charity work, but very few of you mention what the Rutgers players must have felt to hear this characterization of themselves. I think your sympathy for the victimizer is misplaced. Finally, I must say, that unfortunately, this isn't the last we've heard of racist, sexist remarks--from rappers to American Idol (Cowell's comments last week on one contestant's success because of her legs), it goes on.

We live in a politically correct world where every word spoken is given the third degree. No, I don't think Imus was being racist or sexist. He was just trying to be funny and his joke was anything but funny. Southpark is worse than anything Imus did. The movie Departed is disgustingly racist. I guess some have to be sacrificed as an illusion of combat against racism and sexism. The hypocisy of letting some do it, while throwing the book at others is a double standard PC sickness. I'm not an Imus fan, but as far as I can tell he was a meaningless sacrificial lamb.

I think the fact as William Dotani so cogently put it, "(Imus) was a meaningless sacrificial lamb" speaks volumes.

Sharpton was the amplifier of of a false sense of outrage. Sharpton conned the sponsors into thinking that this was significant. I have to laugh to myself because rap will continue to debase women and ruin the minds of our youth with glorified images of life in the hood. Southpark will continue to lampoon many sacred cows. Simon Cowell will continue his objectification of women.

Nothing of significance will change.

I guess in the end that is all right. Corporations get to fake concern about language. Media gets to fake concern about victims. Basketball players get to be regarded as victims of evil hateful language. Everyone gets to whine, collectively. And the band plays on.

Imus...liberal concepts???? I'm as LIBERAL as they get, but what little dribble I heard from Imus about 10 years ago cannot be construe as liberal. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and I'm sure that even the staunchest hard core conservative occassionally finds a tiny liberal idea buried deep within. I'm not sure that Imus was more than an irresponsible bigot and big mouth personality.

Al Sharpton doesn't necessarily come to mind when I think of liberal either. He has his own agenda, and though he may occassionally cross over to some liberal ideals, he is not a sterling definition.

Most liberals do not want to silence Imus, we just don't think he should get paid obscene amounts of money to intrude into our lives. Let him publish his voice on Gather. There are many more reputable voices within this community that are less inclined to berate those who don't agree with them, put them on the air in his place. Your voice would be a start. Although I don't agree with you, you haven't resorted to "name-calling" to get your point across.

Having been a liberal most of my life, I have listened to all of 5 minutes of Imus; I don't think his dismissal will greatly affect the opinions of many voters. In fact, his endorsement would make me think twice of any candidate, even if I previously supported them. Okay, he was against the "War" in Iraq; has anyone seen the polls lately? Most Americans are wanting out, and many in the Republican Party are distancing themselves from continued presence in Iraq so they can keep their jobs.

You've made some points, although I don't understand how Al Sharpton or Jessie Jackson were the sole voices in the removal of Imus; did you read any other Gather articles regarding this debacle? Have you watched any new shows? Their voices were allowed the least credibility. As for Rush or any other conservative voices, I have listened to them too. I actually listened to Rush at least once a week, especially in the beginning of his career, to hear the "other voice." I even had to credit him on valid points ocassionally, even if I did not agree with him. I don't know, however, if hurtful comments really deserve to be paid for their views. Let them voice their opinion, it's a free country, but don't pay them $15 million dollars to do so!

Nice going, Genine

Okay here is my view on this.. Maybe if Imus would have not been so blunt and thought about what he was going to say and didnt say the harsh things that he said about the women from Rutgers (okay I think I killed the name of the school)... Yes Sharpton asked for him to be fired, but at the same time hell someone else would have if he didnt..

Also hun,

If you have not yet already submitted this to my group called: "C" ~ Articles/Images That Start with the letter "C" (All subjects matter allowed...). Please do so...

First, there are many radio personalities that actually are intelligent and heard daily:
Bill Press
Ed Schultz
Randi Rhodes
Sam Seder
Laura Flanders
to name a few that do not fly into homophobic, sexist or racist rants and actually have intelligent, fact based discussions. There are also enough TV shows that having Imus no longer on the air only means that noise pollution has gone down a notch.

The DA in the Duke's case should be fired and so should Imus. Don't you get it? It is not about creating inequality in the justice system, it is about blind justice. A lynch mob, white or black, is not what this country should be about. In case you are wondering, I am black.

I seriously doubt that Imus's voice is stomped out because with or without a job, he still has an audience.

As for this incident costing Democrats the White House, that's ridiculous with a capital RIDICULOUS. As if this incident would reverse the tide of a rubber-stamp failure of a Republican Congress, supporting the most corrupt and controversial Presidential Administration in American History. I could sum this up with: "You wish."

As for politicians not using the radio waves anymore that's a silly assumption. Besides the only political radio coverage anyone should trust is NPR anyway.

Thank you Kathy. Glen, I think that he will come back to radio. The memory is not that certain. He might do some more charitable things.

I never cared for listening to Imus. I think his comments were stupid and wrong. I remember following the Tawana Brawley situation in the paper back in the '80's. Sharpton ended up being sued for slander and defamation of character and lost, but never has he paid up from what I understand, nor has he apologized for his lies.
Jackson and Sharpton are two guys who run "legal" shakedown and protection rackets. I don't think they even know a thing about any company they go after and accuse of discrimination until said company forks over some chunks of dough.
I think I recall it being Sharpton going after I think Burger King that flopped when it was made known to him that the largest franchise owner of the chain is Hall of Famer Dave Winfield. Do they use a dartboard to pick companies?
Imus, I am not sure what should have been done to him outside of apologizing and suspending him, but nothing should have been done in response to anything coming from the Jackson/Sharpton camps

Dear Brenda v.,
I sure hope you don't consider all conservatives racist. You would be so wrongly mistaken about me, for one. I do not listen to outrageous talk radio hosts, either. Have you ever heard of Dennis Prager? He is a reasoned man. This is the kind of talk I prefer. At least it is interesting, entertaining and educational.

Have a wonderful weekend. :)