Stephanie Miller's debut on MSNBC

I got a chance to watch Stephanie Miller this morning on MSNBC, and her show was great. The well-known liberal talk show host normally broadcasts out of Los Angeles, but she's on (presumably) a three-day trial run to replace Don Imus, broadcasting yesterday, today and tomorrow from lovely and scenic Seacaucus, New Jersey.

Miller is bright, smart and witty, and I'd love to see her replace Imus. I know I would watch every morning. God only knows I'm looking for a show that's better than The Today Show. Matt Lauer isn't exactly how I like to start my day.

Take a look at the clip above (which is from her MSNBC debut yesterday), and if you like what you see, drop MSNBC a line and let the network know that you'd watch Miller if she were to get the slot. It only takes a few minutes, and it really would be good to see a progressive take to the airwaves in the morning.

Miller's morning show replays on Sirius Talk Left (channel 146) every evening from 6-9, and I never miss it if I'm in my car.

Local DJ gets unjustly "Imus'd"

Imus, Imus, Imus - he's a black hole right now, from which there's no escape. Like a recovering addict, I've sworn off writing about him, but this week, in the aftermath of Imus' firing, the story took on an unexpected local angle.

I'm originally from the Poconos, so during and immediately following my high school years, I listened to 93.5 FM, WSBG. The station's most prominent DJ was Gary Smith (above), host of the Gary in the Morning program.

This past week, Smith was summarily fired following a skit Smith did on his radio show that was in poor taste, but more importantly, poorly timed.

On Monday morning, Smith decided to use "I'm a nappy-headed ho," as the station's Phrase that Pays, referencing what Imus said that resulted in him losing his radio and cable TV shows. The ninth person who called in and said it won some sort of prize.

A press release issued by the company that owns WSBG stated that Smith "used the phrase with full knowledge of the reaction to Don Imus' use of the exact same phrase just a day earlier, which is the reason he was terminated and not suspended."

Smith has a well-earned reputation of being a pillar in the community; he appears unpaid at many charity events, and he's entertained legions of fans during a 17-year career at the station, including me.

Smith should have been reprimanded for the dumb move, but not fired. There's plenty of differences between the Imus' needlessly making ridiculous remarks about the Rutgers University Women's basketball team, and repeating a statement as a joke when it's not directed at anyone.

I do see management's point - even repeating "nappy-headed ho," especially considering the national controversy, was ill-advised and downright foolish. But, should it cost a man, who is in otherwise good standing in the community, his livelihood? I'm not buying it.

You cannot even compare Imus to Smith. Imus has a checkered past that's rife with racial remarks that can be interpreted no other way than the guy's a racist. A few days ago, I blogged about a New York Times piece by Bob Herbert. In it, Herbert discusses a transcript from a 60 Minutes piece on Imus from about 10 years ago, during which it was confirmed that he regularly uses the "N-Word."

Smith doesn't have that past.

The bottom line here is that we have our next Janet Jackson Moment, sort of.

I'm for free speech, with certain limitations. To the people who think Imus should not have been fired, I'd ask this - walk down the aisle of cubicles in corporate America, or say it on an NFL sideline, or even bagging french fries at McDonald's. You're getting fired, and you should be.

Imus is no different.

But, what happened to Gary Smith is absurd. A trumped up charge of racial intolerance. By all accounts, he didn't do it with malice or direct the statements toward anyone.

I'm not alone in my opinion, either. There's online petition to bring Smith back to the airwaves. I signed it, and so far 600 other people have as well.

Radio personalities around the nation expressed similar outrage that Smith, under these circumstances, would be fired. Howard Stern said that he plans to offer Smith a job. Who knows? Maybe getting fired will be one of the best things to happen to Smith, if he ends up on Sirius.

It will be interesting to see how this one plays out.

My racist is less offensive than your racist

Yes, that's what this moronic debate between the various camps in the Don Imus debate seem to be saying.

First off, how idiotic are these two? Michelle Malkin is little more than another right-wing hate monger that Fersatz News puts on the air for horny young Repubes to drool over. And she brings plenty of racist history with her - click Here for one of her better examples.

The question needs to be asked - is our children learning? Just kidding. Seriously though, who the hell is Malik Shabazz? What has this guy done to deserve national attention? I cracked up when Malkin refers to Shabazz's "15 members." Oooooo. 15 members? Someone get me FEMA - we have ourselves a national emergency. (FEMA will promptly respond, in three days.)

What did Fox do - put out an APB for angry black men? Big deal. It isn't too hard to find white racists, either. Malkin proves nothing.

What's more, I wonder about the timing of Malkin bringing on Shabazz. Hmmm. I'll chew on that one for a moment. Let's see - Imus fired for making blatant racist statements... then Fox brings on Malik Shabazz, a guy that probably 99.9999999% of the American population doesn't even know exists (vs. Imus, who had a radio population and TV viewing audience of millions).

The message from Fox is a not-so-subtle reference to Imus' firing - "See? We can find black people who are racist, too!"

Y-A-W-N.

There are racists of every color, ethnicity, sexuality and gender in America. And when they make millions to propagate their racist views, they deserve to be exposed for the intolerant, churlish rubes they are. Let society shun them and deny them the millions they would otherwise earn.

Just a few more points, because I've got better things to write about than Malkin, Fox News and Shabazz.

Malkin has got to have the worst camera presence ever. I'd love to see her fill in for Bill O'Reilly for a month - the show would be canceled in days. She's on TV because of her looks, not her smarts or broadcasting skills. Sounds a bit like Ann Coulter, doesn't it?

Malkin does something during this broadcast that Fox personalities (notice I'm not calling them journalists) have fine-tuned to an art form - distorting guests' remarks. Shabazz doesn't call her a "whore," he calls her a "political prostitute for Bill O'Reilly." Yet, Malkin comes right back with her righteous indignation - "You called me a whore..."

Guess what? She is a political prostitute. What's more, Shabazz defames hard-working prostitutes the world over by even suggesting that Malkin is one.

And I'll take it even a step further - BOR is a political pimp for Fox News and the Republican Party because he remains obsessed with the trivial, irrelevant, sexually deviant aspects of our society, which really is a reflection of him. (Anyone heard of the sexual harassment suit brought against him in 2004?)

I get a kick out of Malkin deriding Shabazz for profiting from his "racial poison" and "stoking racial demagoguery." Again, I refer you Here to see a sparkling example of Malkin doing both.

Here's a video response to the above clip on YouTube that I found interesting. It's not very well produced, it jumps around a little, it starts off racy, but in the end it does make a point, backed up with statistics I've seen at credible news outlets. Anyway, here's the clip:



Two more quick points...

I've written it before and I'll write it again - we seem to be reverting back to the late-1990s mentality in our society and media. By that I mean we seem to be obsessed with the trivial, while not paying attention to what is really important.

I've also previously written about how some feel Fox isn't even worthy of our time or scorn. It is. The "network" has millions of viewers, many of whom sit in their chairs and believe stuff like this. When people just give up and let the network go about its business, Fox wins, because that adds an aura of legitimacy and to a network that has done very little to deserve it.

I'm very happy that leading Democrats have declined to appear on Fox News because of its far-right agenda. When many prominent people appear Fox, it sends the wrong message of legitimacy - just like when Dick Cheney appears on Rush Limbaugh's program, or when leading politicians from both political parties used to frequent Imus' show.

"I-Man" to "Cry-Man": CBS pulls the plug

CBS did what most expected they would do today when they fired long-time announcer Don Imus.

In the end, I believe the decision was based on three things, in this order:

First, major corporate sponsors started to walk away from the show, including GM, American Express Sprint Nextel, Staples, and Procter & Gamble, who all announced they were suspending their ads on the show indefinitely.

Secondly, major guests started to walk away from the show, too; yesterday Newsweek Editor Jon Meacham said the magazine's staffers were banned from appearing on the program. Some notable guests from the magazine have included Meacham, Jonathan Alter, Evan Thomas, Howard Fineman and Michael Isikoff.

Lastly, the ferocity of the protests, along with protests to come, played a part in the decision, no question, and most likely sped up the first two developments. Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton met today with CBS President and CEO Leslie Moonves. The two let Moonves know that a major protest was planned for this weekend outside of CBS Headquarters in New York.

In an AP story, Moonves was quoted as saying, "There has been much discussion of the effect language like this has on our young people, particularly young women of color trying to make their way in this society. That consideration has weighed most heavily on our minds as we made our decision."

What a crock. If CBS felt that way, they would have fired him right from jump, but they didn't - they suspended him. Money drove CBS through the morality car wash during the last few days. Only when sponsors began walking away did CBS show Imus the gate.

The New York Times played more than a minor role in Imus' firing as well. Today in an editorial, Bob Herbert cites a 60 Minutes transcript from an interview for the news show that aired in July 1998:

In a 60 Minutes interview with Don Imus broadcast in July 1998, Mike Wallace said of the Imus in the Morning program, "It's dirty and sometimes racist."

Mr. Imus then said: "Give me an example. Give me one example of one racist incident." To which Mr. Wallace replied, "You told Tom Anderson, the producer, in your car, coming home, that Bernard McGuirk is there to do nigger jokes."

Mr. Imus said, "Well, I’ve nev — I never use that word."

Mr. Wallace then turned to Mr. Anderson, his producer. "Tom," he said.

"I'm right here," said Mr. Anderson.

Mr. Imus then said to Mr. Anderson, "Did I use that word?"

Mr. Anderson said, "I recall you using that word."

"Oh, O.K.," said Mr. Imus. "Well, then I used that word. But I mean — of course, that was an off-the-record conversation. But ——"

"The hell it was," said Mr. Wallace.

The transcript was pure poison. A source very close to Don Imus told me last night, "They did not want to wait for your piece to come out."

Scoop, there it is.

Nice reporting, Mr. Herbert.

However, Herbert isn't the only one with an Imus story to tell.

Howard Stern, a bitter enemy of Imus', has been saying for years that on one occasion while the two worked together at NBC Radio, Imus called an African-American secretary the n-word, to her face (an allegation Stern repeated this morning on his show).

I've been listening to Howard for years, but I've never heard him use any of the words Imus has used to describe African-Americans. Howard is edgy, obnoxious and vulgar - that's not in dispute. But, I've never, EVER heard him refer a group of people in a racially hateful way. The first time I hear that, I'm tunin' out.

Actually, I take that back - I did hear him do a joke about the Holocaust once, in my younger days. It so incensed me I didn't listen to him for a year. (I think Howard thinks he has immunity and cover to do jokes about the Holocaust because he's half Jewish. He doesn't, and wouldn't if both of his parents were Jewish.) I did come back, but the more I think about it, I wouldn't forgive this time. I'd like to think I'm wiser and less tolerant of intolerance with age. I think Stern's learned his lesson, though, before the Imus firing, and now, as a refresher course of sorts.

If Imus' dismissal cleans up Howard some, that certainly wouldn't be a bad thing. But, I've listened to Stern for years, and his show isn't even in the same ballpark as Imus' show, or that of hate-infested right-wing talk radio. He does humor, which often pushes boundaries, but not hate.

Anyway, I'm done writing about Imus - there are much more important developments happening right now in the Middle East. The death toll in Baghdad from the attack on the Iraqi Parliament building is up to eight, and will most likely go higher.

Lots to write about when I get home.

MSNBC bids Imus adieu

Look at that punim. Don Imus has reason to be cranky today. Yesterday, he was abruptly fired by MSNBC, ending an 11-year relationship with the network. The fate of his radio program is still in question. For now, CBS is maintaining that he'll be suspended without pay for two weeks. So far, that's the extent of his punishment.

I'm already tired of this story, to be honest, but I'd be remiss to leave out a few things. First, a good parody...



Stephen never disappoints.



Michael Smerconish brings up some interesting points here - he is right that people in our society walk around just waiting to be offended, but he's way off base with regard to the Rutgers women's basketball team. Words DO have meaning, and consequences. Yes, he was looking for a cheap laugh, by using racially hateful and insensitive comments.

Smerconish is normally a conservative I respect and listen to, because of his noted lack of hateful comments; he's level-headed and reasonable. But, he's got the Imus case all wrong.



I'm anticipating that this will be the first and last time in my life that I will agree with Laura Ingraham about anything, but I give her credit for reacting the way she did in this clip. The footage runs out, but evidently, she didn't return for the next segment.

It's hard to overstate how much I despise the insipid Hannity, and the footage above is precisely why the likes of Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson getting involved in this controversy clouds this issue. It gives conservative jackals fodder for the hypocrisy cannon, and distracts from what Imus said or what this whole story is about in the first place.

These two morons have a history of making highly racial and insensitive remarks themselves, so for them to come to the "aid" of Rutgers basketball players is absurd, and the height of hypocrisy.

What annoys me even more is the fact that Repubes are trying to make political hay out of the Imus remarks, when they really should keep their mouths shut. Take a look at this footage...



Terry Jeffrey, editor-at-large of Human Events magazine, probably says the most idiotic and contradictory statements I've heard on television in quite a long time.

"Don Imus represents the decline in standards in American broadcasting"?!? Surly you jest, Mr. Jeffrey.

Apparently Jeffrey's never heard broadcasts of Matt Drudge, Ann Coulter, Laura Ingraham, Michelle Malkin, Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Michael Savage, Tom DeLay, etc.? Talk about selective outrage. I'm choking on righteous indignation. Jeffrey almost (almost!) sounds like the right's idiotic answer to this whole mess vis à vis Sharpton and Jackson on the left.

As Keith Olbermann rightfully pointed out tonight on his show, where's the outrage over the "racist right's" comments. A recent sampling:

• Rush Limbaugh calling Barack Obama [and Halle Berry] "Halfrican American"

• Michael Savage saying the Voting Rights Act means "a chad in every crackhouse"

• Neil Boortz saying Rep. Cynthia McKinney (D-GA), an African-American Congresswoman, "looks like a ghetto slut"

• How about former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay comparing Democrats to Nazis? (Scroll down a few messages and you'll hear audio of it.)

These are just a few examples. I don't have enough time or energy to cite them all, but that's a pretty good "worst of" list.

Jeffrey winds up this clip with a breathtaking bomb:

"I think this type of programming underestimates the intelligence for the potential audience it has."

I'll remember that the next time I hear Rush Limbaugh comparing Democrats who oppose funding a destructive, idiotic war to Stalin, while Vice President Dick Cheney plays the role of Ed McMahon, nodding in agreement and braying like a donkey. (I blogged about this last weekend.)

By the way, and I know I've mentioned this before, but when you have five minutes to kill, drop by the Human Events Website - it really is a kick.

Here's a press conference that the Rutgers Womens Basketball Team held yesterday...



Elegantly said, and well put. It will be very interesting to hear what comes of the meeting between Imus and the team. I give those girls a lot of credit for even agreeing to meet with him; it's going to be a pretty uncomfortable meeting all around, but mostly for Imus. It should be.



Here's Al Sharpton on CNN's Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer. I agree with just about everything Sharpton is says, but it's tough to get past the messenger. He's got such a checkered past, it's tough to look past his credibility problem. But, he's right about Imus.

I'll say it one more time, and then I'm movin' on, because I've had enough of this story already, but I hate it that Sharpton's even involved in this matter, because it's just fodder for the right's cannon of hate and intolerance.

I find it profoundly sad that Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson are spokesmen for African-Americans today in any capacity. Seriously, it undermines the issue whenever these two idiots show up and preen before the cameras and sound as if they've never done anything wrong in their lives.

Anyway, one down, one to go - time for Imus to go from CBS, too, but I'm not holding my breath.

I do wonder, getting back to Terry Jeffrey's comments, if this will be another excuse for Republicans to try and arrogantly push their morality on the rest of us. The FCC has done it before, and they'll undoubtedly try again. I really hope this isn't another Janet Jackson moment.

Imus suspended for two weeks

Don Imus has been suspended for two weeks. Big deal. So CBS and MSNBC gave the old lizard a two-week vacation.

Earlier today, Imus appeared on Al Sharpton's radio program, and it got pretty heated - people were calling in and shouting at Imus, and of course Imus returned the fire.

After I put up a post about this earlier today, I did some more reading about this incident, especially a lot of opinion pieces about Imus. The one thread that many of the articles had in common was this - politicians who go on his show enable his behavior, whether they consciously wish to or not.

If the guests didn't call in or show up, he's clean up his act or get out of the business.

The same thing applies to Rush Limbaugh. By Dick Cheney frequently going on his program, it does nothing but verify Limbaugh's legitimacy in the eyes of the mindless people who gobble up every syllable of hate that comes out of Rush's mouth.

So, people like Rush and Imus are only around because the people who go on his show and the sponsors who advertise on them are enabling this to happen.

That is in no way excusing the crap these two fill our airwaves with every day, but it is an explanation as to why the companies that employ these two continue to do so.

Here's partial video (apologies for the Fox clip)



For a full-length video clip, click Here.

What annoys me most about Al Sharpton getting involved is that he's despised by many, many people, so that merely distracts from the issue of what Imus did in the first place. That distraction has already started.

I know it's just a stupid comment on a Website, but I couldn't resist reposting this comment from the YouTube clip above, from a mindless GOPer...

Imus is a moron, but Sharpton is a liar and a hate monger. Now that he's involved in this, Imus doesn't seem so bad at all. Sharpton what the hell do you do for a living? Are there people really that stupid to donate to your self serving cause?

I'm not a fan of Al Sharpton's, and never will be, for many reasons. His getting involved in this just distracts from what Imus did, and that helps no one. Unreal.

"Racust" in the Morning blabbers on

I have no idea what kind of a person Don Imus is. But maybe his idiotic statements from last week about the Rutgers University Women's Basketball Team is knowing enough. If I owned the radio station that Imus works for, I'd fire him. Without equivocation.

The only good thing about this is watching this old lizard squirm and try to come up with some reason, any reason, that he should be kept on the job.

I laughed in this video when I heard him say that "these young women don't know me." They don't need to, moron. A racist is still a racist, so Imus' attempt to put his comments into context adds nothing. Zero.

"I'm a good person who said a bad thing"? I dunno - it sounds like a PR job to me.

His lame explanation that "we make fun of everyone on this show, including me" is no defense, either. So, he's been making fun of everyone for the past 30-odd years on his show, Imus in the Morning. So what?

Hey, I'm a Howard Stern fan, and had he said the same thing, I'd think he should be fired, too. Stern has toned down his act quite a bit since moving over to Sirius Satellite Radio, though. I wonder if money has anything to do with it? He only got a $500 million, five-year deal. It's a whole new ballgame when you cross over to the largely uncensored medium of satellite, but I digress.

When Howard was on terrestrial radio, he should have been fired on a number of occasions, and on a few, he was. Since I've been a fan, the one big thing that I remember he got into hot water about was making fun of Selena's death, but in that instance, he wasn't making fun of her race, if I'm remembering it right. Still, one could have made the case that he should have been fired, and he nearly was.

Anyway, back to Imus - yes, he does do a great deal of charitable work, without question, but it's obvious why he's bringing it up now - to try and save his job. His charitable work does not excuse what he said.

It's interesting to see him go on the Mel Gibson/Michael Richards apology tour. It's fun watching him squirm and agreeing to talk to Al Sharpton and to meeting with the basketball team. He wouldn't be doing any of this if his job wasn't in jeopardy.

Here's footage of Newsweek's Howard Fineman giving it to Imus this morning on his radio show, but in a respectful way. Nice job, Howard. And Fineman's right - this is a teaching moment. Maybe he'll survive this and continue his show. He does have the support of a great many politicians who come on his show, but I don't know if they support him in this case.



By the way, Imus seriously needs to consider putting the cowboy hat back on - without it, he looks even more disturbing.

I-Man puts the "i" in intolerant

Take a look at cocaine-addict Don Imus spreading some "love" about the Rutgers University basketball team yesterday morning. A major uproar ensued, and this morning, he had to apologize...



I'll give the "I-Man" (does that stand for intolerant?) a microscopic amount of credit for formally apologizing, but that's about it. It's patently absurd that a man who has been in broadcasting this long with an audience the size of his (I'll never understand either one) would make a comment like that.

Knowing the tempestuousness of Imus, I'm sure he was TOLD to read an apology. I sincerely doubt that he decided out of the goodness of his long-suffering heart to make an apology. Listen to the video again - I think he truly believes that he's being genuinely funny. Maybe at a Klan rally, but that's about it.

Do us all a favor, Imus - go back on the blow and just retire - go to your Arizona ranch and wither away in the desert, only to be gnawed at by buzzards.

Imus has no place in broadcasting. Then again, the American people are treated to the likes of Rush Limbaugh and Sean Insanity, who say equally hateful things and never or rarely get called out, so I can at least understand Imus thought he could get away with it.

Nice job, stupid.