Media Watchdogs A Tipping Point for Imus’ Downfall

The Baltimore Sun

By Abigail Tucker

The morning Don Imus uttered the phrase that appears to have ended his career, Ryan Chiachiere was watching. The veteran shock jock’s comment was so incendiary that the 26-year-old researcher for Media Matters in America, a liberal media watchdog group, took the rare step of removing his headphones and repeating the slur to his co-workers in the room, who were also glued to various forms of programming.

But the rest of what happened April 4 at the group’s Washington office was fairly routine. Media Matters workers packaged a video clip of Imus’ statement along with a written transcript and several paragraphs of contextual information. Then they e-mailed the material to hundreds of journalists and interest groups.

It is a process that, in some form or another, happens more than a dozen times daily at the Web-based nonprofit, often without any clear progress toward Media Matters’ stated goal of “correcting conservative misinformation.”
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April 15, 2007 | Filed Under Media Matters, News Mentions | Comment 

Imus Isn’t Alone in Putting Foot in Mouth

Richmond Times Dispatch

VCU professor suggests everyone could use dose of the Golden Rule

By Julian Walker

This is not a story about Don Imus.

He’s just the latest public figure to step on his lip.

Last week’s verbal assault on the Rutgers University women’s basketball team gained Imus a two-week radio suspension and a date with the team to explain himself. Meanwhile, the TV network MSNBC announced it was completely dropping its simulcast of the show.

This is a story about folks who inadvertently say one or two words too many, forget about other’s feelings or feel empowered to say anything they want.

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April 12, 2007 | Filed Under Media Matters, News Mentions | Comment 

Imus’ Lucrative Franchise Could be in Peril

Baltimore Sun

By Nick Madigan

Don Imus, whose daily broadcasts reach about 70 radio stations and are simulcast on MSNBC television, has one of the most lucrative franchises in the business. His show attracts not only hefty advertising dollars, but also a stream of high-profile guests peddling books, opinions and political gamesmanship.

The racially insulting remarks he made last week could threaten all that, some experts say, if the controversy persists and guests and advertisers flee.

If that happens, Imus - who referred to the Rutgers University women’s basketball players as “nappy-headed hos” - could see the two-week suspension he received Monday turn into a more permanent departure.

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April 11, 2007 | Filed Under Media Matters, News Mentions | Comment 

Imus Flap a Matter of Black, White and Green

USA Today

Could his offensive remarks bring down a multimillion-dollar media business?

By David Lieberman, Laura Petrecca and Gary Strauss

In her Hall of Fame career and 36 years on the sidelines, nothing could have prepared Rutgers women’s basketball coach C. Vivian Stringer for the scene she faced Tuesday.

After days of silence, one of the nation’s most prominent college basketball coaches, male or female, delivered an emotional defense of her players in response to a racist comment that radio talk show host Don Imus had made about them. Imus had called Stringer’s players “nappy-headed hos” after watching Rutgers lose to Tennessee last week in the NCAA championship game.

CBS, which syndicates Imus’ morning show to 70 radio stations, responded to nationwide criticism of Imus by suspending him for two weeks beginning Monday. That also will take him off MSNBC, which televises the radio broadcast.

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April 11, 2007 | Filed Under Media Matters, News Mentions | Comment 

Sponsors Could Be Feeling Backlash

New York Post

By Holly Sanders and Peter Lauria

Although CBS and MSNBC have suspended Don Imus, both networks could still lose millions of dollars in advertising revenue because of a consumer backlash against the show’s sponsors.

The National Association of Black Journalists, which is demanding Imus be fired, yesterday singled out three of the show’s sponsors - the New York Stock Exchange, Simon & Schuster and Random House - and questioned whether they still wanted to be associated with Imus.

The NABJ said it is working on compiling a more complete list of sponsors.

Stock Exchange spokesman Richard Adamonis said the NYSE once sponsored a segment on the Imus show, but “we curtailed our advertising about two years ago.” Spokespersons for the two book publishers could not immediately be reached.

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April 10, 2007 | Filed Under Media Matters, News Mentions | Comment 

Backlash Grows Over Shock Jock Imus’ Rant

San Francisco Chronicle

Apology, suspension not enough, critics say

By Justin Berton, Steven Winn, Chronicle Staff Writers

Don Imus, the nationally syndicated shock jock who called members of the Rutgers University women’s basketball team “nappy-headed ho’s,” was suspended for two weeks Monday by his employers, CBS Radio and MSNBC. But a growing chorus of civil rights leaders and media critics argue that suspension is not sufficient and that Imus should be permanently removed from his chair.

Imus, whose radio show is heard locally on KVON-AM (1440), based in Napa, and is simulcast on the MSNBC cable network, is renowned for making racist, sexist and generally tasteless remarks. He unleashed a fury last week when, while watching highlights from the women’s NCAA championship game, Imus and his studio cohorts riffed on the women’s appearance, comparing them to tattooed, male players.

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April 10, 2007 | Filed Under Media Matters, News Mentions | Comment 

There’s a Close Eye on Imus

USA Today

Bloggers are watching, and guests are feeling the pressure

By Peter Johnson

In more than three decades in radio, Don Imus has pushed the envelope with sexist, homophobic and racist remarks that more than once got him into hot water.

But his politically incorrect satire has been tempered by an intellectual and considerate side: He runs a camp for sick kids, cares about politics and has an eye for books that can catapult them onto the best-seller list.

That combination of irreverence and seriousness is why fans tune in, why CBS Radio syndicates and MSNBC simulcasts his show, and why A-list political and media guests often have a few minutes to spare for the “I-Man.”

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April 10, 2007 | Filed Under Media Matters, News Mentions | Comment 

Radio’s Imus is Suspended Two Weeks

USA Today

Execs expect him to ‘live up’ to apology

By Peter Johnson

Radio’s Don Imus continued his public mea culpa Monday for calling female Rutgers basketball players “nappy-headed hos” even as CBS Radio, which airs his morning show, and MSNBC, which simulcasts it, suspended him for two weeks beginning April 16.

“His dedication — in his words — to change the discourse on his program moving forward has confirmed for us that this action is appropriate,” NBC News said in a statement. “Our future relationship with Imus is contingent on his ability to live up to his word.”

And if he wants to keep his job, experts say, he needs to go face to face with those who want his head. “He has got to go out to the source of the criticism, seek absolution and hope that at some point in the next few days people will reach out to him,” says Richard Levick, a communications strategist.

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April 10, 2007 | Filed Under Media Matters, News Mentions | Comment