Imus Have Been Crazy

CBS and MSNBC both wanted nothing to do with Don Imus following his racist remarks on his radio show, "Imus in the Morning." The radio host's remarks were directed at the Rutgers University Women's basketball team, which had just lost the National Championship game.

Imus was fired following the exodus of advertisers from his show and employee complaints in response to his comments. His comments were inexcusable and unnecessary, but Imus's show targeted absolutely anyone for satirical purposes. He and his wife were subject to Imus' wit along with many other famous people. Imus and his assistant Bernard McGuirk often make comments in this vein, sometimes under the guise of a character.

Imus was wrong, and he admits that. He apologized profusely on various shows and to the women themselves before he was terminated. Rival Howard Stern had been bombarded with FCC fines and station regulations before he left for satellite radio in 2006. The radio world is now short one shock jock with a potty mouth.

Isn't this what First Amendment rights are all about, though? People like Larry Flint, Hugh Hefner, Imus, Stern and Joseph Frederick (center of the recent "bong hits 4 Jesus" supreme court case) say or print things that offend people. Though they make many Americans angry, it is these people that mark the difference between a free republic and a communist nation that censors its citizens.

Imus said some terrible things, but they have been scrutinized and criticized too much.

One careless phrase uttered on a radio show that lampoons American cultural icons and politicians constantly was all that it took. CBS fired a moneymaking asset to the company under pressure from advertisers and activist groups. This was not the first time Imus had been confronted with similar concerns; it seemed to be a culmination of recurring problems.

Radio is no stranger to racial slurs or programs that offend people. Stations that cater to an African-American audience often use the n-word without a second glance from the public. Rap and Hip-Hop are full of derogatory racial, sexual and social terms. Is Imus being singled out because he is white?

There is a double standard in the media that keeps white people away from jokes that comedians of "color" can use without restraint. If that statement was made by a radio host on Power 106 FM, for example, it would have went without incident.

Strange that one group of people can use a word or phrase without question, and another cannot. No one should hold Imus to a different standard because of his complexion. No one, including the former talk show host, is trying to insinuate that what he said was excusable. It wasn't, but he apologized. In the context of the show, it actually wasn't too abnormal.

Instead of focusing on one person with self-censorship issues, maybe the public should be looking elsewhere at problems that really matter.