MSNBC's Imus Double Standard
Network Quickly Fired Michael Savage for Homophobic Rant in 2003, Imus Goes Unpunished Despite Long History of Inflammatory Language
Washington, DC - Today, Media
Matters for America called on members of the media to
question MSNBC's apparent double standard - quickly firing host
Michael Savage for anti-gay hate speech in 2003 while failing to punish Don
Imus for years of inflammatory commentary.
"When Michael Savage made anti-gay remarks on MSNBC, the network took swift action with his firing. They even characterized the decision as an 'easy one,' " said Jamison Foser, Managing Director of Media Matters. "The media should be asking MSNBC to explain their tentative response to Imus' remarks. If Savage's outburst led to an 'easy' decision, we'd love to know why reaching a decision on Imus has been so difficult."
The progressive media watchdog organization also called on MSNBC to stop treating Imus' recent racist comments as an isolated incident and acknowledge his long history of bigoted commentary.
"It would be disingenuous for MSNBC or members of the media as a whole to discuss the controversy surrounding Don Imus' recent remarks without noting his long history of racist, sexist, homophobic commentary," Foser said.
On the April 4 edition of MSNBC's Imus in the Morning, Imus referred to the Rutgers University women's basketball team, which is comprised of eight African-American and two white players, as "nappy-headed hos" immediately after the show's executive producer, Bernard McGuirk, called the team "hard-core hos." Later, former Imus sports announcer Sid Rosenberg, who was filling in for sportscaster Chris Carlin, said: "The more I look at Rutgers, they look exactly like the [National Basketball Association's] Toronto Raptors."
On Monday, July 7, 2003, MSNBC fired Savage for comments he made on a weekend TV show referring to an unidentified caller as a "sodomite" and saying the caller should "get AIDS and die."
Though Imus continued to apologize this morning, the comments are just the latest in a long history of racist, sexist, and homophobic slurs made on the show by Imus, his guests, and regular contributors. Below are several examples of remarks made by Imus and others on his program documented by Media Matters over the past few months:
Imus
called women's basketball team "nappy-headed hos"
http://mediamatters.org/items/200704040011
Wednesday, April
4, 2007
On the April 4 edition of MSNBC's Imus in the Morning, host Don Imus referred to the Rutgers University women's basketball team, which is comprised of eight African-American and two white players, as "nappy-headed hos" immediately after the show's executive producer, Bernard McGuirk, called the team "hard-core hos." Later, former Imus sports announcer Sid Rosenberg, who was filling in for sportscaster Chris Carlin, said: "The more I look at Rutgers, they look exactly like the [National Basketball Association's] Toronto Raptors."
He's
back? Rosenberg
alluded to previous racially insensitive remarks that first got him fired from
Imus
http://mediamatters.org/items/200703280001
Wednesday, March
28, 2007
On the March 27 edition of MSNBC's Imus in the Morning, former Imus sports announcer Sid Rosenberg appeared on the program and referenced a story in the New York Daily News headlined "Serena Shocked by Racist Heckler." Rosenberg commented, "I was on an airplane," suggesting that he could not have been the one heckling professional tennis player Serena Williams.
Imus'
McGuirk on "young colored fellah" Obama "pretty much deckin'
the old bag from New York"
http://mediamatters.org/items/200703160007
Friday, March 16,
2007
On the March 16 edition of MSNBC's Imus in the Morning, executive producer Bernard McGuirk, performing as his character "Cardinal Egan," said that "the whole nation is talking about" reports of a "young colored fellah pretty much deckin' the old bag from New York and takin' away some of her money." McGuirk continued: "I'm speaking, of course, about [Sens.] Barack Obama [D-IL] and Hillary Clinton [D-NY]."
On
Imus, McGuirk said that "bitch" Clinton will "have cornrows and gold
teeth"
http://mediamatters.org/items/200703070009
Wednesday, March
7, 2007
On the March 6 edition of MSNBC's Imus in the Morning, executive producer Bernard McGuirk said that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) was "trying to sound black in front of a black audience" when she gave a speech on March 4 in Selma, Alabama, to commemorate the 1965 "Bloody Sunday" civil rights march. McGuirk added that Clinton "will have cornrows and gold teeth before this fight with [Sen. Barack] Obama [D-IL] is over." Earlier in the program, in reference to Clinton's speech, McGuirk had said, "Bitch is gonna be wearing cornrows." McGuirk also said that Clinton will be "giving Crips signs during speeches." The Crips are a Los Angeles-based street gang.
Imus:
"[I]t was Bernard who said, 'Besa mi culo' ... not me"
http://mediamatters.org/items/200702090002
Thursday, February
8, 2007
On the February 8 edition of MSNBC's Imus in the Morning, during a discussion with Newsweek magazine chief political correspondent Howard Fineman, host Don Imus falsely claimed that "it was [executive producer] Bernard [McGuirk] who said, 'Besa mi culo ... Gordo, [to New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson] not me." The phrase loosely translates to "kiss my ass, fat one," in Spanish. As Media Matters for America noted at the time, however, Imus echoed McGuirk -- labeled by Media Matters as "unidentified" -- saying "besa mi culo" at least twice himself on the February 1 edition of Imus. Richardson's mother is Mexican.
Imus
touted Giuliani as willing to "drop [a nuclear weapon] on Mecca"
http://mediamatters.org/items/200702070014
Wednesday,
February 7, 2007
On the February 6 edition of MSNBC's Imus in the Morning, host Don Imus claimed that "if we're gonna be fighting these terrorists through the lives of [8-year-old son] Wyatt Imus' children," then "it might be good to start with somebody who is willing to take three big ones and drop one on Mecca, one on Jeddah, and one on Saudi -- one on Riyadh," all cities in Saudi Arabia. Imus made the point in response to co-host Charles McCord, who claimed that Imus had "Leon Klinghoffered John McCain ... in favor of Rudolph Giuliani" during a private conversation they had the previous evening. Imus has previously claimed that he is voting for Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) in 2008.
Imus
producer referred to Obama's "Jew-hating name"
http://mediamatters.org/items/200702020009
Friday, February
2, 2007
On the February 2 edition of MSNBC's Imus in the Morning, the show's executive producer, Bernard McGuirk, claimed that Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) has "a Jew-hating name." The remark followed a flurry of other negative comments from host Don Imus, McGuirk, and co-host Charles McCord about the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate, calling Obama a "creep," "a wind-watching wimp," and "a flip-flopping weasel."
Imus sat by as
McCain said Nelson resigned RNC over Ford ad
http://mediamatters.org/items/200701040008
Thursday,
January 4, 2007
Summary: Don Imus didn't challenge John McCain's claim that his 2008 presidential campaign manager, Terry Nelson, while serving as head of the independent expenditure unit of the Republican National Committee, "realized it was a mistake" to sign off on an ad attacking Tennessee Democratic Senate candidate Harold Ford Jr. and that Nelson subsequently "resigned from the group of people who approved of it." In fact, Nelson has publicly defended the ad, and there is no apparent evidence that Nelson "resigned" from his RNC position in protest over the ad.
MSNBC's
Imus referred to "Jewish management" of CBS Radio as
"money-grubbing bastards"
http://mediamatters.org/items/200612080006
Friday, December
8, 2006
As the Forward newspaper reported in a December 8 online article, Don Imus referred to the "Jewish management" of CBS Radio as "money-grubbing bastards" on the November 30 broadcast of MSNBC's Imus in the Morning. Imus was discussing a past conflict with his bosses about hosting the musical group the Blind Boys of Alabama. Executive producer Bernard McGuirk asked, "Even if you wear a beanie, how can you not love the Blind Boys?" Imus continued, "I said, 'They're handicapped, they're black, and they're blind. How do we lose here?' And then a light bulb just went off over [the managers'] scummy little heads." CBS Radio owns WFAN, the New York station that is the flagship for Imus' radio show.
NBC's Mitchell
hosted segment that falsely asserted Kerry "refus[ed] to apologize"
for "botched joke," even while mentioning Kerry's appearance on Imus in which he did
http://mediamatters.org/items/200611010011
Wednesday,
November 1, 2006
During the 11 a.m. ET hour of the November 1 edition of MSNBC News Live, NBC News chief foreign affairs correspondent Andrea Mitchell aired a portion of comments made by Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) on that day's edition of Imus in the Morning, but left out the part in which he said he was "sorry."
Buchanan book
featured on Today: For
nation to "survive[ ]," U.S. must keep "Americans of
European descent" from becoming "minority"
http://mediamatters.org/items/200608230002
Tuesday,
August 22, 2006
Summary: On NBC's Today, David Gregory provided Pat Buchanan a forum to discuss Buchanan's newly released book, which includes a claim that the United States must keep "Americans of European descent" from becoming the "minority" in order to "survive[]."
Echoing producer,
Imus declared: "We thought" man who confessed to killing Ramsey
"was Ned Lamont," added: "[W]e're supporting Lieberman, if
you did not know that"
http://mediamatters.org/items/200608180005
Friday,
August 18, 2006
Summary: On MSNBC's Imus in the Morning, Don Imus echoed his executive producer Bernard McGuirk's claim that John Mark Karr, the man who reportedly confessed to killing JonBenet Ramsey, "looks like Ned Lamont."
Imus producer on man who admitted killing
Ramsey: "He looks like Ned Lamont, actually. Is that who you want
representing you, Connecticut?"
http://mediamatters.org/items/200608170003
Thursday,
August 17, 2006
On the August 17 edition of MSNBC's Imus in the Morning, executive producer Bernard McGuirk said that John Mark Karr, the man who reportedly admitted to killing 6-year-old beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey in 1996, "looks like Ned Lamont, actually." McGuirk then asked: "Is that who you want representing you, Connecticut?"
MSNBC's Imus:
"Maybe Dennis Kucinich could" replace al-Zarqawi
http://mediamatters.org/items/200606090012
Friday,
June 9, 2006
Summary: On MSNBC's Imus in the Morning, host Don Imus suggested "[Rep.] Dennis Kucinich [D-OH] could" replace Abu Musab al-Zarqawi as leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq.
Matthews cited
Savage's "Bareback Mounting"
characterization of Brokeback Mountain;
Imus cited producer's "Fudgepack Mountain"
remark
http://mediamatters.org/items/200601200002
Thursday,
January 19, 2006
Summary: Appearing on MSNBC's Imus in the Morning, Chris Matthews quoted "the wonderful Michael Savage" referring to award-winning film Brokeback Mountain as "Bareback Mounting."
Imus anchor on Palestinians: "Stinking
animals. They ought to drop the bomb right there, kill 'em all right now"
http://mediamatters.org/items/200411190009
Friday,
November 19, 2004
MSNBC's Imus in the Morning offered derisive, racist commentary about Palestinians during the November 12 funeral of deceased Palestinian Authority leader Yasser Arafat. Regular Imus guest and sports anchor Sid Rosenberg referred to Palestinians as "stinking animals" and suggested: "They ought to drop the bomb right there, kill 'em all right now." On November 19, the program broadcast a radio segment featuring a guest -- parodying General George S. Patton, Jr. -- who said that the recent report of a U.S. Marine shooting an unarmed, injured Iraqi insurgent provided the enemy "with another cozy 'al Jazeera moment' for the Muslim masses to respond to with their routine pack-of-rabid-sheep mentality." The guest also referred to a deceased Iraqi insurgent as "a booby-trapped raghead cadaver."
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Doesn't this just prove that MSNBC is more willing to fire a hard core conservative for controversial remarks than fire a crazy independent like Imus? You definetely can't say that Imus is a conservative. He makes fun of people on both sides and openly supported John Kerry in 2004. The only bias here is that MSNBC was very eager to fire a controversial conservative, but a crazy independent like Imus is allowed to stay on. I'm not sure what Media Matters is trying to prove here.
Imus IS a Republican, he has bragged many times how he and his wife are the only Republicans on the upper West Side of Manhatten! Have you ever, ever heard him smear a Republican like he does Democrats such as the Clintons or, just recently Ned Lamont? Has he ever attaacked the sociopath Bush and his family as he has countless times, the Clintons? I guess Kerry paid him off, Imus sneeringly endorsed him for prez only to stab him in the back constantly.
Yes, he smears Republicans all the time. He's an equal opportunity offender. He calls Dick Cheney names all the time. He's always admitted that his political ideology lies slightly left. Try being a little bit objective and go to different web sites other than this one. You only get a one sided view from this web site. You shouldn't believe everything they feed you. It's not good to be a Kool-Aide drinker.
While I don't agree with RINO Hunter's conclusion, I have to ask the question, "Is MMFA back-handedly defending Savage?"
I thought he was the bad guy. Is this a case of trying to put the rotten eye back in because the other offended you and you decided not to pluck it out? Its vision is still flawed. Anything that gets Savage off the air should be lauded -- should Imus follow suit, yes but I'll take my victories where I can get them. And of the two Savage is greater offender.
First off, Never forget Imus and his goons actively supported the invasion of Iraq. He is up to his scrawny neck in American and Iraqi (yes, they're human too) blood.
Your list is breathtaking! And you haven't even begun to cover the daily insults to Democrats that I've listened to Imus spew over the years, with impotent rage. I understand, you can't, it's impossible to keep up with him. The warmonger Imus, along with his slavering, fawning yes-men, are nothing but political assassins for the murderous right-wing Republican establishlment. Also Imus IS the face of NBC, his job is to promote its agenda and its sorry gaggle of over-paid, hyped up, but still, nothing but essentially, news readers hired to do the Republicans and Jack Welch's bidding. Did you catch Kate O'Beirne ever so comfortable and at ease, sarcastic smearing of Nancy Pelosi yesterday on Meet The Press? Whilst wimpy Judy Woodruff sat TOTALLY silent as always, and of course, shill Russert smirking all the while.
Imus tries to make himself indespensible in so many ways, by promoting authors of not only forgettable books, but his so-called charities, always hitting people up for money. God, what a way to run a country! Getting charity from a war monger!
When Imus isn't shaking down people for cash, he is promoting himself and his horrible wife, or he is kissing the Joe Lieberman's of this world's ass. The vicious way he bashed Ned Lamont was unforgivable and never forget, he and the slimy right-wing operatives NBC calls jounalists, are worse than any propaganda operation the Nazis ran in the Third Reich. God, what groveling cuckholds Gregory, Matthews, Scarborough, Mitchell, O'Donnell and Carlson, Russert, Leno and the castrated men who kneel before Imus are! Can't anyone see he is just a bagman to promote NBC - MSNBC? Thank God for the internet, I only watch TV to re-confirm how craven they all are and: LISTEN UP DEMOCRATS, BOYCOTT MSNBC AND FOX !! Grow a spine finally, and get some dignity and self-respect and walk out on the MSNBC and FOX fascists!
Hey Kontessa. Obviously you do not nor have you ever listened to Imus. He puts down everyone not just your buddies Bill and Hillary. You are truly a hateful, ignorant, uninformed liberal. You make me feel ashamed to call myself a Democrat.
Your post was absolutely ridiculous and hateful. You need to get a clue. Don Imus is no more of a Republican hack than Howard Stern is. Imus is a shock jock who slams those on both sides of the aisle. He supported John Kerry in 2004 and once referered to Rush Limbaugh as a "pill popping loser." He makes fun of Cheney, Bush, and other Republicans on a regular basis. You make yourself look like some kind of a socialist when you claim that Imus is a conservative.
This is in regard to the Don Imus 2do. How can anyone make such an uproar over what he said?? Have you heard the words to the songs our young men and women are listening to????? Where is the outrage at the words used for our young women?? They are much worse than "nappy headed ho's". The use of the words - b-tch, sl--, wh-r-, c--t..... are widely and constantly used in the music. Where are the mothers to stand up for their daughters NOT to be called these names in the music??? Where are the fathers to stand up for their daughters NOT to be portrayed in this way by men who gain nority and financial gain by rapping degrading and humiliating phrases about and to our young women. Where is the outrage over the words that describe to young men how to degrade, humiliate and abuse our young women????? I want to know why Al Sharpton is NOT standing up to these so called musicians and showing his outrage over the way our young women are being treated and portrayed. In no way am I saying that what Don Imus said is right, but I am saying that you can not put down one man for one sentence when our young men are portraying our young women in worse degrading portraits in song after song, in verse after verse, hour after hour, day after day. So before you go after one man, go after what has been going on and is glorified that is more degrading to our young people.
Hey Media Matters,
Instead of fuming about Imus, how about a piece looking back at all the offensive, inflammatory remarks made by other radio hosts that were ignored by the mainstream media? Imus is small change compared to Limbaugh and Savage and Hannity, yet they can say almost anything without so much as a peep from anyone except Media Matters. You've covered the most heinous examples in the past. How about a retrospective?