Media Matters joins UNITY Journalists of Color, GLAAD, and WMC in holding Dr. Laura's advertisers accountable

Washington, D.C. -- Today, Media Matters for America joined Unity Journalists of Color, the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), and the Women's Media Center in releasing the following statement in response to Dr. Laura Schlessinger's racially charged rant:

On August 10, Dr. Laura Schlessinger launched into a racially charged rant on her radio show, during which she repeated an offensive racial slur 11 times in six minutes.  While she attempted to apologize for using the epithet, the racist diatribe on Tuesday's show extends far beyond the use of a single word. 

This incident provided listeners a window into Dr. Laura's true beliefs about race in America. She said,  "I really thought that once we had a black president, the attempt to demonize whites hating blacks would stop, but it seems to have grown, and I don't get it." She accused an African-American caller who questioned her use of racial epithets of having "too much sensitivity" and "not enough sense of humor." Schlessinger told that same caller, "Don't take things out of context. Don't double N -- NAACP me."

It's clear the airwaves are no place for Dr. Laura's hate speech.  By choosing to sponsor her, Dr. Laura's advertisers are not only funding her offensive radio show, but are implicitly endorsing its content.  This week, we will hold these advertisers accountable and find out exactly where they stand.

UNITY Journalists of Color represents the following Member Associations: National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ), National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ), Asian-American Journalist Association (AAJA), Native American Journalist Association (NAJA).