UPDATE 1/3/11: On January 3, Schlessinger ended her nationally syndicated radio show and moved to Sirius XM satellite radio.
UPDATE 8/17/10: In a major victory for Media Matters and progressives everywhere, Dr. Laura Schlessinger announced that she was ending her nationally syndicated radio show at the end of the year. At its peak, The Dr. Laura Program was the second highest-rated radio show after The Rush Limbaugh Show, and was heard on more than 450 radio stations.
On August 10, 2010, Dr. Laura Schlessinger launched into a racially-charged rant on her nationally syndicated radio show, using the n-word 11 times and berating an African American caller who complained about her white husband tolerating racist remarks from his friends.
Schlessinger's comments might have gone unnoticed, particularly after she removed the segment from her website's archives, but Media Matters posted the recording and transcript and spread the word.
We assembled a coalition of progressive groups -- including GLAAD, the Women's Media Center, and UNITY Journalists of Color -- and released a joint statement stating that “we will hold [Dr. Laura's] advertisers accountable and find out exactly where they stand.”
We asked supporters to sign a letter and weigh in on the Facebook group “Dr. Laura does not speak for me.”
Following the effort, Motel 6 announced that it had ended its advertising relationship with Dr. Laura.
In an extended segment on August 10, radio host Dr. Laura Schlessinger responded to an African-American caller upset about racism by engaging in a long, racially insensitive rant that included 11 uses of the N-word.
In the nearly seven-minute-long rant, Schlessinger attacks the NAACP, says that claims of racism are “hypersensitivity” bred by “black activists” who want “power,” and tells her caller that she has “a chip on [her] shoulder” and advises, “if you're that hypersensitive about color and don”t have a sense of humor, don't marry outside your race."
“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,” Schlessinger says as she ends her breathtaking screed.
These kinds of inflammatory comments are nothing new -- Dr. Laura has a pattern of making insensitive attacks, especially against gays and lesbians. Her racial rant, however, is over the top. Companies that advertise on Schlessinger's show are supporting and perpetuating her extreme, incendiary racial views.
You can help stand up to this unacceptable racial rhetoric by asking major sponsors of Dr. Laura's show to pledge to stop funding and supporting her.
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[Your Name]
This campaign is now closed.