MSNBC's Imus Double Standard

This is from Media Matters . Please read it while I gather my thoughts for a post on how I feel about Racism.

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."