Who the f**k is Don Imus?
So it really irks me that radio shock jock Don Imus' inane comments about the Rutgers basketball team have stirred up a big media frenzy. I hate to add yet another stupid opinion to this situation, but since readership on this blog is so low, I figure it can't hurt.
There seems to be a lot of outrage over racial insensitivity here. This is a 66 year-old radio personality who said something stupid while trying to be funny. Was he wrong to say it? Does he deserve to be fired? Is he a bigot? I think these questions might be important to ask if we were discussing someone running for public office or someone who the community looks to set an example for the rest of us. But seeing as how this is an entertainer--a person who makes his living by spouting opinions to his audience--I don't think any of these questions really matter.
To me, this isn't a matter of right or wrong, just or injust--it's just business as usual. Imus wasn't fired because CBS passed moral judgment on him. If that were true, he probably would have been fired long ago. No, his show was cancelled because the advertisers pulled their money, rendering his show unprofitable. That's what happens when you offend too many people. That's just the way the entertainment biz works.
As for what he said....who cares? Whose life is affected by the revelation that Imus is a bigot? Everyone seems to have an opinion on whether or not people should be upset about what he said, given that such language is pervasive in today's pop culture. Again, I think it's beside the point. People get offended by what they get offended by. Why waste breath arguing about this?
I'll end on a pet peeve of mine. On his latest show, Bill Maher saw fit to lament the Imus situation as the latest example of the disintegration of our free speech. Puh-lease. Somehow, people still make this mistake of thinking that free speech means you can state your opinions and no one should fault you for your words because you have the right to say it. Argh! Perhaps the only thing that bothers me more is the frequent and incorrect use of the word "literally."
There seems to be a lot of outrage over racial insensitivity here. This is a 66 year-old radio personality who said something stupid while trying to be funny. Was he wrong to say it? Does he deserve to be fired? Is he a bigot? I think these questions might be important to ask if we were discussing someone running for public office or someone who the community looks to set an example for the rest of us. But seeing as how this is an entertainer--a person who makes his living by spouting opinions to his audience--I don't think any of these questions really matter.
To me, this isn't a matter of right or wrong, just or injust--it's just business as usual. Imus wasn't fired because CBS passed moral judgment on him. If that were true, he probably would have been fired long ago. No, his show was cancelled because the advertisers pulled their money, rendering his show unprofitable. That's what happens when you offend too many people. That's just the way the entertainment biz works.
As for what he said....who cares? Whose life is affected by the revelation that Imus is a bigot? Everyone seems to have an opinion on whether or not people should be upset about what he said, given that such language is pervasive in today's pop culture. Again, I think it's beside the point. People get offended by what they get offended by. Why waste breath arguing about this?
I'll end on a pet peeve of mine. On his latest show, Bill Maher saw fit to lament the Imus situation as the latest example of the disintegration of our free speech. Puh-lease. Somehow, people still make this mistake of thinking that free speech means you can state your opinions and no one should fault you for your words because you have the right to say it. Argh! Perhaps the only thing that bothers me more is the frequent and incorrect use of the word "literally."
