Imus is another example of the degradation of talk radio that has been going on since Rush Limbaugh started this in 1980. Rush was another failed DJ that got lucky in 1980 when talk radio and the AM signal were in deep trouble. So they experimented with a show that had no boundaries as to the kind of racism and hate mongering that could be disseminated in talk radio. This was followed by the other right wing haters with a mix of the "shock jocks" like Howard Stern and Imus. The fairness doctrine was killed by the Reagan Administration, which was followed by the Telecommunications Act of 1996 signed by President Clinton. That is the short history of why hate and racist talk radio is the rule rather than the exception.
That is why I find it so ironic that the MSM is pounding away at this story like the vultures that they have become. The MSM nurtured, incubated, and profited from the hate radio they created and now they are shocked at the Imus remarks. This is reminiscent of the famous Casablanca line by the corrupt prefect of police when he closed down "Rick's" Café American." "I am shocked that there is gambling going on here" was the prefect's excuse for closing Rick's as the casino manager says, "your winnings inspector."
So, Imus is the sacrificial lamb for the whole stinking mess. And he is not the worst of these hate mongers. Rush commits a felony drug offense after he and his Republican right wing cohorts have been saying far worse racist remarks for more than 20 years. Where is the outrage! Instead of the shock jock words that Imus used for the Rutgers basketball team, these right-wingers have effectively created more hatred, racism, and divisiveness than Imus could ever have done with his irresponsible comment. The hateful comments like "femi-Nazi" and "Ellen Degenerate" by these people has never gotten the attention that the Imus statement got. Perhaps Imus is fair game to these MSM executives because he supports Democrats as well as Republicans. There was even a suggestion by some idiot commentator that Imus is a liberal. In my opinion, Imus would only be a liberal in a fascist group.
My suggestion to Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, and the other anti-defamation groups is that they extend their outrage to the other talk radio hosts who are doing far more damage than Imus. This would be a message to the advertisers that would really have an impact on talk radio and the dissemination of hatred that has so divided this country over the last 25 years. My suggestion to Imus is that he donates a few million dollars to a chaired professorship at Rutgers University for a media program directed at this problem if he is serious about his apology.
I would like to invite people to go to our web site at www.novamradio.com to sign a petition to the MSM about this issue and show your outrage. Enough is enough.