WCBS/2 firing of reporter is a -- shame

[cal04]

What the -- is your problem, WCBS/2?
It's been a week now since Arthur Chi'en was yanked off television for saying a dirty word.George W. Bush was caught on an open microphone during the 2000 campaign calling a veteran newsman a "major -- from The New York Times." Didn't seem to hurt Bush much with the voters. They almost elected him leader of the free world.And Dick Cheney, now a heartbeat away, was heard last summer telling a senior Democrat on the Senate floor, "Go -- yourself." If anything, the salty talk boosted Cheney's image, making him seem a little more human. But here was Chi'en, 36, working the early-morning shift on Thursday of last week. At 6:03 a.m., he was doing a stand-up outside the 57th Street subway stop.

As he delivered his live report, a couple of goofballs from an obscure satellite-radio show popped up behind to heckle him.They were waving a silly poster, flashing a vulgar gesture and muttering the very same word the reporter got in trouble for.Believing his microphone was no longer open, Chi'en spun around and indignantly insisted that the dimwits cease. "What the -- is your problem, man?" he demanded in a tone generations of put-upon New Yorkers have known as gruff.The word got on the air, which obviously wasn't a good thing. It isn't clear how many viewers - if any - complained. But Chi'en was fired by nightfall.Let me say before we go any further: I sure hope Newsday doesn't institute one of these zero-tolerance policies. The newsroom would go suddenly empty, and I am all but certain I would not be among those invited to remain.

So are TV viewers that easily shaken? Are federal regulators that eager to pounce? A single syllable can blow up a promising career?With Republicans running Washington and family-values activists having discovered e-mail, the politics of vulgarity are obviously dicey these days. And the FCC has been on a rampage, fining CBS $550,000 each for Bono's exuberant expletive at a televised awards show and Janet Jackson's breast-flashing "wardrobe malfunction" at the Super Bowl.

A top staffer at FCC headquarters in Washington said yesterday that he hadn't heard of any formal complaints over Chi'en's colorful live shot, although he cautioned: With 10,000 e-mails a day coming in, it takes a while to comb through all of them.But Chi'en probably shouldn't get his hopes up about returning to Channel 2. His bosses weren't bending at all last night.Fred Reynolds, president and CEO of the Viacom Television Stations Group, said he's a big fan of his now-ex employee. But he had no choice except to fire him."I think Arthur is a great reporter," Reynolds said. "I am very fond of him. He works very hard. He knows New York.... But he made a huge mistake, one of the most egregious mistakes I've ever seen."

Ellis Henican
http://www.nynewsday.com/news/local/newyork/ny-nyhen274...