Overblown. The Imus situation and really bad analogies.

[mmonk]

First off, Imus being fired is not the end of free speech. It's people making a business decision over the uproar over a racist joke. There is no law banning racist jokes for instance. The analogy that this is what free speech is and is a guarantee in the constitution to make a person immune from any action by anyone in society is off course. Free speech was originally designed to make sure government can not stop you from saying what you dislike about that government and to seek redress from an injustice. CNN (Reliable Sources on today) just made a bad analogy in trying to link this with someting Stephanie Miller said about Ann Coulter and her adam's apple by playing an exerpt while Stephanie was on the air with them discussing with them the Imus flap. Apparently, there is going to be a lot of bad analogies while this is a subject.

[Little Wing]

1. It's also funny to see them try labal Imus as a 'shock-jock' when he's nothing of the sort

[mmonk]

2. I don't know his past

though plenty of times he makes outrageous comments. Randi said on her show he rose out of what was shock jock radio, but I certainly make no claims.

[MADem]

4. Uh, he is the granddaddy of shock jockers. He started out doing music and

that schtick crap almost exclusively. Over the years, his show has morphed into current events and then politics. But he is or should we say WAS, the Grampa of Shock Jocks.

[ellenfl]

3. there was a great discussion about imus on mtp today.

gwen ifill and eugene robinson were great! they made it clear that it was not a free speech issue, it was a hate speech issue . . . and castigated david brooks and timmy (and lots of pols) for appearing on imus' show and claiming to not know what his schtick was. from what i understand, the only good thing about appearing on imus' show is that he did not shout over his guests. i just wish ifill and robinson had included faux and friends in their reprimand. nonetheless, they were very good.

watch the rerun tonight if you missed it. i will re-watch it because my *&%^$&^ cable company blocked out part of the discussion with a weather advisory. why can't they post the alert without pre-empting the show? do the buzz thing, run the ticker and leave the program alone. heaven forbid they pre-empt a commercial.

ellen fl

[MADem]

5. I'd like to know why none of them brought THIS shit up

Get a load of THIS racist shit, that happened just last month. The audio clip is, well, incredible.

With scarcely a ripple of notice.

Warning, offensive content: http://colorado.mediamatters.org/items/200703230002

[ellenfl]

11. my point exactly. hopefully, limbaugh and the rest of his

hate-mongering tribe will be the next to be scrutinized. i am sure that's what gwen and eugene are hoping too.

ellen fl

[MADem]

13. I don't think it will happen. Offensive speech is only offensive if it comes out of the mouths of

people who have decided to OPPOSE the Iraq War, like Imus or Rosie O'Donnell.

If a Limbaugh or a Beck says something offensive, it's water off the duck's back.

Mark my words--that's the brutal truth of the matter. This was a corporate decision by sponsors who make a bundle off of the Pentagon. All of the major sponsors, from GM to P and G to Sprint-Nextel to Staples make billions in Defense and other government contracts. Their CEOs are heavy RNC donors. All you have to do is pull that thread and follow the money.

Anyone who thinks this is about truth, justice and decency are kidding themselves. It's about shutting up people, especially hot-button, loudmouthed, and sometimes offensive "assholes" who happen to draw a massive audience and who also happen to oppose the war.

The rightwing war cheerleaders will continue to make Barack the Magic Negro jokes, and everyone will ignore the "bitch-ho-booty" rap shit after an initial spate of "Oh, that's not good," and certainly scale back any coverage of the "outrage" of it all, and life will go on.

But a bigmouthed asshole who reached millions of angry,white, rightwing, Republican, male likely voters with a message that "Dick Cheney is a war criminal" and even MORE importantly with the week coming up, a "Gozales needs to be JAILED" message is well, (Phew!!!!) OFF the airwaves--just in time!

And we can't have Rosie and crew swaying the undecided "soccer" and "security" moms, can we? That's why they're going after her...See, it's not a Democratic v. GOP issue. It's a pro vs. anti Administration/Iraq War issue...at least, that's the conclusion I am reaching.

[mmonk]

7. Sorry to hear about the weather advisory.

I'm in the middle of one and am getting ready to get off the computer for awhile. Thanks for the information.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

6. "And thanks for playing

Really Bad Analogies" (as done on the Stephanie Miller show with game show music in the background).


Free speech has NEVER meant anyone could say anything they like. That's why we have libel laws, for heaven's sake! And Stephanie Miller is a comedian....her teasing and wisecracks are satire at the worst. Thinking back to the Vaughn Meader records of the Kennedy family--she is closer to what was on "The First Family" than anything that Imus said.

[mmonk]

9. Yeah.

That went through my head as I typed the title of the OP.

[TahitiNut]

8. "Victim Humor" is not humor ... and it's no funnier than ...

... the 'amusement' of a Klansman at a lynching. People who laugh at lynchings and executions don't demonstrate 'humor' - they demonstrate a pathology. Pandering to such pathologies may yield some commercial benefit ... but that NEVER makes it right.

[mmonk]

10. So true.

No real humor in that "humor".

[ellacott]

12. The media is looking for an out

They refuse to police themselves.

Whenever anyone tries to use the free speech excuse I ask them if they had a female AA boss and came to work and called her a nappy headed ** how long do they think they would keep their job?