Don Imus Off-Air

June 2008

I Was Being Sarcastic, Not Racist: Imus

newser | Associated Press | Jun 24, 08 7:00 AM CDT

Don Imus was just making a “sarcastic point” when he asked “what color” oft-arrested cornerback Adam “Pacman” Jones is, he said on his show today. When informed that Jones was black, Imus replied, “There you go. Now we know.” The rejoinder sparked complaints against the reformed shock jock, but Imus says he was sympathizing with Jones. “I meant that he was being picked on because he's black,” Imus said. More »
Imus Reinserts Foot in Mouth

newser | Politico | Jun 23, 08 12:26 PM CDT

Don Imus may have stepped in it again, Politico reports. While bantering on this morning's show about Adam "Pacman" Jones, who’s been arrested six times in his NFL career, the scandal-shadowed shock jock asked, “What color is he?” A sidekick dutifully informed him that Jones is African-American. “Well, there you go,” Imus said. “Now we know.” More »

February 2008

Imus Bounces Back After Scandal

newser | New York Times | Feb 3, 08 6:05 AM CST

The once-axed radio host Don Imus has re-emerged on the airwaves largely unscathed by his racially and sexually disparaging remarks about Rutgers' female hoop stars, the New York Times reports. Both advertisers and call-in guests—including John Kerry, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Rudy Giuliani, John McCain and Mike Huckabee—have nearly tripped over one another to return to his program since it was resurrected in December. More »

December 2007

Muslims See Hypocrisy on Hate Speech

newser | Christian Science Monitor | Dec 4, 07 6:20 PM CST

After radio host Michael Savage took potshots at Islam, the relatively muted response has left Muslim Americans with a question: Where's the outrage? A handful of advertisers have pulled out, but the reaction is nowhere near as strong as it was, say, when Don Imus made an anti-black slur, the Christian Science Monitor notes. Savage is not alone voicing anti-Muslim sentiments, and many see a double standard at play. More »
Contrite Imus Returns to Air

newser | Associated Press | Dec 3, 07 8:28 AM CST

Don Imus was broadcasting again this morning, eight months after being fired for calling the Rutgers women’s basketball team you-know-whats. His new cast sports two black comedians, and while Imus promised not to joke about racism, other than that “not much has changed,” he said. “Dick Cheney is still a war criminal, Hillary Clinton is still Satan, and I'm back on the radio.” The guest roster included Imus vets John McCain and Chris Dodd. More »

November 2007

Imus Will Return to Airwaves

newser | New York Post | Nov 1, 07 5:23 PM CDT

Don Imus, the radio host taken off the air in April after referring to the Rutgers women's basketball team as "nappy-headed hos," will be back on the air Dec. 3 on a New York radio station. The New York Post reports Imus has signed a five-year deal that will net him as much as $8 million annually. More »

October 2007

Is National Discourse Too Darn Crass?

newser | Christian Science Monitor | Oct 21, 07 6:59 PM CDT

Shock jock Don Imus is coming back, but humbled; Ann Coulter got press for anti-Semitism, but lost support; could this be a backlash against crass punditry? Hardly, say the experts, but some see rays of hope. "We're caught right now between extreme political correctness on one end and crude, hateful incivility on the other," says a journalism teacher. "We need moderation—thoughtful behavior and expression." More »
The I-Man Cometh

newser | Washington Post | Oct 6, 07 12:39 PM CDT

Don Imus is on the comeback trail. Six months after a racially insensitive quip got him fired, Imus is close to a deal that would give him a nationally syndicated radio show on major New York station WABC, the Washington Post reports. Barring a last-minute snag, Citadel Broadcasting, owner of 243 stations, would pay Imus millions for a December return. More »

August 2007

Rutgers Player Sues Imus Over Insults

newser | ABC News | Aug 15, 07 7:16 AM CDT

One of the Rutgers basketball players radio host Don Imus referred to as "nappy-headed hos" is suing the shock jock for libel, slander, defamation, and violation of her civil rights, among other charges. Kia Vaughn, 20, the Scarlet Knights' star center, is seeking unspecified monetary damages from the 67-year-old radio personality and affiliated companies including NBC, CBS, and Viacom. More »
Imus Gets $20M, Maybe a Comeback

newser | Associated Press | Aug 14, 07 3:18 PM CDT

Shock Jock Don Imus may be returning to the airwaves, after a short vacation precipitated by a bit too much shock. Imus is reportedly in talks with WABC in what looks like a an embryonic attempt to launch a comeback, only four months after CBS fired him for calling the Rutgers womens basketball team "nappy-headed hos." More »

May 2007

Boston Show Tries Out Imus Sidekick

newser | Boston Globe | May 18, 07 8:56 PM CDT

Don Imus's old sidekick Bernard McGuirk will audition live next week to be the co-host of "Finneran's Forum," a morning political talk show on Boston's WRKO. McGuirk set off last month's controversy by calling the Rutgers womens' basketball team "hard-core hos." But his potential future co-host, Tom Finneran, is confident there won't be a reprise. More »
XM Fans Irate at Shock Jock Suspension

newser | Los Angeles Times | May 17, 07 4:01 PM CDT

Fans of "The Opie & Anthony Show" cancelled their satellite radio subscriptions by the hundreds after XM slapped the shock-jock duo with a 30-day suspension earlier this week. Subscribers are accusing the station—which promises uncensored content—of pandering to the FCC so they won't block a pending merger with Sirius. More »
Imus Will Sue CBS for $40 Mil Left on Contract

newser | CNN | May 2, 07 5:00 PM CDT

Don Imus is off the airwaves but not finished fighting: He's hired First Amendment attorney Martin Garbus to help him sue CBS. Sources tell Fortune that Imus's five-year, $50 million contract guaranteed him a warning before his routinely foul mouth got him fired; without it, he may be owed the $40 mil left on the deal. More »

April 2007

Kerry Says Imus Shouldn't Have Been Fired

newser | NY1 | Apr 18, 07 10:28 AM CDT

John Kerry defended Don Imus in a TV interview last night, saying CBS should have suspended the shock jock, not fired him. The network should have waited to make its move, he suggested, until after Imus met with the Rutgers team. "To me it was in the hands of the young women," the senator said. More »
Democratic Soapbox Disappears With Imus

newser | Los Angeles Times | Apr 13, 07 12:26 PM CDT

The cancellation of the Don Imus' show creates a vacuum for Democratic pols who've used it to reach the white, politically independent men that were Imus's prime audience, the LA Times reports. Democratic candidates like Joe Lieberman, Chris Dodd, John Kerry, and Harold E. Ford were among those who availed themselves of Imus' s sympathetic ear. More »
N.J. Governor Injured in Car Crash

newser | Star-Ledger | Apr 13, 07 9:54 AM CDT

New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine was critically injured last night after a pickup truck struck his motorcade. "He's in serious shape, but he's alive and going to survive," says state senate president Richard Codey, acting governor until Corzine can resume his duties—which could be weeks. Cops are still looking for the driver responsible for the crash, who took off. More »
Fired Imus Meets Players

newser | CNN | Apr 13, 07 9:17 AM CDT

Don Imus sat down with the Rutgers women’s basketball team last night, hours after he became a former radio star for calling them “nappy-headed hos.” The meeting, which included their coaches and parents, took place at the New Jersey governor’s mansion, whose proprietor, Jon Corzine, was en route when he was seriously injured in a car crash. More »
CBS Pulls the Plug on Imus

newser | CBS | Apr 12, 07 5:41 PM CDT

CBS has fired Don Imus, in a surprise move a week after the jockey called the Rutgers womens' basketball team "nappy headed hos," provoking a war of words over race in America. CBS Prez Les Moonves finally announced the decision today, citing the feelings of "young women of color trying to make their way in this society." More »
MSNBC DROPS IMUS

newser | MSNBC | Apr 11, 07 6:45 PM CDT

MSNBC dropped toxic shock jock Don Imus this afternoon, after a day in which companies, pols, and network execs couldn't distance themselves from the host fast enough. The announcement came after General Motors and Sprint Nextel, the show's two biggest advertisers, pulled their sponsorship, and prez contender Barack Obama, intiially reticent on the issue, recommended firing. More »
Advertisers Dump Imus

newser | Wall Street Journal | Apr 11, 07 12:01 PM CDT

Piling on to the mounting outrage against Don Imus, three advertisers have pulled their support from the CBS radio show or its simulcast MSNBC TV program. The three include marketing heavyweight Procter & Gamble, Staples and Bigelow Tea, the Wall Street Journal reports. More »