A Two Week Suspension

After a media firestorm, CBS and NBC have suspended Don Imus for two weeks for his remarks concerning the recent NCAA women's basketball championship. Imus referred to the Rutgers women as "nappy-headed hos", while calling the Tennessee team "cute." Much attention has been focused on the racist aspect of the remark, but just as offensive and dismissive is the gender aspect of the remarks.

So, should Imus be suspended? Or, as some people have called for, fired? Frankly, I think that's the wrong response. Don Imus is what he is; these remarks are neither unusual for me nor particularly that unique in the medium of talk radio. Firing or suspending Imus would not change the fact that there is evidently a market out there for racist, sexist remarks. His audience would likely just gripe about political correctness and how you can't say anything anymore.

That's not to say I believe what Imus said should be ignored, but rather that firing Imus would just be a different way of ignoring the issue, of sweeping it under the rug and pretending that it's not really there. It's a cliche that offensive speech should be attacked with more speech, but that's generally what I believe, nonetheless. Don't treat Imus as the problem per se, but rather a symption, a manifestation of a deeper problem. Ask his advertisers if that's really their target market. Don't listen to his show. Talk about the dehumanizing nature of the remarks, the separation of the Rutgers women into the other, not like us. Speak out about the objectification of the Tennessee women, those competitive athletes who worked hard to win a championship, only to be dismissed as "cute" by Imus and his audience.

By all means, question why Don Imus has been given such a large megaphone in our culture, but don't pretend that taking his megaphone away does much to change the culture, and it's the culture that celebrates him that is the problem.  As long as the audience exists, there will be someone like Don Imus to take advantage of it. You change the audience one person at a time, not by getting rid of the spokesman, but by treating the spokesman as the vulgar idiot that he is, not listened to by decent people.

The same should be applied generally to talk radio. It's a toxic wasteland; don't go there expecting anything different.