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Imus, Pink, and CommercialCensorship
By encinoman
The other, CBS shoe has dropped in the Don Imus &;nappy-haired ho&;s' situation. His departure will be unlamented by most except the media hacks who endure, ignore (or secretly enjoy) Imus&; stone age commentary as the price of publicizing themselves.
But the foot-in-mouth comment and hypocrisy backlash (including a famous Long Beach resident) bring up the issue of commercial censorship. Imus is obviously free under the first amendment to say whatever he wants, but the paid speech interests of General Electric, its subsidiary NBC and suddenly conscious-stricken sponsors like General Motors, Staples and Bigelow Tea trump Imus&; free speech.
The singer Pink is in a similar situation on the other side of the political spectrum. In an interview , she thanked Jimmy Kimmel as his was the only show willing to play her song &;Dear Mr. President&;, where she asks
What kind of father would take his own daughter&;s rights away?
And what kind of father might hate his own daughter if she were gay?
I can only imagine what the first lady has to say
You&;ve come a long way from whiskey and cocaine.
Kimmel works for a third media giant, Disney/ABC, home of the now-gay friendly fairytale wedding. But if Imus or Rosie O&;Donnell&;s experience is any indicator, Kimmel&;s free speech leash may be shortened by the cash-carrying hand of corporate censorship.
Final questions: Is trying to be funny a sufficient defense against giving Imus-like offense&;or do you actually have to be funny?
This entry was posted on April 12, 2007 at 6:59 pm and is filed under Imus, Music, Television.
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3 Responses to &;Imus, Pink, and CommercialCensorship&;
Hal Goldstein Says:
April 13, 2007 at 8:03 pm |
&;His departure will be unlamented by most&;
I will miss Imus a lot. I used to tape his shows, and watch little pieces when I had a chance. His interviews were often excellent and most interesting. They were conversational and his manner put politicians and media folks at ease &; and you could really get an idea what they were about. His often locker room humor was an acquired taste, but it was often truly hilarious even though as we have seen, politically incorrect and at times hurtful.
He has a great heart and got things done as evidenced by the fruit of his many causes.
I say all this independent of the specifics in the incident that cost his job. The issues raised by his firing are a whole different discussion.
Rosie Goes « Monday Morning Media Quarterback Says:
April 25, 2007 at 5:53 pm |
[...] When commerce and opinion collide, guess who wins? I&;m not a Rosie O&;Donnell fan, and I don&;t think I&;ve ever watched a whole [...]
Lou Dobbs, Ticking Time Bomb « Monday Morning Media Quarterback Says:
May 31, 2007 at 5:26 pm |
[...] which also pays his $10 million salary. Commercial speech is different than free speech, as both Pink and Don Imus have [...]
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