IMUS IN THE MORNING

'''Imus in the Morning''' was a comedy, news, and political radio program the United States, hosted by radio personality Don Imus. The show originated on 66 WNBC-AM in New York City in 1979. In October, 1988 the show moved to WFAN when that station took over the 660 band when WNBC went off the air. It was later syndicated to 60 other stations across the country by Westwood One, a division of CBS Radio, airing weekdays from 5:30 to 10 am Eastern time. In its later years, the first three-and-a-half hours were simulcast on the cable television network MSNBC, beginning September 3, 1996.
The show had been broadcast almost every weekday morning for 25 years on radio and 11 years on MSNBC when it was canceled on April 12, 2007, due to a furor arising from an on-air comment made by Imus about the Rutgers University women's basketball team on his April 4 broadcast. The remark, criticized as a racial and gender slur, resulted in the program's cancellation the following week.

Contents

History

Influence and demographics

Cast members

Controversies

Cancellation

Rutgers basketball remarks

MSNBC cancellation

CBS Radio cancellation

Reaction to the cancellation

Future possibilities

Quotations

References

External links

History

''Imus in the Morning'' began in 1971 on WNBC-AM in New York, the flagship station of the old NBC Radio Network. After being fired in August 1977 and relocating to Cleveland, NBC brought Imus back to New York. On September 3, 1979, Imus started off his first program back in New York with his old character/voice/bit, "The Reverend Billy Sol Hargis". The show regularly parodied songs and voices, satirizing national and local events and persons. WNBC signed off in 1988, and WFAN, previously on 1050 AM, moved to WNBC's old frequency. WFAN decided to retain Imus, replacing its original morning drive-time show hosted by Greg Gumbel.
Initially limited to the broadcast range of WFAN in the Tri-State Region, the show's radio audience and influence expanded considerably once Westwood One began syndicating it in 1993.
For many years the program was based at WFAN's studios in Astoria, Queens, New York, but in 2005 the program moved to a special ''Imus in the Morning'' set at MSNBC's studios in Secaucus, New Jersey, although certain cast members remained at the WFAN studios using a split-screen format. When at the Imus Ranch, Don Imus would broadcast the show from Ribera, New Mexico, while the rest of the cast remained in New York and New Jersey.

Influence and demographics

Originally considered a shock jock, Imus turned his show more towards politics and news and gained public influence as a result. During the 1990s, ''Imus in the Morning'' became increasingly important as a useful, non-traditional platform for politicians to express their views and gain exposure. Former U.S. Sen. Al D'Amato (R-N.Y.) was one of the first officeholders to ingratiate himself with "The I-man", as Imus was frequently called by cast and guests. The show's many guests included prominent politicians such as Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Mitt Romney, John McCain, John Kerry, Vice President Dick Cheney, J.D. Hayworth and Harold Ford, Jr., as well as reporters and columnists from ''Newsweek'', NBC, MSNBC, and other media outlets. In 1997, Imus was named as one of ''Time'' magazine's "25 most influential people in America"; he was also on the cover of ''Newsweek'' in 1999.
In 2005, ''Imus in the Morning'' was carried by about 90 radio stations across the United States^[1], although at the time of its cancellation it was carried by 61 stations."CBS fires Don Imus from radio show", Los Angeles ''Times'', April 13, 2007. Arbitron analysis put the program among the most listened to radio talk shows in the United States,^[2] with about 1.6 million radio listeners per week NBC News Drops Imus Show Over Racial Remark Bill Carter .
In an April 26, 2005, article, David Kiley wrote in ''Business Week'' magazine that ''Imus in the Morning'' commanded higher advertising rates compared to competing talk shows with larger audiences, because the Imus show was less politically partisan and its demographics were "affluent, educated and influential men". Kiley also quoted former ''CBS News'' anchor and ''Face the Nation'' moderator Bob Schieffer as saying, "I don’t know anyone in Washington who doesn’t listen to Imus or watch him on TV. I get more feedback off my spots on Imus than from my own shows."^[3] (This included the former Howard Stern terrestrial radio broadcast. In comparison, Stern attracted more than 8.25 million listeners on half as many stations and Rush Limbaugh attracts 13.5 million listeners).
At the time of its television cancellation, ''Imus in the Morning'' averaged 361,000 viewers in the first quarter of 2007 and was up 39 percent over the previous year, ranking third among cable morning news programs in the Nielsen ratings, compared to 769,000 viewers of ''Fox and Friends'' on Fox News Channel and 372,000 viewers of CNN's ''American Morning''.^[4] The program was reported to generate $20 million in annual revenue for WFAN, representing approximately 25 percent of the New York anchor station's revenue. Total revenue, including affiliate advertising and MSNBC, was said to be $50 million.^[5] MSNBC is said to have paid CBS $4 million annually in simulcast fees and to have averaged $500,000 per year in production expenses.
Imus generally selected country and western songs as bumper music, often playing them at substantial length, and he often promoted artists he liked such as Delbert McClinton, The Dixie Chicks, and The Flatlanders. Sometimes when soundbites were played as part of the news, such as a dissembling politician, a shrieking "SHUT UP!" sound effect was played, abruptly ending the sound bite.

Cast members

''Imus in the Morning'' had a regular cast of members who supplied news and comedy, and acted as foils to Imus. Featured cast members/co-hosts included:

★ Charles McCord^[6] was his newsman, often playing a sycophant. He also wrote many of the comedy bits featuring voice-over personalities Larry Kenney and Rob Bartlett (below).

★ Bernard McGuirk, his producer, often played an antagonist, whom Imus sometimes referred to as a "bald-headed stooge"; a few character voices (such as New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, Cardinal Egan, Cardinal O'Connor, and Maya Angelou). McGuirk was the only other member of the cast to lose his job in the Rutgers contoversy.^[7]

★ Larry Kenney,^[8] various character voices (Richard Nixon, George Patton, Ted Kennedy, Andy Rooney, Jack Nicholson, Jerry Falwell...)

★ Rob Bartlett,^[9] more character voices (Bill Clinton, Rush Limbaugh, Scott Muni, Dr. Phil, Brian Wilson, Omar Minaya, Alberto Gonzales, Vicente Fox, Al Gore, Blind Mississippi White Boy Pig's Feet Dupris, Liza Minnelli...)

★ Chris Carlin,^[10] his sports reporter; gimmick was "The Fat Boy Lock of the Week!"

★ Tracy Burgess,^[11] "scum reports" of gossip and entertainment news, also Shadow Traffic (as "Rear-end Rhonda" and other aliases) for WFAN local breaks

★ Lou Rufino,^[12] program engineer
Part of the appeal of his show was the overt display of office politics: cast members were frequently the object of Imus' sarcasm, largely because of their outspoken points of view, while McCord affected a neutral, reasoned tone and thus stayed out of Imus' line of fire.
Previous sports reporters have included Sid Rosenberg (fired in May 2005 for comments made regarding Kylie Minogue's battle against breast cancer), Warner Wolf, Patrick McEnroe, Don Criqui, Mike Breen (valued for his deadpan delivery of false sports news), and Christopher "Mad Dog" Russo. Other previous reporters included Janice Dean and Christy Musumeci, who departed for Fox News Channel and MSNBC, respectively.
Imus had regular guests on the program to discuss upcoming sporting events. Typically, these guests appeared only during the season of their respective sport. Such guests include Jim Nantz and Phil Simms (of CBS) and Terry Bradshaw (of Fox) for football, and Darrell Waltrip (of Fox) for NASCAR. During an interview with Boomer Esiason, after ridiculing him, Imus chided Esiason with a trademark phrase "get off my phone," insisting he hang up. Esiason shot back with "no, you get off ''my'' phone."

Controversies

Imus offended President Bill Clinton with remarks in front of the Clintons during a 1996 Radio and Television Correspondents Association dinner speech.^[13]
Imus has had a long-standing rivalry with Howard Stern. It most recently boiled to the surface in 2003, when Stern called Imus while both were on the air to demand an apology for a comedy skit that Imus had aired. After exchanging insults, Imus cut Stern off.^[14] In late 2005, Imus commented that he wished Stern would do well at Sirius satellite radio, as Imus held Sirius stock.
Beginning in February 2005, MSNBC featured Amy Robach, and then afternoon regular Contessa Brewer as news readers on ''Imus in the Morning''. Brewer held the position for over two months and was the target of Imus's constant ridicule, which was initially dismissed as typical show fodder. On April 29, 2005, the ''New York Post'' published a statement attributed to Brewer calling Imus a "cantankerous old fool." He responded on-air by calling her "fat" and "painfully stupid," and hurled countless personal insults. Brewer left ''Imus in the Morning'' immediately.
On the December 15, 2004, ''Imus in the Morning'' show, Don Imus referred to the publishers Simon & Schuster as "thieving Jews" and later in the same show gave a mock apology, calling the phrase "thieving Jews", “redundant”.
On October 19, 1998, ''Newsday'' reported that Imus called Washington ''Post'' media writer Howard Kurtz "that boner-nosed ... beanie-wearing little Jew boy".
On November 30, 2006, on ''Imus in the Morning'', Imus referred to the Jewish management at CBS as “money-grubbing bastards”.
Sid Rosenberg, who provided sports updates on the Imus show, got into trouble when he suggested on air that tennis stars Serena and Venus Williams were animals better suited to pose for ''National Geographic'' than ''Playboy''.^[15] Rosenberg also stated that Palestinians mourning the death of Yasser Arafat were "stinking animals" upon whom the Israelis "ought to drop the bomb right there, kill 'em all right now..."^[16] He was fired from the Don Imus show after making crude remarks about Australian singer Kylie Minogue's breast cancer diagnosis.^[17] Chris Carlin replaced Rosenberg.

Cancellation

Rutgers basketball remarks

On the ''Imus in the Morning'' broadcast of April 4, 2007, substitute sportscaster Sid Rosenberg of WAXY reported on Rutgers University's 59-46 loss the previous evening to the University of Tennessee, in the final game of the NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship. As MSNBC rolled tape of the game footage, Imus said in a voiceover, "They're some rough girls from Rutgers. They got tattoos." Bernard McGuirk then interjected, "yeah, hardcore hos." Imus then added, "nappy-headed ^[18]".
McGuirk then compared the game to "the jigaboos versus the wannabes," alluding to the Spike Lee film ''School Daze''.^[19]
The following day, Bryan Monroe, the president of the National Association of Black Journalists, described Imus's comments as "beyond offensive"^[20] and called for his immediate firing. MSNBC responded later that day with a statement disassociating itself from Imus's remarks. On the April 6 ''Imus in the Morning'' show, Imus expressed regret over his remarks, contending that it was said in jest by "a good man who did a bad thing".
On Saturday, April 7, the Rev. Al Sharpton, described by the New York ''Times'' as "among the leaders of the movement to force Don Imus off the air", told an angry audience in Harlem, New York that Imus should be "taken off the airwaves" for the racially disparaging remark.^[21]
Protest demonstrations by "Rainbow/PUSH" in Chicago, Illinois, in front of NBC's owned-and-operated Chicago station were led by Rev. Jesse Jackson on April 9 as 50 demonstrators held signs reading "No apologies, no forgiveness" and chanting "Imus must go".Dan Blake, "Jackson leads local protest", ''Chicago Tribune'', April 10, 2007.
Also on April 9, presidential candidate Barack Obama termed Imus's comments, "Divisive, hurtful, and offensive to Americans of all backgrounds", saying "With a public platform comes a trust. As far as I'm concerned, he violated that trust".
Clarence Page, who had occasionally been a guest on ''Imus in the Morning'', wrote that Imus broke a promise made to him six years previously to eschew racially offensive remarks.^[22]
Amidst the gathering protests, Imus delivered a second, lengthier apology at the beginning of the ''Imus in the Morning'' program on Monday, April 9 and offered to meet with the Rutgers team to apologize personally. Imus again stated that he "is a good person who made a very bad mistake", citing his charitable works. Later that day, CBS Radio and NBC (which owns MSNBC through its NBC News division) announced a two-week suspension of Don Imus' program on radio and television starting Monday, April 16. The initial delay in the start of the suspension was to allow the WFAN Radiothon, which was to begin on April 12, to still be broadcast on MSNBC. NBC News President Steve Capus released a prepared statement explaining the network's action:

“Beginning Monday, April 16, MSNBC will suspend simulcasting the syndicated ''Imus in the Morning'' radio program for two weeks. This comes after careful consideration in the days since his racist, abhorrent comments were made. Don Imus has expressed profound regret and embarrassment and has made a commitment to listen to all of those who have raised legitimate expressions of outrage. In addition, his dedication – in his words – to change the discourse on his program moving forward, has confirmed for us that this action is appropriate. Our future relationship with Imus is contingent on his ability to live up to his word.”

MSNBC cancellation

On Wednesday, April 11, 2007, NBC News announced that MSNBC would no longer simulcast ''Imus in the Morning'', effective immediately.
Several advertisers of ''Imus in the Morning'' announced their withdrawal from sponsorship, including General Motors (Imus' biggest advertiser) Staples Inc., Sprint Nextel, American Express, and Procter & Gamble.
Capus also revealed that in staff meetings, NBC's African-American news staff and on-air personalities opposed Imus' return to MSNBC, with Al Roker of the ''Today'' show expressing particularly strong opposition both internally and on the ''Today'' show's website. Capus denied, however, that the loss of ad revenue was a determining factor in his network's decision to drop Imus. He was quoted by the New York ''Times'' as saying that "The reputation of the news division means more to me than advertising dollars. Because if you lose your reputation, you lose everything."
MSNBC's timing of Imus' cancellation was criticized on WFAN, as ''Imus in the Morning'' had been scheduled to kickoff the 18th Annual WFAN Radiothon, a large annual fundraising event, the next morning. The Radiothon aired April 12 on radio only.
Asked for his reaction, Sharpton told the New York ''Times'' that "we have been halfway successful so far" and that he was planning to organize a demonstration in front of CBS’s Manhattan corporate headquarters. He said, "This has never been about Don Imus. I have no idea whether he is a good man or not. This is about the use of public airwaves for bigoted, racist speech."

CBS Radio cancellation

On Thursday morning, April 12, 2007, the Revs. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton met with CBS President and CEO Leslie Moonves to demand that Imus be fired. That afternoon, Moonves issued a statement announcing that CBS Radio had cancelled ''Imus in the Morning,'' effective immediately:David Bauder, "Don Imus loses job in stunning fall", Associated Press, April 12, 2007.
Following the announcement, Jackson called the removal "a victory for public decency. No one should use the public airwaves to transmit racial or sexual degradation."
Sharpton said of Imus, "He says he wants to be forgiven. I hope he continues in that process. But we cannot afford a precedent established that the airways can commercialize and mainstream sexism and racism."
The final day of the WFAN Radiothon, April 13, was co-hosted by Deirdre Imus and Charles McCord during the hours when ''Imus in the Morning'' formerly aired.

Reaction to the cancellation

Don and Deirdre Imus met with the Rutgers team on the evening of April 12 at the New Jersey Governor's Mansion, according to a report broadcast by CNN, which characterized the meeting as "emotional". C. Vivian Stringer, coach of the Rutgers team, said the next day that she and her team "still find his statements to be unacceptable," but that they accepted Imus's apology.^[23]
Civil rights and women's groups such as the National Organization for Women praised CBS and MSNBC for their action, saying that there is no place on the public airwaves for racial and anti-female slurs. ''Newsweek'' magazine in its April 23, 2007 cover story said that for too long its own reporters coveted an invitation to appear on ''Imus in the Morning'':
Others, however, criticized the cancellation of ''Imus in the Morning'' as a "double-standard", arguing that Imus was merely echoing the misogyny common to rap music lyrics heard on recordings, MTV, and BET.^[24] This idea itself, however, has been countered, as some think it laughable that "pundits and politicians have apparently decided on a consensus culprit to cleanse the national soul: hip-hop" .^[25]
In reaction to the Imus show and its cancellation, there were calls for an end to offensive language in the rap music genre.^[26] "Bo" Dietl, a regular guest on ''Imus in the Morning'' denounced Moonves on Fox News Channel for CBS' cancellation of Imus while producing rap music with anti-female lyrics, saying, "Mr. Les Moonves, you care about the quality, why don't you care about your CBS records with all the garbage my 17-year-old daughter listens to and they use this word 'ho' back and forth and they degrade women all the time. If I thought that Don Imus was a racist in any part, shape or form, I wouldn't be here today."

Future possibilities

Before his show was canceled, Imus and CBS had signed a contract extension for about $10 million per year.^[27] Before Imus could explore another broadcasting job it was necessary for Imus and CBS to reach a settlement on the contract.^[28]
On May 4, 2007, Martin Garbus, a lawyer for Imus, claimed that the broadcasters of the program could have edited Imus's comments, given that the program was subject to tape delay. The lawyer also indicated that Imus would sue CBS Radio for $120 million in unpaid salary and damages. CBS Radio replied that it would vigorously defend against the suit.^[29]
During a June 29, 2007 broadcast, comments were made by WFAN host Mike Francesa and McCord which seemed to indicate that Imus would be returning to the air in the near future, possibly rejoining WFAN. The comments were made during a 20th anniversary celebration of WFAN, as part of a broadcast meant to honor Imus's contribution to the station. McCord noted that the broadcast seemed to reflect on Imus through a rear-view mirror. Then he quipped, "Be warned: Objects in the mirror may be closer than they appear." Francesa then cryptically added that by, "this September, I hope the team will once again be complete."^[30][31] Technically, his last comment was accurate, although not in reference to Imus: WFAN would establish Imus's permanent replacement, Boomer Esiason, in September.
On August 14, 2007, it became clear that Imus would not return to WFAN when it was announced that Imus and CBS agreed to a settlement.^[32]

Quotations

★ "Quack quack" -- sound effect played whenever Imus said the time.

★ "That'llllll be fine" -- said in response to provocative descriptions by other cast members.

★ "''I luv yar'' Fred ...Who do you like in the car race?" -- Imus speaking to brother Fred via phone.

★ "Aw man it don't get much better than that" --used to describe musical acts either played on tape or performing in studio.

★ "Haaave muy-see" --similar to the previous quote.

★ "My man Richard Santouli started this (Net Jets Inc.) over there on Wall Street doodling when he should have been doing work."

References

1. Imus in the Morning audio archives
2. Talkers Magazine online
3. Imus audience slips in New York. But he still packs a punch David Kiley
4. Tim Cuprisin, "Plagued by soft ratings, O'Briens ousted as CNN morning anchors", Milwaukee ''Journal Sentinel'', April 11, 2007.
5. Johnnie L. Roberts, ''Newsweek'' magazine, April 11, 2007.
6. Charles McCord bio at WFAN
7. Imus sidekick booted, too
8. Larry Kenney bio at WFAN
9. Website of Rob Bartlett
10. Chris Carlin bio at WFAN
11. Tracy Burgess bio at WFAN
12. Lou Rufino bio at WFAN
13. Imus' speech to the Radio & TV Correspondent's dinner transcript
14. Imus vs. Stern Joseph Planta
15. Sid Rosenberg audio on the Williams sisters.
16. Palestinians called 'Stinking Animals' on MSNBC's 'Imus'
17. Sid Rosenberg audio on Kylie Minogue.
18. Imus called women's basketball teamnappy-headed hos
19. Imus Apologizes For Controversial Comments About Rutgers Players
20. Talk-Radio Host Don Imus Apologizes for On-Air Racial Slurs Against Rutgers Women's Basketball Team
21. Manny Fernandez, New York ''Times'', April 8, 2007.
22. Clarence Page, "Don Imus' trail of woe", ''Chicago Tribune'', April 11, 2007.
23. Rutgers coach says Imus' apology accepted Retrieved on April 13, 2007
24.
Jerry Della Femina, "Imus in the Mourning", New York ''Post'', April 13, 2007.
25.
Dave Zirin and Jeff Chang, "Hip-Hop's E-Z Scapegoats", The Nation'', May 8, 2007.
26.
Marcus Franklin, "With Imus gone, critics turning to rap", ''Associated Press'', April 13, 2007.
27. Radio? Retirement? Fired Imus faces uncertain future
28. Off the Air: The Light Goes Out for Don Imus
29. Imus lawyer: Bosses could've cut remarks
30. Talking up Imus: radio signals of a WFAN comeback Don Kaplan
31. Is Imus returning? Mike Boyle
32. "Imus settles with CBS, negotiating with WABC", Newsday.com, August 14, 2007

External links

★ Imus in the Morning (WFAN Radio)

★ Imus in the Morning (MSNBC Television)