GLAAD Statement on Don Imus’ Firing by CBS and NBC
April 12, 2007
Contact: Marc McCarthy, Senior Director of Communications
Phone: (323) 634-2051 Email: mccarthy@glaad.orgNew York, Thursday, April 12, 2007 – Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) President Neil G. Giuliano today supported CBS’s decision to cancel the Imus in the Morning radio program one day after MSNBC pulled its televised simulcast from the airwaves. Following Don Imus’ repulsive expression of bigotry against the Rutgers University Women’s Basketball Team, Giuliano joined and voiced support for the numerous individuals and organizations that have condemned the radio personality.
“GLAAD applauds both CBS and NBC for finally taking responsibility and ending their support of Imus’ legacy of bigoted and vulgar comments, including those against the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community,” Giuliano said. “We call on all broadcasters to require the same responsibility and accountability from all their on-air talent.”
“For the past few days we’ve witnessed widespread media reporting on the outrage that greeted Imus’ dehumanizing bigotry. That coverage has raised the profile of this issue such that our nation’s media outlets no longer have any excuse for providing a platform to those who engage in these kinds of vulgar slurs toward any group of people.”
About GLAAD
The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) is dedicated to promoting and ensuring fair, accurate and inclusive representation of people and events in the media as a means of eliminating homophobia and discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. For more information, please visit www.glaad.org.###
media center > press releases > GLAAD Statement on Don Imus’ Firing by CBS and NBC
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I love Harvey Fierstein!
Our Prejudices, Ourselves
AMERICA is watching Don Imus’s self-immolation in a state of shock and awe. And I’m watching America with wry amusement.
Since I’m a second-class citizen – a gay man – my seats for the ballgame of American discourse are way back in the bleachers. I don’t have to wait long for a shock jock or stand-up comedian to slip up with hateful epithets aimed at me and mine. Hate speak against homosexuals is as commonplace as spam. It’s daily traffic for those who profess themselves to be regular Joes, men of God, public servants who live off my tax dollars, as well as any number of celebrities.
In fact, I get a good chuckle whenever someone refers to “the media” as an agent of “the gay agenda.” There are entire channels, like Spike TV, that couldn’t fill an hour of programming if required to remove their sexist and homophobic content. We’ve got a president and a large part of Congress willing to change the Constitution so they can deprive of us our rights because they feel we are not “normal.”
So I’m used to catching foul balls up here in the cheap seats. What I am really enjoying is watching the rest of you act as if you had no idea that prejudice was alive and well in your hearts and minds.
and
The real point is that you cannot harbor malice toward others and then cry foul when someone displays intolerance against you. Prejudice tolerated is intolerance encouraged. Rise up in righteousness when you witness the words and deeds of hate, but only if you are willing to rise up against them all, including your own. Otherwise suffer the slings and arrows of disrespect silently.
Read all of Our Prejudices, Ourselves by New York Times Op-Ed Contributor HARVEY FIERSTEIN ~ April 13, 2007