Olbermann on-air: Imus "reduced women staffers at MSNBC to tears"

Media Bistro: Friday, Apr 13
Imus Fired: A Man Who "Reduced Women Staffers At MSNBC To Tears"

Don Imus called MSNBC's coverage "hypocritical" and "unethical" yesterday. Keith Olbermann found that interesting, as he pointed out on Countdown yesterday:

"This from a man who believed he and his on-air staff were entitled to make sexual, racial, ethnic, or homophobic jokes about anybody and everybody...

A man who reduced women staffers at MSNBC to tears, and conned one into coming on the air and saying embarrassing things about her co-workers, which led to her dismissal by the company.

A man whose ethics were so high, that, in the NBC case at least, the traditionally distant nature of corporate America had to listen to the better angels of its nature, when virtually all the employees of a network and an entire news division said 'we have understood that you haven't fired him the last 10,000 times, but you have to do it now.'"

http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/msnbc/imus_fired_a_man_who_reduced_women_staffers_at_msnbc_to_tears_56961.asp

Imus is an asshole, plain and simple. Karma finally caught up to him.

Can't wait to see what it has in store for Lush Rumball

Sooner or later. And I will be laughing my ass off when it does.

I agree he was a classic pompous ass. The few times I watched him his arrogance was obvious and the way he demeaned his employees was pathetic. I don't miss him.

I am no Andrea Michell fan but that didn't hit me right when I heard it.

Don

I think he could dish it out, but he himself was very thin skinned.

one of the biggest butts of jokes on the show was imus himself. until he got married, it was a running gag every year of him trying to get invited to someones Thanksgiving, each member of the show finding an excuse not to invite him.

calling him a cradle robber (young wife), asking him if people think wyatt (his son) is his grandson., etc .

:applause:

And he hates bush and cheney. It's okay to say racist and sexist things about people.

:sarcasm:

that I have seen described? The MSNBC website has a lengthy description of the ranch. The children must be between the ages of 10 and 16; physically fit enough to work and ride a horse; they share a room with another kid; and they get to stay for a WHOLE WEEK! On this 4,000 acre ranch with it's 14,000 sq. foot mansion and a little village, the maximum number of children allowed is TEN.

I quote: "The work can be demanding and you should consider that when making your decision whether to come to the ranch."

The guests are limited to children suffering from cancer or serious blood disorders or children who have lost siblings to SIDS.

This "ranch" is huge and palatial and featured in Architectural Digest - this is Imus's fantasy Westworld and the whole thing's a tax deduction. It's like a Western themed Disneyworld, only the guests have to get up at the crack of dawn and work before breakfast! It doesn't sound like this place is set up for terminally ill kids. They'd have to be in remission and not in the midst of chemo, etc., to be healthy enough to do the level of work required of them.


From the MSNBC link:
What kind of activities will I be participating in?
You will be required to do daily chores (helping collect laundry, working in the garden and the greenhouse, pitching in in the kitchen, and performing other ranch chores). You will be responsible for feeding, grooming and care of your own horse.

What's a typical day?
6:00 a.m. Rise and shine
6:30 a.m. Feed your horse and other animals
7:00 a.m. Breakfast
8:00 a.m. Chores or horse lessons
12:00 p.m. Lunch
1:00 p.m. Rest and relaxation
2:00 p.m. Chores or horse lessons
5:30 p.m. Feed your horse and the other animals
6:30 p.m. Dinner
7:30 p.m. Evening activities (fun stuff)
9:30 p.m. In your room and lights out

What happens if I don't feel well and can't participate in regular activities?
It is important to remember when you choose to come to the ranch that you are agreeing to a certain level of responsibility. Not feeling well enough to do chores is understandable... not wanting to do them is not. We will always leave it up to you, the child life specialists and the doctors to make the final determination on the status of your health.

It would be :rofl: if it wasn't so sad...

...

The Imus Ranch, a 4,000-acre ranch in northern New Mexico, is run by Mr. Imus and his wife, Deirdre, to help sick children by teaching them how to be cowboys and cowgirls. The ranch's expenses totaled $2.6 million last year, although the ranch hosts only about 100 children annually, mostly during the summer. Mr. Imus raises the funds through his radio and television broadcasts.

Mr. Imus's personal use of the ranch has drawn scrutiny from tax and charity officials. He and his wife and son stay at the ranch all summer to oversee the children's programs. He and his family also visit the ranch in the off-season, including during Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, as well as occasional weekends, Mr. Imus said in the Journal article and reconfirmed on his show yesterday.

Charity law states that the charity board is supposed to account for or be compensated for his use of the ranch, but it hasn't done so. The board also typically would be required to value Mr. Imus's services to the ranch to offset any charges from his use, but also hasn't done so. The Imus Ranch board consists of Mr. Imus, his wife and his two accountants.

In the Journal article, Mr. Imus said he and his wife work at the ranch as unpaid volunteers and manage the ranch themselves. He said yesterday on his radio show that for the ranch to charge him and his family for his time there is "absurd." He acknowledged in the article that the costs of the ranch are high, but that he would pay "$2.6 million or $1.8 million per child if I thought it could change their lives."

The San Miguel County Assessor's office in New Mexico ruled in 2000 that the ranch wasn't fully exempt from property taxes because it wasn't used year-round for charitable purposes. The ruling also stated that parts of the ranch are used for "personal housing or other purposes." Mr. and Mrs. Imus stay in a 14,000-square-foot mansion on the ranch, where the kids the ranch hosts also sleep.

...

http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB111171835547389539-UgcQktPKRNLWMxml2UD2TkieI5o_20050425.html?mod=tff_article

So $2.6MM in expenses for 100 kids for one week. That's $26,000/week/kid. Or $3,714/day/kid. Seems a little high to me...

But yet we should still forgive!!

This is an issue that has its genesis in the machinations of AL Sharpton and Jesse Jackson and the fact that the Black community is a bunch of hypocritical, do nothing people who can't and won't deal with their problems.

:sarcasm:

Don't you know that you are only allowed to post snippets from Al and Jesse and any Black leader that hates them as that repreents the entire spectrum of Black thought!

Shame on you

:spank: :spank:

:sarcasm: :sarcasm:

you know, you're da man :)

Me?

HA!!

I give as good as I get.

:hi:

and different rules apply. (I'm not sure if Beck still has a radio show.) Cable and satellite have differetn rules than broadcast radio and TV.

That said, Limbaugh is on broadcast stations and he and Savage are incredibly offensive. Those two make Hannity look like a nice guy. :(

XM Channel 165 runs Rollye James, Glenn Beck, and Coast to Coast AM at night.

I suspect it's a grab bag from different networks but I don't know.

what he got ;now on to Limbaugh ,Savage,Beck etc.

Not by banning, but by holding them accountable for what they say and do on the public air waves.

I have a friend who was a tech for MSNBC in Fort Lee and told me how much the Imus and his staff was hated by the "regular" staff at the network. It was similar to stories that came out of WFAN...the station he based his show out of and was more or less kicked out of...when he moved his show to the Fort Lee studios. The Imus staff came and went as they pleased and got into lots of verbal spats with the network's "regular" staff. He was a real pain when he went on location...demanding the sponsoring station to pay for his private jet, limos, 5-star accomodations and perks you'd find in a rock star's contract.

Imus knew he made his network and stations money and was "the star". The term "prima donna" really applies here and extended to those who worked for him who knew they were bullet-proof as a friend of the I-Man. Imus would brag on his show about getting someone in trouble or fired for some petty run-in...and seemed to enjoy it. My bets are there's a big sigh at MSNBC Central now...as well as at WFAN.

I've heard this before - how wealthy types can lodge a complaint against someone for some petty offense and not give one fig of how devastating the impact can be on the "little" person. Sickening.

I had the chance to work with some "name" and not so "name" talents over the years and ran into my share of Prima Donnas. Imus fit the profile of the "big money"...and thus was not only bulletproof but felt entitled to push his weight around the station. And, by association, his staff also felt entitled and became an island unto themselves. As long as the "big money" maintains the ratings and/or billing, this double standard is tolerated.

The worst I worked with were Sports radio types. There was an underlying mysognistic culture that allowed women employees to endure constantly uncomfortable working conditions. It was assumed that if you were working at the place you "didn't mind a little kidding". I always found it revolting.

Sadly radio unions were busted decades ago so many of the little people have no redress in these situation. Dare to complain and be looking for your next job.

Oddly enough I feel bad for the fool. Perhaps he'll learn something from all of this in his old age?

Listening to the anger and contrition with qualifiers convinced me he was only sad he was caught...not for what he said. He never really explained where he got those words from and why he chose to use them. It was sadly Pavlovian in his case that it didn't take him much prodding to say something that any rational person would know is over the line...especially doing it in front of millions of listeners and viewers.

Nah...I expect Imus will now try to resurrect himself as a victim of a media swarm...crucified despite his half appologies and attempting to rationalize his behavior. If anything, the fact that Sharpton and Jackson were his biggest critics...and have long been his targets of hate and ridicule is sure to make it appear as a personal vendetta in the I-Man's mind. He allueded to it in his final broadcast when he said something to the effect that "they may have gotten me, but I'm not asleep". That doesn't sound like he learned how to stop hating.

First I heard the apology and thought at least he apologized, then I heard the equivocation.

Sounds like you know him better than I? I wasn't a fan of the show so I shall defer to you're analysis on this.

Goodness. Some people just don't have what it takes to learn life's lessons and again, I pity them.

Thanks for the input. :hi:

I've followed Imus since the 70's. The man's career is truely amazing as he was able to rise to such a level of prominance and re-invent himself several times. As a "student of radio" I always admired his "mechanics"...how he was able to keep his show moving and his timing...truly he knew the medium and deserves credit for that facet of his career. In a way I feel sad to see a "legend" go down, but what no one who has such a public podium should be allowed to utter such racist and sexist trash...and do it in such a cavalliere way. As they say, the punishment fit the crime.

I used to watch Imus until 9/11...even with all the Clinton and then Gore bashing. I'd get fed up with how much he and his guests gave boooosh and this regime a pass while still doing the tired Clinton jokes.

I'm hoping this episode opens some eyes to the disaster hate radio has brought to our public airwaves and the people who profit from it. Progressive radio is barely hanging by a thread while right wing hate mongers have long been insulated by corporates from both true scrutiny and responsibility for the lies and slander they regularly air. And, I'll put my usual plus in for the need to ammend the '96 Telcom Bill to break up the monopoly of the airwaves by the corporates who put profits over all...and have curtailed freedom of speech.

Mz Molly, thanks for all your posts here...always a pleasure to catch your insight on things...

:toast:

:hi:

thanks for all your posts here...always a pleasure to catch your insight on things...

Backatcha! :hi:

He does an hour every day with Dan Patrick on ESPN radio - His slot is 11-12 Eastern time and earlier this week, he was tap dancing all over the place on Imus. He asked Patrick for a Wallenda pole so he could walk the tightrope - that is, try to say something that wouldn't piss off his bosses at MSNBC. He basically hemmed and hawed but said that he would not want to be a suit at MSNBC right then. Patrick asked him point blank: "So if Imus worked for Fox, you would be calling for his head on a platter?" Keith: "Yes"

requested by his bosses to refrain from commentary until after the situation had been resolved, and he honored that request. Since the situation has been resolved, Keith has been very outspoken.

behind the scenes at MSNBC as the network's decision was made, but he said on-air that (1.) he didn't go on Imus's show, and (2) he had agreed, and thought it best, not to talk about the situation on-air until a decision was made.

Never a good idea to piss off all of your coworkers, especially if you are going to have to depend on them to stand by you in the future.

I never listened to Imus except once in a while, years & years ago, when he was still spinning platters. I'm glad to see him go. He makes guys like me look bad.

Why did he have such a stony-hard, dead-looking face? Why the empty eyes of a moray eel?

And what's a man his age doing, wearing a cowboy hat east of the Mississippi River? Idiot.

looked as ridiculous as some of *'s costumes over the years (flight suit, most specifically)...

Welcome to DU.

:hi:

I think he used that as an excuse for demeaning others. It's acceptable for a comic to get laughs off his own character, but Imus thought that the defamation of others was legitimate and it wasn't. Imus is a snot and he knows it. But, the snot sat in judgment of the rest of society and misused the power of his broadcasts to assault innocent people who could not defend themselves from it, nor should they have to. And Imus is just one among many who should also be taken off the airwaves and kept off the airwaves.