Posted on 10/09/2007 9:12:36 AM PDT by raccoonradio
Newsday now predicts an Imus debut on WABC around December 3.
Newsday writer Neil Best forecasts that a deal will be announced “by the end of the week” – and Curtis Sliwa at WABC tells him he hasn’t heard anything from Citadel/ABC about any changes. (But Curtis has been around the business a long time now.)* Newsday also says most of Don’s “Imus in the Morning” cast will come along, though it’s not clear what Bernard McGuirk’s role might be. Off-air, for now?
How will advertisers greet the I-Man’s return?
Some very big advertisers put the proverbial 10-foot pole between themselves and Imus, back in April when he was in the dunk tank (and not being very well protected by CBS or MSNBC). Now, things look different. You’ve got Al Sharpton flaying Knicks executive Isiah Thomas for using the b-word and saying publicly that there shouldn’t be a double standard for language between whites and African-Americans. There’s also been significant talk about hip-hop’s use of language that denigrates various groups – just the kind of dialogue that radio said it wanted, after Imus got pilloried. Now Imus is close to a return and AdAge has started polling clients and buyers. A GM spokesperson capsulized the problem in even doing this kind of story – you don’t know what kind of show Imus would deliver, upon his return. That gives Madison Avenue a great temporary answer to the question (and some P.R. cover), but it also suggests that Imus may find a pretty open-minded reception. Nobody told AdAge that Imus was untouchable. And head OMD radio buyer Natalie Swed Stone says she “couldn’t see why” advertisers would want to avoid him. The I-Man has apologized, done his time in purgatory, and is ready for reputation rehabilitation.
The Newsday article referenced:
http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/ny-spimus1009,0,1049766.story?coll=ny_home_rail_headlines
This could be interesting.
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