Replies

I consider there to be a big difference between grassroots community standards and government censorship. It wasn't so much what Stern said, as it was the language he used to say it, and that's where the fight and rhetoric over the issue is getting ugly. It's the same way here - there are a thousand different ways of parsing a statement, using euphimisms, or using punctuation, in lieu of being flat-out crude or swearing like a dockside parrot. That's a standard that we all have in common, and can agree upon. Sure, people sometimes step over the line and say something offensive to others, but - and this is where common sense must take over - you have to differentiate between an honest misstep, and someone that is, by nature, a pig. Stern is a pig. He stopped being funny years ago, and all he has left in his empty little bag of tricks is to be offensive for the sake of 'shock value'. Someone like Doug 'The Greaseman' Tracht can be bawdy and risque on the air without making most people cringe (although his career took a torpedo for an off-color remark, too). It's all a matter of how you say it, and the perceived intent of it.