Posted on 04/20/2007 7:20:20 PM PDT by aculeus
NEW YORK (AP) The longtime producer for Don Imus' syndicated radio show joined his boss on the unemployment line one week after the disgraced broadcaster was booted from the airwaves for racist and sexist comments about the Rutgers women's basketball team.
Bernard McGuirk, who joined the "Imus in the Morning Show" as producer in 1987, was let go late Thursday by WFAN-AM for his role in the ugly incident, CBS Radio spokeswoman Karen Mateo said Friday. CBS Inc., the parent company for WFAN, pulled Imus off the air on April 12.
McGuirk was one of Imus' frequent on-air foils, and was involved in the now-infamous "nappy headed hos" exchange that left both without jobs. He provided much of the program's dicier content, a great deal of it while doing over-the-top impressions of the late Cardinal John O'Connor and New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin.
Imus, in an oft-repeated schtick, would deride McGuirk as a "bald-headed stooge" when the material veered into dangerous territory. McGuirk also handled the booking of Imus' guests, a group which ran the gamut from presidential candidates to mainstream media pundits.
Mateo declined to provide any further details about the McGuirk situation. McGuirk was noticeably absent this week when other Imus contributors, including newsman Charles McCord and sportscaster Chris Carlin, were on the air with the WFAN replacement team of Mike Francesa and Chris "Mad Dog" Russo. Another Imus regular, comedian Rob Bartlett, appeared Friday on the Opie and Anthony morning show. But McGuirk has made no public comments about the controversy since the Imus firing.
CBS Radio had yet to decide on a permanent replacement for Imus on the New York station, Mateo said. Francesa and Russo were slated to do one more week of mornings in place of Imus, whose show was syndicated on 60 other stations nationally. WFAN was the flagship station for the Imus show.
It was McGuirk who first used the term "hos" while discussing the NCAA women's championship game between Rutgers and Tennessee. Imus described the Rutgers team, which includes eight black women, as tattooed "rough girls" during the April 4 broadcast.
"Some hardcore hos," replied McGuirk.
"That's some nappy headed hos there, I'm going to tell you that," Imus said during the 10-second exchange that ignited a national debate over racist and misogynistic language and lyrics.
Imus was expected to meet with CBS Radio officials to settle the remainder of his recently signed five-year, multimillion-dollar contract. McGuirk's contract status was unknown; he had joined the radio station in 1984 when it was WNBC.
What about the vice president or producer responsible for showing the Cho video? Shouldn’t he get fired, or will he get a promotion?
...............When he came on the Radio Air here in my home town and undermined the Mission of our Troops, he made it clear that he was one of them.....................
Yup, You’re correct, Bernie made his feeling against the war very clear.
So does more than half of America: so does my wife, and my friends, children, and brothers.
I believe that they are all misinformed about the muslim treat, and they’re naive to think that we can just go home from Iraq and let them deal with it:
They don’t understand that the world will look to all the treaties that the US has around the world, and know that the papers of the lily livered Americans aren’t worth a damn; so each country in the world had best arm itself with nucs, as the US has proven that it cannot be trusted to bail us out. A sad outcome!
Bernie is only one of many millions. I’m not going to indict him alone!
Agreed.
I’m surprised that that has been swept under the rug.
I agree and am surprised it wasn't mentioned.
I think that we likely agree on most things. Certainly on FR.com things.
I dunno about the more than 50% business.
I do get around a bit, and just about everywhere I go in these parts, there is no vocalized support for President Bush, or the War effort.
I tend to keep my mouth shut when I find myself around folks who express opinions that are based on what they know from reading the Boston Globe, or watching the TV News.
That speaks to me more about the clout that the media wields, and the influence of the (someone posted this earlier) "Union thugs who are disguised as educators."
I suppose that ignorance is bliss to some, but I am not such an one
They can believe the lies if they choose, and they can pretend that there is no consequence for bad behavior, or willful ignorance.
I refuse to be of that sort.
The dems put it out there for all to see.
That video should have sat on the shelf for at least a
month. They could have given some descriptions of what
they received; and stated, that with respect to the victims
and to NBC’s own investigation of the case , the evidence,
for now, will remain unaired. (tough though, as their
after Bush and such non stop)
They knew they were giving the murderer what he wanted,
but their final word stated that they did not care. They
are in the ratings business after all and this was a HOT
story!
“What if another killer makes a video and sends it off to
CNN just because we didn’t air Cho’s”?!
MSLSD needs the ratings....JJ61
Could it be because it wasn't broadcast within days after Imus referred to Hillary as "The Devil Incarnate"?
"Which doesn't belong and why" was part of the Cardinal O'Connor schtick. It was a multiple choice, usually 3 choices, and Imus was to guess which of the three doesn't belong and why. Imus was usually wrong, and McGuirk would give the right answer and why, using his exaggerated Cardinal O'Connor voice.
............. Imus was usually wrong, and McGuirk would give the right answer and why, using his exaggerated Cardinal O’Connor voice.......................
And then Bernie would totally insult all three of the choices, to then hone in to the most insulting, and we would all laugh out loud for many minutes on our way to work.
Bernie, Charles, and Imus, as well as Bartlett and Kenney, are treasures in the media hall of fame!
Much of my objection to Imus was simply that he was often boring and repetative. The material became stale. He really began to piss me off during Clinton's term when he repeatedly apologized for the president as just that "he wants to just get laid". He pretty much lost me after that. That and his stupid interviews with Dan Rather.
He'll bounce back. As soon as he feel's that the anger has died down a bit, someone will pick him up again. There is too much money involved.
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