Coincidence of Don Imus and Martin Luther King Anniversaries Bring Bitter Thoughts

I didn't realize it until I was in the final stages of researching my media story today about the one-year anniversary of Don Imus' "nappy-headed hos" comments about Rutgers University's women's basketball team. But today also marks the 40th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King's assassination in Memphis, Tenn.

And as I watch a cavalcade of TV news reports and documentaries looking at King's life and legacy, I'm struck by the way Imus' example shows both how far we have come, and how far we have to go.

As I note in my Floridian story today, Imus suffered a singular humiliation after calling the women of Rutgers University's near-championship basketball team "nappy-headed hos"; a week-long media frenzy in which pundits and reporters chewed over his comments (and his long history of making similar race-based jokes) before the uproar forced MSNBC and CBS Radio to fire the 67-year-old shock jock.

But Imus wasn't about to go quietly. Instead, he negotiated a multi-million-dollar settlement to his CBS contract, and then earned a new gig with ABC Radio and RFD-TV. One year later, he's leading a show his fans say is more energized and relevant -- getting better ratings in New York than he did before his firing and more than halfway back to rebuilding the network of radio stations which aired his show when he was fired.

(Imus fans have sent links to clips from his show today, in which he interviewed Jeese Jackson about King's death. They quite rightly point out it's the kind of racial discussion I've been calling for. Here's the clip)

So did we really learn any lessons?

The continuing battle over issues like the words of Rev. Jeremiah Wright suggests to me that our soundbite-focused media culture isn't well suited to the serious, complex debate we need to have on race in America.

Instead, we have disaffected sides playing gotcha -- trying to catch their opponents in telling gaffes rather than attempting to reach an understanding. And this dynamic has often been exacerbated by the media coverage I've seen so far of King's anniversary.

TV is often more comfortable looking back than looking forward, to be sure. So it's easier to recall the awful days before King's death, when segregation was still a reality and black folks struggled to exercise their hard-won right to vote, especially in the south.

Yet, even as we're prepared to make a biracial man a serious candidate for president, we still struggle with the kind of institutional racism (and classism) that allowed the Jena 6 controversy and Hurricane Katrina debacle to shake our faith in each other. And we still struggle with huge pockets of media -- cable TV and talk radio, specifically -- that are not nearly as diverse in staffing and subject matter as they should be.

It's an odd day for those of us who follow race in media. In Dr. King's honor, I'm going to try and focus today on how far we've come, and spend a little less time obsessing on how far we have to go.

   

Comments

[Linda Hill]

Thank you for Imus. Imus woke me up about politics. Who can believe news that's been washed clean by GE? When I was a child I believed that the worst violation of soviet Russia was the cleansing of their countrys' news. We in America have it worse! We think our news is unbiased and unwashed and unabridged. Wake up America. I quit listening because it made me crazy . . . until my mother fell in love with Imus. I scoffed at her for 2 years, now I scour the internet for his wisdom. I was afraid they had sanitized our media of his voice. Thank you thank you thank you for his truth. Thank you. Linda Hill

[Bruce]

Let's say Mr. Deggans Imus is far faster on the trigger discussing these things then many other cable news networks. So give the man a break instead of pointing out the negatives.

You certainly do have it out for him. But you lost. He is on the air and growing everyday. You mentioned this in another editorial comment.

[ChannelXRFR]

Imus with Reverend Jackson discussing Dr. King's assassination on the 40th anniversary of his death.

http://media.podcastingmanager.com/41383-99389/Media/imusapr42008.mp3