Talk About a Flake

The media din on Imus is unbearable, but I've been watching this very closely because I think it matters very, very much. I have a few million thoughts on the situation, which I'll refrain from cataloguing here...but I will offer a few things that I feel pretty strongly about.

My disclaimer: I watched the show everyday and have listened for the better part of 15 years. I know the show.

First, context matters. It does not excuse. I've watched incredibly closely, and no excuse was given. Only repeated, genuine apologies, along with a clearly stated plan to address the situation and engage in meaningful dialogue.

I think the presence or lack of malice counts. This is not the same as saying what happened didn't matter even if there was no malice.

The networks are shameful. They are acting high and mighty, and, well, bullshit. 8 days counts, too, and the firings happening on the day when the advertisers bailed is not a coincidence.

Same for the spineless advertisers.

Why are they spineless? Why is it bullshit?

Because the "dialogue" that everyone now wants to have is by and large discontinued. What would have been more helpful...having the perpetrator of the harm be held to account for his actions while he actively seeks atonement for his hideous indiscretion? Or, is it better to ban the guy to Arizona, never to be heard from again, thereby locking the indescretion in place and perpetrating yet another deadlock on the racist language that was used?

I would have prefered the former. We have achieved the latter. I don't think anyone had conducted themselves with any type of maturity or nuance.

It's all about blame, power, and money. What it isn't is about having a constructive dialogue, which is what everyone says they want. But they did everything they could do to clamp down on anything worthwhile. And I'm usually not quite that cynical.

I take it back. There is one entity who have conducted themselves remarkably well. The team of fabulous young women who are filled with grace and dignity.

And I'll also put a vote in for Imus as doing the right thing in his effort to ammend his fabulously stupid remark.

I really think we just lost an important opportunity that was thisclose to being very constructive.

I have other thoughts on this as well, but, you know, enough.

=================

Actually, the questions I'll pose:
- When do we accept apologies?
- How do we understand what the greater good is?
- How do we understand what the greater harm is?
- Why did Imus employ employees who are so clearly racist (remember, I've watched and listened for a long time), and since he's the one who employed them, then what the hell do we do about the questions above?
- Why can't more people understand that we all carry ugly thoughts with us, and our ugly thoughts come through in ugly ways sometimes...but since we all have them, why can't we understand that and try to improve ourselves rather than deny our own shit and project it onto everyone else?

Never mind.