Don Imus Article written by Laureen Stiller Rikleen
I completely agree with what Laureen Stiller Rikleen says in her article about Don Imus. What he said was completely wrong, but he did not make excuses for what he said and took the punishment that was given to him. Other people have made remarks that have been much worse than the comments that Imus has made.
The comment that stands out to me the most is Bill O'Reilly's comment. He suggested that African-Americans eating peacefully in a restaurant was an extraordinary event. To go unpunished for that comment, after Imus, who has been banned since April and was taken off the air immediately, is completely absurd. It was the correct thing to punish Imus for what he said, but to let others get away with stating comments that have almost the exact same intentions is completely hypocritical. What both men said were offensive and demoralizing to the opposite race. One man should not be able to get away with a completely inappropriate comment while another was banned from the radio for nearly eight months. Bill O'Reilly escaped his turmoil with little media coverage, but his comment brought up the issue, and all people unfairly turn to Imus when they heard of racial discrimination.
America supposedly has freedom of speech and the press, but yet one man is punished for what he says while another man who says nearly the same thing gets off spot-free. Yes, the comments made were outrageous and deserved punishment, but punishment can't be placed on one and not another. Hypocrisy is a wicked thing, and this example is a perfect showing of hypocrisy.
2 comments:
Hypocrisy is a wicked thing. Oooh, I like the sound of that. Now it would have have a bit more sting to it if you replaced the nebulous noun, "thing" with a more concrete noun. Perhaps "tool", "hammer", "gun", "electric screw driver", OR..."weapon". Ahhhh, yes. Hypocrisy is a wicked weapon. The damage weapons create and the damage hypocrisy creates is similar. At any rate, great closing line and a very clear post.
Taylor, you argue that Don Imus should be allowed back on the air, and I agree with you. Imus' comments were disrespectful and completely uncalled for, and therefore he is deserving of the punishment he received. However, on the other hand, there have been others who have said much worse and like you said, only got a slap on the wrist.
Everybody makes mistakes, and are worthy of a second chance. Don Imus should be treated no differently.
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