This is a bizarre turn of events, to be sure:
For Imus, who made a career out of operating in the murky space between sophomoric humor and high-brow political talk, there is the little matter of about $40 million left on his contract with CBS Radio - whose boss Les Moonves fired the shock jock on April 12. CBS’ lawyers contend Imus was fired for cause and not owed the rest of the money.But Imus has hired one of the nation’s premiere First Amendment attorneys, and the two sides are gearing up for a legal showdown that could turn on how language in his contract that encouraged the radio host to be irreverent and engage in character attacks is interpreted, according to one person who has read the contract.The language, according to this source, was part of a five-year contract that went into effect in 2006 and that paid Imus close to $10 million a year. It stipulates that Imus be given a warning before being fired for doing what he made a career out of - making off-color jokes. The source described it as a “dog has one- bite clause.” A lawsuit could be filed within a month, this person predicted.
To me, what needs to be absolutely clear is that while he hired a First Amendment lawyer, this is not a per se First Amendment case. As I said before, the First Amendment protects you against government censorship — not against your boss firing you. If that were the case, someone who talks for a living (like Imus) could not be fired for doing his job badly.
What this case will hinge on is the clause in his contract. Without seeing it, there’s no way to tell whether it applies to this specific incident, but it will be interesting to watch.
There’s also this:
[Employment lawyer] Bernabei also said that any contract stipulations that allow for provocative content on Imus’ show are probably balanced by “something in the contract about appropriate content.”She said, “I’m sure CBS has something about conduct - that he can’t use profanity and has to abide by FCC regulations.”So under this argument, the case could turn on whether Imus’ comments - which referred to members of the Rutgers women’s basketball team as “nappy-headed hos” - meets the definition of profanity under FCC guidelines. The FCC, on its Web site, defines profanity as “including language so grossly offensive to members of the public who actually hear it as to amount to a nuisance.”
Blog: Robert VerBruggen
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5 users commented in " Imus sues "
Follow-up comment rss or Leave a TrackbackIt’s about time we hear from Imus. He was railroaded by radicals like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, and CBS and MSNBC took the bait. Now they will hopefully have to pay more in legal fees, and a settlement, then they would have lost in sponsors. The people have spoken, and Imus will take the ball and run. The logical powers that be will decide who can say what to others. Rosie got fired (although she will never admit it), and other heads will roll if we allow it. When the intelligent element of society finally wakes up and realizes that ignorants are trying to run the country, we will be better off. Kudos to Imus…..he didn’t let me down.
Nance, im glad he didnt let you down. Since your SOOOO proud of what he said and what he did. The only ignorant person here is you. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but, I was always taught to be man or woman enough to take the punishment. If you do the crime, be adult enough to do the time. Besides, everyone is acting like he was fired from McDonalds and he has 10 kids to feed. I think Imus will be alright. When your a public figure, you have to conduct yourself as so. If a black radio personality said such things about the Olympic figure skating team or referred to the USA women’s soccer team as some “blone headed hoes,” that would sit well with you or anyone else. I guess my final though to ponder on is, would you allow your son to say something like that and defend it as freedom of speech? If you would, then there’s something wrong with you. He has the right to say what he wants in America, and they had the right to fire him. Plain and simple.
If there is any “ignorance” in these comments, it resides in the ones by Travion P. ITEM: “Be man or woman enough to take your punishment.” Punishment issued by whom? God? A court of law? No, the punishment referred to was meted out by a typical bunch of network empty suits, who felt it was the politically correct thing to do. Now some of them are having second thoughts. No one is under any obligation and roll over and “accept punishment” from a sorry group like that. ITEM: “[Imus] is acting like he was fired from McDonalds and he has 10 kids to feed.” Since when is an individual prevented from seeking legal redress because he earns a certain amount of money? If a contract were breached, Imus (or anyone else) is entitled to a day in court. I ask Travion P: if someone smashed up your car and he/she was clearly at fault, should you be prohibited from filing an insurance claim because you make “X” dollars a year? The logic of your argument evades me. ITEM: “If a black radio personality said such things….” Tonight, on the Jay Leno Show, black comedian D.L. Hughley said the women on the Rutgers basketball team “were not ‘hos’ but they were nappy headed.” Hughley then went on to say some of the women players were ugly. Audience reaction - loud and sustained laughter. Final ITEM: “He has the right to say what he wants in America, and they (NBC and CBS) had the right to fire him.” Wrong again. If you have the RIGHT to say something under the First Amendment, that right doesn’t mean very much if the consequences are that your career is ruined or excessive financial damage is incurred. Travion P’s comments are a perfect example of the “ready, fire, aim” school of logic.
my fear was that imus would allow the issue to die and retire to his ranch and continue his work with kids, leaving us all to believe he was too tired to fight the attacks of those who knew not of what he did in his life. if you knew imus, you knew his attack wasn’t personal, but merely a bad taste comment in the vein he was known for. it was made to be personal by those who needed attention more than he did. as america is losing it’s identity in everyday happenings (mostly due to a generation that sees no import in it), individual personalities will become extinct in part due to the inability to take a joke.
Don Imus frequently said that he “didn’t need this job”, had “plenty of money” and that “no one can tell me what to do.” It’s interesting that now, after being canned, he is suing for money using a defense that he was doing “exactly what the company wanted him to do” (a quote from his lawyer, Martin Garbus). I often listened to Imus’ show, but it is pretty clear he wanted things both ways, on-air as well as off.
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