Racist DJ makes fun of tsunami victims

[Donkey Punch]

I believe in freedom of speech, and people can say whatever they want to say. The thing is, with what you say, there is responsibility and consequences to it. Fines, bad name, people pissed off at you, etc.

What amazes me is ciritcs would tune in more than the fans. Why? To see what the shock jock would say next.

Yes, that show was in bad taste, and will piss off many people. So does a lot of other shows. 700 Club, Bill O'Reilly, etc...

[Tiger Shark]

I'll throw in a couple of observations for a giggle and see where they go.....

1. I listened to Howard for many years, (at least 10, I was in Washington and then Philly when he came there and beat out their current joke of a morning DJ in about 6 months, the funeral he held for him was hilarious). Does Howard "push the envelope"? Yes, of course... That's how he and the radio stations that carry him make their money. But seriously, there was never anything particularly outrageous about anything Howard did... it was all 'run of the mill" close to the edge, tasteless stuff for the most part. The draw of his show was that it was publicly aired content that the majority of the country laugh and joke about quietly every day.... no big deal. He got withdrawn from those Clear Channel stations because of Janet Jackson and her stunt at the Superbowl. Whether it was an accident or intentional, (though I tend to the latter), it was too stupid to risk having happen on the most broadly watched show in the world. Clear Channel simply cut the risk of losses by fines by refusing to carry him..... It was a business decision not a moral one....

2. Someone said she shouldn't lose her job over it..... If she were to be fired because of what she said by the radio station or the FCC that would be wrong. But, just like the Dixie Chicks whined and complained that the general public and radio stations boycotting their work would put them out of work the same applies here.... If the general public cause the listenership of the radio station to decline to the point that the profits drop then they should fire her... that's fair.... and it takes into account the freedom of speech of both the sayer and the listener..... I call that justice.

3. Looking at the lyrics there I really don't see anything that comes close to most of the lyrics in the rap **** that kids listen to today.... In this case it's a dismal attempt at humor that exploits a major disaster.... Folks, think back... After every disaster there are a bunch of jokes that go around, even about 911... and we all snikker behind our hands and forget them as quickly as we forget the event and it's significance..... But it seems to me that the rap lyrics are written with intended malice.... there's a difference folks... learn to see it.

4. Final thought..... For the "all powerful" beings we think we are this planet truly shows us for the insignificant little ants we really are. We "control" nothing about our environment and we certainly won't in any of our lifetimes. Hurricanes, Tsunamis, earthquakes, forest fires, tornados, rain, snow, wind, ice, heat ...... We have no control and, for the most part, can't even predict them accurately.....

[RoadClosed]

Point 2 of Tiger Shark.

Yes that is fair. But just firing her the next day to me is not fair. Otherwise, no one would have a job or have room for error in judgment.

I was the one who posted that. Now if they say, don't do that again and she says "F Off" then it is fair to terminate. She was given a "choice" then. But she did apologize. And I don't see how what she said is any different from the music they play 24.7. Oh hey that is point 3. I guess I am with you on all well spoken points. To take one point frther... Now who remembers the Columbia Space Shuttle jokes. They are funny now come on....

How many astronauts can fit in an VW Beetle?

Twelve

2 in the front, 3 in the back and 7 in the ashtray.

Damn that is tasteless but comical, oui?

//EDIT oh thought of another one... what does N A S A stand for? Needs Another Seven Astronauts.

[foxyloxley]

In the UK, a football [soccer] pundit, Rodney Marsh, [player in the 70's ] has been fired for his 'humour' in regard to the Tsunami. And it was just the one joke.

Ex-England star Marsh outraged viewers during a late night phone-in show. Speaking about speculation that David Beckham could leave Real Madrid for Premiership side Newcastle United, he joked the England captain would not move to the North East, because of the devastation caused by the "Toon Army", the nickname given to fans.

Full article here

[MrLinus]

Yoink!

Source: CNN

Radio station pulls show over tsunami slur
HOT 97 morning show ridiculed victims

NEW YORK (Reuters) -- The entire staff of the New York radio show "Miss Jones in the Morning" was taken off the air on Wednesday after broadcasting a song that ridiculed victims of the tsunami in South Asia, the radio station said.

New York FM radio station WQHT, or HOT 97, repeatedly ran the segment last week on the show, hosted by deejay Tarsha Nicole Jones who uses the on-air name Miss Jones.

Jones and her team were suspended indefinitely, according to publicist Lizzie Grubman, who declined to say whether Jones would feature in another show at a later date.

"What happened is morally and socially indefensible," said Rick Cummings, president of Emmis Radio. The station is owned by Emmis Communications Corp.

"All involved, myself included, are ashamed and deeply sorry. I know the members of the morning show are truly contrite. They know their actions here are inexcusable," Cummings said in a statement.

The piece used racial slurs to describe people swept away in the disaster, made jokes about child slavery and people watching their mothers die.

"You can hear God laughing, 'Swim you b**ches swim,' " was one line in the song, sung by staff of the show to the melody of the 1985 famine relief song "We Are the World."

On Monday, the hip-hop and R&B radio station and the deejay apologized and the seven-member morning show crew agreed to donate one week's pay to relief efforts. The tsunami struck on December 26, leaving nearly 300,000 dead or missing around the Indian Ocean from Somalia to Thailand.

The incident is not the first time HOT 97 has been accused of racism and poor taste. The station made headlines when deejay Star, now at another radio station, called Jennifer Lopez a "rice-and-bean eater" and satirized the plane crash that killed R&B singer Aaliyah in 2001.

[;TT]

I'm in search of a copy of the song. If anyone has a copy or would like to share an exact location where to get it, please do post or PM me.

[MrLinus]

Should be able to find an mp3 of it here

[;TT]

Heh, I thought it was clever and funny. Well that's just me. And like someone said before, if it was put on as a skit on SNL, I doubt there'd be any controversy.

What's better is the song by Rapper Jin. It's well done and this is coming from someone who hates rap. http://www.alljin.com/Audio/Exclusiv...i_response.mp3

[ZomBieMann77]

I actualy sat and listened to the garbage that got this broad fired and I gotta say it was crap. i would have changed the channel. Now with that ebing said I have heard worse on the mancow show and the real ironic thing is both shows are owned by the same company. Kind of a double standard but then again "Miss Jones" isnt syndicated so she doenst bring in as much revenue.

[|3lack|ce]

It ain't over yet folks - here comes round three...

from here:
http://www.nydailynews.com/front/sto...3p-237107c.htm

'Tsunami Song' fallout:
3 suspended, 2 fired

Radio

By DAVID HINCKLEY
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Hoping to quell the storm over its "Tsunami Song," WQHT yesterday fired morning-show producer Rick Del Gado, who created the song, and morning-team member Todd Lynn, who cracked on the air, "I'm gonna start shooting some Asians."

But Hot-97 did not meet the demands of some critics and fire the rest of the Miss Jones morning show, which aired the parody for four days last month.

Miss Jones, DJ Envy and production assistant Tasha Hightower will all be suspended for two weeks, said the station. They have been off since last Wednesday.

Reaction from critics was swift yesterday and not all favorable.

"Their statement is a joke," said City Councilman John Liu (D-Queens). "They need to fire Miss Jones, but even more important, they need to accept corporate responsibility."

Noting that Hot-97 pledged a million dollars to tsunami relief, Liu said, "That's a joke, too. It should be $10 million. They said employees will donate a week's pay to relief funds. Fine. So they should donate a week of corporate profits."

Hot-97's statement yesterday cited Del Gado for the song and Lynn for "offensive, racially insensitive comments," calling them "singularly egregious."

Miss Info, the other member of the morning team, was not suspended, though she also has been off the air since last week. Miss Info, who is Asian, said on the air that the song offended her - which sparked the heated exchange during which Lynn made his "shooting" remark.

Racial banter and exaggeration are not uncommon on morning shows, but critics said Lynn went way over the top.

The "Tsunami Song" itself, set to the tune of "We Are the World," has been blasted for use of racial slurs and for making light of tsunami victims.

Kai Yu of the group Asian Media Watch called Hot-97's actions yesterday "a start," but said they fall short of "full accountability ... all the way up to the people who approved this going on the air."

Liu said further protest actions are planned: "We're only getting started."

Several Hot-97 advertisers temporarily withdrew after the initial controversy.

"The actions of the morning show were socially and morally indefensible," said Emmis President Rick Cummings. "The entire Emmis family is ashamed. Our decision ... sends a message that this type of insensitivity is utterly unacceptable."

Jay Smooth, whose hiphopmusic.com has been bulldogging the case and has recorded a half-million hits, had a sharp E-mail exchange yesterday with Lynn, who told Smooth that his on-air remarks were "taken out of context."

In the exchange, Lynn called the episode "one of the biggest mistakes of my life," describing the song as "very poor taste and bad judgment."

But, he added, "None of us are bigots."

Meanwhile, Miss Info will co-host an Asia Relief Fund Benefit on Saturday at Capitale on the Bowery with rapper Jin, who recorded a track blasting Hot-97.

Originally published on February 2, 2005

And here:
http://www.nypost.com/news/worldnews/39286.htm

February 2, 2005 -- Hot 97 radio fired two staffers and pledged $1 million for tsunami relief yesterday, hoping to quell the firestorm over a song that mocked victims of the catastrophe and used an ethnic slur to describe them.

"The actions of the morning show crew were socially and morally indefensible and the entire Emmis family is ashamed by this," said Rick Cummings, president of Emmis Communications, which owns the station, WQHT/97.1 FM.

Cummings said "Miss Jones in the Morning" producer Rick Delgado and on-air sidekick Todd Lynn were axed to send a message that "this type of insensitivity is utterly unacceptable."

Emmis blamed Delgado for "writing, producing and airing" the "We Are the World" parody and Lynn for "offensive, racially insensitive comments."

Cummings said Miss (Tarsha) Jones, along with sidekicks DJ Envy and Tasha Hightower, will be back on the air a week from today, but must donate two weeks' salary to Give2Asia tsunami relief.

That's also where Emmis will send its $1 million "lump-sum" donation.

"This response, as with all their previous responses, is inadequate," said Queens Councilman John Liu, the most vocal critic of Hot 97's parody.

"I have made it very clear to Emmis that they need to give up a week's worth of advertising revenues to the relief efforts and, by my calculation, that's not $1 million.

"Give me a freakin' break — it's $10 million," Liu said.

Delgado and Lynn couldn't be reached for comment.

Just keeps getting better and better, no?