Loading ...Radio Rants: Dr. Laura Calls It Quits!
“You better listen to the voice of reason… you better do as you are told…. you better listen to the radio.” Elvis Costello
UPDATE: Dr. Laura is pulling the plug on her own syndicated show.
The hateful radio crone told Larry King Tuesday night that she’s ’s ending her syndicated run at year’s end when her contract with TRN expires. Not sure if she’s saving face. She claims the network wants her to stay on, that even in the wake of a MMFA proposed sponsor boycott–with Motel 6 already dropping out and NetFlix, Home Depot and OnStar reportedly “distancing themselves from the show”–Schlessinger claims to have added unnamed sponsors and five new affiliates.
She’ll storm the Internet instead, saying her “First Amendment rights have been usurped by angry, hateful special interest groups.” I suggest you immerse yourself in a remedial course on The Constitution. Yeah, the First Amendment affords you the right to say what you want without fear of government recriminations. By the way, it also gives other folks the right to criticize you. And it doesn’t prevent the free market place from taking its shekels and going home after you throw a racist cherry on top of decades’ worth of hateful diatribes.
Love it when the fright wingers re-interpret The Constitution for their convenience. Doubt she’ll study up. It’ll be easier to just teach a course on the First Amendment at Beck U.
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Well, the fools who occupy the most powerful perches on the radio did anything but anesthetize the way a lot of folks felt this week. Rush and Savage served up their usual racist rants. But the biggest offender, of course, was Dr. Laura who dumped a toxic litany — 11 ‘N’ bombs in under 5 minutes!–over the airwaves. You can read more about the shocking display of inherent racism and cultural hyper-insensitivity in my latest NJP opinion piece. Dr. Laura’s Racist Rant: Why Is This Woman Still On The Air? | NEWS JUNKIE POST Join the lively conversation. Tweets, diggs, stumbles & facebook links always appreciated.
By the way, in case I didn’t make it clear: using the “N” Word is unacceptable under any circumstances. In my opinion. I know it’s a controversial topic among blacks and many comedians like Chris Rock and Whoopi Goldberg think using it is a way of reclaiming it and diffusing its negative power. As African-Americans, that’s their choice. And if, as artists, they think using the word can enhance their work and underscore their intentions, so be it. But for obvious reasons, it is NEVER acceptable for a white person to use it!
I happen to be in the multi-racial camp that finds the word offensive in the extreme, riddled with a heritage of violence and discrimination. Frankly, I think all prejudiced epithets are destructive. but I am also an artist, and know sometimes you have to walk a fine line and hang over a dangerous edge to create work that may actually change hearts and minds. But words have power and before we use them we have to ask some serious questions. Not only about our intent, but also the possible reactions.
Dr. Laura never gave her language a single thought. But it wasn’t just the use of the “N” word that has folks boiling. Her whole rant was laced with condescension and generalizations. She blathered on about discarding “Black Think” and opined people should finally stop their whining about racism because we have a black president. She also thinks she’s hip and open-minded because she plays basketball with her black bodyguard.
“Goodness gracious me,” this chick’s one radioactive, racist cliche.
Drive safe. play nice. Think peace.
aba
