Friday, May 04, 2007
Imus And CBS
Don Imus will not be going quietly into the night. Legal action appears to be in the offing with Imus claiming breach of contract over his firing by CBS. The former shock jock's lawyer is quoted as saying, " ... CBS and MSNBC both knew the language that was going out, and both knew the language complied with (Imus') contract. ... It was consistent with many of the things he had done, ..." (Here.)
Perhaps that's true. A report on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 today states the CBS/Imus contract has a clause specifically laying out the parties' expectations that Imus's show will be controversial and provocative. No surprise that.
But it would surprise if the contract sanctions what could be actionable as slander. Falsely calling a group of women a slang term for prostitute on a national radio show arguably is slanderous.
It would be sweet if the Rutgers basketball players were to make things more interesting by threatening their own lawsuits. They could mix things up a bit because both CBS and Imus could be named as co-defendants. O yeah, and Imus's sidekick, too, whatever his name.
I wish the players would sue. They are the only truly innocent parties in this whole offensive mess.
-tdr
Technorati:
Imus.
Perhaps that's true. A report on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 today states the CBS/Imus contract has a clause specifically laying out the parties' expectations that Imus's show will be controversial and provocative. No surprise that.
But it would surprise if the contract sanctions what could be actionable as slander. Falsely calling a group of women a slang term for prostitute on a national radio show arguably is slanderous.
It would be sweet if the Rutgers basketball players were to make things more interesting by threatening their own lawsuits. They could mix things up a bit because both CBS and Imus could be named as co-defendants. O yeah, and Imus's sidekick, too, whatever his name.
I wish the players would sue. They are the only truly innocent parties in this whole offensive mess.
-tdr
Technorati:
Imus.
