The article says Neavereth is 82. He's trying to defend the indefensible. So what if the term "Mulatto" was used and Lederman only likes black skin if it's not "Too Dark".
The station ownership didn't ignite anything. The idiotic Morning Show did (and the PD who went along). Keep in mind they uploaded the offensive segment to the station podcast AFTER it aired live. They showed total ignorance.
We don't know that the PD "went along" with it. PDs don't, generally, review all the bits and parts of each episode of a morning show. Generally, they work with the show for guidance so it's a good fit with the rest of the format and so that the structure conforms to the station's best practices for ratings success.
Likely the uploading was automated. Many morning shows record when the studio is live, and that content is dumped into the podcast file for that day. In some cases there is no editing and in others the service elements like traffic and song intros are removed.
While there is no excuse for that particular bit, the fact is that it is very hard for radio people of any generation to keep up with the changing attitudes in different sectors of society. It is even hard to understand when words have taken on new meanings and some previously acceptable terms are now dangerous or have changed definition.
Obviously what's acceptable (especially regarding comedy) or even in good taste have changed. For those who were "in the business" back in the day, I think it's sometimes difficult for them to understand that times and attitudes have changed, and what's more, they may struggle to understand why. I recall seeing things on late night TV years ago (Don Rickles jokingly trying to speak jive to a black staff member, for instance), which got laughs back then, but may only draw a few uneasy chuckles today. On Jerry Lewis' MDA telethon in 2007 he was joking with a TV crew and called him a 3 letter gay slur. It was played over and over on radio and TV and Lewis was basically labeled a dinosaur from a different era who needed to go away.
Nevertheless, Cumulus held him responsible.
That is Cumulus covering its hind quarters. PDs just don't control every moment of personality shows.
I remember the horrible "My name José Jiménez" character which I found to be very offensive but Bill Dana was a staple with Steve Allen who was immensely popular back then.
That may have been acceptable humour 50 or 60 years ago, but it was still wrong then. The people who found it offensive had to remain silent. White people also did not speak up to condemn it.
Don't hold your breath waiting for an answer.
Interesting question in my mind. I'd say that as a expressive trend, it is not. Those that had wished to present their thoughts, have done so. The bit was bad; The bit was fine; The station/owner reaction was good; The station/owner reaction was bad; etc, etc, etc. Al are equivalently valid and acceptable opinions/perceptions. And they have been tossed into the mix.
Don't hold your breath on that Cindy Chan and Anita West idea. Word is they may not be big fans of each other.
Almost. Article says he was the PD at JACK at one time. Since Cumulus usually requires their PDs to host an air shift, will someone be displaced by his arrival? Perhaps the other Russo fellow you just mentioned.
