In Defense of Randi Rhodes
By Richard Miniter
Air America host Randi Rhodes has been suspended from her national radio show for calling Hillary Clinton a "f***king whore," among other insults.
Not that she said these foul words on the air. She undoubtedly knows about the FCC "seven deadly words" and the fines involved. And, besides, this is what five-second delays in radio are for.
No, she said them on a San Francisco stage. You can watch it here.
And she was not suffering from an attack of Tourette's Syndrome. She is clearly engaging her liberal audience in a stand-up comedy-style talk.
Here's why she should get her job back immediately:
She didn't commit her "offense" on the radio. Air America is a radio network, not a morals police like they employ in Saudi Arabia.
Radio networks should only surrender when they are in the wrong, not when someone doesn't like their hosts. What did Air America or Randi Rhodes on Air America do wrong, by any definition? Oh, nothing. Does this mean Air America is run by schoolmarish p.c. idiots who can't take a joke? Actually, no. I had a long talk with the vice president of programming at the Talk Radio Host Convention in New York last year. He was outraged that the network weenies caved in to pressure and fired Imus. He passionately and coherently defended free speech. And I don't believe that he has changed his mind. I suspect that the financially fragile network was threatened by its backers, who may have been threatened by Hillary or her surrogates. As for the radio executives, here's the lesson: once you show the world that you will surrender to outrageous demands, you will get more of them. And waiting with your face in the dirt and your jeans around your ankles is no way to run a radio network.
Randi Rhodes is actually funny. Any reasonable speech code should have an exception for humor and wit. And the left is in desperate need of a sense of humor. They need her. If the left was run by Randi Rhodes clones, the world would be a better place. pajamasmedia.com |
