Raerae
Well-known member
http://news.yahoo.com/s/huffpost/200...0h80cvcxW7e8UF
David Bromwich: Imus is Gone, Snoop Dogg Remains: Are We Happy Now?
Before the self-congratulation gets any more feverish, here is one splash of cold water on the destruction of Don Imus. There was a sodden moralism in the comments on this subject in the New York Times and elsewhere that bodes ill for discussion of less worked-up issues. Imus is a known quantity--a drawling wit, vulgar entertainer, holder forth and pretend-lowbrow, a misanthrope and churl who over many years adapted himself to the gutter medium of talk radio. He is also the only interviewer who ever put John Kerry at ease (the subject, once, was basketball). He had corrosive things to say about the Iraq war, and his references to the president were often in a class with his sprawl of words about the Rutgers team. A non-denominational hater and, like certain other misanthropes, fearless as well as feckless. Can anyone believe his replacement will be made of finer stuff? The occasion was arbitrary, the penalty outsize, the author of the majority opinion that stern moralist, Al Sharpton. In concurring, Barack Obama (news, bio, voting record) spoke some politic but unconvincing words about the harm that patter like Imus' could do to the self-image of his daughters. A more constant menace to habits of respect throughout the culture is the self-contempt of the rap verbiage that Imus in his studio daze could not have copied more faithfully if he had been hired to do so. This is a slang any parent of a teenager can recognize has sunk deep roots in the insult arsenal of Americans of all colors. The absurdity of the notion that Imus picked up his language from Ku Kluxers and not from 50 Cent will eventually be noticed. Another view of the matter has been expounded by a well-qualified judge: "It's a completely different scenario. [Rappers] are not talking about no collegiate basketball girls who have made it to the next level in education and sports. We're talking about hos that's in the 'hood that ain't doing shit, that's trying to get a nigga for his money. These are two separate things. First of all, we ain't no old-ass white men that sit up on MSNBC going hard on black girls. We are rappers that have these songs coming from our minds and our souls that are relevant to what we feel. I will not let them muthafuckas say we in the same league as him." Snoop Dogg distinguishes the cases. Is that all right then? Imus is totally gone. Snoop Dogg is still with us. Are we happy now?
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I thought this article was interesting, as this whole issue has been poping up a lot in the news recently. It's been visible in the past (and we've spoken about it), but seems to be very aparent now.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/uc/20070411/..._9X6yXaCwe6sgF
The Culture of "Bit----, H--, and N-----"
Just one of many opinion colums and articles on the subject.
But anyways, I did find it interesting about the outrage over this Imus guy (I've only barely heard of him before as I typically avoid this type of trash radio) and his comment. While at the same time, this type of language is used all over the air waves. I think his comment was in very poor taste, and he deserves everything he got, but it also makes me wonder do other who use this type of language so freely deserve the same? Or are the exceptions that Snoop Dogg argues in the article, valid?
Edit - Something in me says that if Snoop were to meet one of these basket ball girls, that he'd be calling them bitches too. I doubt he really stops calling women these terms just because their not in the hood anymore.
One thing I do know, is that i've been called "bitch, whore, and ho" by many men in their early/mid 20's who dont seem to see it as a big deal. I also know that i've called myself those terms at times, without thinking much about it. And my radio stations of choice often play artists that use those types of lyrics. So I'm fully admitting to supporting the institution that popularized these types of artists.
Did the media over-react to Imus's statement? And is this really like Michelle says, "One dumb radio/television shock jock's insult is a drop in the ocean of barbaric filth and anti-female hatred on the radio."
David Bromwich: Imus is Gone, Snoop Dogg Remains: Are We Happy Now?
Before the self-congratulation gets any more feverish, here is one splash of cold water on the destruction of Don Imus. There was a sodden moralism in the comments on this subject in the New York Times and elsewhere that bodes ill for discussion of less worked-up issues. Imus is a known quantity--a drawling wit, vulgar entertainer, holder forth and pretend-lowbrow, a misanthrope and churl who over many years adapted himself to the gutter medium of talk radio. He is also the only interviewer who ever put John Kerry at ease (the subject, once, was basketball). He had corrosive things to say about the Iraq war, and his references to the president were often in a class with his sprawl of words about the Rutgers team. A non-denominational hater and, like certain other misanthropes, fearless as well as feckless. Can anyone believe his replacement will be made of finer stuff? The occasion was arbitrary, the penalty outsize, the author of the majority opinion that stern moralist, Al Sharpton. In concurring, Barack Obama (news, bio, voting record) spoke some politic but unconvincing words about the harm that patter like Imus' could do to the self-image of his daughters. A more constant menace to habits of respect throughout the culture is the self-contempt of the rap verbiage that Imus in his studio daze could not have copied more faithfully if he had been hired to do so. This is a slang any parent of a teenager can recognize has sunk deep roots in the insult arsenal of Americans of all colors. The absurdity of the notion that Imus picked up his language from Ku Kluxers and not from 50 Cent will eventually be noticed. Another view of the matter has been expounded by a well-qualified judge: "It's a completely different scenario. [Rappers] are not talking about no collegiate basketball girls who have made it to the next level in education and sports. We're talking about hos that's in the 'hood that ain't doing shit, that's trying to get a nigga for his money. These are two separate things. First of all, we ain't no old-ass white men that sit up on MSNBC going hard on black girls. We are rappers that have these songs coming from our minds and our souls that are relevant to what we feel. I will not let them muthafuckas say we in the same league as him." Snoop Dogg distinguishes the cases. Is that all right then? Imus is totally gone. Snoop Dogg is still with us. Are we happy now?
-------------------------------------------
I thought this article was interesting, as this whole issue has been poping up a lot in the news recently. It's been visible in the past (and we've spoken about it), but seems to be very aparent now.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/uc/20070411/..._9X6yXaCwe6sgF
The Culture of "Bit----, H--, and N-----"
Just one of many opinion colums and articles on the subject.
But anyways, I did find it interesting about the outrage over this Imus guy (I've only barely heard of him before as I typically avoid this type of trash radio) and his comment. While at the same time, this type of language is used all over the air waves. I think his comment was in very poor taste, and he deserves everything he got, but it also makes me wonder do other who use this type of language so freely deserve the same? Or are the exceptions that Snoop Dogg argues in the article, valid?
Edit - Something in me says that if Snoop were to meet one of these basket ball girls, that he'd be calling them bitches too. I doubt he really stops calling women these terms just because their not in the hood anymore.
One thing I do know, is that i've been called "bitch, whore, and ho" by many men in their early/mid 20's who dont seem to see it as a big deal. I also know that i've called myself those terms at times, without thinking much about it. And my radio stations of choice often play artists that use those types of lyrics. So I'm fully admitting to supporting the institution that popularized these types of artists.
Did the media over-react to Imus's statement? And is this really like Michelle says, "One dumb radio/television shock jock's insult is a drop in the ocean of barbaric filth and anti-female hatred on the radio."
