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MSNBC to Cease ‘Imus’ Simulcasts

MSNBC has made the decision to stop simulcasting the Imus in the Morning radio program, effective immediately, following the radio host’s racist remarks about the women’s basketball team at Rutgers on April 4.

NBC’s announcement came just hours after a member of the CBS Corporation’s board of directors called for Don Imus to be fired, reports MediaPost. The member, Bruce S. Gordon - previously head of the NAACP - contacted CBS chief Les Moonves and suggested that CBS remove Imus permanently when he returns from his two-week suspension.

Bigelow Teas, Proctor & Gamble, GM, Sprint Nextel, GlaxoSmithKline, TD Ameritrade, Ditech.com and American Express followed in Staples’ footsteps to pull their advertising from the program yesterday, according to The New York Times.

CBS plans to stick by its decision to suspend Imus for two weeks, but has said it would monitor the situation closely and speak to all concerned parties in the meantime.

The Anti-Defamation League has filed dozens of complaints about Imus’s on-air comments over the years, and the ADL’s national director is quoted as saying, “He’s gotten away with insensitive and stereotypical remarks about blacks, Jews, women, homosexuals and others far too often.”