Ga. radio hosts fired; mocked ex-player with ALS

http://www.salon.com/2013/06/17/ga_radio_hosts_fired_mocked_ex_player_with_als/

ATLANTA (AP) — A station official says the cast of an Atlanta sports radio show has been fired after mocking a former NFL player who has Lou Gehrig’s disease.

The show, Mayhem in the AM, was broadcast Monday morning on 790 The Zone. In a statement, General Manager Rick Mack says the station regrets comments made about ex-New Orleans Saints safety Steve Gleason.

The 36-year-old suffers from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. ALS patients lose the ability to speak and move, which has happened to Gleason.

The station lists the hosts at Nick Cellini, Steak Shapiro and Chris Dimino. But Mack didn’t give the names of those fired.

Cellini took to Twitter to apologize, calling it a stupid attempt at humor. Listeners on the station’s Facebook page called for the hosts’ termination.

Gleason played for the Saints between 2000 and 2006.
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has talk radio gone too far...well , better yet hasnt talkj radio always gone too far.

rush limbaugh - on mcnabb
Imus- nappy headed hoes.
liddy- on ATF agents shoot them in the legs and arms

when will the customer/listeners start taking responsiblility about these people.

 

They are shock jocks and the purpose of their routine is to shock the shit out of people. Now, that doesn't mean that all shocks are without taste. If you can deliver it on the same level as dark comedy, then you have a hit that works quite well.

As for this radio DJ? I don't think he should have been fired, but should be reprimanded or suspended for a period of time and do some service to show his remorse.

 

I remember a morning show incident involving Jamie Foxx. He had a show in a club in Miami and the station's host wanted a sample of that show. Jamie didn't want to give any details about his show. The host kept on pressing and Foxx got very angry on the air. It was big news around here. The morning show host explained, and this is just the same sentiment echoed by all radio personalities,"You have four hours to entertain an audience. If the audience is not entertained within the first few minutes, you've lost your audience."
Don Imus learned that lesson the hard way. And so did a DJ from Texas who parodied the racist dragging incident. They all want to be funny and keep their audience entertain. Rush Limbaugh made fun of actor Michael J. Fox's Parkinson's Disease by mocking him and accusing that he is faking the condition. Everything is about the audience. An audience equals ratings. Ratings equal money. And money equal happiness for the station and the personality.

 

yep to both. so lets be honest ...who is at fault? the audience......right?

 

The cast fired? What exactly did they say? It's not in the article.

 

a football player who has ALS was mocked byt the DJs. w2hen you have ALS you have that robotic voice like steven hawkins and ebert did

 

Radio and television personalities are nothing without the audience. The personality has to feel them out. Look at the movie Pontypool with Stephen McHattie, he explains this perfectly. The audience is not at fault, per se. But, an audience is what gives a show a purpose and it is what keeps the show alive. So, the personality has to return the favor. It has been this way for decades.

 

Yeah I had read they mocked them, just wondered in what way. So they did the voice box thing? IDK, I am curious as to the details, but it's very vague.

I know here in my city, they say outrageous stuff on our morning sports show.

 

i know radio is getting crazy. the audience need to stop listening to that crap or at least demand better. everyone is trying to say the most outrageous stuff compared to the other

 

They say ALMOST anything on sports talk radio. They don't hold back because they are sports fans and/or were athletes themselves and they let the fans who call in share in their joy or disappointment in regards to the previous sporting event.

 

naw political radio shows are worst. the sports are a little tame comapred to them

 

Oh I know. The rants are insane. The mockings outrageous.

Our jocks invented the WING BOWL. No mercy building up to it.

 

That is true. Which is why I don't listen to talk radio. A sociology teacher explained why people love sports. "Sports are a substitute for war, " she said. And she was right. The field, be it a basketball court, a baseball diamond, a football gridiron, soccer field, golf course, hockey ice rink, boxing/wrestling ring, mma cage, etc, can be called battlefields. Political talk radio is just news and information that can mutate into a shouting match.

 

so true...ignorant shit at that

 

I'm glad they were fired.

ALS is a fatal disease. It's nothing to joke about. It was in extremely poor taste.

 

We make fun of cancer and AIDS why exactly is this.special?

 

I, personally, don't find either of those topics funny. However, if someone is suffering from them and wants to joke about it, more power to them.

There is something to be said for laughter helping to heal.

 

i never heard anybody make fun of people with those diseases. who was it? u remember?

 

Comedians make jokes about it all the time. Remember Eddy Murphy Raw?

 

naw... i remember raw but nothing about cancer and aids. remind me.

besides , what they did was just out right mean spirited. you need to listen to it. lastly it wasnt even funny with no point

I guess with cancer and aids comics really dont make fun of the person .....

like with biggie and tupac. chris rock started saying I love biggie and tupac but they werent assassinated they were shot. MLK was assassinated.

that joke had a point to it.