Thread: Show Host Suspension Justified?

Severin suspended for comments about Mexican immigrants

Comments about Mexicans and swine flu by WTKK radio host Jay Severin have prompted a flood of complaints to station management. (Suzanne Kreiter/Globe Staff/File 2001)

By David Abel

Globe Staff / May 1, 2009

Jay Severin, the fiery right wing talk show host on Boston's WTKK-FM radio station, was suspended yesterday after calling Mexican immigrants "criminaliens," "primitives," "leeches," and exporters of "women with mustaches and VD," among other incendiary comments.


Heidi Raphael, a spokeswoman for the station, said Severin had been suspended indefinitely from his afternoon drive-time show. She declined to say which of his comments - made since an outbreak of swine flu was linked to Mexico in recent days - sparked the suspension.
"I can assure you that the station has not been using the remarks for which he has been suspended in on-air promos," she said, declining to comment further.

In an e-mail, Severin, a bombastic voice whose views often mirror those of fringe conservatives and who rarely lacks something to say, referred questions to his lawyer. "I am simply not at liberty to discuss it at this time," he wrote.

George Tobia, his lawyer, said it was not clear how long Severin will be on suspension. "All we know is it's indefinite," he said in a telephone interview. "We're just learning of it, and we're dealing with it."

Severin's comments sparked deep concern among Mexicans and other Latinos living in the Boston area, prompting what Tobia described as a flood of complaints to station management in recent days.

"It would certainly be unfortunate if someone was suspended because some people didn't like what he said," Tobia said.

He said he did not know Severin's precise comments.

Link & entire: Severin suspended for comments about Mexican immigrants - The Boston Globe

Merkin PC

In one of his broadcasts this week, Severin said: "So now, in addition to venereal disease and the other leading exports of Mexico - women with mustaches and VD - now we have swine flu."


Later, he described Mexicans as "the world's lowest of primitives."


"When we are the magnet for primitives around the world - and it's not the primitives' fault by the way, I'm not blaming them for being primitives - I'm merely observing they're primitive," he said.


He added that Mexicans are destroying schools and hospitals in the United States. He also criticized their hygiene.


"It's millions of leeches from a primitive country come here to leech off you and, with it, they are ruining the schools, the hospitals, and a lot of life in America," he said.

suspended?

at the very least.

Originally Posted by Milkman

Jay Severin, the fiery right wing talk show host on Boston's WTKK-FM radio station, was suspended yesterday

Justified. Not for what he said but because he is an employee of WTKK-FM and as such they have the right to suspend any employee they want.

If Jay wants to spiel his "opinions" suggest he get his own radio station or start a blog.

Why did you put a "no, not justified" tick box?

Should have put a "perfectly acceptable - Jet Boredom vote here" box instead

Originally Posted by Norton

Justified. Not for what he said but because he is an employee of WTKK-FM and as such they have the right to suspend any employee they want.

Correct, but I do not agree with his company for the firing but if it is their wish to tramp him then so be it, it was their service he used to use the freedom of speech in the first amendment and he did it on their payed time..

Originally Posted by Norton

Not for what he said but because he is an employee of WTKK-FM and as such they have the right to suspend any employee they want. If Jay wants to spiel his "opinions" suggest he get his own radio station or start a blog.

i have no idea what statutes are on the books in MA, but there certainly could be something about inciting racial hatred. if so, i hope he's brought up on charges and given a few thousand hours community service in a latino neighborhood.

Rahm probably sent the station a dead fish in the mail.

Originally Posted by raycarey

i have no idea what statutes are on the books in MA, but there certainly could be something about inciting racial hatred. if so, i hope he's brought up on charges and given a few thousand hours community service in a latino neighborhood.

Why do the right wing loonies believe they can get away with this kind of crap . . . on a forum such as this they feel free to do spew their hatred and racist filth and do so with vigour as it won't return to smack them in the face.

Neanderthal reprobates.

Yes, the station has the right to sack the moron and the public prosecutor has the right to charge the guy with incitement of racial hatred . . . I hope he does

It's ironic that the hate radio crowd is now blaming Mexicans (most of whom are of Native American descent) for spreading disease when European American settlers intentionally gave smallpox-infected blankets to Indians and killed them by the thousands. Jay Severin is a vile piece of sh*t, regardless of where one stands on immigration laws.

Free market. Without political interference. The radio station {network} is not concerned with moral, ethical, or social issues. The bottom line is a marketable product and how much shite they can sell to the mindless consumers.

Originally Posted by blackgang

What is native American descent and who is it and who were the Native Americans,

Originally Posted by blackgang

20,000+ years ago there were migrants there and the first Indian was less than 10,000 years ago, I think less than 8000 is earliest I can find.

What exactly are you trying to justify here, BG? A people who have inhabited a land for 10.000 years are not to be considered 'native'?

How any thousands of years have the Blackgang's inhabited North Amerca?

Most scientists agree that the human history of North America began when the ancient ancestors of modern Native Americans made their way across a land bridge that once spanned the Bering Sea and connected northeastern Asia to North America. Scientists believe these people first migrated to the Americas more than 10,000 years ago, before the end of the last ice age (see First Americans). However, some Native Americans believe their ancestors originated in the Americas, citing gaps in the archaeological record and oral accounts of their origins that have been passed down through generations.

Native Americans of North America - MSN Encarta

You try to point out so often that the native Americans (Injuns or Redskins for people like you) are not the original inhabitants . . . Why? What's your point and your purpose?

Germ warfare was practised in antiquity already, were you too scared to actually do research?

Now, the OP . . .

Check this one out, I know that you are a very narrow minded individual, but this might give you something to think on as I have known what you posted for more than likely a lot longer than you have as it was in books I read as a teen and as a young man. Anyway here tiz..

Kennewick Man - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kennewick Man

^ Was he a Jap? I thought the first homos in America hitchhiked over the Bering Straight walkway to our fine shores. Remember going to the Jap National Museum and viewing some ancient artifacts. Fek, same, same as Eskimo art.

Originally Posted by blackgang

Anyway here tiz..

I know, you're bigger, stronger, smarter, older, wiser, younger, smaller, whatever . . .

Point is . . . what are you trying to justify?

I do not believe in censorship if the remarks made somehow relates to current problems/issues.

Radicals on both sides do more damage to themselves, than the ones they try to attack when their comments is way over the top, all they achieve is to make "normal" people shy away from their cause, and the few radicals who share those views have them already so it really is most damaging to the fanatics.

Censorship is a very dangerous road and should only be used extremely sparingly and this guy's stupid remarks is to my mind not enough, so if he is suspended because of his remarks I would say it is wrong, if he is suspended because he has broken policy rules of the station then that is the stations right.

In a short time the usa will be more brown than white. Hard to imagine a show sponsor sitting still for this type of crap talk.

send a message to the station and make it clear that this sort of knuckle-dragging racism is of no use to the community.

96.9 WTKK | Contact Us

Originally Posted by raycarey

send a message to the station and make it clear that this sort of knuckle-dragging racism is of no use to the community.

I'm sure they have been flooded with complaints already. Had they not been, Jay would be still employed. This is the most effective way to object to something. Get enough people putting enough pressure on a "business" and sponsorship drops. Businesses start to listen when they lose revenue.

AFAIK, he is still employed...just suspended.

you and i have a fundamental disagreement about the role of govt.

Originally Posted by raycarey

AFAIK, he is still employed...just suspended.

you and i have a fundamental disagreement about the role of govt.

Yes...& harbor fundamental disagreements regarding American contract workers overseas - the construction-type apparently. Not TEFLer's, eh?