Bye Bye Bernie

Boston Herald: WRKO dumps McGuirk drive-time tryout

Boston Globe: WRKO cancels appearance by McGuirk

After several days of criticism for inviting a former Don Imus producer to its airwaves, WRKO cancelled an appearance by Bernard McGuirk today.

McGuirk was slated to begin a three-day stint Wednesday as an on-air guest of former House speaker Tom Finneran -- an appearance that station officials said last week was designed as a try-out for the man who first said the word ``ho'' in the on-air conversation in which Imus referred to the champion Rutgers University women's basketball team as ``nappy headed hos.''

George Regan, a spokesman for Entercom Communications, the parent company of WRKO, declined to say why the invitation was rescinded. But over the weekend, a 1997 interview on CBS' ``60 Minutes'' surfaced in which Imus was quoted using a racial slur to say that McGuirk was hired for his show to tell jokes about blacks.

Wouldn't it be nice if they read it here on Main St.? Man, it would just frost my cupcakes if we helped take down stone racist Bernie. I think it's funny how they say the interview "surfaced". On Saturday (I think that would count as "over the weekend"), I linked to a TomPaine.com piece (published in 2000, archived on the web in 2004) that contained the 60 Minutes transcript:

Imus N*****-Joke-Telling Sidekick Getting Boston Radio Audition

WRKO, a Boston AM radio station, is giving a tryout to Imus co-host Bernard McGuirk. McGuirk was hired, according to Imus, "to do nigger jokes".

Plus, both the Herald and the Globe use that ugly Fox photo I used. I am so taking credit for this.