Burying Don Imus
Subtitle: anatomy of a scapegoat
By: Michael Awkward
Publisher: University of Minnesota Press
Published: 2009
Place of publication: Minneapolis, MN
Language: eng
Number of pages: 207
ISBN-13: 9780816667413
Description: "The radio talk show host Don Imus became the improbable focus of a heated national discussion on race, gender, and the power of language. In Burying Don Imus: Anatomy of a Scapegoat, Michael Awkward provides the first balanced, critical analysis of Imus's comments and the public outrage they provoked." "Written from the singular perspective of a black intellectual with both a long-standing commitment to feminism and a deep familiarity with - and appreciation of - Imus in the Morning, this book contends that the reaction to the insult ignored the nature of Imus's contributions to popular culture and political debate while eliding the real and very complicated issues within contemporary racial politics." "Awkward's probing account analyzes the responses within the African-American community as reflective of deep-seated anxieties rooted in the collective trauma resulting from centuries of slavery, Jim Crow, and racial violence. Placing the controversy in multiple contexts, he addresses Imus's public persona and the satirical intent of his show, and delves into such charged topics as the perception of women athletes in American culture, the tradition of racist humor, the sexist language of hip-hop, and the politics of black hairstyles. Awkward also juxtaposes the Imus incident with other recent controversies, including the rape accusations leveled against white players on Duke University's lacrosse team in 2006, in order to demonstrate how sensational spectacles of racism play out in the media again and again."--BOOK JACKET.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 187-197) and index.
Table of contents: title: Preface: A symbolic burial; title: Part I. Scapegoating Imus; title: "What evil look like"; title: Humor as hate speech; title: The tight-lipped refusal to laugh; title: Racial violence and collective trauma; title: In Al Sharpton's crosshairs; title: The appeal of Imus in the morning; title: Part II. "Nappy-headed hos" in context; title: The rough girls of Rutgers; title: Hard-core misogyny, the hip-hop lexicon; title: Role-play, nigger jokes, and the politics of hair; title: Instant experts and false accusers: the Duke Lacrosse Team controversy; title: Conclusion : Imus in the morning redux.