May I recommend filing a complaint directly with the FCC. If we can't beat Michael Powell, then at least we can use him:

Disgusting. How can this be funny? Stuff like this makes you realize Howard Stern might actually, be, um, a little talented (although I still can't stand his stuff).

abhi, how about targeting the advertisers on the station? I'm sorry, but I just don't agree with this particular Powell doctrine and don't want to use the FCC for anything.

MD,
I dislike the FCC also but I wanted to put it out there as the "Nuclear Option." The problem with going after the advertisers is that they frankly don't care about us. Our community is too small, unless we combine with other groups. That kind of sustained effort might take long enough that this story gets buried in the news cycle.

I'm not as anti-FCC as most people seem to be (probably b/c I worked there), so I agree that in addition to contacting the advertisers and the radio stations, filing a complaint with the FCC is a GREAT idea. We need to demonstrate that such outrageous behavior is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.

Sorry Julie, didn't mean to sound as anti-FCC as I did. I think specifically many of us disagree with the post Janet Jackson over-reaction by the FCC, as well as their relaxing of the rules in the area of media ownership. THIS however seems like an opportune time to make use of the org.

Anna's suggestion to send hand-written letters is also very important. E-mails are too easy to ignore or discount. A couple of stamps can go a long way.

Don't these guys feed off of outrage ? I mean, if there was no "shock", they couldn't very well be "shock" jocks right ? I guess I wonder whether calling and protesting is not playing directly into their hands, doing what these bozos want us to do

suresh, i comprehend what you're writing, but i don't advocate bending over and taking it sans lube. that's just me. the last line of his "skit" enrages me-- he acknowledges that he victimized that woman b/c he thinks we're docile punching bags, available for his pleasure. wrong.

I want those ASSHOLES fired..
(and i don't even curse)

omg, niki really *doesn't* curse.

diz-amn, "star"...more than anything else, that tells me it's ON. ;)

Hmm. "sans lube" ?

let the war begin: better to be loud then cowed, I guess.

wow. just listened to it. i just sat blinking, unable to believe he would actually DO that to some unsuspecting woman who is just trying to do her job. this is supposed to "boost ratings" .. how exactly does that work? oh right.... it's on clear channel. I'm already boycotting them here in Dallas thanks to shady business practices and exacerbated by that "George W Bush : Our Leader" propaganda poster they supported.

But it's better to do just what you said : boycott their ADVERTISERS and let them know that you are dong so, and why. As token white girl, I'll be happy to let them know that the boycott can and does extend out past a small - but substantial - ethnic group to all people who care about common decency and treating people with dignity.

oh and if Troi Torain wants call center jobs to stay in America, I personally invite him right now to quit his shock jock job and work for $9.00 an hour answering calls from jerks such as himself. The world would be a better place for it.

Apparently, Torain’s former New York employer Emmis has been trying to block his WWPR gig.

Thank you for bringing this egregious incident to our attention. We need a media watchdog organization for South Asians.. in the meantime, you all are doing an inspiring job of keeping the community plugged in.

The Philadelphia Daily News just today profiled another Clear Channel support gaffe -- check out http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/entertainment/10577106.htm?1c.

The author writes "Have you peeped a hot trend that hasn't been reported? E-mail heyjen@phillynews.com and let me know what you know." I'm sure she would be very interested in this local incident..

sorry for the double post.
and i just emailed her the link to the transcript.

Once in a while I would listen to power99 as I am a philly native. I don't normally burn people at the stake for my own beliefs like so many do. I don't make posters attached to wooden 2x4's defying the government or someone I dislike. I tend to, like most people, sit it out and let others speak for me. Apathy rages within me.

But this matter, this MP3, wow...HURTS.

I downloaded the MP3. I stare at it on my desktop. How could such a small icon, a few 0's and 1's cause so much pain in my chest?

I deleted it. Icons on my desktop are reserved for programs and files I admire.

Never again will 98.9FM be on my radio again, and never will I respect this man of such hate.

I'm all for standing up and exposing this sort of hypocritical and offensive racism for what it is..

I'm in the outsourcing business too -- we don't run a call center though, and so far haven't had this sort of crap. However, there's no way we can take this nonsense lying down... passivity does not pay, esp in America. Way to go, Sepia Mutiny.

I told this story to my British Asian boyfriend, and his response was simply "90% of the racism I've experienced in my life has come from black people." It's really a shame that a DJ who you'd think would be more sensitive to issues of culture and race should be the perpetrator of more xenophobia and hate. But this IS the direction that shock radio is headed, isn't it? Obviously listeners eat it up or they wouldn't give these wankers (and there's at least one in every major market, and others who get syndicated) so much money and airtime. Generally they stick to verbally abusing women, this guy just upped it to attacking a brown one. I think it'll only get worse as the U.S. gets more fragmented.

It's their own insecurity that has started pinching them. Sick bastards.....

Please, I'll bet most of his audience is white in those towns. He's just doing what successful shock jocks do, and he seems to be an equal opportunity offender. Airing that little clip after Aliyah died ... that's just cold.

What if we all just gave him a big hug?

Having had the precious experience of working as a customer service representative in a call center located in the United States, I can definitely recall the numerous idiots such as this wanna-be DJ that complained about service. Little did these callers realize that I could hear every single thing they said whenever I put them on mute, amplified into my headset tenfold. Their most common complaint was regarding the timing of service. Very often, many of their requests were dependent on duties being fulfilled through another party that we outsourced projects to - the "other party" being in India. Of course, that information could never be fully revealed and being the hapless service rep, I bore the brunt of whatever bitch/whine/moan the customer felt necessary to send my way. The worst part of this incident is that it magnifies the utter ignorance and intolerance of Americans. Being an American consumer who's worked in the dreaded call center, being an Indian-American whose job was ultimately outsourced back to the motherland (no bitter feelings, only relief), "Star" exemplified vile xenophobia and plain old-fashioned impatience - things that the land where "customer is king" has made possible. My point: we need to put pressure on the "higher-ups" that create a culture where stupid skits and ratings' ploys are fulfilled at the price of any human dignity.

There is a place for each type of humor. Humor that plays up stereotypes tends to do well in a stand-up setting. It may not sit well with some people, but its in a private setting.

When broadcasting such idiotic messages over a public system, one can only cringe and shake their head. Plenty of racist jokes fly around, even within our communities (typical Sardar, Gujarati, South-Indian jokes). However, they are in context with humor at the core of the joke, and are not meant to be hateful.

This so called 'prank' spewed vitriol and hate. One could do something more tasteful as Conan did, which I laughed at. There is even edgier comedy that I laugh at also. One has to balance the tone of the skit with the content, good comedians make it sound humorous, laid-back, and funny, not HATEFUL.

Thats why good comics are good, they know where that line between humor and racist hatemongering exists.

This was not humor, it was verbal abuse. Verbally abusing a lady simply doing her job is unacceptable and in the name of humor or satire, it definitely does not fly. One look at the transcript and anyone can tell that is verbal abuse. "STAR: Listen to me, you dirty rat eater. I’ll come out there and choke the eff out of you"

The very fact that the caller threatened violence (although in vain), it is disturbing. Take this same line and throw it any other person or community and no one will find it funny. Only idiots would.

wow dhrumil-- you are *so* hilarious. hugs are for your "private parties", not scum like this DJ.

What I was trying to get at was there is a line between humor and blatant racism/hate.

The private setting was meant to enforce that certain types of humor is within context in a private setting and not in the public. You aren't going to play Chris Rock, Carlin, or even Russel Peters on the Radio. That is offensive in a public broadcast, but in a private setting or contoled area, it has its audience.

What this DJ did is not acceptable ANYWHERE. Get it?

Once again...in suresh's words "Don't these guys feed off of outrage ? I mean, if there was no "shock", they couldn't very well be "shock" jocks right ? I guess I wonder whether calling and protesting is not playing directly into their hands, doing what these bozos want us to do"

I say ignore the bastard! If I run into him here (in philly) I promise I'll say "Wassap n****r?"

Chris

I say ignore the bastard! If I run into him here (in philly) I promise I'll say "Wassap n****r?"

Right, because fighting hate with hate is a great idea (sarcasm intended).

For the past 2 days, I've literally been speechless here. I listened to the MP3 for the first few min and literally had to delete the bits off my hard disk. It's just sick, disgusting, twisted, and hypocritical in a way I haven't seen in years.

Even Howard Stern (a man I am far from being a fan of) doesn't pull crap like this....

And speaking of "filthy rat eaters..."

Troi Torain if your bitch ass comes down to the South..even your own black people would whoop your ass. Your name is going to be remembered in Dallas, and you're gonna get fucked up if you set foot here. Oh and here's a little word my good Indian friend taught me...you're a CHUT.

You can email complaints to the FCC to both Michael Powell and to the general complaints line. Email address's below:

fccinfo@fcc.gov., Michael.Powell@fcc.gov

Even though I'm not South Asian, I am otherwise still an Asian American who has experienced racism in growing up in big cities that are supposed to be diverse and tolerant of others. When I heard this, I was flabbergasted that it had been broadcast. Of course, every time I hear another Asian joke on TV, I'm flabbergasted but have come to expect it. I wrote an angry letter to the station and to the FCC and maybe will be forwarding it to some more organizations. Stand up and be heard people! It sucks to be picked on, Asian or not and this guy needs to be told that he's an asshole and that people can't get away with bullying others.

Why did Steena refer to this guy as "Ma'am"? Perhaps that's what pissed this guy off, not that it gives him the freaking right to talk to her the way he did. Maybe he's a little insecure about his sexual orientation and Steena touched a nerve.

I listened to the clip and I came away feeling not so much general outrage (although it's certainly warranted here) but rather empathy for Steena. I'm an immigrant to the US (from Thailand) and have been in similar situations where I've been verbally abused because of my race. Steena was a true professional and I'm proud of her for that, because if it were me, I would have lit up that a-hole like a Christmas tree (and probably would have been fired).

I think Indians need to be sensitive to American "culture". Probably this is how they speak amongst themselves (bitch and all ....) - so it's nothing unusual ;-)

truth: go eff yourself, bitch.

ha-ha! go american culture! it's not unusual to pick on the helpless, insult them baselessly and stoke negativity in an already highly-charged political debate (outsourcing).

we do have to protest the comment in entirety, including the use of "bitch." it's important to note that it's not just "racial abuse" but sexual harassment, far more widespread and acceptable in this society.

Hello, we have a discussion about this topic at the Yellowworld forums: http://forums.yellowworld.org/showthread.php?t=21101

I need to know the original air date and if possible, the approximate time (to the nearest hour) the segment occurred so an FCC complaint can be lodged. Please e-mail me, post here, or on the YW forum. Thank you.

I'm convinced this DJ got pissed off because the Indian woman taking the call persisted in calling him ma'am. Y'know... his manhood and all!! haha. Go, Indian woman...

Indians should not address anybody as sir/maam. May be the call center folks needs to be trained on this aspect. The language of this so-called "guy" is an act of an uncultured uneducated brute.

Simply disgusted by the standard of modern day radio. Howard Stern and then this.....

The only way to stop these dirtiest scum of the society is to call their sponsors and slam class action lawsuits against them for promoting profanity, racism, vulgarity in United States. Who sponsors/advertises on this show/FM station. Make the list and get a Philly lawyer to bomb their "you know what".

The whole incident worths a nice-ass lawsuit. Suspension, my ass! We need to get these guys back to where they belong. Anyone up for slamming these folks and sponsors with lawsuits?

Please file a complaint to FCC....use the web address below http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cib/fcc475.cfm

I have already done so and I know many of you have. If number reaches in thousands, you will see some action. South Asian community is very strong in USA, economically [the rest of this comment has been censored by Sepia Mutiny].

God Bless America!!

2 things everyone MUST DO to channel this OUTRAGE

1)MAil-- fccinfo@fcc.gov and the chairman Michael.Powell@fcc.gov
I just did it. But nothing concrete would happen until the numbers build up...so MAIL RIGHT AWAY

2) Mail-- foxnews and cnn
just did thatas well -- This better gets reported in mainstream

first of. i am new here. it appears a lot of you actually "know" each other.
now, it shouldnt take too much to actually force the hands of those incharge to dissolve what ever contract they have with these two "RJ's". Just find a lawyer who is willing to file a class action law suit against the station itself for defamation and promotion of racist policies. if i am not mistaken, this still is the US of A. If nothing else, it will draw a lot more attention to the station itself, and possibly bring about a boycotting of the show by non-indians as well.

good luck to those in the philly area with this.

If anybody is against outsourcing, then there are lot of ways to show this rather than personally attacking some innocent person. This is pure racist attitude. If that junk DJ had some attitude, he may have attacked the company that outsourced rather than an individual who is doing her job for her livelihood. This station should be
boycotted.

God, why do... [the rest of this comment was deleted by SM because not enough context was given. If this was meant to be an alert to hate speech on another site, then that site and its author must be attributed so as to avoid confusion. We apologize if we misunderstood the original comment]

Dear Star and Buck Wild,
I woke up one morning in Philadelphia tuned into Power 99 FM, and was totally shocked. Where did all of the dj's go. As I listened to the radio I thought to myself hmmm can this man be another Howard Stern. The hatered that was on your show was not shocking but (I shall keep in clean) disturbing. That was then this is now. Now with this new incident this is just not acceptable. I am an American white female with an Indian boyfriend. My advice to you both is seek some legal council and get another side job as your talk show haven will soon come to cease.

I think it may be better to have Mr Star (DJ) brought out to a TV show to defend his actions.

Shws such as O'Reily Factor (Fox) may be fruitful in making a mince-meat of this DJ joker.

Dont know where we're heading but dave you shit head, we all know how big u're country sucks...u're so called RJ's need the help of a fone & mike to threaten & abuse an innocent girl in india who was trying to do er job..what's it with you f.......sure you do your country proud....remember u're dealing with India....it aint no afghanistan or iraq..
remember 9/11,the threat of 12000 russian ICBM's tipped with nuclear warheads targeted all over the U.S of A, not to forget even your loos, the hard talk you get to hear from Iran & North Korea...Remember when India retaliates all of the above will fade in comparison...as for those RJ's they'll find their balls hanging on their ears...not to forget your's dave.....jaihind

Yeah, I heard that, but now that guy has been thrown off, if you want to hear an Indian podcast about Indians in the mainstream, listen to the Raj and Aman Radio Show.

www.geocities.com/surifilmco

Hold on a second. It is so inappropriate to field this as an attack on Indians, because you are still considering yourselves an individual group, which is again considered racist, just the oppositte way round.
Field this attack as abusive against a fellow human being, irrespective of what style it was taken in, and then people will consider everyone a single community. He will have abused a fellow person, and from that end alone, people should have him shut down. Defend the situation like that and you will have much better results.

This probably is an old blog, since this incident happened a few months ago, but since I came accross this today, might as well say sumthing.

I agree with most of you, this racist sob needs to be confronted. Calling up the sponsors of the show is a good idea, but I think bringing him out in open is just golden. Can any1 locate his address? Any other info? Maybe he can be called upon a talk show ? Maybe a morning show, maybe 2 college guys can walk up to his place with a camera in their hand asking for an interview and then confronting him on cam ?

Besides this, I think the MNCs with Call Centers in India need to address this problem of increased hate-calls. Employees should be given freedom to talk back or hang up.

Can you believe if a "cool" RJ calls India and disses at some unsuspecting girl and she comes back and says " I'm hanging up on you, your such a sexually frustated f*g". I bet he wouldn't try it again.

This is a letter I sent to 94.1 WYSP.

I'm going to file an FCC complaint tommorow.

"To Whome It May Concern:

At approximately 6:50 PM eastern standard time on November 28th 2005 I heard your DJ say the following racially derogatory remark, "All black people carry guns." I was personally offended by this statement and I'm not alone. Several of my friends urged me to contact you regarding the racial slur aimed at black people. I understand that the "target market" for your show is early twenties white kids, but that does not make it ok to slip hate-rhetoric into your time-filling banter. I would like to hear a public apology "broadcast" during his regular show detailing what he said, and why he is sorry. Otherwise, me and my friends will gladly take further action citing your station for blatent bigotry. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Please respond in a timely manner as we your listeners are eagerly awaiting an agreeable resolution.

If no voluntary action is taken I will be forced by good conscience to contact others who would be interested in this "story".

Sincerely,"

man em happy they played this on radio this shows how stupid some ppl are em sure they must be ashamed them selves for what they did to steena
with that kindaa hypocracy you will get no where loosers i work in a callcenter man this happens alot its just this call was recorded so ppl get to knw man but belive me this happens alot to us americans are not at all professional but i wonder why they are laughing that girl was just tying to be polite and trying to help them but they just wanna insult her without any goddamm reason ...........

I have only one statement to give....... don't balame Troi Torain or whatever the hell this retards name is......the fault lies in the fact of the method he was spawned...UNWANTED i bet...lol

A bunch of people complaining about nothing....please get over it and move on!!!! we have enough to worry about in our homeland(s) than an idiot on a radio. we have idiots in power to worry about!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Damon Roberts
The Social Action Committee
Phone 267-972-2451
Email: damonkroberts@yahoo.com

Protest for Responsible Media

The Social Action Committee protests Power 99 and the Star & Buc Wild Show, demanding responsible and positive radio programs in the African American Community

PHILADELPHA, PA, FEBRUARY 22, 2006 –The Social Action Committee invites concerned Philadelphia residents to attend a protest at Power 99 studios on Wednesday March 1st at 7:30am.

The protest will challenge the commercial media to have positive and responsible messages, especially in programming targeted towards the African American youth. Specifically, the protest is aimed at the Star & Buc Wild Show, a morning show syndicated from a New York radio station. The show’s hosts boast about their offensive use of racial, ethnic, religious and sexual slurs and other derogatory commentary repeatedly throughout the show.

The Social Action Committee demands that Clear Channel, Power 99 and the Star & Buc Wild Show clean up the material on this morning show, and will levy pressure on major advertisers to stop placing ads during that program's time slot. The Social Action Committee intends for the protest to serve as a community education and empowerment tool.

The Social Action committee hosted a panel discussion on January 26, 2006 called “Protecting the Public Airwaves”, which highlighted the growing influence media has on African American children. The concern is that media has been a major contributor in promoting negative behavior. The Social Action Committee has also filed complaints with the FCC and encouraged advertisers to remove their advertisements from the radio station. So far, in response to Social Action Committee letters, Comcast and Pier One have pulled commercials during the show. Meanwhile, Coca Cola is monitoring the show and is considering removing their advertisements as well.
WHAT: Protest at Power 99 Studios
DATE: Wednesday, March 1, 2006
LOCATION: Power 99 Studios, 111 Presidential Blvd., Bala Cynwyd, PA
TIME: 7:30am-9am

About The Social Action Committee. The Social Action Committee is a group of predominantly African American professionals tasked with providing a social, educational, political and economic impact for African Americans in the City of Philadelphia.

I know this is an old thread, but I came across this while googling "Troi Torain". Read an article on Reuters just now about another incident in relation to threatening a child on air. What I find really surprising is why is this guy still on the air?? Besides which, who finds this crap funny anyway..?

This would certainly not continue if it were broadcasted here in Australia. It would offend everybody, not just specific minority groups; being 1st generation Australian of Eurasian descent I would know.

Good luck with booting him out of business. You would definately have my support.

We covered that latest incident. We then updated that post with a bit of good news. :)

Troi is an unreconstructed racist thru and thru. He hates people whose skin color is different from his; whose culture is different from his. He is a disgrace to American values What is really too bad is that he has an audience of millions who apparently approve of him. Still he does NOT represent America. He will either be prosecuted for his threats, and be fined or spend a little time in jail thinking, or his advertisers will cut him off. Either way he will pay a price for his racism.

By the way, "Black guy" (#30 on the blog) is also a racist and just about as bad as Troi.

I'm an African-American and let me tell you, that guy doesn't respresent anything beyond exemplifying ghetto, crass-ass willful ignorance and malice. What a disgusting, perverted piece of trash - I bet if someone spoke to his Mama or daughter like that, he would go "buc wild"! He's a coward - let him go to India and try to talk slick to someone's female relatives like that!

True African-American culture is based on respect and propriety (i.e. think Arthur Ashe's family, Lena Horne, etc.), not this ass-backwards, commodified ghetto culture sold to the world as "Black Culture tm". Star should be shunned!

That's okay! If a crazy pack of buff Punjabi boys, outraged fathers of toddler girls and an attorney from Aaliyah's estate show up at Star's house to "handle some business", he won't get any sympathy from Brown or Black folk alike!

I think to many people are offended to easily. Star is not a racist b/c he talks about everyone no matter what color, gender, or background. He is not afraid to tackle any subject and he gives his honest opinion on matters. He keeps it 100 with the listeners just like he says. I can't say that I agree with him all the time b/c God knows I don't. Especially when it comes the recent events and the threatening of a little girl and all. He definitely went too far there. Firing him was the right choice, but arresting him? Come on ...

Push comes to shove and you all might hate him but in the end it is entertainment and its on the radio. If you hate him that much then turn the channel.

Troi Torain is a PIG! wallowing in his filthy racist remarks.

Im sorry about your loss girl, you have to learn to deal with racist bastards and bitches, they are everywhere!

You should have called him fuck off rotten bastard and hung up! Never say Sir/Mam to a rude caller, talk loud and dont fear that u'll be fired, when you'll be fired you'll have other opportunities after a little frustration! So stay tuned to your self esteem and dont give a damm about these chicken shits!

Poor, ugly and week people are usually racist and abusive, guess what they are 90% of world population, I face these freaks in US everyday. I treat them like dirty tissue papers and they dont dare to mess with me!

--Yash

Troi Terrain should be fired!!!!

Again I'm reminded why citizens of other countries can't stand Americans. To the Indians on this board, many Americans were appalled and embarrased when hearing about this radio incident. The majority of Americans do not hold this pathetic attitude. I have no problem with outsourcing. Indian tech support personnel have always been nice over the phone and helped me out tremendously when I had computer problems. It is a shame that if you are African-American you can be racist and no one does anything, but if you are of another race and say anything bad about African-Americans they come after you with a vengeance (Jesse Jackson, etc.). Racism in any form or fashion is wrong (YES YASH EVEN WHEN YOU ARE BEING RACIST).

Sooner or later all races are going to have to learn to respect each other.

lets let him know that this behavior will not be tolerated and he could damage the lucrative relationship america has with india and also damage international relations. does not want to do that does he?

Thanks, Alex. That's a point I forgot to make.

Oooh Yash, I'm just soooo scared of you!! It's pretty hypocritical to judge all Americans by the actions of a few.

hi could you please delete my comment the one by a#l##e#x B#O#r#S#o#d#y, please? its messing up my google search results of my name.

thanks