good god. what a sicko! couldn't those words constitue a threat of bodily harm? truly nauseating.

Q: What kind of person publicly threatens to hunt down and rape his rival’s four-year old daughter?

A demented dude that should'nt be allowed anywhere near a mike, heck, for that matter he should be listed as a child predator! Dragging a child in is low. Very low. sickening.

ANNA,

When I heard of this creature and his vile bs, I wanted to be sick. He is completely messed up and doesn't deserve to call himself human. I cannot imagine a single thing he could say or do that would make me want to forgive him.

I think all this shows that radio morning shows are a twisted, nasty little world. It's sickening and offensive to listen to even when they aren't saying the kinds of things that lead to them getting fired.

Then again, Opie and Anthony are back on the air, and bigger than ever in the gap left by Howard Stern. As I recall they too got fired for doing a stunt in incredibly poor taste. (It pales in comparison to what Star said, in my view.)

So with that in mind, I wouldn't be surprised to find DJ Star himself back on the air somewhere in not too long. I just hope it's satellite radio, so I never, ever have to be subjected to it: Banish him to outer space.

When the Grey Hair is dead, Magua will eat his heart. Before he dies, Magua will put his children under the knife, so the Grey Hair will know his seed is wiped out forever...

Ah, I get it now:

Magua is also the subject of an occasionally recurring internet meme on Fark, especially for a line he delivers to the French Marquis:

"When the Grey Hair is dead, Magua will eat his heart. Before he dies Magua will put his children under the knife so the Grey Hair will see his seed is wiped out forever." [Link]

I think all this shows that radio morning shows are a twisted, nasty little world. It's sickening and offensive to listen to even when they aren't saying the kinds of things that lead to them getting fired.

Amardeep, you just made a really good argument for why people should donate to Public Radio the next time they have a pledge drive. After Stern left the air NPR got a big bump in audience.

Is there a desi angle to this story? I seem to have missed it.

According to AngryAsianMan: "If you recall, Tarain was the same guy who did the on-air bit back in December 2004, where he called an Indian call center worker a 'filthy rat eater.'

PG - we've blogged about him a lot before. Just search for Troi in our archives. If I wasn't running out the door, I'd put a list of prior posts in my comment.

Here's some motivation for action:

If you were angry yesterday when you learned what now-fired ClearChannel radio host Troi Torain has been saying on air you are really going to hit the roof when you realize who was, in effect, paying his salary: you.

http://breitbart.wordpress.com/2006/05/11/clearchannel-fires-star-laughs-all-the-way-to-the-bank-with-a-tax-refund-of-843-million/

total loss for words, excepting the retch and gag reaction that mouth-breather Troi's antics have stirred in me. Thanks for sharing, ANNA. I hope this hateful and unemployed terror "gets his" when the karma bus pulls around.

I can't believe that it took so long for Clear Channel to take action. What a disgusting excuse for a human being. It's not enough that he verbally assaulted that Indian woman, he has to talk about raping a four year old. I hope he violated some law and is indicted for the things he said about that poor girl.

After Stern left the air NPR got a big bump in audience.

I know I'll come off sounding bad/elitist for saying this... but I find it odd that Howard Stern and NPR share the same listeners... so much so that NPR is filling the void left by Stern. crazy.

That's what a lot of people thought but Stern's listeners mostly like what NPR is selling. NPR does solid reporting but it is often more offbeat and unconventional than regular radio news which is why people think many of Stern's listeners eneded up there:

Other industry experts also noted that National Public Radio has attracted Stern listeners because it appeals more to his ribald talk show’s fan base than say, conservative talk shows. Other listeners are finding new alternatives.

“NPR stations have benefited. I think all kinds of other stations are benefiting, while other listeners have plugged in their iPods and taken along CDs and are listening more online,” said Taylor. [link]

Interesting that this post follows on the tail end of the one posted by Ennis on free-speech...

After Stern left the air NPR got a big bump in audience.

I know I'll come off sounding bad/elitist for saying this... but I find it odd that Howard Stern and NPR share the same listeners...

Also surprising is that Ira Glass (public radio star) is a Stern fan :
http://www.thisamericanlife.com/pages/trax/press/howard_and_me.html

I am truly at a loss for words. Speechless.

He should be sued for this. I don't think the First Amendment gaurantees hateful speech.

Is there a desi angle to this story? I seem to have missed it.

And I don’t just mean the many hours which Clear Channel enjoyed before canning his ass, I mean these many months. I guess when your transgression involves an innocent Indian call center worker, it’s easier to forgive and forget. No respect please, we’re rat-eaters.

If Clear Channel had any kind of soul, they would have dumped Torain after that example of his intrinsic cruelty, but they don’t,

That's what Ennis et al are referring to in their comments to you. Additionally, there's this angle: the four-year old's father was part of the morning crew that made fun of tsunami victims (which included brown people) via an awful parody/song. So there are two angles. Alternately, you could just follow some of the links which pointed towards our blog, to see the previous posts we've done on this asshole.

I don't think the First Amendment gaurantees hateful speech.

It does actually. Threat of violence against a specific indivudal however may be illegal.

Interesting that this post follows on the tail end of the one posted by Ennis on free-speech...

+

I don't think the First Amendment gaurantees hateful speech.

That's what inspired my title...

that comment is just purely sickening.. what people bring themselves down to, for ratings, and such..it's just really frightening.. and purely pathetic.

I don't understand, do commercial radio stations get a bigger leeway for using profanities etc on the air? I do volunteer radio shows for 2 non-commercial radio stations in Houston, and we have to follow really strict FCC guidelines, but it looks like these guys have more lenient rules.

To add to Abhi's comment - hate speech (really speaking of speech w/ racist overtones) isn't protected in Europe, but speech (incl. hate speech) is generally better protected in America so long as it does not incite violence, meet the reqs. for "slander," or fall under a couple of other narrowly applied exceptions.

I wonder about that protection, in this case where the speech promotes/advocates a criminal act (sexual assault/abuse of a minor). Hm.

These fuckers have been pulling shit like this for a long time. Last year it was the call center call I'm surprised some rivals haven't shot their asses already. About time someone got fired. Ugh.

this makes me thankful for my favorite radio station in Portland, Oregon- 94.7- less talk-- more music in the mornings!

FYI....

Mailing Address:
Power 105.1 FM
1120 6th Ave
New York, NY 10036

Phone Numbers:
Request Line: 800-585-1051
Business Line: 212-704-1051

Check out all the companies/organizations including the NYPD, Gap, Coke, Toyota and Geico that advertises with them and sponsors them and write to them.

I know I'll come off sounding bad/elitist for saying this... but I find it odd that Howard Stern and NPR share the same listeners... so much so that NPR is filling the void left by Stern. crazy.

You are making vast assumptions on Stern's audience. The trend you highlight would actually affirm my belief that most of Stern's listners actually liked his show for many other reasons than the crazy debaucherous antics. His show was always well produced and reached a wide demographic.

The fact that he's with satellite radio now, his content is definitely more true to his vision and those willing to pay for it will do so directly. The evil giant known as clear channel, in a mad scramble to replace Stern, is turning to Opie and Anthony (who can't hold a candle to Stern). The vaccum is sucking up all the dirt and I wouldn't be surprised if you saw more idiots like the disgusting individual being discussed here, unfortunately. Talent and solid content is hard to replace. Idiots will be having a field day on the public waves.

When its all said and done, with the nature of content distribution changing, idiots will get weeded out by the market. Until then, you may hear douchebags rant about wanting to violate children or something else.

I believe threats against children aren't taken lightly. If there is no legal way to nail this shit, I'm sure the civil proceedings will really give him hell.

CAD: I don't think the First Amendment gaurantees hateful speech.
Abhi:It does actually. Threat of violence against a specific indivudal however may be illegal.

Thank you,Vakil Abhi ;)

"A bane upon them; may the worms of your avarice consume your intestines, Clear Channel."
-Ronda Storms, Tampa Bay County Commissioner

Just like Ronda Storms, I abhor Clear Channel and everything they stand for.

Great article from Corpwatch.

Bonus desi angle: Pratap Chatterjee is the executive director of Corpwatch.

What exactly does it mean when it says 'doing an R.Kelly'? I know the guy is a hip-hop artiste, but beyond that i am unaware of it.

What exactly does it mean when it says 'doing an R.Kelly'? I know the guy is a hip-hop artiste, but beyond that i am unaware of it.

You obviously haven't met your FDA's recommended daily intake of the Chappelle Show.

Sick sick sick fuck. Read the whack apology he's making..."fearful for his safety" MY ASS. Thank you for the post, A N N A.

I was listening to this and my jaw dropped when he said this about Envy's daughter. Star is a self professed "hater", now he is saying that he was just kidding about it and wasnt really going to do anything. how stupid can he be? He was fired before from Hot97 and now he is fired from 105.1 in nyc.

While on the subject, i cant believe the stupidity i hear everyday on the airwaves. They are completely ignorant and oblivious to the real world. Just yesterday I heard Edlover from 105.1 say "what is the da vinci code"? everybody and their mom knows about this book, even if you havent read it.

What exactly does it mean when it says 'doing an R.Kelly'? I know the guy is a hip-hop artiste, but beyond that i am unaware of it.

R. Kelly was convicted of sexually abusing a girl and pee'ing on her (as shown in a home-made video).
When Star said it, he meant that.
He also said that he wants to "tinkle on the four year old". Sicko!

A lot of radio show morning chatter (with their countless zoos, and circuses or whatnot) is meaningless and stupid and I really get no pleasure out of them. I always remembered Hot 97 as being one of the stupidest ones around, especially because of the racist things they said. I gave them slack for being people of color as well, but there is a line between gently poking fun, and then just plain hurtful.

I do agree that he has freedom of speech (even to say things against minors) and I don't actually like censorship, so I generally do my own little bit of censorship and just turn the radio off. At the same time, it's nice to see the public react for a change and dictate what they want to listen to, and get his ass kicked off.

The problem is that people like Star get away with shit like this in the guise of Freedom of Speech. I like all the other people commenting here am outraged at this episode and definitely support a stronger measure as suggested by someone in the earlier post of the philly radio hosts. The problem is people have short memories and he may come back bigger and brasher.

Sick sick sick fuck. Read the whack apology he's making..."fearful for his safety" MY ASS. Thank you for the post, A N N A.

Neha, the comments left by his listeners are equally sick. I feel dirty thinking about the way some people can let something like this pass in the name of entertainment. Even sexist shock jocks such as Tom Leykis in Los Angeles draw a line at talking smack.

Morning talk radio is general brain drain from the local music stations in NYC. Not sure about the rest of the country. I find zero reason to tune out from NPR until the middle of the afternoon when no one is really "talking" and they are just playing music. I usually tune to 95.5 WPLJ. Some of the morning show discussions are so utterly stupid I think it should be against the law to be that stupid and ignorant in a city of 9 million people from all over the world!! You could walk down the street and absorb some intellect from the world going by!

Here's some motivation for action: If you were angry yesterday when you learned what now-fired ClearChannel radio host Troi Torain has been saying on air you are really going to hit the roof when you realize who was, in effect, paying his salary: you. http://breitbart.wordpress.com/2006/05/11/clearchannel-fires-star-laughs-all-the-way-to-the-bank-with-a-tax-refund-of-843-million/

Let's not get carried away now... I'm not justifying Star's words or actions, but why don't we just stick with the truth. That blog posting states that Clear Channel received a tax refund from the IRS. Refund of taxes already paid by Clear Channel. Maybe the "in effect" part is sort of a disclaimer, but it's a stretch to say that Star's salary is paid for by the American taxpayer. Clear Channel isn't a gov't funded program.

Let's stick with the facts. I'll admit I was a listener of his morning radio program. And as a listener, I can say it seemed as though he had been trying to get fired for a few weeks now. He had always claimed on his show that his contract with Clear Channel was guaranteed. So if you need something to be angry at, be angry that even though Clear Channel "fired" him, they are most likely still paying out his contract. Of course, if his threats do end up being a criminal offense, then I guess his plan would have backfired on him and hopefully that will count as some sort of justice.

I do agree that he has freedom of speech (even to say things against minors)

Paging Maisnon et al...where are the mutinous lawyers when you need them? Saying things about minors is one thing, saying these specific things about a four-year old is quite another IMO. Besides, he offered money to anyone who could hunt down the location of this child for him! That CAN'T be legal, can it? If you can't make jokes about bombs on planes, you shouldn't be able to mock a baby with threats of a facial. No, the two aren't exactly the same thing, but come ON. Why don't we do more to protect out children? Even if he was "joking", he has massive amounts of influence on a very impressionable audience. Hold his ass accountable, damnit.

The thing about free speech is tricky. Yes, he can say whatever he wants-- from bomb in the airport to "shoot 'em up" in a post office to heinous threats of violence against a minor to telling someone those pants do, in fact, make them look fat. The trick is that some things have consequences. You're free to SAY it all you want, and free to accept the consequences as such. The fact that DJ Idiot was so specific and direct in his threats against this child may well have some harsh legal consequences. (I hope, I hope, I hope!)

Seriously, his tirade defies belief. Coming from London, it is hard to imagine such poison can actually be aired live - I think its unlikely that a DJ with his track record would be allowed live on air over here without really strict monitoring. He is a liability for any station that he works for.
One thing that does confuse me slightly though - DJ Envy took the piss when he was part of the "Tsunami Song" team, right? But his wife is part-Asian - would that not amount to him just dissing his wife/her family??? I would be interested in peeps' views on this.

By the way, this DJ Star dude should be locked up and the station fined for having the stupidity to hire such a freak.

The guy would be lynched by the media if any DJ made comments like that on radio in the UK - might even be prosecuted under some sex offenders law - what a filthy and disgusting scum bag.

Re: "Hold his ass accountable, damnit. "

Ya, I'd like to hear from mutinous lawyers as well as to where this can go. As far as I knew, I thought he is covered, esp. because he can (and probably will) wipe his ass with the "but this is entertainment" blanket. Blech.

to # 39 DJ88
here is your answer

http://breitbart.wordpress.com/2006/05/11/clearchannel-fires-star-laughs-all-the-way-to-the-bank-with-a-tax-refund-of-843-million/

Joshua Breitbart said,
May 12, 2006 @ 12:07 pm

Actually, that’s exactly what it’s like. When you get a refund, they cut you a check from the general treasury. The IRS is taking money that was rightfully collected (mostly from us, but also from ClearChannel, though once it’s collected from ClearChannel, it’s our money, not theirs) and then funneling $843 million of it to ClearChannel so they can pay the six-figure salaries of the Star & BucWild crew and still have enough money left over to offer $500 bounties for information on little girls.

Here’s where $843 million in taxes would otherwise go, according to the National Priorities Project (in millions):

Of the $843 million you would have paid in taxes:
$240 million would have gone to the military
$158 million would have gone to pay the interest on the debt
$170 million would have gone to health care
$55 million would have gone to income security
$35 million would have gone to education
$31 million would have gone to benefits for veterans
$23 million would have gone to nutrition spending
$17 million would have gone to housing
$12 million would have gone to environmental protection
$2.5 million would have gone to job training
$9.8 million would have gone to all other expenses

The fact that DJ Idiot was so specific and direct in his threats against this child may well have some harsh legal consequences

There is no legal cause of action here. His 'humor' while vile and inflammatory is not criminal and nor should it be criminalized. By this logic, they should have locked up Tyson for threatening to eat the kids of his opponents.

Unless his words were the 'trigger' which incited immediate violece, his utterances are protected by the First Amendment.

another reason to hate clear channel and the monotous drone it floods our airwaves with. oh yeah...and...DISGUSTING.

thanks AMfD! Oh well...

amfd:

>>There is no legal cause of action here.

I'm a bit dismayed if this is true. Tyson threatening to eat the kids of his opponents is a generic threat - this DJ made reference to a specific person's child.

As someone who gets threats intermittently, for his ah... strong views, I think the parents should take the DJ to court and at least get a restraining order.

M. Nam

As someone who gets threats intermittently, for his ah... strong views...

You are the victim of threats? Funny. You just don't know when to quit, do ya?

M. Spam

As someone who gets threats intermittently, for his ah... strong views, I think the parents should take the DJ to court and at least get a restraining order.

Add that to the list of grievances that all Hindus have.

Can we put a restraining order on the Abrahamics? All of them? Men woman and child?

To restrain them from raping Hindu civilisation? And causing intolerance?

Can I get a lawyer for this?

Hail Mogambo!

Re: #45 Jeet

Yeah, I posted a comment there too, which is what he responded to... not sure if I want to debate his points on his site or here. He seems to be spinning a separate issue (creative accounting practices, tax evasion) to make an argument. It's really irrelevant to this topic.

Does anybody here read that blog post and believe it to be the truth?

anna:

fyi: this afternoon this a$$hole was arrested by the hate crimes unit... shabaash.

Clap Clap Chickpea....about time. I just hope they don't "slap him on the wrist" and leave him. Some time at Rikers is what is necessary.

this afternoon this a$$hole was arrested by the hate crimes unit...

Awww, thanks bean! I was thrilled to update the post accordingly. As if my Friday hadn't been fantastic enough.

If the guy's at Rikers, I'm gonna send him a jar of mayonnaise to share with his cellmates.

Awsome. I'm sure his fellow inmates will treat him well. Child molesters (or in this case, one who desired to be one) and rapists are definitely at the bottom of the totem pole.

his weapon, a .9-millimeter handgun

FYI to the NYT, there is no such thing as a .9mm only 9mm pistol. The former would make one hell of a dart gun.

the charge is endangering the welfare of a child...which is odd - clear publicity stunt

Too bad they can't put this loser in the same cell as Moussaoui... the two of them can spend their time taking turns playing "martyr" and "virgin" with each other.

the charge is endangering the welfare of a child...which is odd - clear publicity stunt

Would you mind elaborating? To many of us, it seemed like that was exactly what he was doing, but you know more about law than I do, so...

Generally, for such a charge there has to be a showing that the actions in Q were likely to harm the child - generally, mentally or physically. The child is 4 - she's unlikely to have been mentally harmed at all simply b/c such information is unlikely to reach a child so young (I would assume) and even if she knew something of what's going on, I'm not sure it's clear that a mental harm resulted(again, I assume). His words alone certainly didn't create a physical harm, and I'm not sure they would have been likely to create physical harm either.

anna and those who care:

another article from today... what a jackass... here he is saying

"There is a philosophy behind what I do," he said. "I have an ideology."He called his philosophy "objective hate," but refused to expound. "Visit www.rebirthofreason.com," he said. "When you start scrolling through those posts, then you'll understand my philosophy."

and i love this:

In 2004, Power 99 suspended him after he threatened to choke a call-center worker in India, and called her a "rat eater" during a segment on the air. The following year, he returned to New York on WWPR-FM, known as Power 105, (Hot 97's rival) and received a reported four-year $17 million deal

Run that by me again? He has an ideology? WTF? I know it's early morning...but that isn't ideology...it's pure evil what he said..did..

Chick Pea, have you any links? I'm quite swamped this Saturday morning and if I don't have to find them myself, that's more time for me to attack the monkey poo.

Holy shit - he's an Objectivist! He's claiming to be a follower of Ayn Rand, a reader of "Atlas Shrugged" and "The Fountainhead"

Holy shit - he's an Objectivist! He's claiming to be a follower of Ayn Rand, a reader of "Atlas Shrugged" and "The Fountainhead"

Haha...lock 'em all up and throw away the key. Clearly this ideology is dangerous to children and needs to be thoroughly investigated by the FBI, CIA, and other law enforcement agencies. I hope everyone who's ever attended an objectivist "camp" gets detained indefinitely without trial as a material witness.

I am sickened at reading this. I have nothing but contempt for "Hip - Hop" radio. I firmly believe that nothing useful can ever come out of "Hip-Hop". Anti-establishment, anti-intellectual BS. I have no sympathy for the "Hip-Hop" artists who kill each other at the "award ceremony".

And also I was hoping that the insane amount of money they paid Howard Stern (whom I detest at all levels) to go on Sirius Satellite will bite them in the a$$. But there are a lot of stupid suckers in this nation. and Sirius Sattelite did increase subscriber base Now all I can hope is that they arent able to control their bottom line and have to kick stern out.

sm intern:

i had the link... oops they erased the wrong repost.. here it is...
he is an idiot. plain and simple... he needs to win a darwin award...

A syndicated disc jockey with one of the city’s leading hip-hop radio stations was arrested this afternoon for making on-air threats to track down and sexually abuse the 4-year-old daughter of a rival, the police said.

I guess the DA does agree with me. Oh well!

I meant does not agree with me.

Troi explains:

Mr. Torain, 42, said that he was no shock jock. "There is a philosophy behind what I do," he said. "I have an ideology."

He called his philosophy "objective hate," but refused to expound. "Visit www.rebirthofreason.com," he said. "When you start scrolling through those posts, then you'll understand my philosophy."

In one of several messages posted on the Web site, Mr. Torain, who has described himself as a die-hard fan of the author Ayn Rand, wrote, "Soon, I will indeed explain how the cheap emotion of hate, a common subliminal thread in all men including myself, can only be fully understood by way of Objectivism."

Serial killer Ted Bundy worked for the Republican Party.

Serial killer John Wayne Gacy worked for the Democratic Party.

I can't believe this true listeners of either station would know that this is truly a long time battle that ended sadly this week. This was all started by the Tsunami song creator Dj Envy. The majority of the Tsunami victims are considered asian. He also was on air telling of how he had gone up earlier that week to attack and assault Star with 50 dudes. The ways of Shot 97. He also threatened to abduct Star's mom and throw he off of a bridge. He then ended his rants by shrugging off the personal verbal attacks of Star by saying that he doesn't care as long as Star doesn;t disrespect his wife and SEED?, i guess that his child. In return wanting to entice Envy to come back to the studio and face him like a man. He disrespected the wife and child. As requested. Thats why when you read the transcripts, after he says all of this vile disgusting ish..... He says now you have to come see me.... then the gun comes into play. "don't worry the only perso in my camp that carries is me". Not liek he was threatening the wife and or child with a gun..... Oh the people involved in this writing this are actually all victims.... The true culprits are the producers and owners of the show..who when seeing the situation getting out f control had the power to stop the dispute. Fire them.

Now don't get me wrong, what was said is distasteful and diswgusting and all synonyms of those words i'm sure, however every action has a reaction. And that is what has occured here. Mr. Torain at times was an ass, but if you took time to go beyond the that part of that 4 hour show. He offered more. I don't even consider him Hip Hop radio. He rarely played music. He attacked some of the most rediculous hip hop, and he used most of the terminology of the streets just to show how stupid it sounds. I'm guilty of this too. My niece and nephew are of this fouled up generation, and I always speak to them using the hip hop terms like son, kid , aight...... just to show how uneducated it sounds. He also played all types of music. Not just hip hop.

It's still not okay. It's never okay to threatean a four-year old with such torment, no matter the context.

Star's comments towards DJ Envy's wife and daughter were wrong. But let's not forget that DJ Envy set the whole situation off. It's quite admirable of DJ Envy to lay in the cut while his wife is leading an assult against Star. Wasn't it DJ Envy who started this trouble in the first place with the comments he made on his morning show. They say you reap was you sow. Well DJ Envy seemed to get more then he could handle. It is quite obvious that Star made those comments only to provoke DJ Envy into a confrontation. In my opinion if you're going to open your mouth and talk junk don't be suprised if you get punched in the face. Why isn't DJ Envy handling his business like a man? He put up and now he shut up. None of this would have went on if it weren't for DJ Envy's on-air comments towards Star. DJ Envy is the real cause to the pain and suffering his wife and daughter are enduring. If you're going to talk the talk then walk the walk.

I wrote the following piece more than a year ago never to see it published( the issue never was big enough to get on the radar of mainstream media ),so I thought I will share it with the readers of this Blog. It might be interesting. What's really interesting is the kneejerk assumption of many ( not a few )of what a racist looks like.

A recent email in my in-box screams for action against racism. Its author belongs to an Indian-American theater group in New York. As a budding Indian actor I once joined this group's mailing list to tap into its pool of ethnically favorable audition calls.

The email directs me to a nasty sound clip reeking of racism, sexism, and cowardice all at once. It is a recording of a male radio disc jockey who dials a female call center worker in India to order some trinket. He then abruptly jumps to his pre-planned course of action and calls the helpless woman a bitch and a filthy rat eater. He even threatens to choke her to death. He does this while comfortably sitting in his studio, thousands of miles away from his unseen
victim. The call center woman, whose name is Tina,
keeps addressing the DJ as "ma'am" throughout the
conversation, innocently believing him to be one of her own gender. So much for his attempt to sound like a menacingly macho thug!

I ask the sender of the email for the DJ's name and a few other details, including his race. "He’s as White as can be," she shoots back. I ask if she has bothered to confirm. She doesn't think it's necessary. In her eyes the racist person is White by default and the victim is anyone but White. It wouldn't take too long for the media in Tina's country to play up this issue. The Times of India dated January 13, 2005 has already run the story. The average person in India, not to mention here in America, thinks of America as a predominantly White culture and society, particularly when referring to quarters from which racism springs. That was where the finger was pointed after 9/11 when acts of hate were perpetrated against Middle Eastern looking people.

A google search reveals that the radio DJ's name is Troy Torain, a.k.a STAR whose morning show, The Star & Buc Wild Show is currently syndicated to two other Hip-Hop and R&B stations besides Philadelphia's WUSL-Power 99 FM. It turns out he is a Black man who once hypocritically blasted Jennifer Lopez for uttering the N word. This on-air incident, which took place on December 15, 2004, would have passed into oblivion were it not for an alert internet browser to have chanced upon a sound clip on Philadelphia's Power 99 website. Besides the Philadelphia Inquirer no major media outlets have picked up the story. Sympathizing with an American job stealer won't make for a popular read, it seems.

In many cultures and not the least in India, human
beings, particularly women can be very sensitive and prone to take insults personally. Did the call center employee, Tina, fear for her life? Probably so. Even to this day she might not know her nightmare was caused by some cruel American DJ's attempt to jack up his ratings. I hope Tina's countrymen will be able to tell one sick American anomaly apart from the multitudes who have poured out their hearts and wallets to the millions stricken by the recent Tsunami. The radio show guy didn't just give hell to a poor woman from another country. He slurred the entire Indian-American community that proudly calls America home.

In keeping with the spirit of the upcoming Martin Luther King Day, African-American leaders should be the first to publicly condemn this reprehensible act of ethnic hatred. The radio station's owners should discipline Troy Torain or fire him altogether. And finally with his now infamous radio program set to broadcast in New York City from Power 105.1 starting January 17, can I expect any prospective listeners to vote with their feet - and their ears as well?

Tak

It turns out he is a Black man who once hypocritically blasted Jennifer Lopez for uttering the N word.

Actually, he's both African-American and Italian. And the the N-word wasn't just uttered by Jennifer Lopez, it was recorded in a song. Her defense was that the lyrics were written by Ja Rule, so that made it OK for her.