Imus Settles With CBS Radio

CBS Spokesman Denies Reported $20M Deal

(CBS/AP)  The battle between Don Imus and CBS has apparently come to a halt.

The Drudge Report posted an item that said Imus settled his claim with CBS for breach of contract for $20 million and a non-disparaging clause. A CBS spokesperson confirmed to The ShowBuzz that a settlement has been reached. "Dollar amount rumored is grossly false," the spokesperson said.

The settlement pre-empts the dismissed deejay's threatened $120 million breach of contract lawsuit. Imus' lawyer Martin Garbus and CBS Radio issued a joint statement, but did not release any details of the settlement.

Imus and CBS Radio "have mutually agreed to settle claims that each had against the other regarding the Imus radio program on CBS," they said.

Imus was fired from both CBS radio and MSNBC after using the words "nappy headed hos" to describe the Rutgers women's basketball team in April. He apologized for what he said and even appeared on the Rev. Al Sharpton's radio show to further apologize.

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Photos: Don Imus

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CBS and Garbus confirmed only that the settlement had been reached. The person familiar with the talks told The Associated Press that Imus is taking steps to make a comeback with WABC.

That person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the details had not been announced, also said the deal with CBS calls for a "non-disparaging" agreement that forbids the parties from speaking negatively about each other.

Just before his dismissal, Imus signed a five-year, $40 million contract with CBS. Garbus, a famed First Amendment lawyer, said Imus would sue for the contract's unpaid portion. He cited a contract clause in which CBS acknowledged that Imus' services were "unique, extraordinary, irreverent, intellectual, topical, controversial." The clause said Imus' programming was "desired by company and ... consistent with company rules and policy," according to Garbus.

Meanwhile Tuesday, Rutgers basketball player Kia Vaughn sued Imus, CBS and others, claiming the offensive comments damaged her reputation. A spokeswoman for CBS Radio declined to comment, and a lawyer for Imus did not return a call about the suit.

A person familiar with the talks also told The Associated Press that Imus is taking steps to make a comeback with WABC. The stations' general manager, Steve Borneman, did not immediately return a call requesting comment. WABC is a talk-radio station that features radio personalities and shows such as Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh.

Sharpton, who led a "Fire Imus" movement, did not immediately return a call for comment. He said last month that he would not oppose the 67-year-old deejay's return to radio.

WFAN, the New York radio station that was Imus' flagship, also announced Tuesday that former NFL quarterback Boomer Esiason will take over the morning time slot along with Craig Carton, a New Jersey radio personality.

[pared1]

CBS paid the price for firing Imus. This little nappy headed ho suing him is doing it for the money not to save her name.

[rushman71]

PUT IMUS BACK ON!!! THIS IS AMERICA, FREEDOM OF SPEECH!!! A LOT OF PEOPLE HERE WOULD LOVE TO BASH BUSH, RIGHT, AND CALL HIM EVERY NAME IN THE BOOK? SO IS THIS FAIR TO PUT IMUS UP ON THE HANGING TREE JUST FOR THE 3 WORDS HE BLURTED OUT WITH NO NEGATIVE INTENTION? ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!

[thisandthat1]

KEEP IMUS OFF THE AIR!

[samthetvcat]

"Take every cent he's got, sisters."
Posted by brianbwb

lol - he must be lying about the $20mil sum . . . it has to be at least $40mil. I'm not sure how that'll come across for him to be letting low-ball rumors float around if it comes out in discovery that he was actually paid much more. Also if he gets another job and got paid in full because of CBS' breach of contract, even though he was entitled to full recovery by law it looks like he's getting a windfall off of the tears and heartbreak drama of the Rutgers women who had to hear themselves called 'hos' about a thousand times on every network after their basketball playoffs. No way corporations like Proctor and Gamble want to be sponsors of Imus when he's in that kind of a light . . .

[samthetvcat]

"I hear you brother (no racial slur intended)"
Posted by robaldrich4

I'm actually a girl and I'm actually white, so I don't know why you would be calling me 'brother (no racial slur intended)'. I'll concede that neocons seem to really dig picking on chicks - Bush bullying the Dixie Chicks, Cheney outing Valerie Plame the covert CIA agent, Imus degrading underprivileged inner city girls who are athletes and scholars. But something else that wasn't clear is why you would think consumer demand is the driver of Imus' profitability in light of the fact that his listenership never wavered but his sponsorship left in droves.

Also I'm not sure why you would think a jury would see the Rutgers team and Imus in the same light as you given that you're the ONLY person on this thread to call them money grubbers. All you offered in support of your OPINION is well nothing except an air of overconfidence . . . that tends to really play badly with juries - I'm surprised you haven't noticed that by now . . . or is it because you keep getting stuck with 'stupid' juries or something ;)

[brianbwb-2009]

I'll concede that Imus 'probably' didn't defame the Rutgers team, but I still think they'd recover something.
Posted by SamTheTVCat

Imus called them "hos" a distortion of the word "***", meaning "prostitute".

If he has proof that his victims are indeed prostitutes, he should present evidence to that effect to the local authorities, and the girls would be arrested and processed.

Otherwise he accused the girls of engaging in illegal acts without proof, on a medium reaching millions of listeners. Depending on how one defines the media, it is spoken and recorded defamation, i.e., libel and/or slander, the "race" inference only made it more insulting.

Take every cent he's got, sisters.

[robaldrich]

Someone said in response to my post: %u201Cexcellent points counselor . . . of course if Imus ever wanted to work again, I guess badgering the Rutgers women's basketball team might hurt him more than it would help him in the long run. Also, does he really want the plaintiff's attorney painting the portrait of two Americas where somebody that says things in poor taste has the ability to garner a multimillion dollar salary, but where girls who have managed to escape the project on brains, talent and sheer force of will still have to endure being called "nappy headed hos"?

I hear you brother (no racial slur intended), but Imus%u2019s career will ultimately be determined by the profitability of employing him. I would imagine that the crowd that listens to Imus would only be emboldened by a vigorous defense. Further, I think they and the jury would consider a baseless lawsuit by an ambulance chasing attorney (who should be disbarred for filing the suit) for truly unharmed, money grubbing college students, seeking more money than they would have earned in their lifetime, after several heartfelt national apologies by Imus, repulsive.

If I were on the jury, they wouldn%u2019t get a cent . . . and I can%u2019t stand Imus.

[robaldrich]

Someone said in response to my post: %u201Cexcellent points counselor . . . of course if Imus ever wanted to work again, I guess badgering the Rutgers women's basketball team might hurt him more than it would help him in the long run. Also, does he really want the plaintiff's attorney painting the portrait of two Americas where somebody that says things in poor taste has the ability to garner a multimillion dollar salary, but where girls who have managed to escape the project on brains, talent and sheer force of will still have to endure being called "nappy headed hos"?

I hear you brother (no racial slur intended), but Imus%u2019s career will ultimately be determined by the profitability of employing him. I would imagine that the crowd that listens to Imus would only be emboldened by a vigorous defense. Further, I think they and the jury would consider a baseless lawsuit by an ambulance chasing attorney (who should be disbarred for filing the suit) for truly unharmed, money grubbing college students, seeking more money than they would have earned in their lifetime, after several heartfelt national apologies by Imus, repulsive.

If I were on the jury, they wouldn%u2019t get a cent . . . and I can%u2019t stand Imus.

[robaldrich]

Someone said in response to my post: %u201Cexcellent points counselor . . . of course if Imus ever wanted to work again, I guess badgering the Rutgers women's basketball team might hurt him more than it would help him in the long run. Also, does he really want the plaintiff's attorney painting the portrait of two Americas where somebody that says things in poor taste has the ability to garner a multimillion dollar salary, but where girls who have managed to escape the project on brains, talent and sheer force of will still have to endure being called "nappy headed hos"?

I hear you brother (no racial slur intended), but Imus%u2019s career will ultimately be determined by the profitability of employing him. I would imagine that the crowd that listens to Imus would only be emboldened by a vigorous defense. Further, I think they and the jury would consider a baseless lawsuit by an ambulance chasing attorney (who should be disbarred for filing the suit) for truly unharmed, money grubbing college students, seeking more money than they would have earned in their lifetime, after several heartfelt national apologies by Imus, repulsive.

If I were on the jury, they wouldn%u2019t get a cent . . . and I can%u2019t stand Imus.

[sargfish7]

GOD BLESS YOU IMUS..... NOW, EXPOSE SHARPTON FOR THE PHONEY HE IS!!!

[sargfish7]

AHHH..... The pendulum is finally swinging back... I'm soooo happy that Big 'Al' and Jesse don't OBJECT to Imus' return.. Maybe they can contribute to the crippled children with cancer, or the Fallen Americans Fund, the next time, my man, IMUS has a telethon... They BOTH aren't worthy enough to lick IMUS' boots!!!

[samthetvcat]

oh shoot - the comments are going funny again

I also made the point below that maybe Imus' lawyers leaked that amount so the Rutgers' team would low-ball their request for damages. There's no reason Imus should have settled for less than $40mil. Even after the CBS lawyers probably asked another network if they'd be willing to offer Imus a job for a wage subsidy to lower Imus' claim for damages from them . . .

[samthetvcat]

***oops***, ***below*** ***that*** ***was*** ***supposed*** ***to*** ***say*** '***the*** ***projects***' ***not*** '***the*** ***project***' ***and*** '***guilty***' ***should*** ***be*** '***not*** ***guilty***' :)

[samthetvcat]

"They can%u2019t win a suit for defamation because no reasonable person would actually believe that the Rutgers Girls were prostitutes having a bad hair day. They can%u2019t win an emotional distress case because no person of sound intellect would be harmed by the rants of an imbecile shock jock. Even if they could, would the jury award cover their attorney fees. Imus can hire the best defense attorney in the country for a million or so and not even miss the money. Would you want Imus%u2019s private investigator investing every facet of your life and interviewing every person you ever met?"
Posted by robaldrich4

lol - excellent points counsellor . . . of course if Imus ever wanted to work again, I guess badgering the Rutgers women's basketball team might hurt him more than it would help him in the long run. Also, does he really want the plaintiff's attorney painting the portrait of two Americas where somebody that says things in poor taste has the ability to garner a multimillion dollar salary, but where girls who have managed to escape the project on brains, talent and sheer force of will still have to endure being called "nappy headed hos"? In the wake of Rodney King, the OJ jury thought he 'probably' did it but nevertheless found him guilty. I'll concede that Imus 'probably' didn't defame the Rutgers team, but I still think they'd recover something.

[taylpatr]

The amazing thing to me about all this is why anybody would pay, let alone listen to a rambling, slurring drunk like Imus in the first place. Yes, Don, you aren't the only one that indulged in the 70's and 80's. Being wealthy and living in the area you were in gave you access to the most high-grade cocaine available at the time. And it shows. I lived through it too, but I thank God every day that with his help, I was able to get off the coke and booze before major damage occured. You, however, sound and act like you went "One Toke Over the Line" to quote a song of the day. Don, give it up! Take the money and enjoy what's left of your life. But give us all a break and shut your pie hole! Your comments have been reduced to nothing more than blithering rants. You embarrass me, and you should embarrass yourself. People like you contribute nothing positive to the world. There's a place for people like you and Stern and your mindless ilk of a fan base and nothing grows there.

[likeitis5050]

Much ado over nothing...it was all about money in the first place and the opportunity was presented to make it more than it was ever meant to be, so, in the end...who really won? Yeah.

[shanev137]

Why don't the RUTGERS GIRLS sue Imus?

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Those Nappy-Headed Ho's can't afford a lawyer.

[tawilliams01]

"Racism"

"If you are human, you are racist. The more enlightened your knowledge is, the less likely you are to offend with your 'racisim'".

Posted by ToolMangler at 05:22 PM : Aug 14, 2007

Reposted for ToolMangler by me and injected ... to pause/relish/truly comprehend the definitions, as his comments suggest one does before going off negatively and distorting one's own understanding of the word 'racism' ... used to convey and further create/add insult to lack of self-esteem.

[tawilliams01]

Reposted for it's noteworthy content ...

"Racism"
"Because racism carries connotations of race-based bigotry, prejudice, violence, oppression, stereotyping or discrimination, the term has varying and often hotly contested definitions. Racialism is a related term intended to avoid these negative meanings ... According to the Oxford English Dictionary, racism is a belief or ideology that all members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to that race, especially to distinguish it as being either superior or inferior to another race or races ... The Merriam-Webster's Webster's Dictionary dictionary defines racism as a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race, ... and that it is also the prejudice based on such a belief ... The Macquarie Dictionary defines racism thus: the belief that human races have distinctive characteristics which determine their respective cultures, usually (but not necessarily) involving the idea that one's own race is superior and has the right to rule or dominate others".

"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/"

"If you are human, you are racist. The more enlightened your knowledge is, the less likely you are to offend with your 'racism'".

Posted by ToolMangler at 05:22 PM : Aug 14, 2007

[obiwan234]

The only thing I can add further is... Sharpton and Jackson can bite me!