The Reverend Sharpton is not mentioned, but in any case involving race, sex and money, it only a matter of time. Kia Vaughn, Rutgers women’s basketball, is suing Don Imus for libel, slander and defamation. Lara Setraklas reports [1]:
Don Imus is facing his first lawsuit from a player on the Rutgers Women’s Basketball team for derogatory comments that cost him his job as a radio host in April, ABC News has learned.
Kia Vaughn, star center for the Rutgers Women’s Basketball team, has filed a lawsuit against Imus for libel, slander and defamation — the first civil suit to be filed against the former radio host. Vaughn is asking for monetary damages of an unspecified amount.
Ok, I am not a lawyer. However I am not charging for this opinion. My theory is that Imus iis reponsible for what he said to his audience.
Problems:
- The team has twelve players. Settling with one is an open invitation for the other eleven to sue. This case is going to court.
- Libel is written or visual defamation. Imus ddn’t write anything about Vaughn.
- Imus called the Rutger players ‘ho’s.” Within the realm of [c]rap music, ho is term for any woman. What the term was taken by Imus’ audience to mean is a debatable point.
- Vaughn is claiming to be a virgin. One, this seems to imply the need for her to prove this to the court. Two, even showing herself to virgin, would not show she was not a whore, a woman who performs sexual acts for money. Can any person prove that they have never performed a sex act for money? I doubt it.
- Slander is a three party offense. It a that a particular actor defamed a particular person to a particular audience. Party A defamed Party B, in the eyes of Party C. The Party C is this case would Imus’ radio audience. The obstensive purpose of the suit would to restore the standing in the eyes Party C, the audience.
- Can Vaughn show that the Imus in the Morning audience thought less of Vaughn when Imus called her a non-virgin? Bit might be better qualified to answer this particular point. However given my view of Imus’s audience, they would have increased esteem for an easy woman. I mean it not like Imus audience was Boy Scouts. Imus is a shock jock and audiences expect shock jocks to be well shocking.
I as I see it, this not a case about restoring esteem, but a raw grab for money. Imus may be a jerk, but I don’t seem him losing this case.
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