At what point does this charade end?
The cannibal pot continues to simmer, as we see at The Federalist [1]:
“You look great,” said Don Marsh, the 80-year-old host of the radio show “St. Louis On the Air,” to recently retired St. Louis news anchor Karen Foss (75 years young) when she entered the studio for an interview. The two veteran journalists then went on to have this pleasant and collegial conversation aired by KWMU, National Public Radio’s St. Louis affiliate.
The next morning, Foss learned that Marsh, a St. Louis institution, was leaving St. Louis Pubic Radio. Why? Someone at the KWMU studio had overheard Marsh’s complimentary greeting to Foss, perceived it to be inappropriate, and tattled to the bosses. That’s right, a man telling a longtime friend whom he hadn’t seen in a while that she looked great was Not Okay.
Foss posted a response on Facebook:
Reportedly Marsh was reprimanded for greeting me with a ‘you look good’. The assertion being that Don was making a sexist comment.
I am appalled.
As a woman who has long argued for the equitable treatment of women, I am highly alert to sexism and discrimination and I sensed absolutely none of that in his greeting. In fact I strongly suspect I responded by saying ‘so do you’. It is a common way for those of us who are aged to greet each other – meaning we share our pleasure at being vital and healthy. It is in no way leering or meant to diminish anyone’s intellectual or professional contributions.
If indeed this simple exchange between professionals who have been friendly competitors for nearly 40 years was considered evidence of sexism, I must protest vehemently. After sixty years in the workplace, I know very well what sexual harassment and innuendo look like and this was most assuredly nothing of the kind
Apparently, despite all efforts to the contrary, John Marsh was coming off as being “insufficiently woke” to his superiors.
Several comments spring from this, the first one being why anyone still questions removing taxpayer money from such radio stations.
It strikes me as interesting that’s Joe Budden is suffering from the same fate.
And finally, it strikes me as amusing that all of this is coming from the party of Bill Clinton.