Earlier this week, Entercom Rochester fired “Breakfast Buzz” hosts Kimberly and Beck after they went on a 12-minute tirade about the City of Rochester’s decision to extend health care benefits to transgender individuals and their families.
This morning, the duo issued a statement apologizing for their comments. Whether anyone will buy it is another matter, but here’s the release in its entirety:
We are very sorry for the hurt and pain we have caused anyone, especially those in the Transgender community and their friends and families. What we said and the manner in which we handled ourselves was wrong, we take full responsibility and we deeply apologize to any and all that we offended.
Our attempt was to discuss a controversial healthcare issue; however our lack of sensitivity and understanding of the Transgender people and their plight created 12 minutes of radio we that wish we could take back.
We fully understand Entercom’s position and their decision to dismiss us. It is their right and we accept their decision and our responsibility in it. Entercom has been and will continue to be a strong advocate for the LGBT community and we are proud to have been helpful in Entercom’s efforts over our 13 years with the company.
It is our hope that this situation can be a time of learning and understanding about the Transgender community and not a time for additional anger and insensitivity. This is a community of individuals that struggle painfully to be themselves and find the support and comfort they deserve. We believe that this can be a chance for all of us to stop the ignorance and find our humanity.
This article appears in May 21-27, 2014.
Does anyone actually believe they authored this farce ?
Even if they did not a single word of it is sincere, it is a blatently obvious attempt to save some face and preserve some scrap of dignity.
It does not surprise me that the two hosts have apologized and are now blaming themselves. They have bills to pay and families to feed, and few people are strong enough to stand firm when their livelihoods are on the line. –Forcing people to comply by way of taking away their livelihoods is very cruel.
This is about much, much more than 12 minutes of regrettable radio chatter. Let’s not forget about the advertisers. I know what they’re thinking now. But, what on earth were they thinking then?
Too little too late. If they had put 6 seconds of thought into what they were going to say before they went on a 12-minute diatribe, they might still have their jobs and no need to apologize. Saying something unkind is easy. Saying something nice is hard.
This is obviously a statement issued by the PR Dept. of the radio station in an attempt to clean the station’s name from the mess these two hosts got it into, avoid any potential legal action against them and of course prevent sponsors from ending their contracts with it. Ignorants are ignorants, they don’t become aware and/or sensitive to people’s issues from night to day. Sad.
I wish them well in their new careers outside broadcast radio. I hope they find something more suitable to their extraordinary talents.
“We believe that this can be a chance for all of us to stop the ignorance..”
It’s been stopped, for now.
Given their “apology”, perhaps advertising, or writing fiction might be more in their line. Or flipping burgers, it’s all good. Walmart associates for 10 hours a week perhaps. I’m sure they’ll find something.
This wasn’t an “attack on policy,” as some have put it.
It was a full-on bashing of transsexual people all over the world. It was 12 minutes of puns, name-calling and hackneyed Aerosmith songs played as a joke and a weapon. This apology is bull.
Kimberley and Beck spew hateful garbage on-air and get canned; Lonsberry posts the virtually identical screed on his company’s website (as well as his own), pulls it after sober second thoughts and gets a free pass.
Here’s the proposed playbook: Lonsberry plays nice – contrite actually – for a while until the flap blows over, then it’s back to business as usual. That’s been his M.O. for years and slack-jawed groupies buy into it… exactly as everyone did over his ‘sensitivity training’ and subsequent public apology to former Mayor Bill Johnson. His smirk spoke volumes of insincerity (how does one ‘prove’ insincerity anyway?) so Lonsberry skips merrily along having met the requirements to hold onto his job.
So why pull the blog unless there was something about it that could get ‘someone’ in trouble? Smells like guilt to me, but like a proverbial Eddie Haskell sucking up to curry favor, Lonsberry breaks out the smooth-talk and the gullible buy into it as they’ve always done. He’s still on the air, isn’t he? I’d say that’s a clear sign of approval from the local community.
Debra JM Smith’s plaintive hand-wringing over people losing their jobs due to chronic obnoxiousness (or in Lonsberry’s case, master baiting) is pathetic. The First Amendment does *not* guarantee a mic and broadcasting rights using the public’s (‘possessive’) airwaves. Presumably, the Rochester community would balk at a White Power Hour talk show and justifiably so. If community standards are to be respected, then that implies lines that won’t be crossed… and pink slips issued to those who *do* cross those lines.
It obviously wouldn’t be the first time Lonsberry has been canned and *this* time, the public needs to ensure his feeble mea culpa falls on deaf ears.
They should not have been fired! Out of all the comments made about politics and crime and sex ect over the last 13 years and they are fired over this. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions about life in general. This show was always a controversial talk show. To me this punishment was unjust. It’s like saying to Kimberly and Beck.. hey your wrong for thinking the way you do! Everyone should believe it’s OK to be gay,bi-sexual,transgendered or whatever! Totally unjust!!!