I was watching Headline News this afternoon and they read a statement released by Russell Simmons' on the Don Imus matter.
I was anxious to see what it was after hearing Simmons contribution to Byron Hunt's documentary (which I thought he sounded like an ass.)
The biggest problem I find with his statement is that he says "Comparing Don Imus’ language with hip-hop artists’ poetic expression is misguided and inaccurate and feeds into a mindset that can be a catalyst for unwarranted, rampant censorship," but I really don't think we are trying to compare the two.
Like we talked about in class, the "hip-hop artists’ poetic expression " has in a way, allowed people like Don Imus to say these types of things. Music videos, channels and magazines that continue to promote racially insensitive and sexist ideas are the cause of incidents like Imus'.
Also, saying that this is "in no way connected to hip-hop culture," seems pretty far-fetched to me.
I know Simmons was trying to put something out there to take the spotlight off of the hip-hop culture, but this statement just sounds ridiculous.