Imus involved in another race controversy

Jun 24, 2008 - 5:25 AM NEW YORK (Ticker) -- World-renowned radio broadcaster Don Imus has found himself in the midst of a race controversy yet again.

More than a year after being fired for making racially insensitive comments about the Rutgers women's basketball team, Imus on Monday caused an uproar for comments he made regarding Dallas Cowboys cornerback Adam Jones during his "Imus in the Morning." radio program.

During a segment about why Jones dropped his well-known nickname "Pacman," anchor Warner Wolf told Imus that Jones had "been arrested six times since being drafted by Tennessee in 2005."

Imus asked, "What color is he?" and Wolf responded by saying that "he's African-American."

"Well, there you go," Imus replied. "Now we know."

The segment did appear to have a common theme with earlier segments, as Imus asked about the race of Rocco Mediate while discussing Tiger Woods winning the U.S. Open.

Imus defended his comments in an e-mail message to the New York Times on Monday night.

I meant he was being picked on because he's black," said Imus, adding that he would solicit the opinion of black comedian and activist Dick Gregory, who is scheduled to appear on his show Tuesday.

"We'll see what he thinks," Imus wrote. "I mean ... come on!"

"The comments will be addressed on-air on Imus tomorrow," a station spokesman told PA SportsTicker.

Imus returned to radio months after being fired by CBS under the sponsorship of Citadel Broadcasting Corp, with distribution by ABC Radio Networks.

Imus stirred up national controversy after referring to the Rutgers women's basketball players as "nappy-headed ho's" following the 2007 NCAA Tournament championship game.

The incident received national media attention, and Imus eventually was fired for the comments.