Mich. public radio host fired over war remarks

[Bob Nelson <raccoonradio@yahoo.com>]

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGARNAUM3ED.html

Terry Hughes, a soul/R&B DJ at WEMU in Michigan, has
been fired after he refused to run NPR newscasts (he
feels NPR is biased) and for expressing opinions
supporting the war in Iraq.

Perhaps WEMU had a right to fire him, as he "broke
their rule" about not expressing opinions on
controversial matters, and refusing the run the
newscasts. But are they stifling dissent here?

Imagine if the article had read, "DJ Fired After
Making Anti-War Remarks On Air". Bring on the ACLU :)

As the article says, there were complaints from
listeners about his politics...so maybe the "pressure
from listeners" could be justified here.
But since he has been fired, Hughes has also gotten
more than a few emails of support.

An interesting situation here: You could say that
Hughes has a right to air his dissenting opinions
BUT also he didn't follow the WEMU rules...and,
by not airing the NPR newscasts, he made his show
one-sided opinion-wise. I could almost take either
side on this issue! (Hughes was heard on yesterday's
Howie Carr show.)