Imus Is Back, and So Are His Buds

Imus news galore this morning: The New York Observer reports on WABC's plans to keep the aging radio rogue from experiencing another "nappy-headed hos" moment on its airwaves following his Dec. 3 return. The station will put him on a 21-second delay, a big change from the seldom-used five-second delay of his CBS days.

As for guests, former Clinton aide James Carville will be the first, and others are lining up behind him -- including at least one, New Yorker writer Ken Auletta, who said he wouldn't return to the show following the Rutgers controversy. Keep an eye on this list to see what other Imus shunners end up breaking ranks when they have a book or one-hour special to shill.

Meanwhile, the New York Times says Imus has nailed down a TV distribution deal as well, with RFD-TV, a cable network oriented to rural communities. The marriage seems almost cosmically pre-ordained: Network founder Patrick Gottsch discovered Imus only in 2005, when a friend told him that the host was wearing an RFD T-shirt on his MSNBC program.

"The show will be simulcast on RFD's main channel in the mornings, then rerun, on a high-definition offshoot, in the evenings," adds the Times, raising the question: Is there anyone you'd less want to see in high-def than Don Imus?