Don Imus: Racist, or Just Clueless?

When will Don Imus learn that he's not down with black people?

The serially offending radio host has a not-entirely-implausible explanation for comments he made yesterday, about NFL star Adam "Pacman" Jones, that sparked fresh charges of racism. On his radio show this morning, Imus claimed that, when he asked, during a discussion of Jones' lengthy arrest record, "what color" the cornerback is, it was only to make the point that police discriminate against African-Americans.

"What people should be outraged about is that they arrest blacks for no reason," he said. "I mean, there's no reason to arrest this kid six times. Maybe he did something once, but everyone does something once."

Is this explanation legit? Given the incredibly ambiguous nature of Imus' remarks -- after being told that Jones is black, he merely responded, "There you go. Now we know" -- there's little choice but to take him at his word.

But, as I've said before, the problem isn't so much Imus' intent as his fogeyish failure to grasp the realities of the media universe which he inhabits. When you're a 67-year-old white millionaire with a history of racial controversy, ambiguity doesn't cut it. Merely asking the question "What color is he?" seems to betray a pre-Civil Rights Act mindset, and unless you make your meaning clear, that's going to be the takeaway -- if not for the average listener, then at least for the folks at Media Matters who are hunting for your scalp.

Imus thinks, because he likes old R&B and quotes Martin Luther King Jr., that his goodwill toward black people is evident to all. He even seems to think he's an honorary member of the race, to the point that he can get away with saying the sorts of things about black people that black people can (sometimes) get away with saying about each other -- things like calling women "nappy-headed hos."

In short, Imus simply doesn't understand how most of the world views him, which is no small failing for a professional ironist.