Asian Media Watch Demands Termination of NJ 101.5 FM Radio Hosts for Verbal Attack on Asian Pacific Americans
Asian Media Watch calls for termination of NJ 101.5 FM radio hosts Craig Carton and Ray Rossi for their racist defamatory propoganda and attack on the Asian Pacific American community and a candidate for public office. Asian Media Watch demands full accountability by parent company Millennium Radio Group for allowing NJ 101.5 FM Radio hosts to make defamatory statements such as "Ching Chong Ching Chong ... Damn Orientals and Indians."
(PRWEB) May 1, 2005 -- Asian Media Watch denounces the racist propaganda
broadcast by the hosts of radio station New Jersey 101.5 FM and for their
attempts to undermine the rights of Asian Pacific Americans (APAs) to
participate in the democratic and political process of this nation. On April 25,
2005, radio hosts Craig Carton and Ray Rossi made racially derogatory statements
towards the Asian Pacific American community and towards an Asian Pacific
American candidate for public office.
Carton and Rossi also have a past
history of prejudice and hate speech in which they have directed their bigotry
towards the mentally ill and threatened violence towards patients recovering
from addictive illness. Asian Media Watch allies itself with all those working
to hold the employees and management of New Jersey 101.5 FM, and its parent
company Millennium Radio Group ("Millennium"), fully accountable for promoting
bigotry and hatred.
During their April 25, 2005 program, Carton and Rossi
(a.k.a. "The Jersey Guys") used profanity and racial slurs, and spoke in "ching
chong" mock Asian gibberish in order to denigrate Americans of Asian Pacific
descent; portrayed Asian Pacific Americans as foreigners who interfere with the
democratic and political process of this nation, and portray Asian Pacific
Americans as outsiders who are not "American." Carton and Rossi referred to
Asian Pacific Americans as "Damn Orientals and Indians," spoke in "ching chong"
gibberish, demeaned a candidate for public office Jun Choi, as well make other
derogatory statements.
In January 2005, Carton outraged mental health
advocates by stating that women suffering postpartum depression "they must be
crazy in the first place," and other disparaging comments directed towards the
wife of acting New Jersey Governor Richard J. Codey. In April, 2004, Carton
attempted to incite violence towards people recovering from addictive illnesses
by stating that he would burn down the homes of recovery patients, preferable
with them in it, and shoot recovering patients in the head.
The on-air
displays of hatred and bigotry expressed by Millennium employees are harmful not
only to the Asian Pacific American community. Carton and Rossi perpetuate a
climate of intolerance and hatred towards people of different backgrounds and
towards the disadvantaged. Carton and Rossi disgracefully attempt to represent
the State of New Jersey and "White blue-collar workers" as being supportive of
their own individual prejudiced views. Their promotion of intolerance and hatred
are an affront to the common decency of all who value diversity and mutual
understanding that crosses the lines of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual
orientation, religion, age, and mental or physical disability. Not withstanding
the fact that Asian Pacific Americans have contributed to the social and
economic fabric of American society since the 1800s, Carton and Rossi have
spread propaganda that devalues the contributions of made by Americans from all
different cultural and religious backgrounds.
Asian Media Watch demands
the termination of radio hosts Craig Carton and Ray Rossi for their bigoted and
racist attack on the Asian Pacific American community and for their history of
bigotry towards the mentally ill and other disadvantaged members of society. The
organization calls for full accountability by the employees and management of NJ
101.5 FM and parent company Millennium Radio Group ("Millennium") -- that
Millennium take full responsibility for condoning the atrocious behavior of
Carton and Rossi; and that Millennium take immediate steps to remedy this matter
including, but not exclusively, the implementation and enforcement of business
policies and practices that prohibit bigotry and hate speech, and to ensure
equal opportunity and diversity in employment practices at all Millennium radio
stations and offices.
About
Asian Media Watch is an independent
non-profit grassroots organization dedicated to promoting a diverse, fair, and
balanced portrayal of Asian and Pacific Islander Americans in the media and
entertainment industry. www.asianmediawatch.net
Asian Media Watch is a member
of the Coalition Against Hate Media (CAHM), a diverse coalition of national,
community-based, student, and grassroots organizations whose mission is to
promote equality and balanced representation. CAHM denounces messages of hate
that discriminate against people based upon race, ethnicity, gender, sexual
orientation, disability, or religious background. We actively hold accountable
media corporations that seek to benefit from the promotion of discrimination,
violence and hate. www.coalitionagainsthatemedia.org
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/5/prweb235320.htm