Imus Producer Bernard McGuirk Booted by WFAN-AM

The executive producer for Don Imus’ show ‘Imus in the Morning’ was fired Thursday after-noon by WFAN-AM over his role in the “nappy headed ho’s” incident, CBS Radio spokeswoman Karen Mateo announced on Friday. Longtime Imus sidekick Bernard McGuirk actually started off the whole thing, being the first to name the Rutgers women “ho’s”.McGuirk, who joined WFAN in 1984, was an expected casualty of the Imus fallout. In addition to calling the Rutgers players in the NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship “hardcore ho’s,” the producer also characterized the Scarlet Knights’ losing match-up against the University of Tennessee’s Lady Vols as “the jigaboos versus the wannabes.”

The executive producer, derided by Imus as a “bald-headed stooge,” is well-known for his rightwing political leanings, and he was apparently responsible for booking the wide variety of politicians, journalists and other notables that made up the ‘Imus in the Morning’ prominent guest list. Bernard McGuirk joined the ‘Imus in the Morning Show’ as producer in 1987.The station hasn’t yet chosen a permanent replacement for Imus, whose show was nationally syndicated on 60 stations and drew approximately 2.5 million listeners a week.

After the release of Christian Science Monitor reporter, Jill Carroll, who was kidnapped in Iraq, McGuirk stated: “She strikes me as the kind of woman who would wear one of those suicide vests. You know, walk into the tent or try and sneak into the Green Zone.”

Meanwhile, it is still unknown how Imus is to settle his five-year, multi-million dollar contract, which was signed recently. The station hasn’t yet chosen a permanent replacement for Imus, whose show was nationally syndicated on 60 stations and drew approximately 2.5 million listeners a week. It’s unclear what kind of contract McGuirk was under.

According to the MSNBC website, McGuirk is married with two children and resides in Long Beach, N.Y.

Meanwhile, KCAA-AM, a small radio station airing east and south of Los Angeles, was sued by CBS Radio for running reruns of Imus, along with commentary from listeners about the controversy.

The CBS lawsuit is seeking a temporary restraining order as well as $150,000 per violation, according to AP. CBS Radio said in court filings that they asked 1,400-watt KCAA to stop and “have made it clear…that only a judicial decree will prevent them from persisting in their actions.”

On the other hand, the small radio station is saying they will run the show until April 27, in order to educate the public, and after that time, all Imus footage will be destroyed. A hearing in the federal lawsuit is set for Thursday. CBS declined to comment beyond its court filings.