Monday, April 16, 2007
Nifong and Imus
It's simple really, when you cut through it. They both failed miserably. Imus's job was to inform, provoke and entertain. His decision to attack the Rutgers women's lacrosse team amounted to a horrendous joke -- so bad, in fact, that it lost him his sponsors and therefore the economic raison d'etre of Imus in the Morning. He failed to inform or entertain, and his provocation alienated his audience. So he was fired for poor performance.
Similarly, Nifong failed to pursue justice dispassionately and blindly, which, after all, is his job. Instead, he presumed guilt for political purposes and may have violated the law, or at least the ethics of his profession. For this, he lost his job and may lose his professional standing. There may be other penalties as well.
It seems to me these guys have gotten most of what they deserve. And Nifong is certainly not yet out of the woods. The Duke men and their parents will probably have a very strong case if they choose to pursue him.
Do a bad job, get canned. Seems about right to me, even if it takes a little while.
7 Comments:
By 
Diane Wilson, at
Mon Apr 16, 06:24:00 PM:
One small problem.
Nifong hasn't lost his job yet.
Yes, he recused himself from the lacrosse case, long after he should have dropped it. But short of being disbarred, which can't happen earlier than the next bar hearing in mid-June, no one really has the power to remove him. He can resign, or fail to be re-elected. There is a petition calling for his removal, but it has to go through judges that have been friendly to Nifong in the past. So far they have (explicitly) declined to act on it until the bar hearing.
Do a bad job, lose your professional standing, and keep drawing that paycheck.
By 
, at
Mon Apr 16, 07:46:00 PM:
What are the chances that Imus did a bad job, lost his gig at MSNBC and CBS, but will actually be rewarded with a better job on satellite radio?
By Escort81, at
Mon Apr 16, 08:56:00 PM:
Nowhere girl raises an interesting point (although CP did qualify his conclusion by stating "Seems about right to me, even if it takes a little while"), which is that Nifong's disbarment, or bar suspension, will likely happen before impeachment or recall. I wonder if from a ministerial standpoint, he would be required to resign his post as DA if he can't practice law because of the action of the Bar Committee.
Anon 7:46 also raises an interesting question as to whether Imus is really through, or will come back to life on XM or Serius. I tend to think he is done done, but if he does come back, his economic package would be greatly altered (low fixed payments, mostly on the come tied to ratings).
CP's overall point is, I believe, that the labor market works in the long run and that compensation and performance are, or ought to be, naturally correlated.
By Escort81, at
Mon Apr 16, 11:09:00 PM:
Correction -- more precisely, that job status and performance tie together over the long run.
By , at
Tue Apr 17, 12:37:00 AM:
Liberals only beileve in FREDOM OF SPEECH when it involves trashing all thats great about america but if conservative want to use it then its hate speech in the eyes of liberal wussietards like AL(RED)SHARPTON
By Cardinalpark, at
Tue Apr 17, 08:26:00 AM:
Will Imus get a second chance? Probably. There are many second acts in America, and I bet he gets his. Frankly, he's a good bet. Imus is a recognizeable brand. If Marv albert got a second chance, and Howard Stern, and countless others, so will Imus. Let's not forget that guys like Al Sharpton (of Tawana Brawley fame) get multiple shots on goal too.
As for Nifong, he will struggle for a long time, maybe permanently, if he is disbarred. Time to find an entirely new line of work. And he will be very tainted, much moreso than Imus, in my view.
By , at
Tue Apr 17, 08:37:00 AM:
The same thing recently happened to Jim Zumbo, a long-time Outdoor Life columnist who came out in favor of banning 'black rifles' on his blog. Two days later, before the NRA had even heard of what was going on (it was later to try to take some credit), the thousands of protests to the magazine and its sponsors had ended his career. His remarks are being quoted on the gun-grabber sites. Arguably it is part of your job as a gun columnist to support gun rights.
He's now seeking a new career as a backslider who has been borned agin.
