"Nappy" and "Hos" Not the Only Words You Can't Say on the Radio

A cadre of Virginia legislators are pushing a Blacksburg-area radio station to stop syndicating the Neal Boortz show.

Two weeks ago, Boortz criticized the victims of the April 16 shootings for "standing in terror waiting for (their) turn to be executed." All eight Virginia stations that syndicate Boortz were sent a letter Monday afternoon signed by Democratic Delegates Stephen Shannon, Jim Shuler and Chuck Caputo. The letter called the radio host's remarks "hateful" and the radio stations' responses "disappointing and meager."

"I feel (Virginia radio stations) have a sense of public responsibility in the immediate aftermath of this tragedy to exercise some restraint. What they did was let this broadcaster peel off outrageous assertions that somehow it was the fault of the students and the faculty members who were killed or injured…There's simply no place for this out-of-state radio host to make such claims on Virginia's airwaves immediately after this tragedy has taken place," Shannon said.

…[WPSK 107.1 FM manager Scott] Stevens said that the station would take up investigating the case today, seeking the audio of Boortz's comments from the host and weighing Boortz's reflections on his remarks before rendering a decision. Stevens said that removing Boortz from the station's content was "certainly on the table," and that the station would more than likely offer Boortz the opportunity to personally address the local area.

Boortz actually walked back the remarks after he made them, although he was careful to note that he still rejected a "culture of passivity."