Sayonara Dr. Laura

     Radio talk-show psychologists  jumped for joy singing "Ding-dong the witch is dead" after discovering that their vial competition, Dr. Laura Schlessinger resigned. Dr. Laura, for years, has had the reputation of an inconsiderate, condescending, bully. When callers came to her for psychological assistance  via live radio, they were slapped around and spoken down to. Dr. laura recently resigned after controversy sprung up after she made racist remarks on air. When an African-American woman, Jade, was hurting due to family and social skepticism regarding her marriage to a caucasian man, she phoned Dr. Laura to discuss her feelings, and to ask how she should react to the people in her life, including her husband, who were causing her pain. Schlessinger responded to the woman's sound issue saying : "If you're that hypersensitive about color and don't have a sense of humor, don't marry out of your race". She continued to belittle Jade's situation when she said that she was being too sensitive to people's use of the word N*****. She continued to spew the word on live radio eleven times. Shortly after the show aired, she apologized publicly to Jade, but screamed to the world that she was the one victimized in this situation. What Dr. Laura said on her show was clearly racist and opinionated, which is why I believe that General Motors and Motel 6 were justified in their pulling their sponsorship from her radio show. Schlessinger appeared on Lary King Live, where she asserted that her 1st Amendment rights are in jeopardy. She spoke directly about her sponsors leaving her after the whole ordeal: "I want to be able to say what’s on my mind and in my heart and what I think is helpful and useful without somebody getting angry, some special-interest group deciding this is the time to silence a voice of dissent and attack affiliates, attack sponsors. I’m sort of done with that." She also stated that she would now be able to express herself using different forms of media which include her blog, YouTube channel, and television. 

     Dr. Laura's claim that her First Amendment rights, which include freedom of speech, are under attack is a load of bull. Yes, she is getting reprimanded for what she said, but I feel that she is more concerned about her funding running dry. She is free to say what she wants, but that does not mean that there will not be consequences. The companies are free to support whoever they want at their own discretion, and the government is not the one telling them to retract their funds. Therefore her 1st Amendment right is in working order. She said racist comments that were hurtful, and quite frankly stupid. I feel that her switch to  online media has to do with her keeping up with a new economic opportunity, rather than staying with the ship which she sunk herself. She does not want to stay with the penniless program because she will suffer economically, not because her "freedom of speech" is in danger. I am glad that she is off radio, and that the 1st Amendment allowed for others to express their opinions and take her down. Sayonara Dr. Laura. 


Holms, Linda. "Good News, Dr. Laura: Your First Amendment Rights are Still Yours" <http://www.npr.org/blogs/monkeysee/2010/08/18/129275433/laura-schlessinger-gets-back-the-first-amendment-rights-she-always-had>