US:Radio host Don Imus, whose daily show is a favourite forum for politicians and political journalism, has been suspended for making racist and misogynist comments about a college basketball team.
Imus (66) has sought for days to defuse the anger caused by his description last Wednesday of the Rutgers women's basketball team as "a bunch of nappy-headed hos".
He has apologised on-air and appeared on a radio show hosted by civil rights activist the Rev Al Sharpton to admit that the remark was not funny and "went too far".
CBS radio and cable TV channel MSNBC announced this week, however, that Imus would be suspended for two weeks, starting next Monday.
Mr Sharpton has, along with the Rev Jesse Jackson, the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) and other black groups, called for Imus to be fired.
He made his remark the day after the Rutgers team, which includes eight black women, lost the national college women's championship game to Tennessee. He was speaking with producer Bernard McGuirk and said: "That's some rough girls from Rutgers. Man, they got tattoos . . ."
"Some hardcore hos," McGuirk said.
"That's some nappy-headed hos there, I'm going to tell you that," Imus said.
Imus waited two days before apologising and as public outrage rose, he claimed that he was "a good person who had said a bad thing".
Rutgers basketball coach Vivian Stringer said yesterday that Imus had lashed out at a group of young women who had overcome great odds to achieve academic and athletic success.
"They worked hard in the classroom and accomplished so much and used their gifts and talents," she said.
"We had to experience racist and sexist remarks that are deplorable, despicable, and abominable and unconscionable. It hurts me."
Some of Imus's regular guests from politics and journalism have said they will no longer accept invitations on to the show, although Republican presidential candidate John McCain has indicated that he will continue to appear.
"He has apologised. He said that he is deeply sorry. I'm a great believer in redemption," Mr McCain said.
Imus and his studio posse of middle-aged white men specialise in a form of grumpy banter that often veers into offensive remarks about ethnic minorities, women and gays.
Members of the group have in the past suggested that tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams had a better chance of appearing on the cover of National Geographic magazine than of Playboy and described the mostly black New York Knicks basketball team as a group of "chest-thumping pimps".
Imus has called black political journalist Gwen Ifill a "cleaning lady" and described William Rhoden of the New York Times as "a quota hire".
Mr Jackson said yesterday that the two-week suspension of Imus's show was an inadequate response to what had become a disturbing pattern of behaviour.
"This is a two-week cooling-off period. It does not challenge the character of the show, its political impact, or the impact that these comments have had on our society," Mr Jackson said.