NJ 101.5 FM's "The Jersey Guys" Provoke Outrage and Response

by Amee Chew
May 27, 2005

Not long after the infamous ‘tsunami song' aired over HOT 97 FM, two New Jersey radio hosts provoked further controversy with their racially derogatory comments about “Orientals” during a drive-time morning show.

On the April 25 show of “The Jersey Guys” over NJ 101.5 FM, hosts Craig Carton and Ray Rossi first attacked Jun Choi, a local Korean American candidate for mayor of Edison, NJ.

“Would you really vote for someone named Jun Choi?” Carton asked – pronouncing the candidate's name with a sped-up, high-pitched squeaky voice.

Egged on by Rossi, Carton proclaimed, “Here's the bottom line… No specific minority group or foreign group should ever, ever dictate the outcome of an American election. I don't care if the Chinese population in Edison has quadrupled in the last year, Chinese should never dictate the outcome of an election, Americans should.”

When a caller complained about the number of “Orientals” and “Indians” who have “taken over Edison,” Carton sympathized by responding: “Damn Orientals and Indians! … It's like you're a foreigner in your own country isn't it?”

The hosts' commentary soon spun into a general attack invoking prejudices and stereotypes to demean people of Asian, South Asian, and Middle Eastern descent. Carton and Rossi portrayed Asians as un-“American” outsiders who should not be allowed to exercise their political voting rights, using racial slurs and mock “ching chong” gibberish to bolster their case.

Unfortunately, this show's hate speech was only the latest episode in a pattern of bigotry and insensitivity. According to Asian Media Watch, in January 2005, Carton outraged mental health advocates by stating that women who suffer postpartum depression “must be crazy in the first place.” In April 2005, Carton promoted violence towards people recovering from addictions, saying he would burn down the homes of recovery patients, preferably with them inside, and shoot them in the head.

Asian Americans swiftly organized a response to “The Jersey Guys.” The Coalition Against Hate Media, which originally formed in reaction to the ‘tsunami song,' helped coordinate a task force of elected officials, grassroots organizations, community leaders, concerned citizens, and students, to meet with the radio station and its owner, Millennium Radio Group. The task force demanded an on-air public apology; disciplinary action against management and the DJs; and the implementation of corporate policy, cultural competency training, and public awareness initiatives. After negotiations and a press conference on May 15, Carton and Rossi made an on-air apology on May 25. The station also agreed to sponsor public service announcements and APA community events, hold refresher cultural diversity and competency training for its staff, and implement a stronger policy against racially derogatory speech. The first ‘community event' that the station will promote is the dedication of a memorial on May 28 to honor Min Soo Choi, an Asian American soldier who served and died in Iraq.

However, the station has not disclosed the nature of any disciplinary action it plans to take against Carton and Rossi. Asian Media Watch continues an online petition for the DJs' termination at http://www.asianmediawatch.net/jerseyguys/index.html. In a statement, the group argues:

The on-air displays of hatred and bigotry expressed by Millennium employees are harmful not only to the Asian Pacific American community. Carton and Rossi perpetuate a climate of intolerance and hatred towards people of different backgrounds and towards the disadvantaged. Carton and Rossi disgracefully attempt to represent the State of New Jersey and “White blue-collar workers” as being supportive of their own individual prejudiced views. Their promotion of intolerance and hatred are an affront to the common decency of all who value diversity and mutual understanding that crosses the lines of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, age, and mental or physical disability.

Earlier this month, Hyundai, Cingular, and Bank of America voluntarily withdrew advertising from the radio station.

The station's decision to honor Min Soo Choi raises further questions about the representation of Asian Americans and which perspectives to include when commemorating our belonging. During the May 15 press conference on the status of negotiations with Millennium, College of New Jersey student leader Dennis Chin defended Asian Americans' “rights as equal Americans” by pointing out their contributions: “Our ancestors helped to build the transcontinental railroad and served in WWII and now are serving in the Iraq War.” Chin's observation follows a long history of controversy over American minorities' position towards military service.

Military service has alternately been viewed by some as tool to gain civic legitimacy, but by others as an unjust imposition only adding to the exploitation of second-class citizens. For instance, during the WWII Japanese American internment, several Japanese American men refused military service. They paid by serving time in jail for opposing a draft required of them even as their families were imprisoned in concentration camps. African Americans faced a dilemma over the meaning of fighting the Vietnam War – which many interpreted as killing other brown people not for freedom, but for white oppressors. Feminists have questioned the consequences of valorizing male civic contributions as proof of belonging above other forms of service, in a time of war.

As the descendents of immigrants, we have a special opportunity to stay attuned to those who offer critical viewpoints on the U.S.'s global role. We must be careful to assert our legitimate rights in a way that allows us to challenge imperialism and racism, including the racism which underlies U.S. warfare. Additionally, we should be careful not to privilege certain ‘masculine' forms of citizenship – and only commemorate services traditionally performed by men – above the many, often unrecognized forms of civic sacrifice.

May 15 press conference of National/New Jersey Task Force Against Hate Media

"The Jersey Guys"