Imus Is Finally Forgiven, By Fox At Least

Confirming buzz from last month that he was in talks with Fox Business to simulcast his radio show “Imus in the Morning,” Don Imus, in all his controversial glory, will be back on mainstream air in just a few short weeks (Since 2007 he’s been broadcast on RFD-TV). The popular radio personality just signed a multi-year deal with Fox Business Channel, according to a press release today.

FBN’s Executive Vice President Kevin Magee gave nothing short of accolades to Imus:

“We’re excited to welcome a renowned broadcaster like Don Imus to the FOX Business team. His 40 years of on-air experience combined with his superb interviewing skills and capitalist sensibilities will be a great addition to our lineup.”

But to the rest of the world, he’s still known as the guy who got kicked off MSNBC and CBS Radio when he “made derogatory comments … about a group of African American female basketball players.” So far, every source that added to the buzz before the deal was announced, whether it was

Mediaite, Gawker or the New York Times, has commented on the nappy-headed hos incident. The unfortunate slip of words has overshadowed his career and personal life for a while now – earlier this year, Imus was apparently battling stage two prostate cancer. Yet in recent articles discussing the FBN deal, the focus is still on the 2-year-old incident.

But if controversy’s good for anything it’s gaining visibility. And that’s exactly what FBN hopes to achieve through this deal, according to the New York Times with its headline “Fox Business Needs a Lift. Could It Be Don Imus?” which was later picked up by Huffington Post, who further speculated, “Don Imus, Fox Business’ Turning Point? Host Could Lift Network’s Visibility, Ratings.”

CNBC, FBN’s main competitor, currently has about 11 times the upstart’s audience. It won’t be easy for Fox Business to catch up anytime soon, but we wouldn’t be surprised if the big mouth of badass Imus gave them a small bump in ratings.