NEW YORK -- A member of the Rutgers women's basketball team sued Don Imus and CBS on Tuesday, claiming the radio personality's sexist and racist comments about the team damaged her reputation.
Kia Vaughn filed the lawsuit alleging slander and defamation of character in state Supreme Court in the Bronx the same day Imus settled with CBS Radio in a deal that pre-empts his threatened $120 million breach-of-contract lawsuit against CBS. The settlement allows him to make a comeback bid at a new station.
Vaughn's lawsuit, believed to be the first by a player in the case, says Imus and his former co-host Bernard McGuirk, along with CBS Corp. and CBS Radio, are legally responsible for damage done to her character and reputation. There is no dollar amount listed in the suit.
Vaughn was humiliated, embarrassed and publicly mocked for the comments, the lawsuit claims. Her attorney, Richard Ancowitz, said: "The full effect of the damage remains to be seen."
"This is about Kia Vaughn's good name," Ancowitz said. "She would do anything to return to her life as a student and respected basketball player -- a more simple life before Imus opened his mouth on April 4."
Imus referred to the basketball players as "nappy-headed hos" on his nationally syndicated radio program in April, becoming the target of heated protests. He was fired shortly after.
'Ho' is a slang term for a prostitute. After the comments were made, Vaughn said at a news conference: "Unless they've given 'ho' a whole new definition, that's not what I am."
A telephone message left for Imus' attorney was not immediately returned Tuesday. There was no phone listing for McGuirk in the New York area. A spokeswoman for CBS Radio declined to comment, and CBS network spokesman Dana McClintock did not immediately return a message. MSNBC said it hadn't seen the lawsuit.
Rutgers women's basketball program spokeswoman Stacey Brann said that the university had no comment on the lawsuit and that she didn't know whether other players had sued.
Vaughn, who was a center, had spoken out about Imus on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" in April. She said that the comments overshadowed her team's amazing season, one the coach has called the most rewarding of her career.
"Our moment was stolen from us," Vaughn said then. "Instead of us coming here to enjoy what we accomplished and how far we came, we had to sit back and look at media asking questions about what he said."
Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press
What a joke...I have no sympathy for this girl....It's a pathetic cash grab...She's really living the American dream now, isn't she? Hope someone hurts your feelings and sue their pants off...
These girls really came off looking good during the Imus fallout with their speech about not letting Imus define them....Then she hops right down in the gutter with him...
I don't think I heard anyone but Imus ridicule them, so the lawsuit itself is a mockery to herself and she should be embarrassed to do so. I hope there are people in the system looking at this as trying to get a quick dollar.
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The funny thing about this, is that now that she's singled herself out with this lawsuit, she's going to be called much worse things than "ho" by a whole lot more people than just Imus. And this time, there will be legitimate cause to call her whatever it is she's going to be called. She's going to do more harm to her reputation with this lawsuit than Imus ever did with his ignorant bigotry.
beanoX3 wrote:The funny thing about this, is that now that she's singled herself out with this lawsuit, she's going to be called much worse things than "ho" by a whole lot more people than just Imus. And this time, there will be legitimate cause to call her whatever it is she's going to be called. She's going to do more harm to her reputation with this lawsuit than Imus ever did with his ignorant bigotry.
Then she can sue herself for the damage that she did to her reputation.
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beanoX3 wrote:The funny thing about this, is that now that she's singled herself out with this lawsuit, she's going to be called much worse things than "ho" by a whole lot more people than just Imus. And this time, there will be legitimate cause to call her whatever it is she's going to be called. She's going to do more harm to her reputation with this lawsuit than Imus ever did with his ignorant bigotry.
Excellent post. It's very true. It's similar to what I heard a radio announcer say the other day. He said that nobody ever heard of this girl's name since the Imus comments until now. Nobody knew who she was and therefore her reputation wasn't damaged until she brought her name to the forefront.
Last edited by joelamosobadiah on Thu Aug 16, 2007 11:28 am, edited 1 time in total.
beanoX3 wrote:The funny thing about this, is that now that she's singled herself out with this lawsuit, she's going to be called much worse things than "ho" by a whole lot more people than just Imus. And this time, there will be legitimate cause to call her whatever it is she's going to be called. She's going to do more harm to her reputation with this lawsuit than Imus ever did with his ignorant bigotry.
I agree. Her filing this lawsuit is pretty stupid for her IMO. By stepping forward she's only ruining her reputation more and will be known as an individual rather than part of the Rutgers team. Silly move for her.
Please, this girl wants nothing more then money. I hope they cash block this girl's blatent attempt of trying to use the Imus excuse for trying to get a quick buck. Stupid ***.
beanoX3 wrote:The funny thing about this, is that now that she's singled herself out with this lawsuit, she's going to be called much worse things than "ho" by a whole lot more people than just Imus. And this time, there will be legitimate cause to call her whatever it is she's going to be called. She's going to do more harm to her reputation with this lawsuit than Imus ever did with his ignorant bigotry.
Then she can sue herself for the damage that she did to her reputation.
ho ho ho... that was funny.
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by jayday » Thu Aug 16, 2007 9:30 am 
