CBS, Imus Settle Dispute Over Firing

Still banished from his perch in media land, radio shock jock Don Imus has reached a settlement with CBS (CBS) over his firing in April, and he reportedly is negotiating with another radio station about a return to the airwaves.

CBS announced Tuesday that it reached a settlement with Imus over claims that the two parties had against each other in the wake of a controversy over comments the so-called I-Man made on his radio show on a CBS Radio affiliate station, WFAN.

Terms of the settlement were not disclosed, but CBS spokesman Dana McClintock said the amount was "not material" to CBS. Imus could not be reached for comment.

Imus had threatened a $120 million breach-of-contract lawsuit against CBS after he was fired for referring to members of the Rutgers University women's basketball team as "nappy-headed hos" on his radio show.

The comments sparked a firestorm of criticism led by civil-rights activist Reverend Al Sharpton. Imus was subsequently fired by CBS from his morning radio show, and General Electric's (GE) MSNBC ended its cable TV simulcast of the show.

After apologizing for his remarks on his show, on Sharpton's radio show and in a private meeting with the basketball team, Imus disappeared from the airwaves in disgrace. Now, the Associated Press reports that he is in talks about a comeback with WABC-AM, a station that features radio personalities such as Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity.

Walt Disney (DIS), which owns the ABC broadcasting company, sold the WABC-AM station in a recent deal with Citadel Broadcasting (CDL). A spokeswoman at Citadel, as well as officials at WABC-AM, could not be immediately reached for comment on the AP story.

Meanwhile, WFAN confirmed on Tuesday that former NFL quarterback Boomer Esiason will take over the morning time slot once occupied by Imus, along with Craig Carton, a New Jersey radio personality.

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