Three Atlanta radio hosts of "Mayhem in the AM," a sports talk show on WQXI-AM, "790 The Zone," have been fired after running a skit making fun of former New Orleans Saints player Steve Gleason, who is battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, is a debilitating disease that attacks motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord, atrophying the muscles and eventually causing paralysis.
Nick Cellini, Steak Shapiro, and Chris Dimino, initially put on indefinite suspension, were eventually fired, according to a statement released on 790 The Zone's website. "We deeply regret the offensive programming that aired this morning on 'Mayhem In The AM' on 790 The Zone, related to former New Orleans Saints player Steve Gleason and his battle with ALS. We suspended the three individuals involved immediately following their comments and have since terminated their employment. 790 The Zone, our owners, sponsors and partners in no way endorse or support this kind of content. We sincerely apologize to Mr. Gleason, his family and all those touched by ALS," said Rick Mack, the Senior Vice President and General Manager of 790 The Zone.
The hosts claim that the idea for the segment originated during a commercial break as the show's crew scattered around for good ideas. As the Atlanta Falcons are popular in Georgia, the New Orleans Saints are one of their biggest rivals. Since Gleason is one of the players most associated with the Louisiana team, and had recently been the guest writer for Peter King's popular "Monday Morning Quarterback" column, he seemed like the easiest target. "The pressure is to try to do a good radio show, and that wasn't a good moment," said Shapiro. "It was a horrible moment."
The slew of degrading jokes made by the hosts included a Steve Gleason impersonator calling in with a robotic voice, clearly poking fun at the former New Orleans Saints player's loss of ability to speak. The voice then went on to tell a series of knock knock jokes with answers that included "I blame Gregg Williams," and "Smother me, do me a favor," implying that Gleason wanted to die in order to be put out of his misery. The final joke ended with the fake Gleason saying, "I'm going to Hell," with one of the hosts responding, "Yes, you are."
News of the segment ran on "Mayhem in the AM" has quickly spread through numerous social media, causing major backlash for the three radio hosts at fault. They have all since apologized for the incident. Shapiro, when asked how he would have reacted if the jokes had been aimed at him, said, "I would have been offended." Gleason responded, saying that their apologies have been "received and accepted."
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