From the New York Times, Cleveland Plain Dealer:

Talk Radio Network, which syndicates Michael Savage’s program to more than 350 affiliates, said it would not fire or suspend him over his recent comments labeling autism a “fraud.”

In its first statement since Mr. Savage’s remarks on July 16 the company said that it was “satisfied that he did not mean any disrespect to autistic children or their families but was instead reiterating his longstanding concerns on public health issues.”

Meanwhile, in Cleveland, WHK AM/1420 announced it is breaking its contract with Talk Radio Network in order to yank Savage’s show.

“This guy’s a knucklehead, and I want to get rid of him,” said Mark Jaycox, who manages the station.

See also:

• A savage attack: Right-radio wrong (By John Pittman in National Review Online)
• Savaged: A radio talk show host pulls a fast one on fans? (By David Klinghoffer in National Review Online)
• Michael Savage is ignorant about autism (By Ellenmorris Tiegerman in Newsday)

From USA Today:

Airline travel has many characteristics that can trigger meltdown in kids with autism, experts say. Among other things, air travel involves breaks in routine, enclosure in tight spaces, crowds, noise, and demands that kids sit still for long periods of time.

What can parents do to reduce the stress? Prepare kids for the trip by sharing photos of airport terminals, planes and destinations. Let kids make small choices, so they feel some measure of control. Bring along familiar books, toys, headphones and snacks. And let the airline know if you’ll need accommodations.

Editors at the Philadelphia Inquirer excoriate Michael Savage’s comments about children with autism.

Actually, his rant is proof that moronic behavior can get you somewhere in life. After all, Savage has the third-largest talk-radio audience in America, on 350 stations. But that’s beside the point.

Savage willfully misrepresents the reality of autism. About 1 in 150 children in the United States have some form of this developmental disability, which is a medical condition, not a surge in coddling.

… What’s needed for these children is better therapy earlier in life, and more services to help them ease into adulthood. They will not “get better” from applying sterner discipline, just as a talk-radio host can’t become less biased by taking a pill.

See also: Long Islanders to join SF protest over Michael Savage comments (Newsday)

See earlier posts here, here and here.

• Savage loses advertisers (New York Times)
• Boo hoo for ‘the Savage Nation’ (Jay Bookman in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
• Michael Savage’s brave stand for personal responsibility (Gawker.com)
• Disability rights coalition seeks firing of Savage (Press release)
• Lessons of Don Imus: How to react to Michael Savage? (Mark Knudson in the Denver Daily News)
• Savage’s comments infuriate autism community (ABC News)
• Hollywood reacts to Savage’s autism slam (MSNBC)
• Savage Defends Remarks Questioning Autism (CBS Early Show)

From the New York Times, ABC News, Newsday, Boston Herald, New York Daily News and elsewhere:

As autism advocacy organizations voiced outrage over his comments calling autism a “fraud” caused by poor parenting, nationally syndicated radio personality Michael Savage issued a statement defending his remarks.

“My comments about autism were meant to boldly awaken parents and children to the medical community’s attempt to label too many children or adults as ‘autistic,’ Savage wrote in a statement on his Web site and read on his broadcast Monday. “Many children are being victimized by being diagnosed with an ‘illness’ which may not exist in all cases. … Let the truly autistic be treated. Let the falsely diagnosed be free.”

Aflac insurance pulled its ads from the show and issued a statement saying that “… we found his recent comments about autistic children to be both inappropriate and insensitive.”

An estimated 40 people turned out for a protest outside the studios of WOR in New York, one of more than 350 stations that carries Savage’s show.

See also:

Other Savage episodes: Radio host’s controversial remarks (Newsday)

Earlier post here.

(Photo from New York Daily News)

From SFGate.com’s Daily Dish, Salon’s Broadsheet, Eonline’s Marc Malkin:

In response to public criticism, actress Amanda Peet (left, with daughter Frances) has apologized for referring to parents who refuse to vaccinate their children as “parasites.”

New mom Peet used the term during an interview with the Conde Nast magazine Cookie. She said she was “shocked at the amount of misinformation floating around, particularly in Hollywood” about unproven links between vaccines and autism. Actress Jenny McCarthy and boyfriend Jim Carrey recently led a march on Washington to raise awareness about alleged toxins in children’s vaccines

“I believe in my heart that my use of the word ‘parasites’ was mean and divisive … I completely understand why it offended some parents, and in particular, parents of children with autism who feel that vaccines caused their illness. For this I am truly sorry,” said Peet.

Peet is among the stars of “The X Files: I Want to Believe,” which debuts later this month. Salon lists her as a spokeswoman for Every Child by Two, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting vaccines founded by former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, but she does not appear on the organization’s website. Reader responses to Peet’s original comment start here.

(Photo from Cookie magazine)

From WCBSTV New York and AM New York:

Advocates are demanding that conservative radio host Michael Savage lose his job after he referred to children with autism as “brats” with neglectful parents during his nationally syndicated show. Savage says autism is a “money racket” to get extra welfare and extra help in school.

On his broadcast, Savage said: “I’ll tell you what autism is. In 99 percent of the cases, it’s a brat who hasn’t been told to cut the act out … They don’t have a father around to tell them, ‘Don’t act like a moron. You’ll get nowhere in life. Stop acting like a putz. Straighten up. Act like a man. Don’t sit there crying and screaming, idiot.’ ”

Advocacy groups are planning a protest at the studios of WOR in Manhattan, and are calling for a boycott of all stations carrying Savage’s show. The program reaches an estimated eight million listeners a week on nearly 400 stations, behind only Rush Limbaugh’s and Sean Hannity’s in number of listeners, according to Talkers magazine, an industry publication.

Savage’s radio formula seems to lean heavily on invective and has been boycotted previously.  (more…)