Ex-Rep. Joe Walsh ‘kicked off the air’ over racist terms on radio

According to posts on former U.S. Rep. Joe Walsh’s Twitter account, the conservative radio talk-show host was kicked off the air Thursday night on WIND-AM (560) for using racial slurs while trying to have a discussion about racial slurs.

In a series of tweets posted about 7 p.m., Walsh says: “Just got kicked off the air until further notice. Tried to have honest discussion about racist terms and management censored my language.”

And: “I’m trying to have an honest, adult conversations about words without resorting to alphabet soup phrases (C-word, N-word, etc).”

Friday, WIND general manager Jeff Reisman issued a statement explaining Walsh was pulled from the air on Thursday but would return on Friday.

“Joe Walsh conducted a segment of his show regarding the recent controversy about the name of the Washington Redskins,” Reisman said in the emailed statement. “During the segment Joe intended to cite several common racial slurs as examples. He did not in any way use them in a defamatory or derogatory manner, simply as examples. However, AM 560 The Answer did not allow them to go on the air. AM 560 The Answer has a policy of not using certain words on the air that are highly inflammatory and offensive even in the context of a discussion of why those words are offensive. We will continue that policy.”

The posts said the discussion involved the ethical debate about the name of the pro football team in Washington, D.C.: the Redskins.

Walsh is the host of the weeknight “Joe Walsh Show” on WIND from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

On his website, Walsh describes his on-air attitude: “I do with this program what I did as a U.S. Congressman — speak plainly, speak directly, not worry about political correctness, and engage in respectful, engaging debate with all viewpoints. This is just too important of a time for all of us to do anything less.”

Walsh was a tea party-backed member of the House from the northwest suburbs who took office in 2011 and was unseated two years later by Democrat Tammy Duckworth.

While in office, Walsh said the Democratic Party wants African-Americans and Hispanics to be dependent on government.

Neither Walsh nor a representative of WIND could be reached for comment late Thursday.