ROCHESTER, NY (CelebrityAccess) — iHeartMedia fired Kimberly and Beck, two popular radio hosts from Radio Rochester 95.1 after the duo sparked controversy with on-air racist comments during a broadcast on Tuesday.
“We made the decision to terminate Kimberly and Beck yesterday as soon as we learned of their comments and informed them early this morning. We will not tolerate this kind of behavior. Thank you so much for reaching out to us in the comments,” iHeartMedia said in a post on social media.
The comments came during a discussion of an attack on a local couple amid ongoing protests of the death of George Floyd in downtown Rochester.
Host Kimberly Ray referred to the ‘n-word’ three times during the segment, asking her co-host Barry Beck if the attackers were acting “n-word-ish” and “n-word-ly” while never actually uttering the forbidden word itself.
The two went on discuss the use of the ‘n-word’ itself, decrying what they claim is a double standard allowing African Americans to use the word without censure.
“If she [Ray] had been a black woman, the N-word wouldn’t have been that big of a deal, they’d have walked away,” Beck said. “But a white woman, calling three black guys the N-word – Bam.”
Ray continued to elaborate on the point, maintaining that the attackers were “acting that way” while a third host tried to stop the discussion and apologize for the remarks.
According to the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, the pair have been fired previously for making offensive on-air comments.
In 2014, they were terminated by a different Rochester radio station after mocking transgender people, and for allegedly slandering a local veterinarian, the Democrat & Chronicle reported.
