Chris Stigall Debates Tom McGrath Over Sports Talk Host's Suspension

By Chris Stigall

PHILADELPHIA (CBS)--Chris Stigall debated the Editor of Philadelphia Magazine, Tom McGrath this morning on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT over the suspension of a sports talk radio host following a heated email exchange with a listener.

The host, Mike Missanelli, was taken off the air after the emails were released to multiple media outlets. Stigall and McGrath disagreed over whether the emails were homophobic with Stigall asking if it is wrong call someone gay and McGrath answering, "He's belittling him."

"He gets suspended because little pip-squeak hit men decide they want to take him down. I think it stinks. There's not a shred of evidence that suggests that Mike Missanelli in these email is homophobic just because he calls the guy gay," Stigall said defending Missanelli and criticizing the media outlets that chose to publish stories on the confrontation.

"One of the phrases that jumped out at me was 'You're a pathetic homosexual.' The point seems to be, he's belittling him because he's a homosexual," McGrath said believing the emails crossed the line into homophobia.

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Stigall objected to the idea that an anonymous email could get someone suspended saying "There's not even evidence of something defamatory. That one nameless faceless little weasel is able to silence a guy and get him kicked off the air and that there are members of the media are delighted to print it, I think is just low brow." McGrath countered he blames Missanelli, for writing the email, and his employers, for suspending him, share more of the blame than any outlet reporting on the story.

Stigall concluded, "Everybody's hooked on homosexual…I thought this was something we're to be proud of…That would imply there's something wrong with the label. This is what happens when word police and liberals start trying to control speech and determine what acceptable and what's not. They get themselves tied in knots."