We've been talking a lot about the Dean Blundell Show on 102.1 The Edge lately. Last week Dean Blundell attacked Humble and Fred and just Friday Todd Shapiro chimed in on the controvery.
Now Derek Welsman, a.k.a. Blind Derek, is in some hot water for a discussion he had on the air with Dean Blundell and Billie Holiday.
On a recent Monday morning inside the studio of the Dean Blundell shock-jock radio show, giggles and guffaws filled the airwaves as the host and his sidekicks ridiculed several gay men involved in a criminal trial.
A jury had just convicted a man for sexually assaulting three men he met in a Carlton St. bathhouse. The show’s producer and on-air personality, Derek Welsman, was the foreman.
The radio personalities chortled as they mocked gay men who visit bathhouses and the intelligence of the sex assault victims. They snickered as they imagined the perpetrator’s excitement for prison showers.
This, as you can imagine, suggests prejudice and could should result in a mistrial.
Three years ago, I was too was the foreman of a jury. My trial was a murder trial and we found the accused guilty. I wrote about this experience here. I respected the process, took it extremely seriously, and chose not to reveal a single detail about what happened in the jury room.
This disrespect and homophobic discussion on this popular Toronto morning show is extremely disappointing. I suspect it will be Fearless Fred in the mornings on 102.1 The Edge before you know it.
