Fired host gets a KFI shift

MICHAEL Graham, a talk show host who was fired this week from a Washington, D.C., radio station for refusing to apologize for calling Islam a “terrorist organization,” is slated to return to the airwaves Friday night on KFI-AM (640) in Los Angeles.

Graham, 43, is scheduled to be a one-time fill-in for KFI host John Ziegler, whose program runs from 7 to 10 p.m.

Graham’s controversial remarks about Islam on WMAL-AM last month came under attack from Muslim groups.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations, the largest Muslim civil rights group in the country, called his statements hateful and organized a letter-writing campaign to the station and its advertisers.

“It’s unfortunate, but not a surprise that he’s back on the air,” said Rabiah Ahmed, a spokeswoman for the Washington, D.C.-based CAIR. “He wasn’t the first radio talk show host to make such hateful, bigoted remarks and we doubt he will be the last.”

WMAL, which is owned by the Walt Disney Co., had suspended Graham without pay after the July 25 broadcast. Station officials had expected him to return to work but dismissed him Monday after he refused to agree to acknowledge that some of his remarks about Islam were what the station termed “overly broad.”

“I will not apologize for something that is true,” Graham told the Washington Post.

And in a formal statement, he said, “As a fan of talk radio, I find it absolutely outrageous that pressure from a special interest group like CAIR can result in the abandonment of free speech and open discourse on a talk radio show.”

Graham has previously appeared as a guest on other KFI shows, but this marks his first time as a guest host.

“If there’s one thing KFI stands for, it’s free speech,” said KFI’s program director, Robin Bertolucci. “I heard the entire context of what he was saying. He said most Muslims are good and decent people, but they have an obligation to disassociate themselves from the bad elements. He sounds like a smart guy.”