SiriusXM Fires Anthony Cumia, Host Of 'Opie & Anthony,' Over Tweets
Radio shock jocks Greg "Opie" Hughes (left) and Anthony Cumia walk to the XM Satellite Radio studios in 2006, in New York. The network fired Cumia on Thursday for what it said were "racially-charged and hate-filled remarks." Louis Lanzano/AP hide caption
Radio shock jocks Greg "Opie" Hughes (left) and Anthony Cumia walk to the XM Satellite Radio studios in 2006, in New York. The network fired Cumia on Thursday for what it said were "racially-charged and hate-filled remarks."
Louis Lanzano/APAnthony Cumia, co-host of SiriusXM's Opie & Anthony, was fired by the satellite radio network for what the company called his "racially-charged and hate-filled remarks on social media."
Cumia tweeted Tuesday that he had been punched in the face by a woman in New York's Times Square when she was caught in the frame while he was taking a picture of the area. The tweets that followed were racially charged and contained several obscenities. (Gawker has collected them all, but we warn you they are graphic.)
The tweets drew widespread criticism on social media. Cumia defended himself, saying that while his tweets were profanity-laced, they were not racist.
"Why should I afford my attacker any courtesy. Insane," he tweeted.
In its statement Friday, SiriusXM said Cumia was informed of the decision late Thursday.
"Those remarks and postings are abhorrent to SiriusXM, and his behavior is wholly inconsistent with what SiriusXM represents," the statement said.
Cumia appeared unperturbed. He tweeted: "Sirius decided to cave and fire me. Welcome to bizarre world. Fired for s - - - that wasn't even on the air & wasn't illegal."
Many of Cumia's fans appeared to support him, with several threatening to cancel their subscription to SiriusXM.