Killing my free speech

[PhiPsiRuss]

This whole incident just may make Howard Stern more popular than ever. There used to be a saying that the fastest way for a book to make the New York Times bestseller list, was to be banned by the Boston Archdiocese.

Hopefully, Clear Channel will have enough decency to allow the Howard Stern Show to obtain new affiliates in those markets.

[chideltjen]

i don't know why they have just decided to pull the plug now. howard stern has always pushed the limit on the radio and in public.

Although this could be why...

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Stern Blames Suspension on Janet Jackson's Breast

18 minutes ago

Add Entertainment - Reuters to My Yahoo!

By Larry Fine

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Radio shock-jock Howard Stern on Thursday blamed a conservative backlash prompted by the exposure of singer Janet Jackson (news)'s breast on television for the suspension of his show after a broadcast including talk of anal sex and offensive racial slurs.


Reuters Photo

AP Photo

Slideshow: Clear Channel Suspends Stern's Radio Show

_

Stern was dumped by Clear Channel Communications Inc., which carries his syndicated show in six U.S. markets, over segment of the show on Tuesday.


During on-air banter with Rick Salomon -- whose claim to fame is a widely distributed tape of him having sex with reality TV star Paris Hilton -- a caller asked Salomon if he had ever had sex with a famous black woman, using offensive language.


Stern on Thursday blamed the disciplinary move on a backlash over pop diva Jackson's exposing her breast during a halftime show at the football Super Bowl on February 1, which was broadcast live.


He faulted a radio station general manager for not hitting the delete button to stop the words being transmitted.


"They (Clear Channel) are being forced to say that I did something wrong," he said on Thursday's broadcast.


"I'm under attack. They've been after me since 1992, and they're having their way with me," he said referring to repeated troubles he has had with regulators. "Then Janet Jackson whipped out her boob and it's all over."


Stern's New York-based show is syndicated by Infinity Broadcasting, a unit of Viacom Inc., which also owns television networks CBS and MTV. CBS broadcast the Super Bowl, TV's most-watched event, and MTV produced the halftime show.


Infinity declined comment, as did Viacom, whose President Mel Karmazin vowed to crack down on sexually explicit material in the aftermath of the Super Bowl flap.


VULGAR AND OFFENSIVE


Stern was pulled off radio stations in Rochester, N.Y., Pittsburgh, San Diego, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Fla., and Louisville, Ky. indefinitely, by San Antonio, Texas-based Clear Channel. He remains in about three dozen other U.S. markets.


"It was vulgar, offensive and insulting, not just to women and African Americans but to anyone with a sense of common decency," Clear Channel Radio President John Hogan said in a statement issued on Wednesday.


The radio giant, with over 1,200 outlets, also complained that Stern asked Salomon about anal sex and the size of his penis. On Thursday, Stern thumbed his nose at that complaint by replaying that segment on the air.


The move against Stern came a day after Clear Channel fired Florida radio's "Bubba the Love Sponge," after federal regulators accused him of airing sexually graphic material.


Stern suggested another motive for being pulled off the air. "They don't admit it in the press but they have admitted to me that they are doing this because they (Clear Channel executives) are being hauled in front of Congress," he told listeners on Thursday.

Hogan was testifying on Thursday before a Congressional committee hearing in Washington on a proposed law to tighten decency standards in the media.

Dr. Paul Levinson, head of the Communication and Media Studies department at Fordham University, said he thought it was "hypocritical" of Hogan to suspend Stern rather than defend his rights to free speech.

"With the Super Bowl incident,. a lot of people were totally surprised by that. But no one can be surprised by what they hear on the Howard Stern show," Levinson said. "Clear Channel is just going along with what the government wants. (Additional reporting by Steve Gorman in Los Angeles)

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Bottom line... GET OVER IT!

[madmax]

Originally posted by midwesterngirl



The next day he is pulled from the air on all Clear Channel stations.
I don't know what else it could be besides politically motivated.

Maybe the anal sex or racial slurs.

[madmax]

Originally posted by midwesterngirl
I am not a Howard Stern fan at all but this is not at all about decency.This is about election PR.
Of the 1000 or so Clear Channel owned stations,his program was removed from only 6.(Orlando,Fort Lauderdale,San Diego,Pittsburgh,Louisville,and Rochester).Most of Howard's shows are broadcast by Infinity.This is not a big revenue loss to Clear Channel and Howard will be picked up by someone else.I have said it before but Lowrey Mays,the CEO of Clear Channel,is a longtime Bush friend and major campaign supporter.I suspect that this is nothing more than an attempt to court moral majority type voters.


On weds show,he told his listeners that "it is time for Bush to go." He complained about his stanch on gay marriage,about his time in the national guard.He told his listeners to really look at what Bush and company have been saying in comparison to what they are doing and to get out and vote.

The next day he is pulled from the air on all Clear Channel stations.
I don't know what else it could be besides politically motivated.

According to Stern the FCC has been after him since 1992. Infinity Broadcasting was fined 1.7 million in 1995 because of Stern. Who was the President from 1992-2000?

[midwesterngirl]

Originally posted by madmax
According to Stern the FCC has been after him since 1992. Infinity Broadcasting was fined 1.7 million in 1995 because of Stern. Who was the President from 1992-2000?

I am not a fan of Howard Stern at all.I have never heard one of his broadcasts nor do I have any intention of doing so.I am a firm believer in changing the station if I don't like what is on.That being said,I am even less of a fan of Lowery Mays and his blatant political motivations.Why is political motivation such a stretch for you to believe in this case?
My guess as to why Infinity didn't get rid of Howard,is that he generates a huge profit for them. Otherwise his moronic show would have been off the air a long time ago. C'mon Max,you have to admit that if Howard were on more Clear Channels stations and was turning more of a profit for them,they wouldn't have gotten rid of him.Six stations out of more than a 1000 is nothing for CC.They don't even have to hire disc jockeys to fill his time slot,they will fill it with a totally automated program.They are out nothing and they look really good to the FCC and the Bush administration because they "cleaned up their airwaves."
I am the last peson to be politically confrontational and I hate being so cynical but to me this is a no brainer.

[Rudey]

I just want to say that Howard Stern is a genius. I'd rather watch him than gay Jay Leno.

-Rudey

[PhiPsiRuss]

Originally posted by midwesterngirl
...I have never heard one of his broadcasts nor do I have any intention of doing so...Otherwise his moronic show would have been off the air a long time ago...

How do you know that his show is moronic, if you've never heard it?

I find his daily satirical commentary on the entertainment industry to be genius.

[Rudey]

If only Ross Perot was running our country, then we wouldn't have this shiznit:

http://www.ask-steve.com/2003/06/clear_channel_t.html

Howard says you can't beat the government. Fuck that. The government represents me and it damn well better listen to me.

-Rudey

[midwesterngirl]

Originally posted by russellwarshay
How do you know that his show is moronic, if you've never heard it?

I find his daily satirical commentary on the entertainment industry to be genius.

I just want to say that Howard Stern is a genius. I'd rather watch him than gay Jay Leno.

-Rudey







You know,you are absolutely right.I just have heard about it but I have heard enough to know that the whole shock jock genre just isn't my thing.I have also heard that Howard is very intelligent and I can't deny that he has carved out a nice little niche for himself.
Just for the record guys,I am on your side.Just because I am not interested in what Howard says,doesn't mean that he shouldn't be able to say.It simply means that I am not interested in hearing it.I will absolutely defend his right to say whatever he wants.

And Rudey,I don't watch Jay Leno either.

[PhiPsiRuss]

Originally posted by midwesterngirl
I have also heard that Howard is very intelligent

Yup, he graduated magna cum laude from Boston University.

[Munchkin03]

Originally posted by russellwarshay
How do you know that his show is moronic, if you've never heard it?

I find his daily satirical commentary on the entertainment industry to be genius.

Sounds like those fundies in my hometown who didn't want us to read The Catcher in the Rye, but hadn't read it themselves...

I prefer him to Jay Leno, and I've listened to his show and watched it on E! for quite some time. He's always been on the edge.

[KillarneyRose]

Originally posted by midwesterngirl
On weds show,he told his listeners that "it is time for Bush to go." He complained about his stanch on gay marriage,about his time in the national guard.

/hijack/
What branch of the active duty military was Stern in? I'm trying to imagine him with a crewcut!

/end hijack/

[DeltaSigStan]

Originally posted by Rudey
I just want to say that Howard Stern is a genius. I'd rather watch him than gay Jay Leno.

-Rudey

May I just say FUCK THAT BIG CHINNED FREAK. I still can't believe he got The Tonight Show and not Letterman. His interviewing skills are subpar and make him look like he's just kissing ass. Not to mention his opening monolougue ALWAYS gets little to no laughter, and he always gets sympathy applause. Letterman actually asks questions that people want to hear about, not just sensationalistic crap.

Leno has ruined the legacy of the Tonight Show. Hopefully Conan can save it, but by then it may be too late.

But you're right, Howard rules.

[Rudey]

Originally posted by DeltaSigStan
May I just say FUCK THAT BIG CHINNED FREAK. I still can't believe he got The Tonight Show and not Letterman. His interviewing skills are subpar and make him look like he's just kissing ass. Not to mention his opening monolougue ALWAYS gets little to no laughter, and he always gets sympathy applause. Letterman actually asks questions that people want to hear about, not just sensationalistic crap.

Leno has ruined the legacy of the Tonight Show. Hopefully Conan can save it, but by then it may be too late.

But you're right, Howard rules.

Howard has been biting the fuckchin in the ass all week. First the asshole steals material from other comedians. Then the asshole has the nerve to take Stuttering John and use him as his announcer. You big chinned freak.

-Rudey

[33girl]

Originally posted by midwesterngirl
I am not a fan of Howard Stern at all.I have never heard one of his broadcasts nor do I have any intention of doing so.I am a firm believer in changing the station if I don't like what is on.That being said,I am even less of a fan of Lowery Mays and his blatant political motivations.Why is political motivation such a stretch for you to believe in this case?
My guess as to why Infinity didn't get rid of Howard,is that he generates a huge profit for them. Otherwise his moronic show would have been off the air a long time ago. C'mon Max,you have to admit that if Howard were on more Clear Channels stations and was turning more of a profit for them,they wouldn't have gotten rid of him.Six stations out of more than a 1000 is nothing for CC.They don't even have to hire disc jockeys to fill his time slot,they will fill it with a totally automated program.They are out nothing and they look really good to the FCC and the Bush administration because they "cleaned up their airwaves."
I am the last peson to be politically confrontational and I hate being so cynical but to me this is a no brainer.

I totally agree with all of this. I don't like Howard either - I think his show is boring and Robin's voice gets on my nerves - but if it's a choice of getting on his side or Clear Channel's, I'll cuddle up to Howard in 2.5 seconds.

If this was Casey Kasem in the same situation and he read a letter about someone getting unfairly fired from their job at CC, they would bag him from the stations and say that it was due to the "indecent" music on American Top 40. Lowery Mays is a little pussy who's settling a personal score and making it look like he's doing it for a higher purpose. I hope he falls in a big pile of poop.