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Even Howard Stern is annoyed by Cleveland stunt
DJ gives new meaning to shock jock
Tuesday, December 07, 2004
Clint O'Connor
Plain Dealer Reporter
Dieter is no 'skeeter.
The Cleveland radio sidekick apparently missed that sage advice: Don't lick a bug-zapper.
Dieter learned a harsh lesson Friday during a stunt on "Rover's Morning Glory" on "Xtreme Radio" (WXTM FM/92.3). He plugged in a dirty, back-porch hanging contraption and stuck his tongue on the wire grate.
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Zap.
"He shook, contorted, and hit the floor," said Kim Monroe, WXTM's program director. "He was covered in goose-bumps." Unlike millions of summer mosquitoes and other flying annoyances, Dieter recovered.
"I saw sparks and the next thing I knew I was just out," said Dieter, 25, on Monday. He was taken to the hospital for a few hours, and is now on pain killers, antibiotics and salve. "My tongue is so-ah," he added. "It's ha-hd to talk." The stunt drew a minor storm of media coverage, but there were still questions about whether it was just another goofy radio hoax.
Seeing the brown, scabby, blecchy mess on Dieter's tongue is, well, shockingly real.
"Dare Dieter" is a regular Friday feature. In true "Jackass" fashion, he has staple-gunned his testicles to his leg, snorted ants, placed his penis in a mousetrap, walked barefoot on glass, and had his butt branded (to prove it, he pulled down his pants and revealed a large, scarlike "D" on his rear end).
A listener, "Mark in Westlake," had suggested Dieter stand in a bucket of water while licking a bug-zapper. Apparently, drier minds prevailed and the water was jettisoned. Standing by were Rover, sidekick Duji, and some EMS workers.
"At first we didn't want to touch him," said Rover. "We didn't want to get electrocuted."
Rover said he picks through about 300 suggestions each week and selects the dare, springing it on Dieter at about 8:30 a.m on Fridays. Dieter has yet to turn one down.
"A lot of them are too visual to do on the radio," said Rover. "I don't look for life-threatening ones, just ones that involve a bit of pain."
WXTM is one of four Cleveland stations owned by Infinity Broadcasting (a division of Viacom/CBS). Station management planned to meet with the show's trio to discuss the future of "Dare Dieter."
Callers flooded the show Monday to say how worried they were or how stupid it was. Even Howard Stern weighed in on his nationally syndicated show.
"That's why this industry gets no respect," Stern said. "We'll do anything for a listener, including putting our tongue on a bug-zapper."
Dieter, who lives at home, was a little chagrined about telling his relatives. "My mom was crying, my aunt almost had a heart attack." But he said he had no regrets. "If you don't do stuff, you're not living."
He knew the consequences, having been warned from a young age about the dangers of amps and volts. By his father. The electrician.
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