So it’s no surprise that Michael Hughes, the executive who oversees WJFK and other Infinity-owned stations in Washington, wasn’t surprised by the cratering of Stern’s audience. Protest against the FCC is not what skyrocketed you into becoming a part of radio culture - unless you have a naked FCC commissioner on your show.Īlmost from the minute he announced last October that he would leave conventional radio for Sirius Satellite Radio, Stern has been a) railing against alleged censorship by his employer, Infinity Broadcasting, and by the Federal Communications Commission and b) promoting his move to satellite radio, which is free of FCC restrictions on “indecent” speech. You may see yourself as the Lenny Bruce of radio - but do you remember how Lenny Bruce wound up? It wasn’t a good career move. Memo to HOWARD: People don’t CARE about your personal problems after a certain point. Stern’s problems with the FCC made him decide to go to satellite but, aside from that, he started changing the CONTENT of his show….from that of a radio talker whose audience tuned in for his off-the-wall comments on sex and political personalities to that of an angry broadcaster ticked off at those who fined him and, he feels, persecuted him. ![]() (Because he had been so far out in front of the pack, though, he remained tied for No. That was the lowest total for Stern in years, and possibly decades, given his long and successful career.ĭuring the same period in New York, Stern lost 15 percent of his listeners. Stern’s share of radio’s most lucrative audience (adults age 25 to 54) fell by nearly one-third during the July-September period, bottoming out at 3.4 percent, according to Arbitron Inc., which measures radio audiences. Stern’s nationally syndicated morning program, which is heard locally on WJFK-FM (106.7), suffered a dramatic fall in the summer audience ratings, which in turn helped drag down WJFK’s overall popularity. The shock jock won’t jump to satellite radio until January, but in the meantime, his listeners in the Washington area seem to be heading for the exits. Unfortunately for Stern, it’s his audience that’s leaving, not him. Howard Stern “fixed” something that wasn’t broken (the kind of show he did) and is looking a bit now like the broadcasting equivalent of damaged goods. ![]() They say if it’s not broke, don’t fix it.
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