Howard Stern: does anyone listen to him anymore?

Famous last words: to those people who say that nobody is going to pay for radio... remember the people years ago who said nobody is going to pay for TV, ha!

nokaman wrote:

Opie & Anthony is a poor example., First of all, they were being simulcast on XM) & regular radio. In other words, they were under FCC rules: no cursing etc. Besides, Opie & Anthony suck! Sirius subscriptions are gaining to XM's.

Censorship doesn't just cover cursing; it also covers other things like racism, xenophobia, and other current social issues that might be unpopular with the masses at the current time. Criticising Iraq in 2003 for example.

Also, aren't XM & Sirius struggling financially right now?

I have Sirius and still listen. The commercials and all the time he takes off do suck, but when he is live, the show is better than ever. On Fridays they have "Mastertape Theatre" and play entire episodes from the 80's and 90's. I can't stand those old tapes, so I figure I wouldn't have been a Stern fan back then. I can't stand Jackie Martling unless he is being roasted.

Count me as a happy Sirius subscriber. The only time I listen to terrestrial radio to tune in NPR.

So to summarize, the current Stern show with Artie, Sal, Richard, etc. is much more to my liking than the one with Jackie, Billy West, etc.

XM is in financial straits and that is why they are looking to merge with Sirius. Look, satellite radio is here to stay. Sirius has every music genre under the sun: hip-hop, jazz, gospel, country, classical, metal, techno, house, you name it. Plus it has NASCAR, NFL network, a gay channel, comedy, Playboy channel and even Martha Stewart, Oprah, conservative AND liberal talk.

Disagree about Billy West. He was great at performing "Jackie Puppet" routines. Ronnie the limo driver is the most annoying with Ralph a close second.

nokaman wrote:

Famous last words: to those people who say that nobody is going to pay for radio... remember the people years ago who said nobody is going to pay for TV, ha!

as i was returning to the office i was listening to rush limbaugh discussing why he had not gone to pay radio. he did not rule it out, but was clear it would not be something he would consider now.

he did make on interesting observation, he said that about 10% of all the "subscribers" to satellite radio are unsold cars in new car parking lots.

no idea if that is true or not, but putting aside whether you agree with his opinions, when he makes a factual statement he is ususally right.

as an aside, i am not paying for tv. no cable/satellite at our house. i just dont watch much. the only reason i wouldnt mind it would be for a little more sports (ie baseball). but as clint said, "a mans got to know his limitations" and i know i would never get up if we had it. i just dont need another reason to watch tv.

The Stern show is better than ever. Who ever said he doesn't have good interviews is crazy. He has some of the biggest stars on and they tend to be much more open than normal interviews. The best interview I ever heard on Stern was with Stevie Wonder. It's the best part of the show. The comedy is 10 times better than it ever has been. I always thought Jackie was a complete hack and Artie has brought the show to a new level.

The reason why die hard listeners are still with Stern is because they "get it". They get his humor and most of what his show is about. I don't necessarily agree with alot of his political beliefs but that's ok ...he's free to believe whatever he wants.

On top of the interviews, comedy, etc., this thing called the Howard Stern show is the original reality show in history (my opinion). Since the very beginning you have been able to listen to Howard, the staff, some of the famous guests, and most importantly the whack pack change over many years. It literally is like listening to a tv reality show for the past 30 years. I can deal with the fact that he has a bunch of vacation each year. just like any other exec who has busted their butt for 35 years ....he deserves it. Some of the master tape theatre is less than desirable but some of it is good.

Lastly, Howard never promised commercial free Stern show. They promiss commercial free music. Get your facts correct. If you don't get it, don't listen. If you don't have it, give it a try.

I agree, I can't stand Ronnie or Ralph either but you can't have everything.

Well put. Today, there was a Dennis Rodman guest interview from 2006. Where else can Rodman be as open and candid about his life (other than running into him at a bar), than on Stern's show? Stern guests reveal things that you never hear on Larry King or Regis or Leno or Letterman. Most of his guests know what to expect- Stern doesn't serve up softball questions, he hits them hard (with humor) and doesn't settle for BS answers. His show is unfiltered- that's what I love about it.

You must be kidding. I rented a car recently with sat radio, and thought Id see what howard was up to these days.

It was amonumental waste of time. the same tired jokes, the dumb ass picking on each other...serously how many jokes can they make about someones lips and teeth? its just braindead crap.

I thought Id keep it on Howard for the weekend, I was done in a half hour and moved on to other talk shows and music.

Sorry, but crude humor doesnt last more than 30 min for laughs. After that its just crude.

Why would anyone want to listen to the guy who once claimed to be the father of Anna Nicole Smith's baby? He always seemed a little bland to me.

howard sold out a long time ago. he has become a caricuture of the guys he used to rip, 10 years ago. But, he's laughing all the way to the bank.

howard promised no commercials, longer shows, less time off if we 'came with him' to the promised land. he broke all of those promises

the Greaseman rules!

Greaseman? Please, he's ratings were in free-fall long before "and they wonder why we drag them behind trucks" comment.

He used to rule DC radio in the 80's until, Stern came back to DC via simulcasting/syndication.

ScottB wrote:

I haven't listened since he switched over. Miss his morning show but am now enjoying the "Free beer and hot wings" morning show.

Ditto that. Free Beer and Hot Wings are the ONLY morning show I find entertaining. Stern = boring. Opie and Anthony = idiotic. Bob and Tom = unfunny.

How many stations carry FB&HW now, anyway? I listen to them on their 'home' station, WGRD in Grand Rapids. Lots of funny bits: Dumber than Zane trivia, El Matador, Wheel of What Can Joe Do?, heck they even make the juvenile PA Pranks seem humorous.

I also listened to Stern in the late 90s (had no choice due to coworkers' preference) and never thought he was consistently funny. Had his moments, but overall his show was more boring than funny. Too damn many people talking at he same time, too!

I got Sirius for my wife and myself and have listened since Howard went there day 1.

His show is still great but there are days that I switch the channel. The Scott Baio interview was AMAZING. Iron Shiek was a scream. All the Artie/Dana stuff is fascinating. Sal is a train wreck that I can't turn off, I mean the 143/emotional friend stuff is just priceless riveting stuff that "free radio" can't even come close to. I am not as into the wack pack stuff, I switched it off the last time BeetleJuice was in and used to switch away from the Artie/Crazy Alice stuff.

Artie is 10x funnier than Jackie. The thing I miss about Jackie is all the ragging they did on him and Nancy, but they had that Jackie special during the last vacation that was great.

I also love the Wrap Up show.

As far as the commercials, come on, sometimes he goes 80 minutes before the 1st commercial. It is so much better than K-Rock.

I also love the music options, Alt Nation, 1st Wave, Lithium 24, Left of Center are all great stations.

I commute 45 minutes each way and I would be hard pressed to do it without satellite after having it the last 1 1/2 years and Howard is just as good as ever.

Stern's live 9/11 show, as the atrocities were occuring, was actually to his credit. There are bits and pieces here and there on the 'web but he took legal action against one site, a fan site, that had 4-hours of the show.

Stern was broadcasting from the eye of the storm as it were in NYC and the confusion of that day was brought home very vividly as one could note by the behavior of most of the staff. I thought Robin was acting rather blase, given the circumstances, however.

He did not necessarily like to be topical, as he himself once said. The bad taste however belies the fact that he was smart enough to carve out a niche for himself.

Which of us here is worth over $100M USD? Bad taste or not, he did it.

The Stern show is better than ever. Artie Lange is 10X funnier than Jackie Martling ever was. I listen everyday on the way to work and catch party of the replay when I'm driving home.

I love my Sirius radio!