Howard Stern has some of the worst fans. They curse him out on air but are even crueler in the comment sections. Of course, those with the loudest voices online are often the minority. The legendary radio host still has millions of fans who love his celebrity interviews, his report with his staff, the gags, and even some of his complaining.
But others hate-listen. And some have given up on Howard entirely and not always for ridiculous reasons...
Even though Howard remains the most influential and wealthy radio host in history, blowing the likes of Joe Rogan out of the water, he has lost a portion of the fans who made him famous, to begin with.
While there are decades of changes that have brought this on, some recent decisions have likely contributed to his loss...
Howard's Creative And Emotional Evolution
Without a doubt, Howard Stern's evolution has been the main factor in a portion of his fanbase turning against him. Many of these fans feel betrayed by Howard for some of the positions he's publically taken as well as his change in comedic style.
First and foremost, Howard's desire to temper his acidic tongue and shock-jock mentality has driven some of his original fans away.
Howard built his career on being shocking, edgy, and fighting the establishment. With his strategic move to become a more well-rounded entertainer and open his door to new fans, he's simultaneously tossed aside his old ones... for better or for worse.
Many would argue that Howard's evolution is actually a good thing.
As Howard detailed in his masterful best-selling book, "Howard Stern Comes Again", his creative evolution was also a personal one. Meeting and marrying his second wife Beth was one of the catalysts of change, as was his divorce from the mother of his three daughters. But his near-endless time in psychotherapy is what caused him to spend more time looking inward and realizing that he has said and done a lot of things that have actually hurt people.
Howard would agree that many of his older bits were downright hilarious and did exactly what they were meant to do... but they didn't bring him happiness. They didn't make him feel as though he was a good person.
Ever since moving to Sirius Satellite radio in 2006, Howard has made an effort to find the middle ground between edgy or inappropriate humor and something that invites more people to the party. The change of venue also dictated this change as it made little sense to keep pushing the medieval censorship rules of terrestrial radio on an uncensored satellite program that doesn't bow to cooperate advertisement or concerned parents.
Additionally, Howard also presented himself as an outsider which attracted a lot of other angry outsiders. But over the course of the last two decades, Howard has made friends with a lot of A-listers and thus become something of an insider. While this has brought a lot of new fans to the table, others feel betrayed.
The Pandemic, Staffers Quitting, And His Summer Break
When the plans hit the World Trade Center in New York City on September 11th, 2001, Howard Stern was live on air. Instead of fleeing the building, he vented his anger, fear, and sadness for his audience to hear. It was one of the most real and authentic broadcasts ever recorded on air.
This is a moment that fans often cite when criticizing Howard for moving his entire show to an online format when the global pandemic began. While every chat show and most radio hosts broadcasted from home during 2020, now that vaccinations have ramped up they have mostly returned to their studios with safety protocols in place.
But not Howard.
He remains in his basement with all of his staffers still working from home via Zoom.
On top of this, Howard spends too much time vocalizing his anger about how many Americans continue to act irresponsibly during the pandemic as well as refuse to be vaccinated. While he makes extremely valid points, including about the necessity of getting vaccinated, many audience members just want to escape with some gags, stories, and interviews and not be bogged down with pandemic talk.
Of course, Howard's change of venue has altered his show for the time being.
Howard's germaphobia has contributed to his decision not to return to the studio. At this point, there is no clarity to when he, his co-host Robin Quivers, or any of the staffers will return to their Manhattan studio.
The result has changed the dynamic of Howard's interviews, which are easily the most sought-after and respected element of his show. Even the majority of Howard's biggest critics (ex-fans and the woke crowd) can appreciate Howard's insane interviewing skills. While his interviews via Zoom are still better than almost anything else out there, as long as Howard's in a separate location from his guests, especially the musicians, his show won't be as strong as it usually is.
His back-and-forth with Robin also isn't the same as is the staff antics. That all still occurs but it's lacking without the physical interaction and clubhouse atmosphere.
Now that Howard, Robin, and the majority of the staff are fully vaccinated, fans are impatiently waiting for them to all return to the same room. The longer Howard waits, the more subscribers seem to jump ship.
On top of this, fans became incredibly miffed with Howard in June 2021 when he announced that the show would be off the air for the entirety of the summer due to his new contract.
Multiple fans can't understand why they're paying subscription fees for two months of re-runs or celebrity-hosted shows that Howard isn't directly a part of.
Finally, some fan-favorite staffers recently have left. Howard makes a point of note addressing these departures which is simultaneously brilliant but also somewhat of a betrayal of his whole M.O. of brutally authentic radio.
While some of the changes to The Howard Stern Show, such as his creative and emotional evolution, are part and parcel to life and keeping a show relevant, other decisions are questionable. Die-hard fans of the show hope that Howard gets back to the studio and finds a way of reinvigorating his show as he's done multiple times before.
After all, it's worth saving.