Howard Stern’s Ex-Staffer Reveals How Show Is Bleeding Listeners

Howard Stern‘s former employee has shared his thoughts on the radio jock’s possible cancellation.

Steve Grillo, who interned at “The Howard Stern Show” in the ’90s and wrote a book about his seven-year experience, theorized that his ex-employer had lost his spark. He claimed the man he knew in the past would be disappointed by his present self.

Howard Stern gained popularity for his nationally syndicated radio show from 1986 to 2005. He began broadcasting the program on SiriusXM in 2006, but recently faced cancellation speculations over dwindling listeners and a woke agenda.

In a new interview, Grillo did not mince his words while addressing Stern’s cancellation drama. He claimed his former employer lacked the resources to regain the hype he had at the start of his career and predicted his September 2 comeback would flop.

“Come September 2, I think it’s just going to be everybody tuning in, and then I think they’re going to get disappointed and tune right back out,” Grillo claimed. He noted that he did not believe Stern could “come back and be that awesome rockstar that everybody listened to every day.”

Grillo told The Daily Mail that, like most listeners, he had lost interest in Stern’s show and missed his old self. He speculated that the viral host from the ’90s would be disappointed by his present self, claiming, “If Old Howard Stern could go and jump in the time machine, he would punch him right in the face.”

Grillo addressed the declining number of listeners on Stern’s show, claiming he had no one to blame but himself. He slammed his former boss for his woke agenda and issues with Donald Trump, stressing that he could have handled his political issues differently.

Stern sparked backlash for frequently shading the president and MAGA supporters, once declaring that he had “no respect” for anyone who voted for Trump. Additionally, he claimed he didn’t mind losing listeners if they disagreed with his political stance.

“People cared about what he said every single day, and then he turns on them… What kind of arrogance and stupidity is that?” Grillo lamented. He noted that these people had helped Stern attain popularity, but he pushed them away and was reaping the consequences of his rash actions with his low ratings.

Grillo alleged that Stern’s cancellation claims were an “awful hoax campaign” developed to help him attract listeners. He claimed Stern would attempt to make a splashy comeback by declaring he had “five more years of creative bullsh-t.”

“That’s already been in place,” Grillo claimed. He noted that Stern’s contract allegedly stipulated that “he had an option for five years of freedom to do what he wants and still have his name on the door at Sirius.”

The Blast shared that an insider echoed similar sentiments about the false cancellation rumors, labeling it a “desperate hoax” to boost Stern’s low ratings by making him viral. They claimed the September 2 show was “a mea culpa to get the audience that he alienated back to listening to him.”

Besides losing listeners for his woke agenda and Trump criticisms, many called for Stern’s cancellation over his past behavior. The Blast covered the story, reporting that backlash began after a 2003 interview resurfaced.

The viral video captured Stern interviewing actress Sofia Vergara and making vulgar comments about her body. He kept asking how much breast milk she produced after welcoming her son, and even asked her to let him breastfeed if she wouldn’t date him.

Many found his comments repulsive and vehemently slammed Stern on X, claiming his show shouldn’t have run as long as it had. One displeased fan argued that Stern built his career on degrading women, while another labeled him “a pervert hiding in plain sight.”