Howard Stern will still be on the airwaves — at least for now — after reports swirled of an alleged cancellation of the beloved The Howard Stern Show.
Multiple outlets reported in August that Stern’s show was canceled after making his debut on Sirius Satellite Radio in 2006. Stern, who began his radio host career in the 1980s, was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2012.
In a 2010 episode, Stern pranked Sal Governale into thinking he’s retiring. While breaking the fake news to Governale, Stern noted that the announcement was “difficult to say.”
“I was faced with either go on with the radio show, or maybe make a complete change in my life,” Stern said at the time. “My wife wants me at home more. I talked to the company, they didn’t want to rearrange my schedule at all. They were inflexible. My hands started to shake and I backed out. I called Sirius last night and I said, ‘I can’t sign this.’ I sadly want to say that I’m going off into the sunset.”
As Governale began to cry, Stern admitted that his retirement was a prank. Scroll down to read everything we know about The Howard Stern Show cancellation rumors:
What Has Howard Stern Said About His Alleged Show Cancellation?
Stern didn’t immediately address the rumors that The Howard Stern Show is getting canceled. Us Weekly reached out to The Howard Stern Show and Stern’s lawyer for comment.
In September, Stern trolled fans into thinking Andy Cohen had replaced him and renamed the channel “Andy 100.” Stern went on to address the rumors, noting that he had considered retirement until the false reports came to light.
“I’m minding my own business, enjoying my summer vacation. [A reporter] says that I’ve been fired for being too woke. In light of the Stephen Colbert firing — because the word on Stephen was that it was all part of this merger, and they fired Stephen because he’s too woke — the story then became Howard Stern is fired because he’s too woke,” he explained at the time. “What pisses me off is that now I can’t leave. I’ve been thinking about retiring. Now I can’t.”
What Has the SiriusXM President Said About Howard Stern Leaving?
SiriusXM president and chief content officer Scott Greenstein told The Hollywood Reporter in 2024 that he didn’t think Stern had plans to exit.
“He’s been with me and the company going on two decades, and so he’s pretty happy, but he’s also able, like many great artists, to stop whenever he wants,” he said at the time. “Nobody will ever replace them. We would never try to replace them. It’s not what is even appropriate, but even practical.”
While speaking during a Q&A on a 2024 earnings call, Greenstein admitted that he hopes Stern “continues forever,” per People.
“As for Howard, he’s a singular talent. No one pretended when Johnny Carson or others retired that the new group would replace them. They were just simply filling in on those slots,” he said, gushing that Stern “continues to excel, get us awareness and everything else that goes with what he does.”
When Did Howard Stern Renew His Previous SiriusXM Contract?
Stern renewed his SiriusXM contract in 2020 for a five-year $500 million deal, Forbes reported. After signing the extension, Stern said in a statement that SiriusXM “liberated” him. He added per People, “Now that I can work from home, I simply don’t have an excuse to quit.”
