NEW YORK (CNN/Money) -
It looks as though you can add a Miami radio station to the growing list of broadcasters that are taking Howard Stern off the air.
Just days after news leaked that Citadel Broadcasting Corp. had pulled Stern off the air in four markets, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported Tuesday that the raunchy radio star has been yanked off of Miami's WQAM, an AM station owned by Beasley Broadcast Group.
Assuming no other radio stations have cancelled "The Howard Stern Show," 41 stations now air the shock jock's four-hour morning show.
Citadel Broadcasting, a Las Vegas-based operator of 200 radio stations around the country, has bumped Stern off the air in Syracuse, N.Y., Providence, R.I., Harrisburg, Pa., and Grand Rapids, Mich., according to reports. Citadel officials weren't available for comment.
Farid Suleman, the chairman of Citadel (Research), is reportedly upset over Stern's frequent on-air promotions of Sirius Satellite Radio, the paid radio service that announced in October a $500 million, five-year deal to air "The Howard Stern Show" beginning in January 2006.
Stern plans to leave the public airwaves and Infinity Broadcasting, the Viacom (Research) subsidiary, when his contract expires this December. Stern has cited the recent government crackdown on public broadcasts of profanity and indecent material as the primary reason for jumping to Sirius (Research).
Stern's constant touting of satellite radio -- and its freedom from decency laws -- has also angered his Infinity bosses and led to speculation that Stern would exit the public airwaves sooner than planned. But Stern and Infinity president Joel Hollander have publicly stated that Stern will stay on broadcast radio until the end of the year.
Beasley's reasons for pulling Stern off its Miami radio station were not immediately clear. The Federal Communications Commission in November proposed a $55,000 fine against Beasley, which owns about 40 radio stations, over a Stern broadcast.
A company spokeswoman did not have an immediate comment, but said it appeared that Stern's show was still airing on a second Beasley (Research) radio station in Fort Myers, Fla.
Stern has now been pulled off the air in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale market twice in the last year. Clear Channel Communications in February dropped Stern from its WBGG FM station in Miami soon after Janet Jackson's bare breast was broadcast on live television during the Super Bowl half time show. Clear Channel (Research), the country's largest radio operator, eventually dumped Stern from all six of its stations that aired his show.
Infinity, the country's No. 2 radio station owner, responded in July by expanding the radio show to 9 additional markets, including Palm Beach, Fla. That move brought to 45 the number of stations airing Stern.
A month later, Beasley announced it was picking up Stern's syndicated show in Miami.
|
