Clear Channel pulls Stern off Air

Clear Channel Communications has pulled Howard Stern from their radio waves to make good on a Zero Tolerance policy to clean up the nation’s air waves. Stern’s morning radio program was pulled off the air in Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, San Diego, Pittsburgh, Louisville, and Rochester.

The decision to pull Stern was based on an interview he did with Rick Solomon, Paris Hilton’s partner in the now infamous home video. During the interview, Stern asked Solomon, “ever banged [sic] a famous nigger [sic] chick? What do they smell like? Watermelons?” He also asked if he had had sex with the then under-age Drew Barrymore.

Clear Channel CEO John Hogan is set to appear before a congressional panel tomorrow which is investigating the recent rise in radio obscenity.

Hogan stated, “Clear Channel drew a line in the sand today with regard to protecting our listeners from indecent content, and Howard Stern’s show blew right through it.” Continuing, he said “We will not air Howard Stern on Clear Channel stations until we are assured that his show will conform to acceptable standards of responsible broadcasting.”

This action is the latest in a string of actions by Clear Channel. They also fired “Bubba the Love Sponge” (Todd Clem), as a result of a one-time FCC fine of $715,000, the largest ever in FCC history.

Tomorrow’s congressional hearing will review the current fines imposed on radio stations for breaking indecency laws. The committee has already approved a motion to raise fines from $27,500 to $275,000 per incident.