Howard Stern and Clear Channel

[Ed: Boy, it's hard to say which of the above referenced names give me more agita...]

Much has been said and written this week about Clear Channel's decision to remove Howard Stern's radio program on six channels around the country this week.

As someone who used to have to listen to Howard because her housemate went through a period of really enjoying him, it would be nigh impossible for me to defend Howard Stern. He appeals to the most basic, banal human experience. Until "reality TV" hit us, Howard was the only place to go to find live lesbian dwarf dating, on-air passing of gas, and beat up the homeless competitions.

Howard - just like Rush Limbaugh and Dennis Miller and that ilk - thrive on enraging the dumb masses to hate and fear, and have managed to become rich by playing the public for fools, all the time while lining their own pockets lucratively by aligning themselves with the powerful. Howard, Rush, and Dennis are rabid power and status seekers, and the powerful they touch are the same people who scream about seeing Janet Jackson's nipple covering on the SuperBowl show while making a mint on the "erectile dysfunction meds for everyone" ads running on the same show.

Clear Channel, for its own reasons this week, sat there before Congress this week pledging their repentence (their spokesperson seemed to grovel, in fact). They went so far as to suggest Congress should be the ultimate authority for what the public sees and hears.

Then they took Howard off, but just in six markets. Howard hadn't changed; Clear Channel did - to make the powerful righteous Congress members look like they'd bullied the corporate giant to its knees. Uh huh. Those same Congress people were happy to accept Clear Channel donations from profits made from the likes of Howard. They'll be happy to do so again when Clear Channel, realizing it's losing money, brings Howard (ugh) back to those markets.

So forgive me if I don't buy the "Howard Stern stands up against restriction of First Amendment speech" passion play. Howard doesn't stand for anything more than Howard (and boy, does he seem like a pathetic creature despite his huge income, super models, and attempts to look "cool and 17" instead of geeky and about 50).

This matter isn't even about Free Speech, except very peripherally. It's about Congress and media giants playing games with us. They saw a nipple and fell over apoplectic.