Stirring up talk!

There are typically three apparent viewpoints among Howard Stern followers. The first standpoint on Howard Stern is that he is appalling, and anyone in his or her right mind should also be appalled by his work. The second standpoint of Stern is that he is crude and far too explicit but secretly he or she believes Stern is a radio and comic God. These followers are most commonly found listening to Stern through a headset or alone in their car nervous of how loudly they are playing the radio show. Then there are followers, such as my mom, that view Stern as an innovative, dirty, hilarious, talk show Mozart.

As for my standpoint, I view Howard Stern as an innovative radio spokesperson. Howard Stern was one of the first radio celebrities to get people talking on the radio, and was able to grasp them. There were many aspects of the show such as Street Jeopardy in which Stern would address a significant issue (the ignorance and stupidity of our nations commoners), but bring it forth in an entertaining way. Stern was offensive, and because of this either initiated conversation, or simply entertained. There is no doubt that Stern crossed lines of race, sexuality, religion, socio-economic status, and far more, but people reacted to it, and in that sense he was successful in making the radio a communication medium.