Howard Stern Comes Again

Is this a confession or a rationisation? Is he saying “Sorry”, “Sorry, but...” or “Look, you have to understand...”?More than #MeToo has changed the showbiz landscape, and the culture generally, since Stern was in his K-ROCK height in the 1980s. To suggest, as I have just done, that it was downhill from there is a bold suggestion, but look at the evidence.On conventional FM radio, he was the eternal goad, with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) the proxy for every broadcasting and, by extension, cultural norm trying to rein him in. The excitement of listening to Stern was the thrill of gladiatorial combat: between the conventional and the daring; the uptight and the liberated.Ring a bell?Yes, the good ol' Swinging Sixties, with its Dad Rock survivor re-staging the cultural wars of his youth and, this time, winning.He insisted on bringing Hollywood's casting couch right into mainstream radio — proving, not incidentally, that the pictures are better there. But he was outré in far more areas than the sexual, and that's where the book runs into the sand or, more appropriately, the mire.You see, where you might have spotted abuse — where Howard might have perpetrated abuse — he now sees only his own OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder); where you heard rude and exploitative, Howard now replays the tape as commercial pressures and those damned ratings books.The rationalisations and self-justifications go on and on. And OCD, by the way, is only one of many H.S. mental illnesses he uses to give himself a free pass for a variety of unpleasant incidents and attitudes; and for what, more generally, some on the feminist left have wittily and aptly labelled his "strip-club misogyny".All those “out with the guys” episodes, a mainstay of K-ROCK, now seem shame-tinged less, perhaps, because of any deep misogyny and more because they seem tired, forced and out-of-date. What was daring now seems strained and pathetic. What was amusing now seems formulaic and repetitive. He may not have been a one-trick pony, but there may have been a recycling of two or perhaps three tricks: (1) Howard gets lucky — nearly — with a starlet; (2) Howard monsters and obsessively attacks a rival; (3) Howard strikes a non-PC pose on some topic of the day.Some great radio is rescued from all of this. And the book, in fairness, shows what was rescued from K-ROCK, to be refined and, yes, at times improved on SIRIUS: his gift for serious (what used to be called “in-depth”) interviews; his introspection; his often-buried capacity for self-criticism. No, not those sensationalist K-ROCK confessions, but those more mature reflections we've heard in the last three or four years.One of the problems of looking back at Stern is that it forces us to look back at ourselves. We tuned in by the million to that festival of naked massage girls, wind-breaking celebrations, and sophomoric humour. We were compliant and, towards the end, uneasily repentent. And yes, #MeToo hurried the process along.For all those reasons, Howard Stern Comes Again is an uneasy read. He changed radio, and then left it to join what is (for reasons far more profound than the technology) a totally different medium.What, on the radio landscape, did he leave behind? A few hundred Howard Sterns, for sure, all of them cack-handed, stumbling, uneasy and vaguely ashamed of their own faux outrageousness.John Reith, early doyen of the emerging BBC, famously said of radio, "only the wind will listen", an observation that became the title of Andrew Boyle’s fine Reith biography.In Stern's case, we did the listening and the wind did the broadcasting. But both Boyle and Stern reveal — the latter unwittingly — how ephemeral it all is, even at its best. There have always been exceptional moments, when great radio changed history; Stern got us to change the dial, but that's all.

Well written but redundant Howard is. Howard but with nothing new to say

Bought as a present

90% Transcripted Interviews.I would rather be stuck on a desert island with Gary's lists then this sorry excuse for a book.

I have read the other two books by Stern and see that he has definitely turned into a different professional person. I thoroughly enjoyed the ilnterviews that he did and see how he has grown. The interviews were very interesting and shows he did his research and shocked the interviewees what he had found. Fantastic book!!!!!

es un libro con algunas partes de entrevistas de Howard Stern, uno de los mejores entrevistadores que han existido, realmente el grado de profundidad e información que logra sustraer es para analizarse.

I have been a diehard Howard fan for 25 years, but really loved what this book dives into. Howard's interviews are always the best, but the extra information you get about each particular interview is fascinating. Plus the little side stories are hilarious. I leave this on my coffee table for friends to flip through and read. The best part is you can pick it up and read any particular celebrity interview with investing in reading an entire book.

It is a well written book and full of insights into various people and human nature in general.If you are a Stern fan it is obviously a must read. If you have never heard of Howard Stern or the various interviewees it might still be interesting.

Stern es el mejor entrevistador del PLANETA. El contraste de su irreverencia transgresora, y su extraordinario potencial como anfitrión mediático y entrevistador lo hacen único e inimitable.Muchos lo envidian y eso se deja ver incluso aquí, en los comentarios negativos, sin fundamento. Yo vivo en España y nunca he visitado los Estados Unidos y soy un seguidor de muchos años, gracias a la magia de Internet. Stern is the best interviewer on PLANET. The contrast of his transgressing irreverence, and his extraordinary potential as media host and interviewer, make him unique and inimitable.Many envy him and that is even seen here, in the negative comments, without foundation. I live in Spain and I have never visited the United States and I am a follower of many years, thanks to the magic of the Internet.