Anthony Cumia has weighed in on Howard Stern’s declining relevance. The former Opie and Anthony co-host says shock radio’s era has passed.
What We Know: Cumia’s comments arrive as Stern prepares to reduce his SiriusXM show to a single new episode per week. The scaled-back schedule marks a significant shift for a program that once anchored terrestrial and satellite radio for decades. Cumia, who built his own career alongside Gregg “Opie” Hughes in a rival shock jock format, offered a blunt assessment of why that style no longer resonates. His remarks touch on both the legal landscape and shifting cultural appetites. Because the genre relied heavily on shock value, he argues its foundation has eroded. Consequently, he suggests Stern’s format has become a relic of a bygone media era.
What They Said: “Times change. A lot of the stuff that Stern was doing and Opie and Anthony were doing isn’t viable anymore, legally. It’s not viable. Also, as far as society goes, it’s not what people are really looking for. Boobies. Heinies. Vaginas. It was titillating and shocking, hence the shock jock. But how shocking could a guy be talking about boobies when you could watch the hardest of hardcore porn right there on your phone? You’re not shocking anyone with, ‘Oh my god, she just took her bra off, Robin.’ It’s a different world. So it has taken its toll on the Stern show.” -Anthony Cumia
What Remains Unclear: Cumia didn’t specify whether he believes Stern’s reduced schedule stems directly from declining relevance or from broader business considerations at SiriusXM. Nor did he address how Stern himself might respond to the critique. It’s uncertain whether other former shock jocks share this view publicly.
What It Means: Cumia’s critique highlights a larger industry reckoning with content that once defined an entire radio format. As internet access normalized explicit content, radio’s shock value diminished sharply. Meanwhile, legal and regulatory pressures have further narrowed what’s permissible on air. Together, these forces have reshaped audience expectations, leaving hosts like Stern to navigate a landscape where their signature approach simply doesn’t land the way it used to.
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Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing daily news stories, features, and opinion columns. He joined Barrett Media in 2022 after a decade leading several radio brands in several formats, as well as a 5-year stint working in local television. In addition to his work with Barrett Media, he is a radio and TV play-by-play broadcaster. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.
I would partially disagree. Stern’s show is not the show it was during its heyday. He has ditched the shock, but not for legal considerations (IMO). Listen to the Stern show now, it is not the show that it was. And it is not just in terms of “shock jock” content. Its seeming philosophical and political underpinings espoused upon the show have utterly shifted. Also, the kinds of guests and the attitude Stern takes towards them is utterly different. Stern’s show is “safe listening”, at least if you are a complete cultural buy-in to the beliefs and outlooks of “elites” of the coasts and college campuses. The blue collar working stiffs who made Stern who he is, based on his attitudes expressed the past couple decades, Stern has nothing but contempt for. “Woke” is something 90s era Stern would have goofed on. Now, he militantly waves their flag. So, the old audience has steadily been going away. And those upper crust coasties? They are not filling the void.
It’s beyond staggering how much publicity we give to people offering their opinions on Howard Stern that clearly haven’t listened to his show for years.
what are you talking about. HE changed his show. he did a 180 and went woke. end of.