Political commentator Bill O’Reilly reflected on the broadcast career of radio host Howard Stern, arguing that Stern significantly damaged his listener base after publicly criticizing supporters of President Donald Trump.
O’Reilly noted that his familiarity with Stern dates back to 1975, when both attended the School of Communications at Boston University. O’Reilly was a graduate student at the time, while Stern was an undergraduate working on the campus radio station.
According to O’Reilly, Stern’s career grew from a small radio station in Briarcliff Manor, New York, to WNBC and later to a 20-year run at WXRK in New York.
O’Reilly placed Stern alongside the late Rush Limbaugh as one of the two most dominant figures in modern radio history, describing Stern as a “pure entertainer” and Limbaugh as a “conservative idol.”
O’Reilly stated that Stern’s success was largely built on appealing to working-class men, such as truck drivers and police officers, many of whom supported Trump. While Stern and Trump were once on friendly terms, Stern shifted his stance during the 2020 presidential election cycle.
In a clip cited from a May 15, 2020 broadcast, Stern directly addressed Trump supporters within his listening audience, stating: “The oddity in all of this is the people Trump despises most, love him the most. Go look at Mar-a-Lago. See if there’s any people that look like you. I’m talking to you in the audience, the Trump voter who, you know, idolizes the guy. He despises you.”
Stern added: “I don’t hate Donald. Donald’s doing his thing. I hate you for voting for him, for not having an intelligence, for not being able to see what’s going on with the coronavirus, not able to see what the Justice Department is doing. I hate you. I don’t want you here.”
Following those remarks, O’Reilly said Stern’s audience began to leave. O’Reilly claimed listeners were unwilling to accept direct personal criticism.
O’Reilly also remarked on Stern’s current standing at SiriusXM, noting that the host has reduced his schedule to one original show per week and stating that Stern effectively destroyed the core following that made his career.
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