Stern Affiliates Getting Cold Feet?

Only a quarter of the radio stations contacted by the New York Post say they're willing to go to the mat to continue broadcasting Howard Stern's radio show.

Seventeen stations, representing just under half of Stern's 35 national affiliates, were surveyed by the Post's John Mainelli late last week, after steep FCC fines prompted Stern's syndicator, Clear Channel, to drop him from the roster of six of their outlets.

"Only four station managers expressed unabashed support [for Stern]," reports Mainelli. "Another is on the fence, and 12 more avoided all comment."

He calls the result of his thumbnail survey a "bad omen, considering that big fines" may be levied against the stations that still carry Stern.

Still, that prospect didn't seem to dampen the support of Al Parinello, who owns Stern affiliate WJSE in Atlanta City.

"He has the highest-rated program on any station at any time in Atlanta City," said Parinello. When asked if he'll renew Stern when their five-year contract expires later this year, he told the Post, "Absolutely."

But others contacted by Mainelli sounded less sure.

"We're just evaluating everything right now – we're looking at what all our options are," said Charles Cohn from WLXO in Lexington, Ky. "The government is not fooling around and its power is bone-crunching," said Michael Harrison, publisher of Talkers Magazine. He predicted "dire consequences, at least in the short term" for the stations that stand by Stern.

He adds, however, "If you want to do the right thing, be defiant."

Editor's note: