February 24, 2005
Stern Settles Up with Clear Channel
SOURCE: E! Online
Howard Stern is making nice with an old nemesis, Clear Channel Communications.
Stern and the behemoth radio broadcaster have settled their dueling multimillion-dollar lawsuits for an undisclosed amount.
The legal brawl dates back a year, when Clear Channel booted Stern from the airways in six cities because his syndicated radio show did not "conform to acceptable standards of responsible broadcasting." The company had been slapped with nearly $500,000 in FCC fines for Stern's onair antics during an April 2003 show, and, in the wake of Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction, were especially jittery. Clear Channel pulled the plug for good after a caller dropped the N-bomb on Stern.
Stern fired back with a $10 million federal lawsuit that claimed the broadcaster violated the terms of their contract. "I'm under attack," Stern said at the time.
Then, Clean Channel retaliated with a $3 million countersuit that alleged Stern and his distributor, Infinity Broadcasting, violated their contract by airing indecent programs.
But it seems some sort of middle ground has been found. According to a statement from Clear Channel Wednesday, a deal has been struck.
"We are pleased to resolve this contractual dispute with Howard Stern without further legal expense and delay," Andrew Levin, Clear Channel's executive vice president and chief legal officer, said in the statement. It is unclear whether Stern's show will reappear on Clear Channel stations--as of Thursday morning, it was still off the air.
Stern is still carried on about 100 other stations nationwide and a televised version of the radio program airs weeknights on E! Entertainment Television (E! and E! Online are part of E! Networks).
Stern, who's not long for the traditional radio world, didn't immediately comment on the settlement.
In October, the self-proclaimed King of All Media unveiled a new five-year contract with Sirius Satellite Radio. He said he was thumbing his nose at censors by taking his show off the FCC-regulated airways and on to uncensored satellite.
Stern is counting down his remaining terrestrial days on his Website (www.howardstern.com)--he's got 10 months and 12 days left on his contract with Infinity. He'll kick off his Sirius broadcast Jan. 1, 2006.
In other news, Stern is getting some props for his highly publicized battles with his detractors. He was just handed the Wired Renegade award from Wired magazine for his efforts against the FCC and for his switch to Sirius.
Editor-in-chief Chris Anderson says the award is given to people who are "mavericks, visionaries and dreamers who inspire us as they transform our culture."
Posted by MK Magazine at February 24, 2005 02:17 PM