Trump Blasts ‘Woke’ Howard Stern: Rapid Plunge in Ratings Unveiled
Former President Donald Trump took the opportunity to lash out at Howard Stern during an impromptu discussion that followed a recent circulating U.S. Sun report. It was hinted at the likelihood of Stern not making a comeback on his SiriusXM show. The whispers regarding this began when an unnamed source suggested on Wednesday that Stern’s connection with the network may be severed once his contract concludes this year.
Neither Stern nor SiriusXM have offered any formal remarks on these speculations. Despite this, Stern shared with his SiriusXM listeners on Wednesday that he plans to return to his show soon: “We will back though, very soon. We’ll be back on the air, live. I’ve been refueling, so to speak.”
When queried about the report in the later part of Wednesday, Trump was prompted about Stern’s announcement concerning the cessation of his partnership with SiriusXM radio. Questions also arose about the supposed waning popularity amidst Americans of the ‘Hate Trump’ business model that has dominated the entertainment industry.
Taking advantage of this discussion, former President Trump expressed his thoughts about Stern with a biting comment. “Howard Stern, it’s a name I haven’t heard… What happened? He got terminated?” Trump and Stern had been on friendly terms previously, and Stern had Trump on his radio show numerous times.
Stern, in 2019, famously described the unique appeal of Trump’s unfiltered persona on his show. He stated that ‘Whenever you put him on the air, and this was before he was running for president, he was an open book, he would say anything. This is why he was so great, there was no filter.’ However, since Stern’s worldview overlapped with the left, the relationship between the two has been strained.
The SiriusXM host also touched upon the point where his bond with the then-presidential candidate soured. This happened after Stern decided not to accept Trump’s invitation to give a speech at a Republican National Convention due to his support for Clinton’s presidential campaign.
Stern talked about his ‘unique’ relationship with Trump in 2019, which swung rapidly from being at Trump’s wedding to refusing his invitation due to political leanings. ‘Donald was at my wedding, I remember having very warm feelings towards Donald, he was always very nice to me. I’ve had dinner at Mar-a-Lago many times,’ Stern said.
Trump’s criticism wasn’t solely directed at Stern; he took the chance to lambaste his frequent late-night TV adversaries as well. ‘[Stephen] Colbert has no talent. [Jimmy] Fallon has no talent. [Jimmy] Kimmel has no talent. They’re next. They’re going to be going. I hear they’re going to be going. I don’t know. But I would imagine because they get, you know, Colbert has better ratings than Kimmel or Fallon’. He charged.
Trump’s remarks mercilessly targeted some of the biggest names in the late-night landscape, adding to his pattern of negating the mainstream entertainers. He surmised that this was a manifestation of the entertainers’ falling popularity with the American people.
The former president weaved a narrative that depicted these entertainers and their shows, particularly Colbert, Fallon, and Kimmel, as being on the brink of collapse. ‘They’re going to be going. I hear they’re going to be going.’ He added a prediction that the ‘woke’ trend in entertainment, which he associated with dropping ratings, would inevitably fall out of favor.
Last year, Trump did not shy away from making his views about Stern known, particularly after Stern interviewed Kamala Harris on his show. According to Trump, Stern’s shift towards a more ‘woke’ perspective led to his ratings plummeting.
Trump used the platform to express his disillusionment with Stern’s waning popularity, echoing widely held sentiments about the danger of embracing overly ‘woke’ perspectives. His contention was that going ‘woke’, as Stern had, caused a significant dip in audience appreciation.
Mimicking his behavior with Howard Stern, Trump has skewered various prominent figures on the late-night scene, arguing that what he perceives as their talentless acts are losing favor with the mainstream American audience.
Trump suggests that the ‘Hate Trump’ business model, well alive in the entertainment industry, isn’t well-received among the American public anymore. His critiques of Stern and other entertainers rest on this core contention, painting an image of an entertainment world out of touch with regular Americans.
In essence, the dialogue indicates a rift between Trump and previously associated figures like Howard Stern. It serves as an allegory of the wider division between sections of the entertainment industry and their former audiences driven by ‘woke’ narratives and perceived partisan bias.