So, you thought the free radio air waves were rid of colorful shock jock Howard Stern? Well, think again. The New York Post reported Tuesday, Sept. 19 that Stern may be negotiating a deal that would bring him back to the free radio air waves he once dominated. Trade publication Inside Radio said Stern could make his comeback through a deal between Sirius and Citadel Broadcasting. Citadel is also in the process of buying certain radio assets from Walt Disney. If the self-proclaimed King of All Media comes back to free radio in some capacity, he will be going against his word made back in May. "I'm very flattered terrestrial radio can't let go of me," Stern said on his morning radio show. "But I would throw up if I had to go back. I'm never going back." The clean up crew for Stern could be out soon. The Post said Stern could be making his comeback to free radio because of the reduction of celebrity bookings, a reduction in traffic to Stern's Web site by 71% and the failure at the box office of sidekick Artie Lange's movie "Beer League," which opened last weekend, despite enormous promotion on Howard's Sirius show. If Stern's return to free radio happens, he would interestingly follow the same pattern of rival shock jocks Opie and Anthony. With an XM radio show, the pair was hired in May to broadcast a sanitized version of their program on WFNY-FM (formerly Stern's home radio station of WXRK-FM). — Gerald Magpily
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