Howard Stern’s staged announcement that his SiriusXM show was ending prompted anxiety among staffers who, according to Page Six, feared immediate layoffs and financial strain.
“People are panicking,” a source told Page Six on Wednesday. “Many employees who work there have a family to take care of, have kids, have a mortgage payment, and this is their main source of income.” The source added that staffers were “terrified” because nondisclosure agreements forbid them from discussing workplace details, and that the threat of being fired for breaking confidentiality terms contributed to mounting stress.
According to the source, the fear extends beyond the prank itself: “Getting laid off has been in the back of their minds for quite some time,” the source said, and some employees were “talking about leaving.” The source characterized the environment as “not fair to a lot of them.” Representatives for Stern and SiriusXM did not immediately respond to Page Six’s requests for comment.
The episode unfolded Monday when Stern, 71, trolled listeners by staging a faux handover to Andy Cohen, the Bravo executive and radio host, who briefly took the air and announced a new channel he dubbed “Andy 100.” Cohen, 57, said the segment had not gone as planned and expressed regret that the transition was not “cleaner,” calling the morning “surreal.” Stern later reclaimed the show, thanked Cohen for participating in the gag and confirmed he would continue broadcasting on SiriusXM.
The prank followed weeks of speculation about Stern’s future after reports that his roughly $500 million SiriusXM contract was nearing its end. Rumors of retirement and questions about the future of “The Howard Stern Show” intensified when Stern unexpectedly delayed his return from summer break, at one point citing illness.
Some listeners and social media users criticized the stunt. Messages posted online called the bit a “cry for attention” and noted that Stern had performed similar gags in the past, including a known prank years earlier involving musician David Lee Roth. Several critics said the joke was ill-timed given ongoing uncertainty among serial broadcast staffers.
“The Howard Stern Show” first premiered on SiriusXM in January 2006 and has been a flagship program for the satellite radio company. The show’s continuation was confirmed on air Monday, but the prank has left at least some employees uneasy about job security amid contract uncertainty and stringent confidentiality rules.
Industry analysts have in recent months noted that long-running talent transitions and large contracts can stoke internal concern at media outlets, particularly when staffers rely on a single employer for income. In this case, the staged cancellation and the accompanying public speculation appear to have amplified those concerns inside Stern’s production team.
SiriusXM has not publicly commented on staffing or contract negotiations related to Stern. The host’s on-air clarification that he will remain at SiriusXM addressed listener uncertainty but did not, according to the Page Six source, immediately alleviate staff anxieties about potential layoffs or enforcement of nondisclosure agreements.
