Whitewater. After leaving the White
House, Stephanopoulos’s coverage
of American politics for ABC News
allowed him to continue being
engaged in politics without the cut-
throat stresses that had been in-
volved in Washington. His exem-
plary journalism during the 1990’s
resulted in a promotion at ABC, and
he followed Sam Donaldson and
Cokie Roberts as the anchor ofThis
Weekin 2002.
Further Reading
Clinton, Bill.My Life. New York: Al-
fred A. Knopf, 2004.
Stephanopoulos, George. All Too
Human: A Political Education. Bos-
ton: Little, Brown, 1999.
Emily Carroll Shearer
See also Clinton, Bill; Clinton’s
scandals; Elections in the United
States, midterm; Elections in the
United States, 1992; Elections in the
United States, 1996; Gore, Al; Journalism; Liberal-
ism in U.S. politics; Whitewater investigation.
Stern, Howard
Identification Radio personality
Born January 12, 1954; Roosevelt, Long Island,
New York
By the 1990’s, Stern had become a national figure thanks to
the growth of the syndication of his radio show throughout
the United States. As his fame grew, so did Stern’s fines from
the Federal Communications Commission, and he became
an important figure in national conversations about free
speech and censorship.
WhileThe Howard Stern Showfirst became syndicated
in 1986, its syndication truly began in earnest in the
1990’s, with the radio show debuting in major mar-
kets such as Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami, Dallas,
and Detroit. Howard Stern’s guests ranged from
strippers to Richard Simmons, and while sex was al-
ways a topic of discussion, Stern and his group of reg-
ulars, called the “Wack Pack,” also controversially
discussed issues such as Magic Johnson’s HIV an-
nouncement and the Columbine High School
shootings.
Stern’s graphic discussion of sexual acts with his
guests often led him into trouble with conservative
groups such as the American Family Association and
the American Decency Association. More impor-
tant, the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) had fined Stern’s employer, Infinity Broad-
casting Company, $1.7 million by 1995. The total in-
cluded an unheard-of fine of $600,000 for com-
ments made on the show between October and
December of 1992. The method of payment for
these fines was somewhat unusual: Infinity paid the
fines “voluntarily” to the U.S. Treasury, and in re-
turn, the FCC wiped Infinity’s record clean, which
helped the company renew its license to broadcast.
Throughout the decade, conservative groups taped
Stern’s show daily in order to find objectionable
content, filed complaints to the FCC, and requested
that the companies that owned the stations that ran
Stern’s show (which by the late 1990’s included the
major conglomerate Clear Channel) either fire
Stern or have their broadcasting licenses revoked.
Some groups also began letter-writing campaigns to
the show’s advertisers. By the close of the decade,The Nineties in America Stern, Howard 809
Radio shock jock Howard Stern shows his bookPrivate Partsat a New York book sign-
ing in 1993.(AP/Wide World Photos)