Jack Thompson (activist) The Howard Stern Show When was Jack Thompson on The Howard Stern Show? In 2004,
Why was he on The Howard Stern Show?
Why was Jack Thompson on The Howard Stern Show?
In 2004, Thompson helped get Howard Stern's show taken off a radio station in Orlando, Florida by filing a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission. Thompson objected to Stern's use of perceived obscenities on the air. He argued that "Either broadcasters will accept the light harness of decency that has been the law for decades and start cleaning up their acts, or the public's deepening outrage will foster a more fearsome governmental response." Thompson claimed to have received death threats from listeners of Stern's show, noting that "you'd expect that considering the IQ of people who listen to Howard Stern. Apparently they fail to realize that I might have caller ID."  During his opposition to Howard Stern, Thompson was asked in an interview with a reporter if, by his standards, he would blame Christianity for the murders committed by Michael Hernandez, a fourteen-year-old who murdered one of his classmates in 2004, because Hernandez wrote a diary in which he constantly spoke about praying to God. Thompson replied, "The Bible doesn't promote killing innocent people, Grand Theft Auto does. Islam does." Thompson then expanded his comments in the same interview by saying, "Islam promotes the killing of innocent people. The Quran requires the infidel, whether Jew or Christian, to be killed. ... That's a core essence of the religion. ... Muhammad was a pirate who killed infidels and who advocated the killing of infidels--not a nice guy. Osama bin Laden is in keeping with his fine tradition."  He later spoke in defense of Stern during the latter's legal dispute with CBS over promoting Sirius on-air before his switch to satellite radio. Thompson contended that the technology added by CBS to edit out profanity also could have worked to edit out Stern's references to Sirius. According to Thompson, "The reason why CBS chose not to edit Stern is that Stern's Arbitron ratings remained high and were arguably even enhanced by people tuning in to hear daily about Stern's running feud with CBS and his move to Sirius. In other words, CBS actually used Stern's discussion of his move to Sirius to make more money for CBS."  CBS President Leslie Moonves responded, saying "You know what? You can't let people like that tell you what to put on the air or what not to put on the air. That would only open the door when suddenly next week, he says, 'Take David Letterman off the air or take C.S.I. off the air.' Or you know what? Everybody Loves Raymond was about, you know, sex last week or about a 70-year-old man--you know, we dealt with Peter Boyle having sex with Doris Roberts. 'Take that off the air.' That's something we can't let happen." CANNOTANSWER
Thompson helped get Howard Stern's show taken off a radio station in Orlando, Florida by filing a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission.
John Bruce Thompson (born July 25, 1951) is an American activist and disbarred attorney, based in Coral Gables, Florida. He is known for his role as an anti-video-game activist, particularly against violence and sex in video games. During his time as an attorney, Thompson focused his legal efforts against what he perceives as obscenity in modern culture. This included rap music, broadcasts by shock jock Howard Stern, and the content of video games and their alleged effects on children.

He is also known for his unusual filings to The Florida Bar, including challenging the constitutionality of The Florida Bar itself in 1993. Later the Florida Supreme Court described his filings as "repetitive, frivolous and insulting to the integrity of the court". On March 20, 2008, the Florida Supreme Court imposed sanctions on Thompson, requiring that any of his future filings in the court be signed by a member of The Florida Bar other than himself. In July 2008, Thompson was permanently disbarred by the Supreme Court of Florida for inappropriate conduct, including making false statements to tribunals and disparaging and humiliating litigants.

Background
Thompson grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, attended Cuyahoga Falls H.S. and attended Denison University. He received media attention when he hosted his own political talk show on the college radio station. He then attended Vanderbilt University Law School, where he met his wife, Patricia. In 1976, they moved to Florida, where Thompson, working as a lawyer and then a fund-raiser for a Christian ministry, began attending the Key Biscayne Presbyterian Church and became a born-again Christian. Thompson admits to having a "colorful disciplinary history" as an attorney.

The Neil Rogers Show
In 1988, Thompson became involved in a feud with WIOD Radio host Neil Rogers, after Thompson was instrumental in persuading the FCC to fine WIOD $10,000 for airing such parody songs as "Boys Want Sex in the Morning" on Rogers' show. Thompson also sued the station for violating a December 1987 agreement to end on-air harassment against him. For the next eight months, Thompson recorded all of Rogers' broadcasts and documented 40,000 mentionings of his name. Thompson claimed that one of the terms of his agreement with the station was that the station would pay him $5,000 each time his name was mentioned, totaling $200 million in the suit.

Janet Reno
Thompson first met Janet Reno in November 1975, when he applied for a job as an assistant state's attorney in Miami-Dade County, Florida, but was not hired. In 1988, he ran for prosecutor against then-incumbent Dade County State Attorney Janet Reno, after she had declined his request to prosecute Neil Rogers. Thompson gave Reno a letter at a campaign event requesting that she check a box to indicate whether she was homosexual, bisexual, or heterosexual. Thompson said that Reno then put her hand on his shoulder and responded, "I'm only interested in virile men. That's why I'm not attracted to you." He filed a police report accusing her of battery for touching him. In response, Reno asked Florida governor Bob Martinez to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate. The special prosecutor rejected the charge, concluding that it was "a political ploy". Reno was ultimately re-elected with 69% of the vote. Thompson repeated allegations that Reno was a lesbian when she was nominated as U.S. Attorney General, leading one of her supporters, lieutenant governor Buddy MacKay, to dismiss him as a "kook".

In 1990, after his election loss, Thompson began a campaign against the efforts of Switchboard of Miami, a social services group of which Reno was a board member. Thompson charged that the group placed "homosexual-education tapes" in public schools. Switchboard responded by getting the Supreme Court of Florida to order that he submit to a psychiatric examination. Thompson did so and passed. Thompson has since stated that he is "the only officially certified sane lawyer in the entire state of Florida".

Rap music
Thompson came to national prominence in the controversy over 2 Live Crew's As Nasty As They Wanna Be album. (Luke Skyywalker Records, the company of 2 Live Crew's Luther Campbell, had previously released a record supporting Reno in her race against Thompson.) On January 1, 1990, he wrote to Martinez and Reno asking them to investigate whether the album violated Florida obscenity laws. Although the state prosecutor declined to proceed with an investigation, Thompson pushed local officials in various parts of the state to block sales of the album, along with N.W.A's Straight Outta Compton. In sending documents to opponents, Thompson would frequently attach a photocopy of his driver's license, with a photo of Batman pasted over his own. Thompson said, "I have sent my opponents pictures of Batman to remind them I'm playing the role of Batman. Just like Bruce Wayne helped the police in the movie, I have had to assist the sheriff of Broward County." He also wore a Batman wristwatch. Thompson compared Campbell to the Joker. Thompson also said, "I understand as well as anybody that the First Amendment is a cornerstone of a free society—but there is a responsibility to people who can be harmed by words and thoughts, one of which is the message from Campbell that women can be sexually abused."

Thompson also took issue with another 2 Live Crew song, "Banned in the U.S.A.". He sent a letter to Jon Landau, manager of Bruce Springsteen, whose song "Born in the U.S.A." was to be sampled by the group. Thompson suggested that Landau "protect 'Born in the U.S.A.' from its apparent theft by a bunch of clowns who traffic toxic waste to kids," or else Thompson would "be telling the nation about Mr. Springsteen's tacit approval" of the song, which, according to Campbell, "expresses anger about the failure of the First Amendment to protect 2 Live Crew from prosecution". Thompson also said, "the 'social commentary' on this album is akin to a sociopath's discharging his AK-47 into a crowded schoolyard, with the machine gun bursts interrupted by Pee-wee Herman's views on politics".

The members of 2 Live Crew responded to these efforts by suing the Broward County sheriff in federal district court. The sheriff had previously told local retailers that selling the album could result in a prosecution for obscenity violations. While they were granted an injunction because law enforcement actions were an unconstitutional prior restraint on free speech, the court ruled that the album was in fact obscene. However, an appellate court reversed the obscenity ruling, because simply playing the tape was insufficient evidence of the constitutional requirement that it had no artistic value.

As the debate continued, Thompson wrote, "An industry that says a line cannot be drawn will be drawn and quartered." He said of his campaign, "I won't stop till I get the head of a record company or record chain in jail. Only then will they stop trafficking in obscenity". Bob Guccione Jr., founder of Spin magazine, responded by calling Thompson "a sort of latter-day Don Quixote, as equally at odds with his times as that mythical character was," and argued that his campaign was achieving "two things...: pissing everybody off and compounding his own celebrity". Thompson responded by noting, "Law enforcement and I put 2 Live Crew's career back into the toilet where it began."

Thompson wrote another letter in 1991, this time to the Minnesota attorney general Skip Humphrey, complaining about the N.W.A album Niggaz4Life. Humphrey warned locally-based Musicland that sales of the album might violate state law against distribution of sexually explicit material harmful to minors. Humphrey also referred the matter to the Minneapolis city attorney, who concluded that some of the songs might fit the legal definition if issued as singles, but that sales of the album as a whole were not prosecutable. Thompson also initiated a similar campaign in Boston. Later, Thompson would criticize the Republican Party for inviting N.W.A member and party donor Eric "Eazy-E" Wright to an exclusive function.

In 1992, Thompson was hired by the Freedom Alliance, a self-described patriot group founded by Oliver North, described as "far-right" by The Washington Post.  By this time, Thompson was looking to have Time Warner, then being criticized for promoting the Ice-T song "Cop Killer", prosecuted for federal and state crimes such as sedition, incitement to riot, and "advocating overthrow of government" by distributing material that, in Thompson's view, advocated the killing of police officers. Time Warner eventually released Ice-T and his band from their contract, and voluntarily suspended distribution of the album on which "Cop Killer" was featured.

Thompson's push to label various musical performances obscene was not entirely limited to rap. In addition to taking on 2 Live Crew, Thompson campaigned against sales of the racy music video for Madonna's "Justify My Love". Then in 1996, he took on MTV broadcasts for "objectification of women" by writing to the station's corporate parent, Viacom, demanding a stop to what he called "corporate pollution". He also went after MTV's advertisers and urged the United States Army to pull recruiting commercials, citing the Army's recruitment of women and problems with sexual harassment scandals.

Video games

Thompson has heavily criticized a number of video games and campaigned against their producers and distributors. His basic argument is that violent video games have repeatedly been used by teenagers as "murder simulators" to rehearse violent plans. He has pointed to alleged connections between such games and a number of school massacres. According to Thompson, "In every school shooting, we find that kids who pull the trigger are video gamers." Also, he claims that scientific studies show teenagers process the game environment differently from adults, leading to increased violence and copycat behavior. According to Thompson, "If some wacked-out adult wants to spend his time playing Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, one has to wonder why he doesn't get a life, but when it comes to kids, it has a demonstrable impact on their behavior and the development of the frontal lobes of their brain." Thompson has described the proliferation of games by Sony, a Japanese company, as "Pearl Harbor 2". According to Thompson, "Many parents think that stores won't sell an M-rated game to someone under 17. We know that's not true, and, in fact, kids roughly 50 percent of that time, all the studies show, are able to walk into any store and get any game regardless of the rating, no questions asked."

Thompson has rejected arguments that such video games are protected by freedom of expression, saying, "Murder simulators are not constitutionally protected speech. They're not even speech. They're dangerous physical appliances that teach a kid how to kill efficiently and to love it," as well as simply calling video games "mental masturbation". In addition, he has attributed part of the impetus for violent games to the military, saying that it was looking "for a way to disconnect in the soldier's mind the physical act of pulling the trigger from the awful reality that a life may end". Thompson further claims that some of these games are based on military training and simulation technologies, such as those being developed at the Institute for Creative Technologies, which, he suggests, were created by the Department of Defense to help overcome soldiers' inhibition to kill. He also claims that the PlayStation 2's DualShock controller "gives you a pleasurable buzz back into your hands with each kill. This is operant conditioning, behavior modification right out of B. F. Skinner's laboratory."

Although his efforts dealing with video games have generally focused on juveniles, Thompson got involved in a case involving an adult on one occasion in 2004. This was an aggravated murder case against 29-year-old Charles McCoy Jr., the defendant in a series of highway shootings the previous year around Columbus, Ohio. When McCoy was captured, a game console and a copy of The Getaway were in his motel room. Although not representing McCoy and over the objections of McCoy's lawyers, Thompson succeeded in getting the court to unseal a search warrant for McCoy's residence. This showed, among other things, the discovery of additional games State of Emergency, Max Payne, and Dead to Rights. However, he was not allowed to present the evidence to McCoy, whose defense team was relying on an insanity defense based on paranoid schizophrenia. In Thompson's estimation, McCoy was the "functional equivalent of a 15-year-old," and "the only thing insane about this case is the (insanity) defense".

Early litigation
Thompson filed a lawsuit on behalf of the parents of three students killed in the Heath High School shooting in 1997. Investigations showed that the perpetrator, 14-year-old Michael Carneal, had regularly played various computer games (including Doom, Quake, Castle Wolfenstein, Redneck Rampage, Nightmare Creatures, MechWarrior, and Resident Evil) and accessed some pornographic websites. Carneal had also owned a videotape of The Basketball Diaries, which includes a high school student dreaming about shooting his teacher and some classmates. The suit sought $33 million in damages, alleging that the producers of the games, the movie, and the operators of the Internet sites were negligent in distributing this material to a minor because it would desensitize him and make him more prone to violence. Additional claims included product liability for making "defective" products (the defects alleged were violent features and lack of warnings) and violation of RICO, the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, for distributing this material to minors. Said Thompson, "We intend to hurt Hollywood. We intend to hurt the video game industry. We intend to hurt the sex porn sites."

The suit was filed in federal district court and was dismissed for failing to present a legally recognizable claim. The court concluded that Carneal's actions were not reasonably foreseeable by the defendants and that, in any case, his actions superseded those of the defendants, so the latter could not  therefore be the proximate cause of the harm. In addition, the judge determined that "thoughts, ideas and images" in the defendants' materials did not constitute "products" that could be considered defective. The ruling was upheld on appeal.

Grand Theft Auto

Actions in law

Ohio
In February 2003, Thompson asked permission to file an amicus curiae (or "friend of the court") brief in the Ohio case of Dustin Lynch, 16, who was charged with aggravated murder in the death of JoLynn Mishne; Lynch was "obsessed" with Grand Theft Auto III. When Judge John Lohn ruled that Lynch would be tried as an adult, Thompson passed a message from Mishne's father to the judge, asserting that "the attorneys had better tell the jury about the violent video game that trained this kid [and] showed him how to kill our daughter, JoLynn. If they don't, I will."

In a motion sent to the prosecutor, the boy's court-appointed lawyer, and reporters, Thompson asked to be recognized as the boy's lawyer in the case. Medina County Prosecutor Dean Holman, however, said Thompson would be faced with deeply conflicting interests if he were to represent Dustin Lynch because he also advised Mishne's parents. Claiming that delays had weakened his case, Thompson asked Medina County Common Pleas Judge Christopher Collier to disqualify himself from presiding over the case because the judge had not ruled on Thompson's request for two months. The boy himself eventually rejected Thompson's offer, withdrawing his insanity plea. Lynch's mother, Jerrilyn Thomas, who had demanded that Collier appoint Thompson to defend her son, said she changed her mind after visiting with her son in jail, saying that the charge against him "has nothing to do with video games or Paxil, and my son's no murderer."

Tennessee
Thompson returned to file a lawsuit in Tennessee state court in October 2003 on behalf of the victims of two teenage stepbrothers who had pleaded guilty to reckless homicide, endangerment, and assault. Since the boys told investigators they were inspired by Grand Theft Auto III, Thompson sought $246 million in damages from the publisher, Take-Two Interactive, along with PlayStation 2 maker Sony Computer Entertainment America and retailer Wal-Mart. The suit charged that the defendants knew or should have known that the game would cause copycat violence. On October 22, 2003, the case was removed to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee. Two days later, the plaintiffs filed a notice of voluntary dismissal, and the case was closed.

Alabama

Thompson was involved in a similar suit in Alabama in 2005 on behalf of the families of police personnel killed by Devin Moore, a teenager who was reportedly a compulsive Grand Theft Auto player. The lawyer's participation in the case, however, ran into a dispute over his pro hac vice, or temporary, admission to practice in that state. The opposing attorneys sought removal of the privilege by arguing that Thompson's conduct was unethical and claiming that he had threatened and harassed them in letters and emails. The judge added that Thompson had violated his gag order during Moore's criminal trial. Thompson tried to withdraw from the case, but his request was denied by the judge, who went ahead and revoked Thompson's temporary admission to the state bar.

For his part, Thompson said he thought the judge was trying to protect Moore's criminal conviction at any cost. He also complained about the judge's ethics, saying a local attorney who claimed to have influence on the judge had assured him the case would be dismissed unless the attorney was on Thompson's team, and also claimed that Rockstar Entertainment and Take Two Interactive posted slanderous comments about him on their website.

In the aftermath of this lawsuit, Thompson lobbied Alabama attorney general Troy King to file a civil suit and call on retailers not to sell "cop-killing games". After the slaying of another police officer in Gassville, Arkansas by Jacob D. Robida, an 18-year-old fugitive, Thompson again raised the possibility of a connection to Grand Theft Auto, but investigators found no evidence that video games were involved.

Florida

Thompson once reported that he had videotaped a Miami Best Buy employee selling a copy of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City to his son who was 10 at the time. In a letter to Best Buy, he wrote, "Prosecutions and public relations consequences should fall on your Minneapolis headquarters like snowflakes." He eventually sued the company in Florida, arguing that it had violated a law against sale of sexual materials deemed harmful to minors.

In January 2005, Best Buy agreed that it would enforce an existing policy to check the identification of anyone who appeared to be 17 or under and tried to purchase games rated "M" (for mature audiences). No law in effect at the time prohibited selling "M" rated video games to juveniles.

New Mexico

In September 2006, Thompson and attorney Steven Sanders filed a suit in Albuquerque, New Mexico, against Sony, Take-Two, Rockstar Games, and teenage killer Cody Posey, for the wrongful death of three members of Posey's family. The suit, on behalf of surviving family members, claimed that "obsessively" playing Grand Theft Auto: Vice City made violence "pleasurable and attractive," disconnected violence from consequences, and caused Posey to "act out, copycat, replicate and emulate the violence" when  in July 2004 he shot and killed his father, stepmother, and stepsister and then buried them under a manure pile. According to Thompson, "Posey essentially practiced how to kill on this game. If it wasn't for Grand Theft Auto, three people might not now be dead."

The suit claimed that Thompson had been told by a sheriff's deputy that the game and a Sony PlayStation 2 were found at the ranch. The suit also claimed that the game taught Posey "how to point and shoot a gun in a fashion making him an extraordinarily effective killer without teaching him any of the constraints or responsibilities needed to inhibit such a killing capacity." The game in question does not actually teach the player anything about handling a firearm. Gary Mitchell, Posey's attorney, said Thompson contacted him "numerous times" before the trial, urging him to highlight the game in Posey's defense, but Mitchell said he "just didn't find it had any merit whatsoever."

Take-Two reaction

On March 14, 2007, Take-Two filed a lawsuit seeking to permanently enjoin Thompson from filing any public nuisance action against the company that would block the sales to minors of the unreleased video games Grand Theft Auto IV and Manhunt 2. The suit alleged that Thompson's  lawsuits violated the company's First Amendment rights.

Responding, Thompson said: "I have been praying, literally, that Take-Two and its lawyers would do something so stupid, so arrogant, so dumb, even dumber than what they have to date done, that such a misstep would enable me to destroy Take-Two." On April 19, 2007, Thompson and Take-Two settled the suit, with Thompson agreeing not to seek any legal restriction on sales of Take-Two's games, threaten to sue the company, or accuse Take-Two of any wrongdoing based on the sale of any of its games.

One analyst said that the settlement was likely to mute his public pronouncements and lawsuits against the company. However, upon the game's 2008 release, Thompson called Grand Theft Auto IV "the gravest assault upon children in this country since polio," and asked Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty to "pursue and file criminal charges against [Minnesota-based retailers] Target and Best Buy". He also sent a letter to Take-Two chairman Strauss Zelnick's attorney, addressed to Zelnick's mother, in which Thompson accused her son of "doing everything he possibly can to sell as many copies of GTA: IV to teen boys in the United States, a country in which your son claims you raised him to be a 'a Boy Scout'. ... More like the Hitler Youth, I would say." On May 1, 2008 Thompson appeared on the CNN Headline News program Glenn Beck, asserting that the game's sexual content made its sale to minors illegal, and that he was working with law enforcement to have criminal prosecutions brought. Thompson also filed a complaint with the Chicago Transit Authority about poster ads for the game at Chicago, Illinois bus stops.

GameZone emails
In September 2013, Thompson expressed his hatred of Grand Theft Auto V during a series of e-mails exchange with GameZone writer Lance Liebl during its launch week. The game happened to launch the day after the Washington Navy Yard shooting. Traditional media outlets such as Fox News and MSNBC sought out to find proof that violent video games, such as Grand Theft Auto V, had a role in the brutal killings. GameZone responded by writing an article that disagrees with this. These caught Thompson's attention, who then sent an e-mail to the site. "Look, Lance," he wrote in an email, "The American Psychological Association has established a causal link between these games and increased aggression. The Dept. of Defense uses them for that purpose." Liebl responded by offering Thompson a chance to come on the site and explain his stance, which he refused, describing gamers as "too brain-impaired to get it."

Bully
Beginning in 2005, Thompson supported a campaign to discourage Take-Two's subsidiary, Rockstar Games, from releasing a game called Bully, in which, according to Thompson, "what you are in effect doing is rehearsing your physical revenge and violence against those whom you have been victimized by. And then you, like Klebold and Harris in Columbine, become the ultimate bully." According to Thompson, the game "shows you how to—by bullying—take over your school. You punch people; you hit them with sling shots; you dunk their heads in dirty toilets. There's white-on-black crime in the game. You bludgeon teachers and classmates with bats. It's absolutely nuts." Thompson sued Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Target, Circuit City, GameStop, and Toys 'R' Us, seeking an order to bar the game's release. He also participated in a protest at Rockstar's office that also included students from Peaceaholics, a Washington, D.C. mentoring organization. Thompson said he hoped that the pressure would get retailers to refuse to carry the game. In March 2006, the Miami-Dade County Public Schools board unanimously passed a resolution criticizing the game and urging retailers not to sell the game to minors.

Thompson also criticized Bill Gates and Microsoft for contracting with Rockstar Games to release the game on the Xbox. The Xbox version has since been cancelled for undisclosed reasons, but a version was released years later on the Xbox 360. In August 2006, Thompson requested a congressional subpoena for an early copy, threatening to file suit in Miami if he did not gain help from U.S. Rep. Cliff Stearns. Once the game is out, according to Thompson, "the horse will be out of the barn and it will be too late to do anything about it". Thompson argued that it violated Florida's public nuisance laws, which prohibit activities that can injure the health of the community.

Rockstar Games co-founder Terry Donovan responded, saying "I would prefer it if we could simply make great games and not have to deal with misunderstanding and misperception of what we do." After receiving no response from Rockstar regarding an advance copy, Thompson filed the public nuisance complaint against Wal-Mart, Take-Two Interactive, and GameStop, demanding that he be allowed to preview the game before its October 17 release date. Take-Two offered to bring in a copy and let both Judge Ronald Friedman and Thompson view the game in the judge's chambers on October 12, 2006. The judge ultimately saw no reason to restrict sales and dismissed the complaint the next day.

Thompson was critical of the judge's decision, telling the judge "You did not see the game... You don't even know what it was you saw," as well as accusing the Take-Two employee who demonstrated the game of avoiding the most violent parts. Blank Rome subsequently filed a motion to have Thompson's behavior declared "contempt for the court". Judge Friedman then recused himself from ruling, and instead filed a complaint against Thompson with The Florida Bar, calling Thompson's behavior "inappropriate by a member of the bar, unprofessional and contemptible".

Thompson later drew attention to the game's main character, a 15-year-old male, being able to kiss other boys. Thompson wrote to ESRB president Patricia Vance, "We just found gay sexual content in Bully as Jimmy Hopkins makes out with another male student. Good luck with your Teen rating now." The ESRB responded by saying they were already aware that the content was in the game when they rated it.

Manhunt
During the aftermath of the murder of Stefan Pakeerah, by his friend Warren Leblanc in Leicestershire, England, the game Manhunt was linked after the media wrongfully claimed police found a copy in Leblanc's room. The police officially denied any link, citing drug-related robbery as the motive and revealing that the game had been found in Pakeerah's bedroom, not Leblanc's. Thompson, who had heard of the murder, claimed that he had written to Rockstar after the game was released, warning them that the nature of the game could inspire copycat killings: "I wrote warning them that somebody was going to copycat the Manhunt game and kill somebody. We have had dozens of killings in the U.S. by children who had played these types of games. This is not an isolated incident. These types of games are basically murder simulators. There are people being killed over here almost on a daily basis." Soon thereafter, the Pakeerah family hired Thompson with the aim of suing Sony and Rockstar for £50 million in a wrongful death claim.

Jack Thompson would later vow to permanently ban the game during the release of the sequel Manhunt 2. Thompson said he planned to sue Take-Two/Rockstar in an effort to have both Manhunt 2 and Grand Theft Auto IV banned as "public nuisances", saying "killings have been specifically linked to Take-Two's Manhunt and Grand Theft Auto games. [I have] asked Take-Two and retailers to stop selling Take-Two's 'Mature' murder simulation games to kids. They all refuse. They are about to be told by a court of law that they must adhere to the logic of their own 'Mature' labels."

The suits were eradicated when Take-Two petitioned U.S. District Court, SD FL to block the impending lawsuit, on the grounds that video games purchased for private entertainment could not be considered public nuisances. The following day, Thompson wrote on his website "I have been praying, literally, that Take-Two and its lawyers would do something so stupid, that such a misstep would enable me to destroy Take-Two. The pit Take-Two has dug for itself will be patently clear next week when I strike back."

Mortal Kombat
In October 2006, Thompson sent a letter to Midway Games, demanding they cease and desist selling the latest game in the Mortal Kombat series, Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, claiming that the game was illegally profiting on his likeness, because gamers could use the character creation option to make a character who looked like Thompson. Midway did not respond to his letter.

Activism and lobbying

In addition to filing lawsuits, Thompson has pushed for measures against similar games in a variety of public settings. He wrote a joint article in the Christian Science Monitor with Eugene F. Provenzo, a University of Miami professor who studies the effects of video games on children. Originally brought together to provide opposing viewpoints on 60 Minutes in the aftermath of the Columbine High School massacre, they said they had become friends and were collaborating on a book. They described themselves as having "a shared belief that first-person shooter video games are bad for our children, teaching them to act aggressively and providing them with efficient killing skills and romanticized and trivialized scenarios for killing in the real world".

Thompson has supported legislation in a number of states that would ban sales of violent and sexually explicit video games to minors. In response to First Amendment concerns, he argued that the games were a "public safety hazard." However, he rejected as "completely unconstitutional" Hillary Clinton's proposed legislation to ban sales to minors of games rated "M" for Mature by the Entertainment Software Rating Board. Thompson contended that the government could not enforce a private-sector standard but had to depend on a Miller obscenity test. He charged that Clinton was simply positioning herself politically, with the support of the gaming industry, by proposing a bill which he felt she knew would be unconstitutional.

In July 2005, Thompson sent a letter to several politicians urging them to investigate The Sims 2, alleging that the game contained nudity accessible by entering special codes. Thompson called the nudity inappropriate for a game rated "T" for Teen, a rating which indicates suitability for anyone 13 and older. Manufacturer Electronic Arts dismissed the allegations, with vice president Jeff Brown explaining that game characters have "no anatomical detail" under their clothes, effectively resembling Barbie dolls. Although the game does display blurred-out patches over body regions when characters are naked, such as when taking a shower, Brown said that was for "humorous effect" and denied there was anything improper about the game. Nevertheless, a command that could be entered into the in-game console in order to disable the blur effect was removed from the game in an expansion. No official reason was given for the change.

In Louisiana, Thompson helped draft a 2006 bill sponsored by state representative Roy Burrell to ban the sale of violent video games to buyers under 18 (HB1381). In an effort to avoid constitutional problems, it avoided trying to define "violent" and instead adopted a variation of the Miller obscenity test: sales to minors would be illegal based on community standards if the game appealed to "the minor's morbid interest in violence", was patently offensive based on adult standards of suitability for minors, and lacked serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors. The bill was passed unanimously by the state House and approved by the Senate Judiciary A Committee, despite industry opposition and predictions that it too would be unconstitutional. The Shreveport Times editorialized that Thompson's support of the bill "should immediately set off alarms" and described Thompson as someone who "thrives on chasing cultural ambulances". In defense of the bill, Thompson said that it was needed for public safety, and that it was a "miracle" that a Columbine-type event hadn't happened yet in Louisiana. However, the ESA filed suit under Entertainment Software Association v. Foti, and U.S. District Judge James Brady issued a preliminary injunction, temporarily blocking the law from taking effect until full judicial review can be done. The law was permanently enjoined in late November 2006, and the state was ordered to pay the legal fees of the plaintiffs. Judge Brady was "dumbfounded" that state legislators and Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco wasted taxpayer money by trying to enact the law.

At one point, Thompson was asked by the National Institute on Media and the Family to stop invoking the organization's name in his campaigns. NIMF president David Walsh felt Thompson cast the organization in a bad light whenever he brought up their name. "Your commentary has included extreme hyperbole and your tactics have included personally attacking individuals for whom I have a great deal of respect," Walsh said in an open letter to Thompson.

Thompson has additionally worked to influence police investigations concerning violent acts which he views as being connected to violence in video games media. On June 2, 2006, Thompson suggested that West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana police detectives, investigating the murder of 55-year-old Michael Gore by 17-year-old Kurt Edward Neher, should look into the video games played by Neher. According to Sheriff J. Austin Daniel, an autopsy showed Gore was beaten to death as well as shot in the face. Concerning this, Thompson stated that "nobody shoots anybody in the face unless you're a hit man or a video gamer."

Other public commentary
Thompson predicted that the perpetrator of the Beltway sniper attacks would be "a teenaged boy, who plays video games" and speculated incorrectly that he "may indeed ride a bicycle to and from his shooting locations, his gun broken down and placed in a backpack while he pedals." Saying that the shooter, Lee Boyd Malvo, had "trained" on Halo, Thompson later claimed credit for this on The Today Show: "I predicted that the beltway sniper would be a teen-aged boy that trained on a game switched to sniper mode. And three months later, NBC reported that that's exactly what Malvo did. And Muhammad had him train on the game to suppress his inhibition to kill." John Muhammad was a Gulf War veteran and earned an expert marksmanship badge in the U.S. Army.

Thompson has also criticized a Christian video game based on the Left Behind series. In Left Behind: Eternal Forces, players participate in "battles raging in the streets of New York," according to the game's fact sheet. They engage in "physical and spiritual warfare: using the power of prayer to strengthen your troops in combat and wield modern military weaponry throughout the game world." Thompson claims that the makers of the game are sacrificing their values. He said, "Because of the Christian context, somehow it's OK? It's not OK. The context is irrelevant. It's a mass-killing game." Left Behind author Tim LaHaye disagrees, saying "Rather than forbid young people from viewing their favorite pastime, I prefer to give them something that's positive." The dispute over the game has caused Thompson to sever ties with Tyndale House, which publishes both the Left Behind books and Thompson's book, Out of Harm's Way. Thompson has not seen the game, which he says has "personally broken my heart," but claims, "I don't have to meet Abraham Lincoln to know that he was the 16th president of the United States."

In April 2007, only hours after the Virginia Tech shooting (and before Seung-Hui Cho was actually identified), Thompson predicted that the shooter had trained on the game Counter-Strike. According to Thompson, the game "drills you and gives you scenarios on how to kill them [and] gets you to kill them with your heart rate lower." He says that Seung-Hui "was in a hyper-reality situation in virtual reality." Though Seung-Hui had last been known to have played Counter-Strike in high school, four years prior to the shooting, Thompson asserts that "you don't drop it when you go to college, typically." Thompson disputed Seung-Hui's roommate's claim that Seung-Hui only used his computer to write fiction, on the grounds that "Cho was able to go room to room calmly, efficiently, coolly killing people." Prior to being identified, Thompson attributed the "flat effect on [Seung-Hui's] face" and the efficiency of his attack to video game rehearsals of the shooting. However, a search warrant released, listing the items found in Cho's dorm room, did not contain any video games, and a Washington Post story cited by Thompson later removed a paragraph stating that Seung-Hui enjoyed violent video games in high school. Despite all evidence indicating that Seung-Hui had not played Counter-Strike in years, Thompson continued to insist that "this is not rocket science. When a kid who has never killed anyone in his life goes on a rampage and looks like the Terminator, he's a video gamer." Thompson also sent a letter to Bill Gates, saying, "Mr. Gates, your company is potentially legally liable (for) the harm done at Virginia Tech. Your game, a killing simulator, according to the news that used to be in the Post, trained him to enjoy killing and how to kill." However, Microsoft did not create Counter-Strike – they only published the Xbox version of the game. The official Virginia state panel commissioned to investigate the shooting determined that Seung-Hui "played video games like Sonic the Hedgehog," and that "none of the video games [he had played] were war games or had violent themes."

In December 2007, Thompson filed suit against Omaha, Nebraska Police Chief Thomas Warren, asking him to produce information on all "violent entertainment material" belonging to Robert Hawkins, who killed nine people, including himself, in a shooting at the Westroads Mall earlier that month. According to Omaha police, such information is not a matter of public record, as it is part of an ongoing criminal investigation.

On February 15, 2008, Jack Thompson claimed that the actions of Steven Kazmierczak, who the previous day killed five people at Northern Illinois University before committing suicide, were influenced by the game Counter-Strike. In a subsequent news release, Thompson claimed that "We have a nation of Manchurian Candidate video gamers out there who are ready, willing, and able to massacre, and some of them will." Thompson also threatened the university with a lawsuit if the school did not provide copies of "all documents that reveal [Kazmierczak's] play of violent videogames."

Relationship with the gaming industry and gamers

Thompson's "high-profile crusades" have made him an enemy of video game aficionados. On occasion, Thompson has sparred directly with the gaming industry and its fans. In 2005, he wrote an open letter to Entertainment Software Association president Doug Lowenstein, making what he described as "a modest video game proposal" (an allusion to the title of Jonathan Swift's satirical essay, A Modest Proposal) to the video game industry: Thompson said he would donate $10,000 to a charity designated by Take-Two CEO Paul Eibeler if any video game company would create a game including the scenario he described in the letter. The scenario called for the main character, whose son was killed by a boy who played violent video games, to murder a number of industry executives (including one modeled on Eibeler) and go on a killing spree at the Electronic Entertainment Expo. Video game fans promptly began working to take Thompson up on his offer, resulting in the game I'm O.K – A Murder Simulator, among others. Afterwards, he claimed that his proposal was satire, and refused to make the promised donation.

In response, Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik, the creators of gaming webcomic Penny Arcade and of the children's charity Child's Play, stepped in to make the $10,000 donation instead, writing in the memo field of their cheque, "For Jack Thompson, Because Jack Thompson Won't." Afterwards, Thompson tried unsuccessfully to get Seattle police and the FBI to investigate Holkins and Krahulik for orchestrating "criminal harassment" of him through articles on their site. Other webcomics have regularly incorporated references to Thompson, alluding to this incident as well as others.

In 2006, two Michigan gamers began a project dubbed "Flowers for Jack", soliciting donations to deliver a massive floral arrangement to Thompson's office. The flowers were delivered in February along with a letter aimed at opening a dialogue between Thompson and the video gaming community. Thompson rejected this overture and forwarded the flowers to some of his industry foes, with such comments as "Discard them along with the decency you discarded long ago. I really don't care. Grind them up and smoke them if you like."

Gamers have responded to Thompson's attempt to link the Virginia Tech massacre to the game Counter-Strike. Video game Web sites and young gamers on Internet message boards "teemed with anger" at what San Francisco Chronicle reporter Peter Hartlaub called "his serial misstatements," in some cases linking to YouTube videos of Thompson and dissecting his claims point by point. Jason Della Rocca, executive director of the International Game Developers Association, said, "It's so sad. These massacre chasers—they're worse than ambulance chasers—they're waiting for these things to happen so they can jump on their soapbox." In response, Thompson referred to Della Rocca as an "idiot" and a "jackass [...] paid not to connect the dots [connecting shootings to video games]," and compared himself to people who warned that the government should be more concerned about terrorism before the September 11, 2001 attacks. According to Della Rocca, Thompson then challenged him to a series of gaming debates, claiming that they could each make more than $3,000 per event. When Della Rocca suggested that neither he nor Thompson accept any money for the events, Thompson refused.

In July 2009, Entertainment Consumers Association (ECA) president Hal Halpin posted a copy of an email exchange between himself and Thompson, stating, "I get messages (IMs, emails, FB notes, etc.) from members all the time, asking what the (almost daily) notes are from JT. Since this one's fairly harmless and I've redacted anything personal (not that I don't love getting his threatening cease and desist letters), I thought I'd share it as a pretty typical exchange." Halpin and Thompson have been vocal opponents since 1998, when Halpin ran the game retail trade association IEMA. The exchange was sparked by a guest editorial that Halpin entitled, "Perception is Everything" for IndustryGamers.com where he called for consumers and the industry to speak out against negative stereotyping of gamers.

In March 2011, in response to the creation of a school shooter mod entitled School Shooter: North American Tour 2012, developed by Checkerboarded Studios on Valve's Source engine, Thompson emailed Valve's managing director, Gabe Newell, demanding that the mod be removed, as he speculated that Valve played a part in the mod's development. In the letter, Thompson stated that Half-Life was directly responsible for the Erfurt school massacre, as well as the Virginia Tech massacre and that Valve had until 5:00p.m. on March18 to remove the mod.

The Howard Stern Show
In 2004, Thompson helped get Howard Stern's show taken off a radio station in Orlando, Florida by filing a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission. Thompson objected to Stern's use of perceived obscenities on the air. He argued that "Either broadcasters will accept the light harness of decency that has been the law for decades and start cleaning up their acts, or the public's deepening outrage will foster a more fearsome governmental response." Thompson claimed to have received death threats from listeners of Stern's show, noting that "you'd expect that considering the IQ of people who listen to Howard Stern. Apparently they fail to realize that I might have caller ID."

During his opposition to Howard Stern, Thompson was asked in an interview with a reporter if, by his standards, he would blame Christianity for the murders committed by Michael Hernandez, a fourteen-year-old who murdered one of his classmates in 2004, because Hernandez wrote a diary in which he constantly spoke about praying to God. Thompson replied, "The Bible doesn't promote killing innocent people, Grand Theft Auto does. Islam does." Thompson then expanded his comments in the same interview by saying, "Islam promotes the killing of innocent people. The Quran requires the infidel, whether Jew or Christian, to be killed. ... That's a core essence of the religion. ... Muhammad was a pirate who killed infidels and who advocated the killing of infidels—not a nice guy. Osama bin Laden is in keeping with his fine tradition."

He later spoke in defense of Stern during the latter's legal dispute with CBS over promoting Sirius on-air before his switch to satellite radio. Thompson contended that the technology added by CBS to edit out profanity also could have worked to edit out Stern's references to Sirius. According to Thompson, "The reason why CBS chose not to edit Stern is that Stern's Arbitron ratings remained high and were arguably even enhanced by people tuning in to hear daily about Stern's running feud with CBS and his move to Sirius. In other words, CBS actually used Stern's discussion of his move to Sirius to make more money for CBS."

CBS President Leslie Moonves responded, saying "You know what? You can't let people like that tell you what to put on the air or what not to put on the air. That would only open the door when suddenly next week, he says, 'Take David Letterman off the air or take C.S.I. off the air.' Or you know what? Everybody Loves Raymond was about, you know, sex last week or about a 70-year-old man—you know, we dealt with Peter Boyle having sex with Doris Roberts. 'Take that off the air.' That's something we can't let happen."

The Florida Bar

Actions against the bar
In 1993, Thompson asked a Florida judge to declare The Florida Bar unconstitutional. He said that the Bar was engaged in a vendetta against him because of his religious beliefs, which he said conflicted with what he called the Bar's pro-gay, humanist, liberal agenda. He also said that the "wedding of all three functions of government into The Florida Bar, the 'official arm' of the Florida Supreme Court, is violative of the bedrock constitutional requirement of the separation powers and the 'checks and balances' which the separation guarantees." Thompson accepted a $20,000 out-of-court settlement.

On January 7, 2002, Thompson sent the Supreme Court of Florida a letter regarding The Florida Bar's actions. The letter was filed with the court on January 10, 2002 and was treated as a petition for a writ of mandamus against The Florida Bar. Before any action was taken on the petition, Thompson sent the court another letter on January 28, 2002 voluntarily dismissing the case. The letter was filed with the court on January 30, 2002, and the Florida Supreme Court issued an order of dismissal on February 28, 2002.

In January 2006, Thompson asked the Justice Department to investigate The Florida Bar's actions. "The Florida Bar and its agents have engaged in a documented pattern of this illegal activity, which may sink to the level of criminal racketeering activity, in a knowing and illegal effort to chill my federal First Amendment rights," Thompson wrote in a letter to Alex Acosta, interim U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida.

In April 2006, Thompson filed another suit against The Florida Bar, this time in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, alleging that the Bar harassed him by investigating what he called baseless complaints made by disgruntled opponents in previous disputes. His five-count complaint asked for more than $1 million in damages. The lawsuit alleged that the Bar was pursuing baseless ethics complaints brought against Thompson by Tew Cardenas attorneys Lawrence Kellogg and Alberto Cardenas of Miami, and by two lawyers from the Philadelphia office of Blank Rome, in violation of Thompson's constitutional rights. According to the lawsuit, the Bar looked at Thompson for violations of a bar rule that prohibits attorneys from making disparaging remarks about judges, other attorneys, or court personnel. Thompson also filed a motion with the court to order the mediation of his dispute with the Bar. Thompson commented, "I enjoy doing what I do and I think I've got a First Amendment right to annoy people and participate in the public square in the cultural war." Thompson also said he is optimistic his federal lawsuit will be successful. "I'm 100 percent certain that it will effect change, otherwise I would not have filed it."

On April 25, 2006, The Florida Bar filed a motion to dismiss Thompson's complaint. The Bar argued that Thompson's complaint should be dismissed for a number of reasons, including the fact that the complaint failed to state a claim on which he could be granted relief. The Bar also argued that it was absolutely immune from liability for actions arising out of its disciplinary functions, that the Eleventh Amendment barred Thompson's recovery of damages, and that the court should dismiss the case pursuant to the abstention doctrine of Younger v. Harris. On May 4, 2006, Thompson filed a motion asking Judge Federico Moreno to recuse himself from the case, as Judge Moreno was a member of The Florida Bar. Citing an "abundance of caution," Judge Moreno recused himself on May 9, 2006 and referred the case to Chief Judge William Zloch for further action. Thompson did not, however, respond to the Bar's motion to dismiss the case. Finally, on May 17, 2006, Thompson filed a Notice of Voluntary Dismissal with the court, and the case was dismissed without prejudice.

Filings
In October 2007, then-Chief U.S. District Judge Federico Moreno sealed court documents submitted by Thompson in the Bar case that depicted "gay sex acts." Thompson's submission prompted U.S. District Judge Adalberto Jordan to order Thompson to show cause why his actions should not be filed as a grievance with the court's Ad Hoc Committee on Attorney Admissions, Peer Review and Attorney Grievance, but the order was dismissed after Thompson promised not to file any more pornography. Thompson then sent letters to acting U.S. Attorney General Peter Keisler and U.S. Senators Patrick Leahy and Arlen Specter demanding that Jordan be removed from his position for failing to prosecute Florida attorney Norm Kent, who Thompson claimed had "collaborated" with the Bar for 20 years to discipline him.

In February 2008, the Florida Supreme Court ordered Thompson to show cause as to why it should not reject future court filings from him unless they are signed by another The Florida Bar member. The Florida Supreme Court described his filings as "repetitive, frivolous and insult[ing to] the integrity of the court," particularly one in which Thompson, claiming concern about "the court's inability to comprehend his arguments," filed a motion which he called "A picture book for adults", including images of "swastikas, kangaroos in court, a reproduced dollar bill, cartoon squirrels, Paul Simon, Paul Newman, Ray Charles, a handprint with the word 'slap' written under it, Bar Governor Benedict P. Kuehne, Ed Bradley, Jack Nicholson, Justice Clarence Thomas, Julius Caesar, monkeys, [and] a house of cards." (see ) Thompson claimed that the order "wildly infringes" on his constitutional rights and was "a brazen attempt" to repeal the First Amendment right to petition the government to redress grievances. In response, he sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey, referring to the show-cause order as a criminal act done in retaliation for his seeking relief with the court.

On March 20, 2008, the Florida Supreme Court imposed sanctions on Thompson, requiring that any of his future filings in the court be signed by a member of The Florida Bar other than himself. The court noted that Thompson had responded to the show cause order with multiple "rambling, argumentative, and contemptuous" responses that characterized the show cause order as "bizarre" and "idiotic."

Disbarment

In February 2007, The Florida Bar filed disbarment proceedings against Thompson over allegations of professional misconduct. The action was the result of separate grievances filed by people claiming that Thompson made defamatory, false statements and attempted to humiliate, embarrass, harass or intimidate them. According to the complaint, Thompson accused Alberto Cardenas of "distribution of pornography to children", claimed that the Alabama judge presiding over the Devin Moore case "breaks the rules, even the Alabama State Bar Rules, because he thinks that the rules don't apply to him", and sent a letter to Blank Rome's managing partner, saying, "Your law firm has actively and knowingly facilitated by various means the criminal distribution of sexual material to minors." Thompson claims that the complaints violate state religious protections because his advocacy is motivated by his Christian faith.

In May 2008, Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Dava Tunis, after reviewing 2,400 pages of transcripts and 1,700 pages of exhibits, recommended that Thompson be found guilty of 27 of the 31 violations of which he had been accused, including making false statements to tribunals, disparaging and humiliating litigants and other lawyers, and improperly practicing law outside of Florida. Thompson filed a motion with the Florida Supreme Court the day after the report was issued to strike Tunis' recommendations as vague for lack of detail. Previously, Thompson had attempted to have Tunis thrown off his case, and filed a complaint against her with the state Judicial Qualifications Commission, which is responsible for investigating judges.

On June 4, 2008, prosecutor Sheila Tuma recommended 'enhanced disbarment' for Thompson, saying that Thompson demonstrated continued misconduct, a pattern of misconduct and persistently failed to admit any wrongdoing. Enhanced disbarment lengthens the period before an attorney may reapply for admission to the bar from five years to ten. After being prevented from making a speech to begin the disciplinary hearing, Thompson distributed his written objections to lawyers, a court reporter, and a newspaper reporter, departed the courtroom, and called the proceedings against him a "star chamber" and "kangaroo court".

On July 8, 2008, Judge Tunis recommended permanent disbarment and a $43,675.35 fine for Thompson to the Florida Supreme Court, citing "cumulative misconduct, a repeated pattern of behavior relentlessly forced upon numerous unconnected individuals, a total lack of remorse or even slight acknowledgment of inappropriate conduct, and continued behavior consistent with the previous public reprimand... Over a very extended period of time involving a number of totally unrelated cases and individuals, the Respondent has demonstrated a pattern of conduct to strike out harshly, extensively, repeatedly and willfully to simply try to bring as much difficulty, distraction and anguish to those he considers in opposition to his causes... He does not proceed within the guidelines of appropriate professional behavior, but rather uses other means available to intimidate, harass, or bring public disrepute to those whom he perceives oppose him." The court approved the recommendation and fine on September 25, 2008, and ordered that Thompson be permanently disbarred effective 30 days from the date of the order so Thompson could close out his practice. He later filed for an emergency stay of the Florida Supreme Court's order with the U.S. District Court, which was ultimately denied. In an e-mail to media outlets, Thompson responded to the court's decision by stating, "The timing of this disbarment transparently reveals its motivation: this past Friday Thompson filed a federal civil rights action against The Bar, the Supreme Court, and all seven of its Justices. This rush to disbarment is in retribution for the filing of that federal suit. With enemies this foolish, Thompson needs only the loyal friends he has." He closed the email—in which he included the court ruling—with, "...this should be fun, starting now".

On September 19, 2009, Thompson announced that he intended to resume practicing law as of October 1, 2009, claiming that he was "never disbarred" because all of the orders resulting in his disbarment were legal nullities. He dared The Florida Bar to get a court order to stop him.

Other activities
In 1992, a complaint from Thompson led Florida Secretary of State Jim Smith to withhold a $25,000 grant to the Miami Film Festival; Thompson claimed that the festival was using state money to show pornographic films. In response, Thompson was named an "Art Censor of the Year" by the ACLU. The next month, Thompson faced disbarment over allegations that he lied while making accusations against prominent Dade County lawyer Stuart Z Grossman. Thompson ultimately admitted violating bar rules of professional conduct, including charges that he contacted people represented by an attorney without first contacting their attorneys, and agreed to pay $3,000 in fines and receive a public reprimand.

In 1999, Thompson represented the parents of Bryce Kilduff, an 11-year-old boy who committed suicide by hanging himself. Police believed that the death was an accident, and that Kilduff was imitating Kenny, a character from the Comedy Central series South Park, which Bryce, according to his parents, had never watched. Thompson called for Comedy Central to stop marketing the show and toys based on the series to children. "You see, the whole show—thrust of the show is it's—it's cool for kids to act like the characters in South Park."

Prior to Thompson's disbarment, attorney Norm Kent filed a personal lawsuit against him, which eventually resulted in Thompson paying Kent $50,000 for defamation. Thompson reacted to the suit by threatening employees at one of Kent's clients, Beasley Broadcast Group, with lawsuits and depositions unless they got Kent to drop his case.

In January 2005, Beasley hired attorney Lawrence A. Kellogg of law firm Tew Cardenas, LLP, to manage Thompson's threats. Because Kellogg delayed arranging a meeting with him, Thompson on March 17 began a campaign targeting the firm's name partner Al Cardenas, a former chair of the Republican Party of Florida, accusing him of personally being involved in "a statewide racketeering activity" in a letter sent to the media, Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist, and Florida Governor Jeb Bush. Kellogg then filed a complaint to The Florida Bar that figured largely in Thompson's disbarment.

On April 30, Thompson extended his campaign against Cardenas to an attempt at embarrassing him as a trustee of Florida A&M University, a historically black university. In an email sent to FAMU interim president Castell V. Bryant, the media, the FCC, and Governor Bush, he cites racist remarks made by a caller to The Howard Stern Show to suggest that Cardenas put "profit ahead of race relations", even though Beasley, which owned a station broadcasting Stern's show, was not among Al Cardenas's clients.

On February 21, 2007, Thompson filed a complaint with the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission against Judge Larry Seidlin, accusing Seidlin of "violating nearly every judicial canon" in conducting a hearing on the disposition of the body of Anna Nicole Smith. On June 28, 2007, Thompson filed a complaint with the State Attorney's Office, asking for an investigation and possible prosecution regarding accusations that Seidlin inappropriately accepted expensive gifts.

In March 2008, Thompson called for the New York State Supreme Court's Appellate Division to immediately suspend the law license of former state governor Eliot Spitzer, who had resigned from the position amidst reports he was a client of a prostitution ring. Thompson said that the Disciplinary Committee for the Appellate Division's First Department should stop Spitzer from practicing law until the matter was resolved, noting that Spitzer did not claim innocence in his initial public apology.

In an April 2016 interview with Inverse, Thompson stated that he was teaching civics classes to inmates in the Florida prison system, including an American history and constitutional law class at the Everglades Correctional Institution.

Facebook lawsuit

Thompson filed a lawsuit for $40 million against Facebook in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida on September 29, 2009. Thompson claimed that the social networking site had caused him "great harm and distress" by not removing angry postings made by users in several Facebook groups. Thompson withdrew his case less than two months later. According to Parry Aftab, a cyber-law attorney, Thompson would likely not have had any success because the U.S. Communications Decency Act provides that companies such as Facebook have no liability for what users do with their services in most cases.

Bibliography
Out of Harm's Way. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2005. .

See also
 James v. Meow Media – Thompson represented the plaintiffs.
 Strickland v. Sony – Thompson represented the plaintiffs.
 Jacob Robida – Thompson commented to the media about the case.
 GamePolitics.com – Frequently covered Thompson.
 Spencer Halpin's Moral Kombat – Thompson is interviewed in the documentary.
 Playing Columbine – Thompson is interviewed in the documentary.

References

External links

 The Florida Bar's Member page of John Bruce Thompson
 Jack Thompson versus Adam Sessler on G4's Attack of the Show! 
 Jack Thompson vs Paul Levinson on CNBC
 
 Thompson interviewed on Free Talk Live

1951 births
Denison University alumni
Living people
American activists
American Christians
Video game censorship
Florida lawyers
Lawyers from Cleveland
Disbarred American lawyers
Vanderbilt University alumni
People from Coral Gables, Florida
Activists from Ohio
Howard Stern is an American radio personality who is best known for his radio show The Howard Stern Show. Stern (along with his followers) describes himself as the "King of All Media" for his successes in the radio, television, film, music and publishing industries.

The Howard Stern Show (Fox)

On April 16, 1987, a meeting was held between Stern and management of WNYW, the flagship television station of Fox Broadcasting Company. The network was considering Stern as a replacement to The Late Show hosted by Joan Rivers in its 11:00 PM hour. Five one-hour pilots titled The Howard Stern Show were recorded at a cost of about $400,000. They featured rock guitarist Leslie West of Mountain as bandleader and Steve Rossi as announcer and singer. By early June, air dates were yet to be scheduled; the pilots were instead being tested among focus groups in California. With no formal announcement, the network cancelled the series in July. Paul Noble, the former executive producer for WNYW, was never told of Fox's decision. "By today's standards, they were absolutely tame." He also said, "They were not the kind of thing that a local New York television station was prepared to get involved with at that time. It was more like off-the-wall radio."

The Howard Stern Show (WWOR)

The Howard Stern Interview

The Howard Stern Interview is a late-night talk show featuring Stern hosting a half-hour, one-on-one interview program with a celebrity guest. Shown on the E! channel from 1992–1993, Stern signed a contract for a reported $1.1 million for a total of 36 episodes. It quickly became the highest-rated show on the E! network, demonstrating Stern's ability to carry a show by himself, without the rest of his radio show staff. The interviews were known for being intimate and personal, with questions that celebrities were not normally asked.

The show, first airing on November 27, 1992, ran for 30 minutes and was produced by Mark Keizer. E! re-aired Stern's interview with Phil Hartman and his wife Brynn Hartman after she murdered her husband and then committed suicide.

The Howard Stern Radio Show

The Howard Stern Radio Show is an American late-night television series that ran on Saturday nights in syndication (mostly on affiliates of CBS) from August 22, 1998 to May 19, 2001. Although the show was syndicated it was largely sold to CBS affiliates, with only a handful of other stations airing it; it was in fact syndicated by CBS' in-house distribution firm of the time, Eyemark Entertainment, which was previously Group W Productions prior to the CBS-Westinghouse merger of 1995; after 2000, Eyemark was merged into the newly acquired by CBS King World. Most of CBS' stations, including those in rural areas, did not pick the show up. It ran for a total of three seasons including 84 episodes. The show featured taped highlights of The Howard Stern Show, in a similar format seen in Howard Stern, the half-hour show that was broadcast on E! from 1994 to 2005. The Howard Stern Radio Show also included new segments such as animations of song parodies and exclusive behind the scenes footage.

The show was intended to compete with Saturday Night Live on NBC.

Howard Stern

E! announced on May 31, 1994 that Stern secured a deal with the network to bring his radio show, which was broadcast from WXRK at the time, to television. Six robotic cameras were installed in the small studio at 600 Madison Avenue to film the five-hour radio show. "The best part of all this is that my genius will be seen in so many more homes now", Stern said. "It's a dream come true." Two sneak preview shows were aired on June 18, with the first official episode being broadcast on June 20. The television shows broadcast on January 21, 1999 and February 5, 2004 at 11:00 PM marked the 1,000th and 2,000th episodes respectively.

On October 6, 2004, Stern announced that he had signed a five-year contract with Sirius XM Radio, a subscription-based satellite radio service, that began from January 2006. The move allowed Stern to broadcast without the content restrictions imposed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that he faced while broadcasting on terrestrial radio. As a result, the E! show came to an end as Stern announced on August 3, 2005 that he made a deal with iN DEMAND Networks, a Video on Demand digital cable service, to create Howard Stern on Demand. The new, uncensored channel allowed the filming of the radio show at Sirius XM in high-definition. The radio show broadcast on July 1, 2005 was the last to be filmed for a "new episode" for airing the following week on July 8. The hour-long special featured members of the E! show staff saying their farewells (although some of the crew continued working for the show at Sirius XM) and telling their favorite show moments. The show was a consistent performer in the network's ratings.

Howard Stern On Demand/Howard TV
In January 2006, Howard TV was launched as an on-demand pay television service, to coincide with the beginning of his 5-year contract with Sirius XM Radio, and his new 5-year contract in 2011. It covered the daily happenings of Stern's radio show, as well as providing original programming and footage from the E! show.

Howard TV was owned and operated by In Demand. There were no content restrictions applied to Howard TV as a pay-per-view service.

On September 16, 2013, Stern and In Demand announced that the Howard TV contract would not be renewed, and the service would end in December.

"Howard 360"
Following the cancelation of Howard TV in 2013, speculation of idea began to arise regarding Stern's future in television; future ideas mentioned include his own online streaming service, a return to cable, the creation of an exclusive cable network, and partnering with an already-existing online streaming service. On December 15, 2015 speculations were confirmed and an upcoming video streaming service was announced by Stern directly. The service, to be called "Howard 360" by Whalerock Industries, was never fully realized however. Sirius XM now has video rights to Stern's content under their current contract, and makes available video content from the show through its website and app for its subscribers.

References

Bibliography

External links
 Howard Stern television shows at the Internet Movie Database

American late-night television shows
Television series based on radio series
Howard Stern
American comedy television series
E! original programming
Nudity in television Throughout its run spanning four decades and multiple media, The Howard Stern Show has been home to a number of staff members and contributors.

Current staff
These staffers currently work for and appear on the show on a regular, if not hourly basis.

In-studio
These people currently sit in the studio throughout the entire broadcast or have an exclusively in-studio role with the show when present.

Howard Stern

Howard Stern is the host of the show, which essentially is a discussion of topics that include world affairs, celebrity gossip, self-deprecation, sexual relationships, bodily functions, conflicts among his staff, his own personal family matters, and the antics of the show's Wack Pack. Self-proclaimed "King of All Media".

Robin Quivers

Robin Ophelia Quivers is a native of Baltimore, Maryland, and first met Stern after being assigned as his newscaster at WWDC in March 1981. She has been his co-host and news anchor ever since. She is a former nurse and Captain in the United States Air Force. Quivers briefly left the show towards the end of her time at WWDC.  In 1982, Stern signed a contract to work at WNBC, and Quivers did not realize WNBC initially refused to hire her. Quivers returned to the show at WNBC a month after Stern began, having convinced WNBC management to hire Robin after all.

Stern once said that Quivers is the only person on the show that he allowed to talk freely during the broadcast, although comedian Artie Lange was allowed this privilege as well during his years on the show.

Fred Norris

Of the show's staff, Stern met Norris first, in 1979, when the two worked as disc jockeys at WCCC in Hartford, Connecticut. Norris worked the overnight shift, after which Stern hosted the morning slow. Although Stern left shortly afterwards, Norris stayed at WCCC until joining Stern and Quivers at Washington, D.C.'s WWDC in 1981. The "Earth Dog Fred" nickname originated in Washington, as Norris replaced an engineer nicknamed "Earth Dog Brent."

Norris is married to Allison (née Furman) and they have one daughter, Tess.

Norris' current role on the show is to provide sound effects, organize and direct commercials and live reads, and perform writing duties. Norris also provides impersonations of show regulars, celebrities and others.

Outside the studio
These are the behind-the-scenes personnel, although, in the Stern world, many of these staff members appear on air.

Steve Brandano
Brandano, previously known as "Steve The Intern," answers Stern's phones, is a contributor on The Wrap-Up Show, and was formerly the host of the Thursday night intern show.

Benjy Bronk
Benjy Bronk (born Sept. 4, 1967) began working on The Howard Stern Show as an intern in 1998. Bronk eventually earned a paid position conducting pre-interviews of show guests and gathering articles for Robin Quivers' newscasts. In 2000, Benjy was given an in-studio seat next to writers Jackie Martling and Fred Norris, writing on-the-spot jokes for Stern as the show transpired.

After Martling left the show in early 2001, Bronk continued as an in-studio joke writer with Norris. When the Howard Stern Show moved to Sirius satellite radio in January 2006, Bronk continued in his role as an in-studio joke writer.  Bronk is well known on the show for suffering frequent outbursts of the Herpes STD that he claims he contracted while attending college at Penn State.

Richard Christy

While working as an electrician in Florida and playing as a drummer in a number of heavy metal bands including Iced Earth and Death, Christy began calling into the show from October 1999, initially sending voice mails to the show's assistant producer K. C. Armstrong, which were played on-air. From 2001 to 2003, Christy sent song parodies and bits about Armstrong and show co-host Robin Quivers including some like "It's K.C.'s Sausage Party" (a parody of "It's My Party") and "Gay Photograph" (a parody of the Def Leppard song "Photograph") that continue to be played on the show to this day. Christy made his first visit to the show on April 24, 2003, where he played a round of blackjack to win a date with a porn star.

In July 2004, when the show was holding a "Win John's Job" contest following the departure of Stuttering John from the show, Christy won the position as voted by fans. Since joining the show, Christy has become known for his prank calls, song parodies, unique personality, and "show stunts" he's performed with his writing partner Sal the Stockbroker.

Christy is currently the drummer in the heavy-metal band Charred Walls of the Damned.

Gary Dell'Abate

Gary Dell'Abate, aka Baba Booey, serves as the show's executive producer. He was hired right after graduating from Adelphi University in 1984.  Howard would call him Boy Gary and Dell'Abate briefly anglicized his name to Gary Dell.  He is mocked on the Stern Show for his appearance, gullibility (he once booked a mentally challenged woman who claimed to be Madonna's sister), and frequent mispronunciations (for example, insisting that actor Nick Nolte's last name was pronounced "Nolt"). He earned the nickname "Baba Booey" after insisting it to be the correct name of the cartoon character Baba Looey.

Sal Governale
Salvatore "Sal" Governale, originally referred to as Sal the Stockbroker, was originally a frequent caller who worked selling stocks and commodities. Stern took notice after numerous calls mocking Gary Dell'Abate. Although he came in second in the "Win John's Job" contest to his future writing partner Richard Christy, Sal was eventually hired as a prank caller/writer for the show and is now credited as a producer.

J. D. Harmeyer
Born in December 1979 in Fairborn, Ohio, Jamie Daniel "J. D." Harmeyer is Stern's head media producer. He records television shows, pulls clips from the internet, and edits together highlights from recent movies and TV. He attended Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida.

Jon Hein

Jon Hein made his first guest appearances on the show on May 3, 2001, discussing television shows that have "jumped the shark", a term he uses to describe when a show has passed its prime (based on an episode of the show, Happy Days, where a previously popular and well-done show clearly and memorably began to go downhill). In late 2005, while experimental programming was broadcast on Howard 100 and Howard 101, Hein presented the first edition of Superfan Roundtable. His success in on-air hosting led him to become the co-host of The Wrap-Up Show when the show moved to Sirius XM in January 2006.

Hein was a co-host on the weekly Thursday show, "Jon Hein's TV Show" with J. D. Harmeyer, Steve Brandano and Jenny Hutt.  He also co-hosted the weekly Friday show "Geek Time" with Jason Kaplan and Ralph Cirella. Both shows have since been canceled.

Jason Kaplan
Jason Kaplan is an executive producer for the show. His duties include writing the daily show rundown that appears on the show's website and taking photos that appear alongside the daily rundown. In September 2007, Jason and HowardTV director Scott DePace engaged in an intense feud stemming from their political differences.

Jason was married to his girlfriend, Janis, on November 8, 2008. Notable guests at the ceremony included Howard Stern, Robin Quivers, Gary Dell'Abate, and most of Stern's staff. The reception featured speeches from fellow staff members, Ronnie Mund and J. D. Harmeyer. Kaplan hosted "Page 69" along with Will Murray. On the wrap-up show on August 19, Kaplan stated that he grew up in Stanhope, New Jersey, and attended Rutgers University.

Kaplan hosted monthly episodes of The Fat Guy Show. Kaplan was a producer of the monthly show Geek Time that aired Fridays, with Jon Hein and Ralph Cirella.

On December 8, 2020, Kaplan stated he was an executive producer during the show's broadcast, serving alongside longtime executive producer Gary Dell'Abate.

Ronnie Mund
Ronald Mund, commonly referred to as Ronnie the Limo Driver, born in October 1935, was Stern's limousine driver and later his bodyguard. Ronald is 5 foot, 2 inches tall and was frequently mocked for not being able to see over the steering wheel of his limo without sitting on a stack of textbooks by Howard on air.  He later became the head of security for the Stern show studios and offices at Sirius Radio. After serving in the Air Force, Mund started a limo business. He began driving for Stern in 1986, and quickly became a character on the radio show. In 2011, Ronnie began touring night clubs around the U.S. with other talent from The Howard Stern Show on the "Ronnie Mund Block Party." In March 2013, Ronnie hosted a 4-day event in Jamaica called the Ronnie Mund Jamaican Getaway.

Will Murray
Will Murray is the show's researcher and segment producer. He pre-interviews all guests, and compiles pages of notes of research for Howard to use during on-air interviews. He and fellow producer Jason Kaplan hosted the Howard 100 News segment "Page 69."

On September 5, 2008, Will married his long-time girlfriend. A Philadelphia area native, he is a huge Philadelphia sports fan, and is a graduate of Syracuse University.

Mike Trainor

Mike Trainor joined the show in 2014 as writer and producer. He became prominent on the show as the voice of a lump that was growing on Wack Packer Jeff the Drunk.  His name is not used on the program.  Instead he is often referred to on the air as "Lump."

Marci Turk
Marci Turk is chief operating officer of Stern's channels, but her name is not used on the air. A former employee of author David Allen, she is a prominent advocator of his Getting Things Done method of time management.

Former staff and associates
The following people all saw significant air-time when they worked with Stern. Some were show staffers who left for other careers.  Some had been interns, Stern's bosses, and station support staff who for a time were all integral to the show.

Former radio staff

K. C. Armstrong

Kyle Casey "K. C." Armstrong (born July 17, 1975), who grew up in nearby Suffolk County, New York, had been a college football player.  He began working on the show as an intern in 1997 and later became associate producer from 1998 to 2004. In a 2005 interview, Armstrong revealed that he had been fired from the show by WXRK general manager Tom Chiusano for lapsing back into drug use after spending time in rehab.

Armstrong was needled by Stern for his good looks and athletic body.  Some show staffers, jealous of his appearance, speculated that if he is that good-looking, he must be gay.  Armstrong eventually moved to California, where he tried to start a career in acting. He released a comedy DVD called Die Laughing. He has acted in three movies – Death4Told, Grace and the Storm and Secret War and appears on the comedy DVD series Meet the Creeps.

Lee Davis
"Boy" Lee Davis was the original Stern show producer at WNBC before Gary Dell'Abate. He left to become the producer of the Soupy Sales show.  He moved up the ladder in station management and eventually became the general manager of sports radio station WFAN, which was the successor to WNBC at AM 660 in New York.

Shuli Egar
Shuli Egar is a comedian who first appeared on the show in June 2003. When Stern announced his planned move to Sirius and created Howard 100 News in 2005, Egar was an early hire. He was promoted to reporting about and keeping tabs on The Wack Pack.  He also filled in for Lisa G and Steve Langford when they were out.

In September 2020, Egar abruptly moved to Alabama from New York City out of concern for his family, who felt unsafe in their neighborhood due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and civil unrest caused by the George Floyd protests. Egar did not inform Stern of his relocation until he had already finished moving, though SiriusXM management was made aware and approved of the move. With all content for the Howard Stern Channels being created remotely rather than at the SiriusXM headquarters in New York during the pandemic, Egar was still able to contribute to the show.

On January 22, 2021, Egar announced on Twitter he was launching a podcast through Patreon. In the first episode of his podcast, Egar stated he was no longer happy working at the show and had not been for several years. He felt the content he was creating was being sidelined too frequently, and that he was not allowed on the air as frequently as he would have liked to be. After his move to Alabama, Egar claimed show producers took him off the assignment of covering the Wack Pack, his longtime primary role at the show. Egar resigned from the show, saying that he and the staff at the Stern Show, including Stern himself, were still on good terms, and that Stern called him upon learning of his resignation to wish him well. At the time of his departure, Egar was the only original member of the Howard 100 News team that remained on staff.

Steve Freid
Steve "the Engineer" Freid first worked with Ben Stern and later worked with Howard when he arrived at K-Rock. He gained notoriety performing as the character Wood Yi, a parody of actor/director Woody Allen. Billy West came up with the idea for the character in the early 1990s, and Steve was chosen to play the part due to having a similar-sounding voice. When performing as Wood Yi, Steve read lines supplied to him by the shows' staff, reciting them in a deadpan manner.

Gary Garver
Gary Garver was a West Coast-based correspondent for The Howard Stern Show who first started working for the show in 1991 when he was an operator at KLSX, the show's Los Angeles affiliate. He was sent to awards shows, movie premieres and television conventions to ask "Stuttering John"-type questions to celebrities and has-beens.

Steve Grillo
Former Stern Show intern and associate producer at WXRK, known as "Gorilla". Howard dedicated his second book Miss America to Steve. Grillo conducted movie reviews for Howard 100 News in 2006. As homage to his former duties as a Stern show intern, he rated films by awarding them a certain number of potatoes.

Artie Lange

Lange's first appearance on the show was as a guest alongside fellow comedian Norm Macdonald on January 8, 1998, following a bit involving Scott the Engineer and his challenge to perform 17 complete push-ups. Although appearing with Macdonald to promote the film Dirty Work, Lange had been a fan of Stern since the 1980s when he used to listen with his father. In fact, after Lange's father was paralyzed in 1987, show producer Gary Dell'Abate sent Lange an autographed jacket which Lange auctioned off for $2,000 to help support his family.

Following the departure of the show's writer and comedian Jackie "The Jokeman" Martling in 2001, several comedians "auditioned" for Martling's seat by sitting in for a couple of shows. Lange's first appearance in what became known as "The Jackie Chair" occurred for 2 days, on May 7 and 8, 2001. The temporary appearance consisted of being Stern's sidekick along with Quivers, and Lange frequently told personal stories, usually regarding alcohol, drugs, food and prostitutes. On October 29, 2001, Lange joined the show full-time and was voted favorite by Howard's fans in 2009.

Lange left the show in December 2009. At first the leave was thought to be temporary, but in early 2010 he attempted suicide at his apartment in Hoboken, New Jersey. The incident has not been discussed in great detail on the show and for much of 2010, Stern mentioned that Lange would return when he was healthy. However, in 2011 the show and the Howard 100 News began to reference Lange as a "former" staffer. On October 3, 2011, Lange began co-hosting The Nick & Artie Show with comedian Nick DiPaolo. This show aired on Directv. In April 2014, Artie was informed before the show that Directv had cancelled his show. He went on air that night for the last time as a part of the Directv team. He currently is the host of a podcast called "The Artie Lange Uncensored Podcast."

John Melendez

In 1988, Stuttering John was attending New York University's film school, and belonged to a band called "Rock Slide". His college roommate, Mitch Fatel, was on the verge of quitting his internship with The Howard Stern Show, when Melendez begged him for a recommendation for an internship on the show. Producer Gary Dell'Abate interviewed Melendez and mentioned his stuttering problem to Stern, who decided to hire him as a field reporter.

On Stern's show, Melendez conducted outrageous street interviews and appeared at press conferences, asking off-the-wall questions to various celebrities, including Gennifer Flowers, Ringo Starr, Burt Reynolds, Tommy Lasorda, Larry King and the Dalai Lama. He also provided comic relief on the show itself with his misadventures, poor grammar, and sloppy pronunciation. Melendez left the show after being offered a half-million-dollar contract as the announcer for The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

Al Rosenberg
Al Rosenberg was a writer/performer for Howard on WNBC. He did numerous voice impressions including Sue Simmons and Dr. Ruth Westheimer. In The History of Howard Stern, Howard stated that he hired Al after Imus fired him so that he (Imus) could hire his girlfriend to replace Rosenberg. He stayed on at WNBC after Howard was fired because he was still under contract to the station. Al also worked on WNEW-AM radio as one half of the morning team with Bob Fitzsimmons. He also worked with Ted Brown. He later worked again for Howard on the "Channel 9 Show" as a writer. Al called into Stern's show in 2007 (during a Paul Mooney interview) to discuss Imus' racism. He also appeared on Howard 101's defunct "Miserable Men" program.

He currently works doing speaking engagements and voice-over work. He also serves on the board of Rise, a non-profit organization and currently serves as Deputy Mayor for East Windsor Township, New Jersey.

Scott Salem
Scott the Engineer was the show's long-time engineer, having joined on February 10, 1986. Having previously worked at WABC (AM) and WPLJ in New York City, Salem received a voice mail from Jimmy Fink, then the morning personality at WXRK informing him of his new position.

In 1996, the Austin American-Statesman wrote that Scott is "always threatening to quit or on the verge of being fired, he's the show's whipping boy for technical problems". In 2007, Salem made a onetime appearance on tour with the "Killers of Comedy," performing stand-up followed by a Q&A session with the audience. Salem is an avid bowler and has competed in and appeared at several PBA tour events.

Ron Tarrant

Ron Tarrant joined the Howard Stern Channels in 2016 from Canada as the Head Imaging/Sound Designer & new voice of the Howard Stern Show/Channels. He left the show in 2019.

Billy West

Billy West provided the show with comedy impersonations, part-time, beginning on November 7, 1988. He was known for his impressions of Marge Schott and show comedian Jackie Martling. West's final appearance was on November 1, 1995, before he left the show over contract and salary disputes. On February 19 and 20, 2007, a special two-part retrospective of West's work on the show was broadcast on Howard 100 and Howard 101, covering over 11 hours.

West was an occasional contributor to The Adam Carolla Show, a syndicated morning radio show that replaced Stern in cities along the West Coast.

Former radio associates

Bubba Clem

Bubba the Love Sponge is both the title of, and name of the host of, a radio show airing on Howard 101 from 2005 to the end of 2010. Bubba (actual legal name Bubba The Love Sponge Clem, born Todd Clem) had previously been "exiled" from radio after a great deal of controversy over his terrestrial radio show, based in Tampa, Florida. Stern brought Bubba's show aboard and in so doing relaunched Bubba's career and show. Bubba credits Stern for reviving his career.

The show left Sirius XM at the end of 2010 and moved to RadioIO Internet Radio and syndicated terrestrial radio.

Donna Fiducia

Donna Fiducia was an on-air traffic reporter on WNBC radio during Stern's tenure there. They had frequent conversations while she was on the air, sometimes leaving her no time to actually deliver the traffic report.

Rev. Bob Levy

"Reverend" Bob Levy is a standup comedian who was a frequent on and off air contributor to the Sirius XM radio show from the show's debut until around 2009. He hosted the Miserable Men show and created a series of roasts for Stern show personalities such as Gary Dell'Abate, Artie Lange, and Wack Packers such as Daniel Carver. The placement, frequency and number of plugs given during the Stern show for Levy's off-air efforts was a constant source of tension, especially after the availability of plugs was severely restricted. After Artie's departure, Levy complained on air that some details of the situation were being "covered up" and blamed Howard Stern for the suicide attempt. Levy's departure from the Stern channels soon followed and he is almost never mentioned on the air.

Former Howard 101 hosts

Scott Ferrall

Scott Ferrall was the host of The Scott Ferrall Show heard weekdays at 8 pm EST on Howard 101. It aired from 2006 to 2012.

Greg Fitzsimmons

Greg Fitzsimmons hosted The Greg Fitzsimmons Show on Howard 101 from 2006-2018.

Abe Kanan
Abe Kanan was host of The Abe Kanan Show, which aired on Howard 101 weekends and late nights. Kanan's show originated in Chicago. It began as a series of podcasts and was picked up by the Stern channels in February 2011 and lasted until December 2013. He now hosts his own podcast titled "Abe Kanan On Hold".

Riley Martin

Riley Martin (May 9, 1946 – December 2015) was a self-described alien contactee, author, and host of The Riley Martin Show, which was heard Tuesdays at Midnight ET on Howard 101.

Jackie Martling

Jackie Martling is the former head writer and in-studio laugh track of The Howard Stern Show. He was later the host of Jackie's Joke Hunt. The show, co-hosted by fellow Friar Ian Karr, premiered on October 3, 2006 at 7 pm EST. It aired live, every Tuesday at 7 pm ET on Sirius Howard 101, with reruns heard Thursday mornings at 12 am ET and Saturday afternoons at 2 pm ET. Jackie's Joke Hunt was canceled along with many other shows that have been cut during 2014–2015, when Sirius 101 began to focus only on past shows from the Howard Stern library.

Mutt
Mutt is the founder of the Stern Fan Network message board and was host of The Super Fan Roundtable, which had been heard Wednesday's at 7 pm ET on Howard 101.

Red Peters

Red Peters was the host of The Red Peters Music Comedy Hour which aired periodically on Howard 101. Peters (real name Douglas Stevens) is a Boston-based songwriter/comedian who specializes in a musical form best described as "lounge smut."  His show featured a compilation of songs packed with scat jokes and double-entendres.

Jeff Probst & Natalie Maines

Jeff Probst is best known for his role as the host of the U.S. version of the reality show Survivor and Natalie Maines is best known as the lead singer of The Dixie Chicks. Together after each season of Survivor has wrapped-up they host a two-hour Celebrity Superfan Roundtable on Howard 101, where they bring in big-name Hollywood stars such as actor David Arquette, LA weatherbabe Jillian Reynolds, producer Damon Lindelof, singer Mark McGrath, actor Jerry O'Connell, actor Ryan Phillippe, comedian Sarah Silverman, and actor Steven Weber to discuss their favorite moments on the Stern show.

Jay Thomas

Jay Thomas was the host of The Jay Thomas Show on Howard 101 from 2005 until his 2017 death.

Chuck Zito

Chuck Zito is an actor, amateur boxer, martial artist, celebrity bodyguard, stuntman, former boxing trainer and former president of the New York City chapter of the Hells Angels.  He hosted the periodic Chuck Zito's View on Howard 101.

Former Howard 100 News staff

Penny Crone

Penny Crone was a correspondent on Howard 100 News.  She had been a field reporter for many years on Channel 5 WNYM, the Fox network affiliate in New York and later was the morning co-host on WABC 770 AM.

Brad Driver
Brad Driver was the News Director at Howard 100 News and was responsible for managing the news team. He has held the position since December 2006.

Lisa Glasberg

Lisa Glasberg was a former co-host with Doctor Dré and Ed Lover on New York hip-hop radio station Hot 97 WQHT-FM.  She was known informally as Lisa G, serving as an on-air reporter for Howard 100 until February 2015, updating live news headlines each morning and filing reports for hourly Howard 100 news updates. Glasberg is a native of Woodmere, New York.

Ralph Howard
The late Ralph Howard anchored Howard 100 News every weekday afternoon.  He had previously been a news anchor on New York radio stations WINS 1010 AM and WMCA 570 AM.  In September 2010, he underwent lung transplant surgery. He retired from the show on May 30, 2013 after 53 years of news broadcasting. Howard was married to Broadway actress and longtime Charles Busch collaborator, Julie Halston.

Steve Langford
Steve Langford had been a field reporter on WCBS-TV Channel 2 and other local TV news departments.  He became an investigative reporter for Howard 100 News.  He later returned to local TV news.

Jon Leiberman

Jon Leiberman was an in-studio and remote correspondent for Howard 100 News who was hired in July 2011.

Michael Morales
Michael "High Pitch Mike" Morales was Howard 100 News producer, reporter, and on-air regular. He publicly came out as gay on the show. Mike has an unusual, squeaky voice, leading to his nickname.

TV staff

Ralph Cirella

Ralph Cirella was paid by Howard TV to be Howard Stern's personal stylist, a job he previously held for Stern's E! show. Cirella was first hired to construct a "talking penis", for a broadcast at the Felt Forum on New Year's Eve 1986. He has been a listener since Stern's time at WNBC from 1982 to 1985. Cirella did not make on-screen appearances until 1990, when he worked on costumes, special effects and make up on The Howard Stern Show on WWOR-TV. In his book, Miss America, Howard Stern calls Ralph the most universally hated member of his staff. Throughout 2006, Cirella briefly co-hosted the now defunct The Friday Show with Gary Dell'Abate and Jon Hein, on Howard 100 and Howard 101. He was also the host of "Geek Time" which aired on Howard 101.

Scott DePace
Scott DePace was the television director for the daily broadcast of The Howard Stern Show for Howard TV. His wife, Pamela, won an Emmy for her work on The Daily Show.

Scott Einziger
Scott Einziger is a former Producer of Stern's syndicated Saturday night TV show and E! show. Left the show in November 2001 to become a producer on The Amazing Race. He has since worked on other reality shows such as Kid Nation, Big Brother, and Are You Hot?. Stern sued Einziger and his production company for ripping off his "The Evaluators" which Are You Hot? mirrored.

Mike Gange
Mike Gange started at the show as an intern, and, after years of toil, worked his way up to cameraman/interviewer for the former Stern TV show on E! Gange then became supervising producer for Howard TV.

Doug Goodstein
Doug Z. Goodstein was Stern's E! show producer and executive producer for Howard TV On Demand.

Robin Radzinski
Robin Radzinski is a former E! network executive and former Producer of Stern's E! show who has also worked for G4, HBO, and TBS.

Former bosses

Randy Bongarten
Randy Bongarten is a radio executive and former Vice-President and General Manager at WNBC who was later promoted to be President of the entire NBC Radio Network. Robin Quivers said that Randy's tenure at WNBC were the "good years" at the station because Randy "understood the show, and was interested in letting the talent do the things that would let the talent be successful."

Tom Chiusano
Tom Chiusano was the general manager at WXRK, the frequent target of Stern show jokes, and in the later years of the show the master of the "dump button" to prevent content he deemed inappropriate from reaching the airwaves. Chiusano remained at WXRK when Stern and company moved to Sirius, and after several format changes at his station, he eventually announced his retirement in January 2008.

John Hayes

John Hayes is a radio executive, famously named "The Incubus" by Howard during his days as Vice-President and General Manager at WNBC replacing Randy Bongarten. He and Kevin Metheny were portrayed by Paul Giamatti as a composite character under the name Kenny "Pig Vomit" Rushton in the 1997 movie, Private Parts. It was Hayes who actually fired Stern from WNBC-AM in 1985 on the orders of NBC network executives. In 2002, Hayes once again pulled Stern's show from CILQ-FM in Toronto. Hayes proudly calls himself "the man who fired Howard Stern twice."

Kevin Metheny

Kevin Metheny (June 6, 1954 – October 3, 2014) was a radio executive, famously named "Pig Virus" by Howard during his days as Program Director at WNBC. He and his replacement John Hayes were portrayed by Paul Giamatti as a composite character under the name Kenny "Pig Vomit" Rushton in the 1997 movie, Private Parts.

Tim Sabean
Tim Sabean was the Senior Vice President of the Howard Stern Channels for Howard 100 & 101. He managed the channels and their personnel for Howard. Before coming to Sirius he was the program director at Stern's Philadelphia affiliate WYSP-FM. Sabean's departure from the show was never formally announced, but he is no longer listed as a staff or front office member on the Stern show website. The last entry on his official Twitter feed was on 1 August 2013 and his last on-air appearance was around that time.

On September 9, 2013 it was announced by Sirius/XM that he'd been promoted to Senior Vice President of all the Entertainment and Comedy channels.

References

External links
 Howard Stern's Official Web Site at HowardStern.com

Stern, Howard