Michael Kay rips media after Associated Press duped by Howard Stern prank

Howard Stern is not retired or fired. He has not been canceled by SiriusXM or replaced by Andy Cohen. But you could have fooled the Associated Press.

Michael Kay, an admitted Stern fan closed out his ESPN New York radio show Monday afternoon by expressing disappointment in the AP and others after they were duped into reporting the dubbed King of All Media had relinquished his crown.

Stern, who has been the subject of speculation over whether he will sign another contract with SiriusXM after his current one expires later this year, was slated to address the rumors on his Monday show following his usual two-month-long summer break. And Monday morning, the show began with Andy Cohen claiming Stern retired and stating that he was assuming control of SiriusXM channel 100.

BREAKING: @bravoandy took over @siriusxm Ch. 100. Tune in now for more. pic.twitter.com/5352WQE6XH

— Stern Show (@sternshow) September 8, 2025

For any Stern listener, it seemed so obvious that this was a bit. But the AP, CNBC, Variety and a cast of other outlets tuned in to hear Cohen’s show open, and rushed to report Stern was out at SiriusXM. That was it, after 20 years, they assumed Stern was gone before his contract was up and without a goodbye. Minutes later, Stern took the mic and regained control of his channel, admitting it was all a planned bit with Cohen to mock the tabloid speculation surrounding his future.

“I wonder about the media in our world,” Kay said after watching the bit play out. “The AP fell for it! ‘Howard Stern is out, he’s been fired.’ Anybody with a mind would know that was a gag! You don’t think they would continue to run Howard Stern repeats until his contract is up? They’d have Andy Cohen step in, that’s the way it would be announced? Unbelievable. So, it was out there in the world that Howard Stern was fired until he came on in the next segment and said it was a goof and said he’s not going anywhere.”

One month ago, headlines ran rampant about Stern’s show being canceled after a report from tabloid outlet The Sun. The report only cited “sources” and offered no comment from Stern or SiriusXM, but it was enough for many in the media to assume the satellite radio company was deciding to move on from Stern because of his political leanings.

“All the people that reported it and that were hanging on the rim, ‘his political leanings got him fired, canceled like Stephen Colbert’ Do you apologize now, or do you just move on to the next thing?” Kay asked. “And this isn’t a politically motivated thing, it’s about our media falling for this nonsense…talk about fake news, it works on both sides, people. We as the media should be embarrassed on what we’ve become. Taking the football and running with it that he was fired, they didn’t want him back, his audience deteriorated, but it wasn’t true!”

There are media outlets who believe it’s better to be first than right, but you wouldn’t expect that from the Associated Press. And the fact that they couldn’t wait a few minutes to see how the Andy Cohen bit was going to play out, was undoubtedly a bad look.

Stern and SiriusXM might decide to part ways when his current contract expires. He’s been with SiriusXM for two decades, and at 70 years old it’s reasonable to assume Stern might be considering retirement or a further-reduced work schedule. But Stern wanting to work less, or SiriusXM attempting to negotiate down his $100 million contract, wouldn’t mean he was being “canceled.” It would mean that after 20 years together, their relationship has evolved.

There will be a day when the AP and other outlets will be able to report Stern is leaving SiriusXM. That day might come later this year, it might come after another five-year contract. But that day definitely was not Monday.