Longtime Howard Stern fan/sidekick “Captain Janks” called in to KUSA-TV posing as police officer “Chief Oates.” He falsely claimed that a fifteenth victim died as a result of last night’s shootings.
“He was actually very angry,” Janks said of the purported shooting victim, “because he lost on America’s Got Talent and Howard Stern voted him down.”
Howard Stern has long argued that prank calls such as this one serve a social purpose by exposing the media’s lax quality controls.
A few Stern fans spoke out in support of Janks:
https://twitter.com/UNIVERSALHORROR/status/226264781676498944
Most Twitter users, however, felt the prank was in incredibly poor taste:
https://twitter.com/MissHathaway/status/226298158551023616
Janks’ prank serves as a useful reminder that Stern’s lovable persona on America’s Got Talent is very different from his vulgar persona on radio. Stern can’t be too pleased with such tragedy-exploiting antics, but he can no more disown his entourage than he can disown his own shadow.
