The star WTKK-FM Boston talker has been fired from the station, Greater Media announced 4/6 in a statement. Last week, the controversial host was suspended after serious complaints about the content of a recent show, where he told listeners that he hired and exploited “mostly attractive young women” as interns and slept with nearly all of them in his political consulting office. Severin has been with the station since its launch in 2000.
Said Greater Media’s statement: “Greater Media today ended its relationship with Jay Severin. Our company has always encouraged a free and open dialogue on a variety of issues and topics, and we will continue to be guided by that principle. But we also demand that our on-air talent maintain an appropriate level of civility, and adhere to a standard that respects our listeners and the public at large.
Jay Severin has been an important part of what we have accomplished with 96.9 WTKK-FM since its inception in 2000 and for that we are grateful and wish him well in future endeavors. Unfortunately, it had become clear at several points in the past two years that Jay was either unwilling or unable to maintain our standards on the air. It’s for that reason we have made the decision to end our relationship.”
Severin was also suspended in 2009 for controversial comments he made about Mexican immigrants. Greater Media said Michael Bower will take over Severin’s 2 to 6 p.m time slot while they review their long-term programming plans for those hours.
RBR-TVBR observation: We may see Jay resurface on a smaller Boston-area AM, not affiliated with a large group such as Entercom’s WRKO. But bottom line, he’s now tainted with most national advertisers. He will still be able to draw an audience, but if he wants to get back in the Talk radio game, he will have to settle for much less money, at least in the short-term. He may try the internet-only route in the meantime.
