Howard Stern Addresses ‘America’s Got Talent’ Controversy & Doesn’t Hold Back As He Blasts Simon Cowell
Former America’s Got Talent judge Howard Stern is speaking up and sharing his thoughts on the recent announcement that neither Gabrielle Union or Julianne Hough would be returning to the NBC series next season. A lot has been said about Gabrielle’s exit in particular and it sounds as if the shock jock is essentially coming to her defense.
As Page Six notes, Howard addressed the America’s Got Talent situation during his SiriusXM radio show on Monday. The former AGT judge seemingly places the blame for this heated situation on Simon Cowell, the executive producer and one of the judges of the series.
Howard, who was a judge on AGT from 2012 through 2015, addressed what some might say has been the elephant in the room by talking about how he believes the male judges and female judges are treated.
“He sets it up that the men stay, no matter how ugly they are, no matter how old they are, no matter how fat they are, no matter how talentless they are,” Howard said.
The SiriusXM radio host questioned how Simon orchestrated this and as Deadline details, proceeded to take things a step further.
“But what he manages to do on all his shows is he constantly replaces the hot chicks with hotter chicks and younger chicks. Which is so obvious,” Howard added.
America’s Got Talent featured Simon, Howie Mandel, Heidi Klum, and Mel B. for Seasons 8 through 13. When Heidi and Mel departed, Julianne and Gabrielle were brought on. Now, after just one season, both women have been fired.
Apparently, Howard’s criticism did not come as support specifically for Gabrielle. In fact, he seemingly does not know who she is. Rather, the shock jock seems to be talking in more general terms about a pattern he believes has been a constant with Simon’s shows.
As Deadline details, there have been quite a few judges that have departed America’s Got Talent over the years. Tyra Banks used to be on the panel, as were George Lopez, Ken Jeong, Seal, and Chris Hardwick at various points.
Julianne spoke out fairly quickly after the news of her America’s Got Talent firing emerged. She spoke positively about NBC and AGT, saying she had not experienced any of the issues that had been rumored.
On the other hand, Gabrielle was initially very quiet in the wake of the announcement. Her husband Dwyane Wade came to her defense almost immediately and she has since thanked fans for their support.
Howard isn’t the only celebrity to speak out about this America’s Got Talent controversy. However, given his past involvement with the show, some might find his blunt assessment especially interesting.
