Howard Allen Stern (born January 12, 1954) is an American radio personality who has hosted The Howard Stern Show on Sirius XM, an uncensored satellite radio service, since 2006. He gained national recognition in the 1990s while on terrestrial (Radio#Audio) airwaves, and is known as a "shock jock" for his outspoken and controversial shows. Stern is the highest-paid radio figure in the United States. He is also the most fined, following a history (The Howard Stern Show#FCC fine history) with the Federal Communications Commission over indecency from 1986 to 2005.

Stern wished for a radio career at the age of five. While attending Boston University in 1975, he co-hosted a comedy program at the campus station, WTBU. He made his professional debut at WNTN in Newton, Massachusetts that year. In 1977, he gained on-air and managerial experience for two years at WRNW (WXPK) in Briarcliff Manor, New York. He showed a more open personality throughout 1979 and 1980 in mornings at WCCC (WCCC-FM) in Hartford, Connecticut and WWWW (WWWW-FM) in Detroit. In 1981, he paired with his news reader Robin Quivers at WWDC (WWDC-FM) in Washington, D.C. to host the morning shift. In the following year, Stern worked afternoons at WNBC (WNBC (AM)) in New York City, where differences with management led to his firing in 1985. He was rehired at WXRK for the next 20 years before leaving for Sirius in 2005. During this time, Stern would attract a peak audience of around 20 million across 60 markets (media market) in the United States and Canada.

Stern describes himself as the "King of All Media" for his successes outside radio. Since 1987, his television career has included several late night shows (Howard Stern television shows) and pay-per-view specials (Howard Stern pay-per-view specials and tapes). He is the author of Private Parts (Private Parts (book)) (1993) and Miss America (Miss America (book)) (1995), which spent a combined 36 weeks on The New York Times Best Seller list (The New York Times Best Seller list). The former was made into a biographical comedy film (Private Parts (1997 film)) in 1997, starring Stern and some of his radio show staff (The Howard Stern Show staff) as themselves. The film grossed over $41 million in the United States alone.