The shock-jock trio that host the notoriously outrageous morning show on radio station the Edge have been suspended after they allowed guests from TV's Jackass to swear repeatedly during a live interview, run around naked in front of a studio audience and urinate on the floor while on the air.
"There is no way you can put a positive spin on what was done, and it can't be excused," said Alan Cross, program director for 102.1 the Edge.
"When you're an announcer on the air, you are ultimately responsible for what happens," he said.
"If you have a guest, you must make sure the guest follows the guidelines."
Mr. Cross said he has suspended hosts Dean Blundell, Jason Barr and Todd Shapiro without pay, and that the morning show will suffer an undisclosed monetary penalty for not adhering to station policies.
Station executives will meet this weekend, he said, to determine how long the suspension should last and who should take over the show while the three are gone.
Three men from MTV's Jackass show - Steve-O, Chris Pontius and Wee Man - appeared at the radio station's studio on Yonge Street yesterday morning to do a live interview promoting their current tour.
Though the three guests had agreed to numerous guidelines, such as no swearing and no graphic descriptions, they almost immediately launched into their regular routine of self-mutilation, graphic language and endless swearing once the interview was under way.
"They came in and within seconds they were swearing on the air," Mr. Cross explained yesterday.
He said Steve-O, the group's ringleader, was naked for most of the interview and that the other two "showed up with no shirts, no shoes, and just sweat pants." Mr. Cross euphemistically reasoned this limited wardrobe had been chosen to allow "easy access."
During the live segment, Steve-O gave graphic descriptions about having done a stunt called the "Butterfly" - where he staples his scrotum to his thighs - during the previous night's show in London, Ont. While in the studio, he also urinated on the floor, ran around naked and did a live stunt involving his genitalia and duct tape called "Unwrapping the Mummy" - all in front of about 50 fans who were between five and 10 feet away.
While this was happening, Mr. Cross said he was in his office in the tower above calling down to demand the interview be stopped.
"At that point I'm thinking, I'm going to be getting all kinds of grief so let's just cut our losses now," he said yesterday afternoon. The segment was broadcast just before 9 a.m. when, as Mr. Cross put it, "Mom [would be]driving little Suzie to school."
The announcers did not stop the show, he said, and continued until security came to physically remove the guests.
"We send our condolences to Dean Blundell and the guys on the morning show for getting suspended," said Keith Rubuliak, promoter of the current tour.
"These guys were trying to make great radio and.....a lot of craziness went down."
While Mr. Rubuliak regretted the suspensions, he stopped short of apologizing on behalf of Steve-O and the other two.
"You don't know what to expect," he said, pointing out they have become famous for acting like "jackasses."
"These guys are like Motley Crüe, except with no musical talent," he said. "These guys are wild."
In light of the numerous complaints he received yesterday, Mr. Cross said he thinks the station needs to send a clear message condemning the contents of yesterday morning's interview.
"In hindsight we were a little naive and stupid to hope that these guys would adhere to the guidelines that were set out," he said, adding that they have been banned from ever returning to the station.
But he said it was too late for the station to stop the Steve-O show it was promoting last night at the Kool Haus.