The BJ Shea Morning Experience

KQBZ era (1999-2005)

The BJ Shea Experience started as a two-hour show on KQBZ "The Buzz" (100.7 FM), middays between syndicated shows by Kennedy and Tom Leykis. The primary theme of the show is relationships, primarily from a male point of view, though it has tackled some highly controversial topics of sex, politics and religion.

In 2000, Shea was dismissed from the station due to controversial comments made on air. Shea successfully appealed the decision in an arbitration hearing, overturning the dismissal.

In 2004, in the wake of the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy, Shea used his show as a platform to speak out against the attempts to increase censorship on broadcasting. "I think this is totally from the White House," said Shea. "I think that George Bush is trying to pander to the extreme Christian Coalition he thinks will back him in this election. I hope it's a huge failure and he gets kicked out of the White House."

In May 2005, Entercom Seattle LLC, parent company of KQBZ, was sued by morning show host Robin Erickson of the Robin & Maynard Morning Show, on charges of gender discrimination and creating a hostile work environment, based upon remarks made during BJ Shea's show. Shea however was not named as a defendant in the lawsuit.

KQBZ's promotional slogan at the time was "Radio for Guys," and the suit contended that it was part of the problem. "The Shea program regularly features verbal attacks on women," the suit claimed. "These attacks repeatedly and crudely attack women in general and specifically in the workplace, claiming, among other assertions, that women are bad employees whose presence in the workplace is bad for men." The suit also claimed that Shea attacked Erickson on air on the basis of her gender and age, promoting The Howard Stern Show even though it ran during Robin & Maynard's time slot on KISW, (a station also owned by Entercom,) and criticized other female Entercom employees on the air. Shea was disciplined for his on-air comments, though the suit contended that the punishment was not severe enough.

KISW era (2005-Present)

On November 30, 2005, KQBZ changed its format from FM Talk to Country music. BJ Shea's show, newly rechristened as "The BJ Shea Morning Experience," would move to KISW on January 3 to fill the timeslot vacated by The Howard Stern Show's move to satellite radio. No details were given as to the status of the Robin & Maynard show, or the ongoing litigation, except that the show would not be picked up by KISW.

The show has become one of the few shows across the United States to succeed in maintaining and growing its listenership after the departure of Howard Stern. In the ratings book that immediately succeeded the move, KISW and Shea's show both placed at or near the top in their target-demographic audience, primarily men 18 to 49