The Adam Carolla Show (podcast)
Encyclopedia
The Adam Carolla Show is a free podcast
hosted by comedian and radio-television personality Adam Carolla
. Its first episode was released online on February 23, 2009 and the show is the flagship program of the ACE Broadcasting Network
.
The show is also available as live and recorded video on Ustream
for a subscription.
In May 2011, the show became the Guinness World Records
holder for the most downloaded podcast after receiving 59,574,843 unique downloads from March 2009 to March 16, 2011, overtaking the previous record set by The Ricky Gervais Show
, a podcast hosted by British comedian Ricky Gervais
.
ended. The format of the podcast was different from that of the radio show on which it was based. The podcast, while released consistently each weekday, featured a minimal amount of production and was less structured. Episodes were generally a dialog between Carolla and one or more guests. While there were no regular co-hosts, regular guests from the radio show, including Drew Pinsky
, Teresa Strasser
, Dave Dameshek
, and Bryan Bishop
, began making frequent appearances. Listener call-in was gradually added to the show and Carolla began using language that FCC
restrictions prohibit on terrestrial radio.
In its first 24 hours of release, the premiere episode was downloaded over 250,000 times. As of the third episode, the show was the number one podcast on the iTunes Store
in both the U.S. and Canada. During the debut week, the podcast recorded 1.6 million downloads. In the second week it recorded 2.4 million downloads. By the second week of the show, the fourth episode of the podcast featuring former radio show sidekick Dave Dameshek
was downloaded over 500,000 times.
In its first year, The Adam Carolla Podcast was selected as the Best Audio Podcast of 2009 by iTunes.
and Bryan Bishop
, and announcer Mike Dawson. Regular news segments returned to the program with comedic commentary. Featured segments returned, such as "What Can't Adam Complain About?", "Totally Topical Tivo Trivia", and "Blah Blah Blog". Shows continue to feature a celebrity guest, with the guest frequently participating in the featured segments and joining the commentary on the news.
The change in format premiered on May 31, 2010 with guest voice actor Billy West
. Along with the change in format, the title of the show was changed to The Adam Carolla Show.
On August 19, 2010, Strasser joined the Peter Tilden Show on KABC Radio and reduced her role on the Adam Carolla Show. With Strasser's occasional absence, Carolla began returning to the podcast's original host-and-guest-only interview style, beginning with episodes featuring Morgan Spurlock
and David Cross
. In early 2011, Alison Rosen formally replaced Strasser as co-host and took over responsibility of the news desk.
as being illiterate, having brain damage, and being someone who prays to chicken bones. He continued with insulting words for the Philippines, where Pacquiao makes his home, saying, "They got this and sex tours, that's all they have over there. Get your shit together Philippines. Jesus Christ. I mean, again, it's fine to be proud of your countrymen. But that's it? That's all you got?"
Filipino leaders, including the office of President Gloria Arroyo, responded to the incident. Carolla later apologized via Twitter
, saying, "Read your comments. Sorry if I offended many of you. I don't preplan my commentary. I try to be provocative [and] funny but I crossed the line and I'm sorry."
In August 2011, Carolla attracted criticism from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation after an episode of The Adam Carolla Show in which, referring to transgendered people, he asked, "When did we start giving a shit about these people?" He went on to say that the LGBT
moniker ought to be replaced with "YUCK," and that members of the LGBT community who advocate for equality ought to "shut up." The GLAAD organization also pointed to previous offensive remarks made by Carolla, including an assertion that, "all things being equal," heterosexual parents are better than homosexual parents. Carolla responded to GLAAD via TMZ.com
, stating, "I'm sorry my comments were hurtful. I'm a comedian, not a politician." GLAAD reacted by calling Carolla's apology "empty."
Podcast
A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication...
hosted by comedian and radio-television personality Adam Carolla
Adam Carolla
Adam Carolla is an American radio personality, television host, comedian, and actor. He currently hosts The Adam Carolla Show, a talk show distributed as a podcast on the ACE Broadcasting Network...
. Its first episode was released online on February 23, 2009 and the show is the flagship program of the ACE Broadcasting Network
ACE Broadcasting Network
The Adam Carolla Entertainment Broadcasting Network is an American podcast network. The flagship program of the network is the Adam Carolla Show, which is released daily. The network also produces several other shows that are released on a weekly basis....
.
The show is also available as live and recorded video on Ustream
Ustream
Ustream is a website which consists of a network of diverse channels providing a platform for lifecasting and live video streaming of events online. Established in March 2007, the site has over 2,000,000 registered users who generate 1,500,000+ hours of live streamed content per month with over ten...
for a subscription.
In May 2011, the show became the Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...
holder for the most downloaded podcast after receiving 59,574,843 unique downloads from March 2009 to March 16, 2011, overtaking the previous record set by The Ricky Gervais Show
The Ricky Gervais Show
The Ricky Gervais Show is a comedy audio show in the UK starring Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant, and Karl Pilkington, later adapted into an animated televised version debuting for HBO and Channel 4 in 2010. The show started in November 2001 on Xfm, and aired in weekly periods for months at a time...
, a podcast hosted by British comedian Ricky Gervais
Ricky Gervais
Ricky Dene Gervais is an English comedian, actor, director, radio presenter, producer, musician, and writer.Gervais achieved mainstream fame with his television series The Office and the subsequent series Extras, both of which he co-wrote and co-directed with friend and frequent collaborator...
.
Initial format and response
The first episode of the show, which was at the time titled The Adam Carolla Podcast, was released on February 23, 2009 — just days after his terrestrial radio program on KLSXKLSX
KAMP-FM 97.1 FM, known on-air as 97.1 AMP Radio, is a Rhythmic Contemporary radio station in Los Angeles, California. The station is owned by CBS Radio.The station had long been known as KLSX before the call sign changed on June 30, 2009....
ended. The format of the podcast was different from that of the radio show on which it was based. The podcast, while released consistently each weekday, featured a minimal amount of production and was less structured. Episodes were generally a dialog between Carolla and one or more guests. While there were no regular co-hosts, regular guests from the radio show, including Drew Pinsky
Drew Pinsky
David Drew Pinsky , best known as Dr. Drew, is an American board-certified internist, addiction medicine specialist, and radio and television personality. He has hosted the nationally syndicated radio talk show Loveline since the show's inception in 1984. On television, he hosts the talk show Dr...
, Teresa Strasser
Teresa Strasser
Teresa Lynn Strasser is an American writer and television personality known for hosting the first season of the home makeover show While You Were Out on TLC. She also co-hosted The Adam Carolla Show.-Personal life:...
, Dave Dameshek
Dave Dameshek
Dr. William "Funny" David Dameshek is an American television writer and radio personality. Dameshek is currently a football analyst and writer for NFL.com, appearing on NFL Fantasy Live and hosting the Dave Dameshek Football Podcast.- Early life :Dameshek received his undergraduate degree in...
, and Bryan Bishop
Bryan Bishop
Bryan Bishop, frequently referred to on broadcasts as Bald Bryan, is an American radio personality best known for his appearances on The Adam Carolla Show podcast and its previous radio version.-Personal life :...
, began making frequent appearances. Listener call-in was gradually added to the show and Carolla began using language that FCC
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
restrictions prohibit on terrestrial radio.
In its first 24 hours of release, the premiere episode was downloaded over 250,000 times. As of the third episode, the show was the number one podcast on the iTunes Store
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
in both the U.S. and Canada. During the debut week, the podcast recorded 1.6 million downloads. In the second week it recorded 2.4 million downloads. By the second week of the show, the fourth episode of the podcast featuring former radio show sidekick Dave Dameshek
Dave Dameshek
Dr. William "Funny" David Dameshek is an American television writer and radio personality. Dameshek is currently a football analyst and writer for NFL.com, appearing on NFL Fantasy Live and hosting the Dave Dameshek Football Podcast.- Early life :Dameshek received his undergraduate degree in...
was downloaded over 500,000 times.
In its first year, The Adam Carolla Podcast was selected as the Best Audio Podcast of 2009 by iTunes.
Current format
In 2010, the show was significantly restructured to more closely resemble the format of Carolla's radio show while still retaining full creative control and freedom from FCC restrictions. Several production members and on-air talent from the radio show returned. Included among these were producer Angie Fitzsimmons, co-hosts Teresa StrasserTeresa Strasser
Teresa Lynn Strasser is an American writer and television personality known for hosting the first season of the home makeover show While You Were Out on TLC. She also co-hosted The Adam Carolla Show.-Personal life:...
and Bryan Bishop
Bryan Bishop
Bryan Bishop, frequently referred to on broadcasts as Bald Bryan, is an American radio personality best known for his appearances on The Adam Carolla Show podcast and its previous radio version.-Personal life :...
, and announcer Mike Dawson. Regular news segments returned to the program with comedic commentary. Featured segments returned, such as "What Can't Adam Complain About?", "Totally Topical Tivo Trivia", and "Blah Blah Blog". Shows continue to feature a celebrity guest, with the guest frequently participating in the featured segments and joining the commentary on the news.
The change in format premiered on May 31, 2010 with guest voice actor Billy West
Billy West
William Richard "Billy" West is an American voice actor. Born in Detroit but raised in the Roslindale neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, Billy launched his career in the early 1980s performing daily comedic routines on Boston's WBCN. He left the radio station to work on the short-lived revival...
. Along with the change in format, the title of the show was changed to The Adam Carolla Show.
On August 19, 2010, Strasser joined the Peter Tilden Show on KABC Radio and reduced her role on the Adam Carolla Show. With Strasser's occasional absence, Carolla began returning to the podcast's original host-and-guest-only interview style, beginning with episodes featuring Morgan Spurlock
Morgan Spurlock
Morgan Valentine Spurlock is an American documentary filmmaker, humorist, television producer, screenwriter and journalist best known for the documentary film Super Size Me...
and David Cross
David Cross
David Cross is an American actor, writer and stand-up comedian perhaps best known for his work on HBO's sketch comedy series Mr...
. In early 2011, Alison Rosen formally replaced Strasser as co-host and took over responsibility of the news desk.
Controversies
On the April 4, 2010 episode of The Adam Carolla Show, Carolla referred to Filipino boxer Manny PacquiaoManny Pacquiao
Emmanuel "Manny" Dapidran Pacquiao, PLH is a Filipino professional boxer and politician. He is the first eight-division world champion; having won six world titles, as well as the first to win the lineal championship in four different weight classes. He was named "Fighter of the Decade" for the...
as being illiterate, having brain damage, and being someone who prays to chicken bones. He continued with insulting words for the Philippines, where Pacquiao makes his home, saying, "They got this and sex tours, that's all they have over there. Get your shit together Philippines. Jesus Christ. I mean, again, it's fine to be proud of your countrymen. But that's it? That's all you got?"
Filipino leaders, including the office of President Gloria Arroyo, responded to the incident. Carolla later apologized via Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
, saying, "Read your comments. Sorry if I offended many of you. I don't preplan my commentary. I try to be provocative [and] funny but I crossed the line and I'm sorry."
In August 2011, Carolla attracted criticism from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation after an episode of The Adam Carolla Show in which, referring to transgendered people, he asked, "When did we start giving a shit about these people?" He went on to say that the LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
moniker ought to be replaced with "YUCK," and that members of the LGBT community who advocate for equality ought to "shut up." The GLAAD organization also pointed to previous offensive remarks made by Carolla, including an assertion that, "all things being equal," heterosexual parents are better than homosexual parents. Carolla responded to GLAAD via TMZ.com
TMZ.com
TMZ.com is a celebrity news website that debuted on November 8, 2005. It was a collaboration between America Online and Telepictures Productions, a division of Warner Bros., until Time Warner divested AOL in 2009. However, it is still affiliated with AOL News and has the AOL News logo affixed in...
, stating, "I'm sorry my comments were hurtful. I'm a comedian, not a politician." GLAAD reacted by calling Carolla's apology "empty."