If you’ve been listening to SiriusXM lately, you’ve probably noticed a new voice cutting through the usual chaos of the Stern Show. It’s Sam. Specifically, Samantha Fontana. For a long time, the show’s inner circle felt like a locked vault of the same five or six guys. But Sam has managed to do something pretty rare: she’s become a focal point by being aggressively, almost uncomfortably, honest about her own life.
She isn't just a background producer. Honestly, she’s become the show’s primary "vulnerability officer," if that’s even a thing. Whether it’s discussing her pelvic floor physical therapy or the weirdly specific details of her pregnancy, she fits the Howard Stern mold perfectly because she has zero internal monologue when the mic is on.
Who exactly is Samantha Fontana?
Sam Fontana is a writer and producer for the Howard Stern Show. She didn't just appear out of thin air, but her rise to "on-air personality" status happened fast. She’s part of that newer wave of staffers who grew up as fans and now find themselves getting roasted by the King of All Media.
What makes her stand out is her family. Most staffers try to keep their parents away from Howard. Sam? She leaned in. Her mother, Cathy, became an instant listener favorite. Howard even turned her mom's dating life into a multi-day event with the "Woo Sam’s Mom" segment. It was classic Stern—taking a staffer’s real-life "embarrassment" and turning it into a high-stakes radio drama.
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The "Free Bleeding" segment and the new Stern era
If you want to know why some old-school fans are divided on the "new" Samantha-heavy segments, look no further than the June 2025 "free bleeding" discussion. Sam decided to try the trend as a form of "period activism." She didn't just talk about it; she gave graphic, visceral details that made long-time tough guys like Sal Governale literally gag.
"It was way bloodier, heavier, and messier than I thought it was going to be," Sam told Howard.
This is the Sam Fontana brand. She’s willing to be the "gross-out" person, a role traditionally held by guys like Richard Christy or Sal. But she brings a female perspective to it that the show lacked for decades. Some listeners love the fresh air. Others miss the days when the "Wack Pack" took up all that airtime.
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Why her Uber rating actually matters
It sounds trivial. But the 2023 segment about Sam having the lowest Uber rating on the entire staff was a turning point. It revealed her mother’s habit of being "too chatty" with drivers, which led to a deeper dive into Sam’s upbringing.
This is how Howard builds stars. He finds a tiny flaw—a 4.2-star Uber rating—and peels it back until he finds a compelling human story. Sam’s willingness to let him peel those layers is why she’s getting more "stick time" than veterans who have been there for twenty years.
Managing the Wack Pack
Being a woman on the Stern Show staff means dealing with the Wack Pack. It’s a minefield. Sam had to navigate a particularly weird moment where Wack Packers were actually trying to date her mother.
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She had to draw a hard line. "I don’t want the Wack Pack dating my mom," she basically said, which, honestly, is the only sane reaction. But in the world of the Stern Show, saying "no" to a bit just makes Howard want to do the bit more. It created a tension that felt real because it was real.
The Sam Fontana "Authenticity" Factor
A lot of people ask if she’s "playing a character." In the radio world, everyone is a slightly dialed-up version of themselves. But with Sam, the details are too specific to be fake.
- Pelvic Floor Therapy: She went into detail about her doctor's appointments to normalize women's health issues.
- The Placenta Debate: During her pregnancy in 2024, she openly discussed her plan to eat her own placenta in a smoothie.
- Psychic Sal: She’s one of the few staffers who actually humors Sal Governale’s belief that he’s psychic, providing a foil for his delusions.
How to follow her work
If you’re looking for more of Sam, you won't find a huge solo brand yet. She is a "team player" in the sense that her best content is owned by SiriusXM.
- The SiriusXM App: Search for "Sam Fontana" or "Samantha" to find the specific video clips of her "free bleeding" or "placenta" segments.
- The Stern Show YouTube: They frequently post the "Woo Sam's Mom" highlights there.
- Live Broadcasts: She’s most active during the Monday through Wednesday live morning shows.
The reality is that the Howard Stern Show is in its "legacy" phase. Howard is more interested in long-form interviews and deep staff dives than the "stunt" radio of the 90s. Samantha Fontana represents the bridge to this version of the show—one that is still shocking, but in a way that feels more like a therapy session gone wrong than a frat party.
To get the full experience of her impact, go back and listen to the May 2023 archive of "Woo Sam's Mom." It’s the perfect introduction to her dynamic with Howard and why she’s likely going to be a fixture on the air until Howard finally hangs up the headphones.