Howard Stern Guest Discloses SEC Subpoena

A regular guest on Howard Stern’s syndicated radio show said he would testify Wednesday in a probe of trading of Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. shares, which surged last fall when Stern announced he was moving his program to the company.

Chaunce Hayden, who writes gossip and other celebrity news for Steppin’ Out magazine, said he received a subpoena Thursday ordering him to appear before Securities and Exchange Commission investigators in New York to discuss “trading in securities of Sirius Satellite Radio.”

Hayden said Sunday that an SEC attorney who phoned him before the subpoena was issued asked about the reactions of Stern and his staff when Stern’s move to Sirius was announced in October.

Hayden told the New York Post that the SEC attorney described the probe as an investigation of insider trading. Hayden told Associated Press on Sunday that he did not remember the conversation with the attorney clearly and could not say whether that description of it was accurate.

Sirius shares soared almost 30% early Oct. 6 when Stern announced the five-year, $500-million deal to move his program to Sirius beginning in 2006 when his contract with Infinity Broadcasting Corp. ends.

The stock finished trading that day nearly 16% higher, closing at $3.87, on volume that was nearly five times its norm.

Hayden said he never owned Sirius stock but had publicly predicted about two weeks before Stern’s announcement that the shock jock would take his show to the satellite broadcaster. He said he based that prediction on his own reporting rather than inside information.

“We’ve all been racking our brains to figure out why I’ve been subpoenaed,” Hayden said.

Spokesmen for New York-based Sirius did not return phone calls and e-mails seeking comment. An SEC spokesman declined to comment.

Satellite programming is not regulated by the Federal Communications Commission, which has long battled Stern over his show’s racy content.

Sirius shares fell 12 cents Friday to close at $5.87 on Nasdaq.