Patrice O'Neal on O&A #13 — Assault on Media Blows Up

The show opens in crisis mode after an O&A listener used an air horn on a WABC-7 reporter during a live broadcast, triggering a massive response from management, the New Jersey governor's office, and local news. Opie and Anthony are in damage control, having promised their boss Eric Logan that the "Assault on the Media" promotion was over—but the damage is done. Patrice arrives as a stabilizing force, philosophically deconstructing why edgy radio stunts always escalate beyond anyone's control, comparing it to unprotected sex and the psychology of risk-taking entertainers. He challenges the hosts on whether they truly believed in their own promotion, dissects the fake hope management dangles during investigations, and articulates the difference between a movement (like the church incident) and a one-off stunt. The second half pivots to the new "Tissue Time" bit—live phone sex with callers and professional performers Susan and Michelle—and a lengthy tech segment with Leo Laporte discussing HD TVs, gaming consoles, security exploits, and gadgets. Throughout, Patrice's voice cuts through the panic with unfiltered truth about corporate cowardice and the entertainment business. Timestamps: 00:00:00 - Crisis opening: assault on media contest blows up with air horn incident 00:07:17 - Reading Star Ledger article: governor condemns incident, XM issues statement 00:18:12 - Callers react; Opie and Anthony explain the fear and suspension waiting game 00:29:07 - Patrice arrives: philosophical take on escalation and why stunts always go wrong 00:40:01 - Patrice vs. hosts: debate over management blame and who's responsible for stunt 00:50:56 - Discussion of past firings, fake hope from management, and investigative theater 01:08:10 - Patrice on balls and risk-taking: why real broadcasters take chances or don't 01:25:23 - Break and reset; introduce new "Tissue Time" bit with callers and Susan 01:28:41 - Live Tissue Time segment with Susan and caller Ben from Connecticut 02:09:56 - Leo Laporte arrives; tech talk on HD TVs, gaming consoles, security exploits --- Never Off Air — Archiving the Opie & Anthony XM era (2004-2014). Auto-transcribed and timestamped for searchability.