"Radio shock jocks don't get better with age, just older and more crass.

Case in point: Rob Tepper, one of Seattle's most recognizable radio personalities -- the T-Man of KUBE 93.

Smarmy, garrulous and sometimes funny, this less polished version of loudmouth Howard Stern consistently reaches the bulk of area listeners between 18 and 34. On his FM morning show, Tepper and an in-studio circus skewer politicians and celebrities, and jabber about dating and sex.

But when he crosses the line -- and he's done so more than once -- the antics go beyond juvenile. They make you wonder what his bosses at Clear Channel are waiting for to pull the plug.

Oct. 24 was one of those times. During the broadcast, Tepper ripped women in general, listeners said, and referred to Native American women in particular as "(expletive) hos" -- slang for whores.

His cruel insensitivity struck a nerve.

"Our tribal membership was shocked and horrified," Mel Sheldon, chairman of the Tulalip Tribes of Washington, wrote in a letter to KUBE. "In addition to being embarrassing and deeply insulting ... this type of commentary has been shown to contribute to violence against Native American women.""

Get the Story:
Robert L. Jamieson Jr.: The T-Man has gone too far too often (The Seattle Post-Intelligencer 12/16)