Howard Stern, who launched his radio program on Sirius today, is a smart, funny guy. He’s also a complete hypocrite when it comes to women.

The man whose recently departed E! program was a nightly strip-a-thon, and who has done more than any other American public figure to raise the profile of porn stars, often has said he would kill himself if his own daughters ever entered adult entertainment.

Last week, Stern’s daughter Emily, now a 22-year-old actress, quit an off-Broadway show in which she appeared nude (that’s her in Madonna-wear above.) Howard had warned her that “enemies” — more likely, fans — of his show would take pictures of her and post them on the Internet.

What’s the appropriate metaphor? Reaping what you sow? Reaping the whirlwind? Reaping something, anyway…

Look, Media Orchard can’t be too hard on Howard. The reality is that Howard’s double standard is America’s double standard.

Men, as a rule, are attracted to “sexually available” women (e.g., strippers and porn stars) but don’t respect them. The virgin/whore dichotomy is alive and well.

And what’s the product of this continuing double standard in today’s world?

A lot of lying, mostly.

From Reason Online:

Ohio State University psychologist Terri Fisher … had college students fill out questionnaires about their sexual experiences and attitudes. Some of them completed the questionnaires while hooked up to a polygraph machine, which they were told would detect any dishonesty (though in fact the machines didn’t work). Others filled out the surveys alone in a room, assured of anonymity. The third group filled out the surveys alone in a room with the door open and the researcher sitting outside, and were told the researcher might see their answers.

The women in the last group reported an average of 2.4 sexual partners in their lifetime. However, women reported an average of 3.4 partners when assured of anonymity — and 4.4 when hooked up to the “lie detector.” The women in the last two groups also reported having sex for the first time at an earlier age. For men, the results were virtually the same regardless of the setting in which they answered the questionnaire — except that men reported losing their virginity at an earlier age when they were not assured of anonymity. In other words, men’s and women’s reports of their sexual behavior are influenced by stereotypical social expectations. Surprise, surprise.

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