Curtis Sliwa may be coming off a decisive loss at the ballot box, but the longtime New York radio personality is enjoying an unexpected resurgence in cultural relevance. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the 71-year-old Guardian Angels founder has become a viral figure on TikTok and a pop-culture punchline with staying power, drawing new attention well beyond traditional political circles.

Sliwa, who spent decades on New York radio — most recently at Red Apple Media’s WABC (770) — parted ways with the station in October following disagreements with owner John Catsimatidis over support for Andrew Cuomo. The split ended a long run that helped cement Sliwa’s reputation as one of the city’s most quotable and confrontational talk hosts.

Despite earning just 7% of the vote in the 2025 New York City mayoral race, Sliwa has seen clips of both his recent campaign moments and past radio and television appearances rack up millions of views online. A November Saturday Night Live sketch parodying a mayoral debate featuring Sliwa generated more than 7 million YouTube views, outpacing every other segment from the show this season, The Hollywood Reporter notes.

Long before podcasts became ubiquitous, Sliwa built his brand on unscripted, personality-driven radio, spending more than 30 years behind the microphone delivering populist commentary, political barbs, and street-level storytelling. That same blunt, theatrical style appears to be resonating with younger audiences discovering him for the first time through social platforms.

While he is temporarily filling in at iHeartMedia talk WOR (710) over the holidays, Sliwa has remained vague about next steps, declining to outline specific media plans while acknowledging that “anything is a possibility.” Whether that includes a podcast, digital audio venture, or return to broadcast remains unclear, but his renewed visibility underscores how legacy radio figures can find second lives through viral audio and video moments in today’s media ecosystem.

However, don’t look for a WABC-Sliwa reunion anytime soon. “If I walked back into WABC now I’d be like somebody walking into a cage of Doberman Pinschers with porkchop pants on,” Sliwa told the publication. He revealed that he wanted to leave the station after the 2021 election, claiming that Catsimatidis, who was backing Eric Adams told staff not to talk to about Sliwa’s campaign on the air.