Monroe County GOP advisor takes leave after promoting Shannon Joy 

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News reporters across Rochester received a press release from the Monroe County Republican Committee in their email inboxes on Thursday morning.

That normally would not be considered unusual. Local political parties of all stripes routinely issue press releases about matters involving their organizations and candidates.

What was unusual, though, was that the release was sent on behalf of the conservative Rochester radio personality Shannon Joy and advertised a press conference she was staging later in the day.

Within hours of the email going out, however, and after inquiries from CITY to the Monroe County Republican Committee and to Joy as to how the party came to share her press release, the party had placed one of its advisors on administrative leave.

The advisor, Jack Merritt, issued a statement on party letterhead saying that he had acted unilaterally to promote Joy’s press conference through the party and that her press release was not vetted by the party chairman, Bernie Iacovangelo.

“Proper protocols were not followed, and I take full responsibility for this unfortunate mistake and misunderstanding,” Merritt wrote. “I apologize to Chairman Iacovangelo and to the entire Monroe County Republican Committee for this egregious error. To this extent for the committee’s reputation I will be going on administrative leave for a period of time.”


Joy, whose legal name is Shannon Bones, is best known locally as the host of “The Shannon Joy Show,” which airs weekday nights from 9 to 10 p.m. on WHAM 1180 AM.

Most shows start the same way: the opening bars of music and lyrics from Alicia Keyes’ “Girl on Fire,” crowned by a thunderous baritone sizing up what listeners are about to hear. “Get ready,” the voice booms. “Here comes fearless radio commentary.”

Among the more prominent themes of Joy’s shows during the pandemic has been what she refers to as “COVID tyranny,” particularly individual rights as they pertain to government mask and vaccine mandates.

One of her shows in October was titled, “Let’s Call A Spade A Spade – FDA Committee Panelists Who Approved The Experimental Jab For Children Are Basically Whores For Pfizer.”

In response to an email from CITY inquiring how the Monroe County Republican Committee came to take the unusual step of promoting an event being staged by a media personality or news outlet, Joy said: “I sent the press release out to about 100 contacts, media outlets and independent groups. I’m sure they’re simply passing along. :)”

She added that the press conference “should be a wonderful gathering of individuals from all political spectrums to talk about free speech and transparency.”

The event was scheduled for 4 p.m. at the Perinton Community Center. A spokesman for the town said Joy had rented two community rooms and that the center charges $40 per room.

Joy was to use the event to announce a series of lawsuits, including one of her own, that she described in her press release was an effort on behalf of parents to “push back against the divisive and violent tactics deployed by local government bodies in an effort to silence dissent and free speech."

Joy, who lives in Fairport, was arrested by sheriff’s deputies in August at a Fairport Board of Education meeting and charged with trespassing, a violation — an incident that Joy recorded live and posted on Facebook.

The school board had adjourned the meeting early after Joy and other people in the audience refused to adhere to face mask protocols, in which masks were to be worn over the mouth and nose.

Joy, who in the video had a mask hooked around her ears and resting under her chin, said that men were intimidating her and other audience members to follow the mask protocol.

“That is third-world country stuff, that is Dark Ages stuff, and I’m not going to abide by that,” Joy said in the video. “No man is going to come in here and force me and any other woman to cover our nose and mouth when there is no law, no mandate, no statute, and this is a public meeting."

The case was dismissed in Perinton Town Court three weeks later.

Joy has since filed a lawsuit naming the Fairport Central School District, the Board of Education, the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, and the county as defendants.

Her press conference at Perinton Community Center was to announce the filing of that lawsuit and others on behalf of parents who claim to have been arrested or assaulted by law enforcement at the behest of school officials, according to her press release.

David Andreatta is CITY's editor. He can be reached at [email protected].