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Rich Valdes Replaced!

T

TheBigA

Surprised no one mentioned this. Westwood One is replacing its overnight host Rich Valdes starting Monday:

radioinsight.com

McGraw Milhaven To Take Over America At Night As Rich Valdes Departs

Cumulus Media’s Westwood One has announced that 550 KTRS St. Louis morning host McGraw Milhaven will take over as host
radioinsight.com radioinsight.com

My first question was why? He's been hosting the show for three years, and I guess his contract was up:

I wonder if listeners will be able to tell the difference.
 
TheBigA said:
Surprised no one mentioned this. Westwood One is replacing its overnight host Rich Valdes starting Monday:

radioinsight.com

McGraw Milhaven To Take Over America At Night As Rich Valdes Departs

Cumulus Media’s Westwood One has announced that 550 KTRS St. Louis morning host McGraw Milhaven will take over as host
radioinsight.com radioinsight.com

My first question was why? He's been hosting the show for three years, and I guess his contract was up:

I wonder if listeners will be able to tell the difference.
Click to expand...
Jim bohannon lasted like almost thirty years doing that show but rich valdes only a few years ? This doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me personally considering rich valdes was getting solid ratings. Maybe they weren't offering him enough to host the show for new contract.
 
It seemed quite abrupt. Maybe, in time, the real story will emerge. I though Valdes was doing a good job. I suspect he was offered another opportunity or, as been mentioned, he and WWO couldn't agree on terms. I'm glad the program will continue.
 
TheBigA said:
Here's an interview with the new host. He says he's keeping his other job, doing morning drive in St. Louis.
Click to expand...
What a wild work schedule that must be. Mr. Milhaven is on the air in St. Louis from 6a-10a CT, and then 8p-11p CT nationally. I assumed he would be leaving local radio behind.
 
In September, Barrett Media had some praise for him reaching a younger audience.

barrettmedia.com

Rich Valdes is Bringing A Younger News/Talk Radio Style to an Older Format

Having one of the only live shows for a late-night/overnight timeslot has its advantages, for Westwood One host Rich Valdes.
barrettmedia.com barrettmedia.com

It's tough to take on George Noory's Coast to Coast AM, which has about 600 affiliates, compared with just over 250 for America at Night. Both shows compete against each in the top 20 markets.
 
PTBoardOp93 said:
I wouldn't say they compete. They exist in different timeslots. The WW1 competitor to Coast 2 Coast is Red Eye Radio.
Click to expand...
Gotcha. I was going by the time slot on the flagship station KTRS which airs the show from 12-4 am. I'm not going to check all 250 affiliates, but I know many others carry it overnight. Just not live

America at Night with Rich Valdes - KTRS 550

Join Rich Valdes on America at Night, airing weekdays from 12 AM to 4 AM on 550 KTRS. Dive into engaging discussions on news, policy, and cultural topics with a seasoned media professional.
ktrs.com ktrs.com
 
Theater of My Mind said:
The linked article says the show is fed 9 p.m. - midnight. Is that considered "overnight" now, or do most affiliates delay it?
Click to expand...
They moved it to 9ET to boost the affiliate numbers. I know several stations dropped it after Bohannon passed away. Giving it an earlier time slot and making it a more conventional conservative talk show gave it a little boost.

However, I imagine many stations were delaying it for its traditional overnight time slot.
 
TheBigA said:
Here's an interview with Rich Valdes explaining why he was replaced:

barrettmedia.com

Rich Valdes: 'Just Couldn't Reach an Agreement' with Westwood One to Continue Hosting America at Night

"We just couldn't reach an agreement on me sticking around in the right situation, the right financial situation, the right support, the right ability to do other things that made sense for them and make sense for me."
barrettmedia.com barrettmedia.com

No big surprise. They likely wanted him to take a pay cut.
Click to expand...
A shame, because he was doing a fine job, but hopefully this leads to good new opportunities for both him and the new AAN host.
 
I also was wondering why the trade publication stories of Milhaven's appointment had little to say about why Valdes left. Now we know why. He's gone because Cumulus - Westwood One wasn't going to pay him enough for a national talk show.

I guess the way Milhaven will make it work is to keep his AM drive show in St. Louis while doing the late evening show too. Hopefully he knows how to nap in the daytime.

I see others above were saying good things about Valdes. I'll say the opposite. He replaced Jim Bohannon who did a fairly non-political show. Bohannon would have on authors of interesting books and music stars of the past, such as Don McLean. When he did talk politics, it was from a center-right point of view. Valdes did a typical conservative talk show. Nearly everything Republicans and Conservatives do is very good, nearly everything Democrats and Liberals do is very bad. Yet the reason many stations chose Bohannon was because he was NOT doing a polarizing political show.
 
Gregg. said:
I also was wondering why the trade publication stories of Milhaven's appointment had little to say about why Valdes left. Now we know why. He's gone because Cumulus - Westwood One wasn't going to pay him enough for a national talk show.

I guess the way Milhaven will make it work is to keep his AM drive show in St. Louis while doing the late evening show too. Hopefully he knows how to nap in the daytime.

I see others above were saying good things about Valdes. I'll say the opposite. He replaced Jim Bohannon who did a fairly non-political show. Bohannon would have on authors of interesting books and music stars of the past, such as Don McLean. When he did talk politics, it was from a center-right point of view. Valdes did a typical conservative talk show. Nearly everything Republicans and Conservatives do is very good, nearly everything Democrats and Liberals do is very bad. Yet the reason many stations chose Bohannon was because he was NOT doing a polarizing political show.
Click to expand...
I think that's a fair assessment, but I viewed Valdes myself as still having a balanced field of discussion. Following an absolute amazing legend like Jim Bohannon wasn't going to be easy for anyone.
 
Gregg. said:
I also was wondering why the trade publication stories of Milhaven's appointment had little to say about why Valdes left. Now we know why. He's gone because Cumulus - Westwood One wasn't going to pay him enough for a national talk show.
Click to expand...

Circumstances with the show changed. Apparently they were having trouble keeping affiliates, revenues have been dropping, so the budget that existed three years ago wasn't there anymore. They likely asked him to take a pay cut to keep up with falling advertising revenue, and he said no. That's his choice. On the other hand, the lower salary was acceptable to someone from a smaller market. He's able to do it and keep his previous job, so this is extra money for him.
 


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