Al Franken Show To Be Broadcast On AFN

The Al Franken Show has been picked up by the American Forces Network. AFN Radio will distribute the first hour of Franken's radio show as part of the inventory of stateside programming it provides to its affiliates overseas.

"We are very grateful the AFN has recognized that Al Franken is a profound and unique American voice with a significant following and that it is appropriate for his program to be one of the listening options for those who serve in the armed forces,” said Air America Radio CEO Danny Goldberg.

"I am absolutely thrilled that the Al Franken Show will be carried on the American Forces Network, though, of course, that means I will have to stop criticizing President Bush. After all, he is our commander-in-chief,” said Franken.

Franken will also be making his 6th USO tour this month, which includes stops in both Iraq and Afghanistan.

AAR to add Orlando affiliate, negotiating to enter Tampa Bay. Buffalo uncertain

Air America recently added Thom Hartmann's affiliates to their station roster, and now their top-of-page banner states that Orlando, FL will soon have it's own AAR affiliate in the new year.
WEUS 810AM (which is currently off the air with a pending sign-on date) will sign on with AAR in either January or February. WEUS is independently owned, as far as can be determined.

Previously, AAR showed Citadel-owned WHLD (1270AM) in Buffalo as a future affiliate, but that has been removed from the front page banner. According to a poster at Radio-Info, it was some sort of misunderstanding with the company that does marketing for AAR. As of now, there are supposedly no plans to put AAR programming on WHLD, though left-leaning shows such as Democracy Now are broadcast on the station via a brokerage agreement with Radio Free Buffalo.

In related news, Air America is currently negotiating with an unnamed station in the Tampa Bay area. No word on what station it is at this time. Tampa is currently the #19 market in the country.

Skinner Exits WDTW/Detroit

NANCY SKINNER has disappeared from CLEAR CHANNEL Talk WDTW-A/DETROIT, telling her audience on THURSDAY that she would be leaving the station in advance of her contract expiration. SKINNER had been on the station through a deal with now-defunct DEMOCRACY RADIO. ALL ACCESS hears that producer SIDI HENDERSON has also left the building, and WDTW's website has excised any mention of SKINNER except for a listener's posting on the station's message board.

SKINNER is reportedly mulling another run for Congress; WDTW is airing AIR AMERICA RADIO in SKINNER's old 6-9a slot.

KQKE/San Francisco to debut new morning show

Will, Willie and Lobster will host a new morning show starting Jan. 2 on KQKE-AM (960), home of the syndicated liberal "Air America" network.

This was printed as a rumor on the San Jose Mercury News' website but it has been confirmed by Bob Agnew, Clear Channel Radio San Francisco AM Program Director and West Coast Sports Brand Manager. The live and local program will feature former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown, with political satirist and former mayoral candidate Will Durst, and the Bay Area’s longtime radio host Paul Wells aka :"The Lobster." It will run Monday through Friday 7 to 10AM, bumping the station's current morning drive offering, AAR's Jerry Springer.

This show, called “Keeping It Real with Will and Willie”, will begin its weekday airing on Monday, January 2, 2006 from an as yet unannounced San Francisco landmark location.

San Francisco's most well known, best dressed and most dynamic political figure is former Mayor Willie Brown. His teaming up with two San Francisco fixtures: political comic Will Durst and popular radio host and producer Paul Wells, creates a unique program about San Francisco and the surrounding communities from three people uniquely qualified to offer insight, perspective and understanding about how San Franciscans work, think, and react to the issues and events of the day. “Keeping It Real with Will and Willie” will address the environment, housing, transportation, homeless issues, issues of the San Francisco Gay community and more. It’s about San Francisco for people who live here, work here and invest their business and entertainment dollars here. The show will be under the direction of Paul Wells who will serve as both executive producer and on air "traffic cop."

Air America shuffles morning lineup

Looking to make its mornings more competitive, Air America Radio is dropping “Morning Sedition” from its lineup and replacing it with a new reformatted morning block, beginning January 3.

“Air America Mornings” will consist of a pair of separate two-hour programs. Current “Morning Sedition” co-host Mark Riley will highlight the day’s top news stories and interview guests from 5-7 a.m., followed from 7-9 a.m. by “The Rachel Maddow Show,” which the network describes as “fast paced news and witty sound bites,” along with guest interviews.

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The network also hopes to capitalize on the ratings growth of Maddow’s show. Currently heard from 5-6 a.m., it climbed from a 0.3 to a 1.7 in summer among adults on WLIB-AM, the network’s flagship in New York. Maddow, one of the original co-hosts of AAR’s former late-morning show, Unfiltered, has more recently guest-hosted Franken’s show and is a regular contributor to MSNBC’s The Situation with Tucker Carlson.

In reformatting morning drive, the liberal talk network heard on 72 stations is breaking up the Mark Riley and Marc Maron team. Returning to Los Angeles, Maron is in talks with Air America to host his own syndicated show. He will be a regular morning show contributor.

Former VH1 VP of music programming Paul Marszalek is joining the net as morning show executive producer. Marszalek has programmed Susquehanna triple A KFOG San Francisco and worked in the programming department at Infinity triple A WXRT Chicago.

“We are committed to generating at least one show in 2006 from Los Angeles to connect us more closely with the progressive creative community there, and thus to offer our affiliates a widening menu of politics, comedy, information and entertainment,” said Gary Krantz, president for AAR.

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