Bill Virgin's Radio Beat June 29, 2006

[radiofan]

Thursday, June 29, 2006

Radio Beat: Talk-show host Mike Siegel returns to the airwaves in Olympia and Silverdale

By BILL VIRGIN
P-I REPORTER

Six months after his departure from Seattle morning-drive radio, longtime controversial talk host Mike Siegel is back on the air locally.

Sister stations KITZ-AM (1400) in Silverdale and KGTK-AM (920) in Olympia have added a one-hour call-in show hosted by Siegel at 6 p.m. weekdays.

Conn Williamson, the stations' general manager, said adding Siegel on a trial basis is part of an effort to add more local programming to KITZ and KGTZ.

"It's nice to have a local host who can discuss local issues," Williamson said.

Siegel departed KTTH-AM in early December 2005. His r?sum? includes stops at such stations as KIRO-AM, KVI-AM and a talk program that was distributed to stations statewide.

KITZ and KGTK have lineups dominated by nationally syndicated talk programming with such hosts as Michael Reagan, G. Gordon Liddy, Doug Stephan and Ray Lucia (Siegel's show replaced finance and investment host Bruce Williams).

"Right now, our local programming is sports," Williamson said, with broadcasts of Eastern Washington University football and basketball, Evergreen State College basketball and baseball, Olympic College baseball, the Kitsap BlueJackets (an all-star college squad) and high schools.

Williamson said he'd like to add other local talk hosts; he's talking to some who have done fill-in stints for local Entercom stations and hopes to name an addition to the local talk lineup later this year.

In addition, he's interested in adding a correspondent in Olympia to report on the Legislature and state government.



"I'm just trying to build these stations to have a local relevance," he said. "I look at these stations as local sounding boards."

Williamson said the local, independent nature of the stations makes it possible to do that. KITZ and KGTK are owned by the Bellevue-based Second Amendment Foundation and the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.

In other radio notes:


It now looks as if Aug. 1 will be the re-launch date of KXOT-FM (91.7). The station's programming will be provided by KUOW-FM, which plans to put its second channel KUOW-2 (currently available via the Internet and HD radio) on KXOT.


Don Riggs' guests on "Introspect Northwest" at 7 a.m. Saturday on KPTK-AM (1090) and 7 a.m. Sunday on KMPS-FM (94.1) include Christopher Cooke, author of "Diet for a Dead Planet."


Lizz Sommars' guests on "Conversations" at 6 a.m. Sunday on KBSG-FM (97.3), KISW-FM (99.9) and KKWF-FM (100.7) include Katherine Evans, author of a book on counterfeit prescription drugs, "Dangerous Doses."


Tami Kosch interviews Anthony Arnove, co-author of "Iraq: The Logic of Withdrawal," on "Community Matters Weekend Edition" at 6 a.m. Sunday on KPTK-AM.


Emma Zunz, made up of Cristin Miller and Anne Lewankowski, performs on "Sonarchy" at midnight Saturday on KEXP-FM (90.3).


Kimi Kline interviews Glen Eliot, author of "Medicating Young Minds," on "Northwest Access" at 7 a.m. Sunday on KJAQ-FM (96.5).


Lee Callahan interviews Dan Mazur of SummitClimb in Olympia, who helped rescue a stranded climber on Mount Everest, on "Mountain Magazine" at 7:30 a.m. Sunday on KMTT-FM (103.7).


The comedy group Capitol Steps performs on KUOW-FM (94.9) at 8 p.m. Tuesday.

P-I reporter Bill Virgin can be reached at 206-448-8319 or billvirgin@seattlepi.com.

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