Ingraham starts KRLA’s morning

Conservative talk-radio host Laura Ingraham returns to the airwaves today with a new local affiliate, KRLA-AM (870), and a new time slot, morning drive.

Her Washington, D.C.-based show begins airing 6 to 9 a.m. weekdays, leading off a lineup that features other conservative pundits Dennis Prager, Michael Medved and Hugh Hewitt.

“She’s a female, which makes her unique in the talk-show realm. We think she’s really good, and she’s an up-and-coming personality,” KRLA general manager Terry Fahy said. Her show replaces Mark Larson’s San Diego-based program, about which Fahy said, “We liked what we had in the morning, but we like this even better.”

Ingraham previously was heard afternoons on KPLS-AM (830), when she was syndicated by Westwood One. Her new syndicator, Talk Radio Network, has added stations in New York and other markets where she wasn’t heard before, and moved her to the morning.

“We always felt her show played better in the mornings,” said Michael Lofrano, chief operating officer at Talk Radio Network, who said the show’s re-launch begins with about 100 stations nationwide. “This is a young female with a passion and a great point of view. And very witty. She’s just a great talent.”

Ingraham was a speechwriter for the White House and at the departments of Education and Transportation during the last two years of Ronald Reagan’s presidency. She was also a clerk for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.

-- Steve Carney