After a nearly 20-year hiatus, Mayor Danny Jones has returned to talk radio.
The Charleston mayor started hosting 580 Live on WCHS last week, an hour-long show that runs at 9 a.m. Monday through Friday.
The station invited Jones to host the new show, which is geared "more for Kanawha County and our local listener footprint," WCHS Operations Manager Dale Cooper said Sunday. Cooper said Jones has been a "popular guest" on the station in the past, and his experience hosting another radio talk show for several years in the 1990s led WCHS to extend the offer to him.
"He creates a lot of chatter when he's on the air," Cooper said.
It's not clear how long Jones will host the show, which he said he's not getting paid for.
"It's really nice, and I just need to get back into the groove," Jones said. "Radio's not easy, but it can be fun."
Jones' first show last week covered bills currently pending in the Legislature's session and local news such as the lingering impacts of last weekend's snowstorm. He also took calls from former Republican Party Chairman Mike Stuart as well as locals who were affected by the storm.
"We had a gentleman who had water pouring into his gas line, and we were able to do something about it," he said.
Cooper said the show offers a public forum for both political dialogue and local issues of interest to Jones' own constituents.
"We're going to go with it as long as it works," Cooper said.
"He's a guy who has strong opinions but gives dissenting opinions their due."
On Monday, Jones will be joined by gubernatorial candidate Booth Goodwin.
"I'm trying to be a good conduit for people - I did that before, when I was on the radio," Jones said. But with the title of mayor, he admits, "You have to behave; you can't be as unhinged."
