Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, January 7, 1995                   TAG: 9501090043
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C-3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: RICHMOND                                LENGTH: Medium

WILDER TO START TALK SHOW

The show debuts Wednesday morning on WRVA-AM in Richmond.

Station Manager Carl McNeill billed the ``Doug Wilder Show'' as a good addition, because the station already carries conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh. ``It will be a balance of programming to have Wilder,'' McNeill said.

McNeill said the station planned to offer the show to other Virginia radio stations in April and possibly go nationwide after that.

``In my opinion, the timing is right for a show like this,'' McNeill said. ``It's much like when Rush Limbaugh started when the Democrats came in. He had been bashing the Democrats so badly.

``Now the Republicans are coming in. The American people are going to want some action real quick. If the Republicans don't follow through very quickly on all the promises they made to America, then a person like Doug can shoot right to the top.''

The first day will feature calls from Wilder's friends in politics and the entertainment business, McNeill said. Other early shows will focus on the General Assembly, which convenes the same day the show debuts.

``He'll have guests on like President Clinton,'' McNeill said. ``Bill Clinton called him last week for some advice. Doug Wilder can get anybody as a guest.''

Following the ``Doug Wilder Show,'' the station will have an hour of news - a buffer before Limbaugh's nationally syndicated show from noon to 3 p.m., McNeill said.

Wilder is "really excited about this thing,'' McNeill said. He said Wilder and his representatives approached the station with the idea.

``He just wants something new to do,'' McNeill said. ``He just has a lot to offer - not just Richmond and Virginia, but all America. His perspective is well thought of. He has national respect.''

Wilder, a Democrat, was elected governor in 1989 and made a brief run for the 1992 Democratic presidential nomination. Wilder also mounted an independent U.S. Senate bid last year that he abandoned two months before the election. Wilder, 63, is a Richmond native and a lawyer.