» Salem And Ingraham Say "So Long": Yesterday we told you that Talk Radio Network host Laura Ingraham will be switching affiliates in L.A. as of Monday (9/15), moving from Salem's KRLA to Mt. Wilson Broadcasters KGIL (Ingraham moves into the station's 6-9am slot as Premiere Radio Networks' Glenn Beck Show moves to 11am-1pm and local Talk radio legend Michael Jackson exits). Today, Salem National Director News/Talk John Butler reports that Ingraham's show is being replaced at all Salem owned and operated affiliates by Salem Radio Network talker Mike Gallagher. As a result SRN VP Tom Tradup reports Gallagher's show will get a ton of new live clearances starting Monday and says that it will "represent the largest single-day audience surge for a talk host in the history of syndicated radio."

» TRN Trumpets New Ingraham Affiliates: Along with the aforementioned changes in LA, Talk Radio Network CEO Mark Masters and crew wasted no time alerting the media to the signing up of a slew of new affiliations for Ingraham beginning September 15. Coming aboard are: WCFO/Atlanta; KXAM/Phoenix: WWBA/Tampa; KLZ/Denver; WAMT/Orlando; WNDA/Louisville; and KHBZ/Honolulu. Masters says additional new affiliates in Seattle, Minneapolis, Sacramento, Colorado Springs, Cleveland, San Antonio and Portland, OR will be announced next week. "We appreciate the relationship we've had with Salem Communications, but believe these changes are a prudent business decision for Laura's show," Masters told NTS Aircheck Today. Ingraham's program currently airs on a reported 300-plus stations nationwide.

» "Uh, I'll Take 500 Lipsticks To Go Please": Yet another talk host hogs a bit of attention over this week's "lipstick on a pig" comment by Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama. More than 500 tubes of lipstick have been collected by WTKK/Boston middayer Michael Graham who plans to deliver the basket of cosmetic commentary to the New Hampshire Technical Institute where Obama is scheduled to speak tonight. Meanwhile, ABC News will air the highly anticipated one-on-one chat between anchorman Charles Gibson and Republican VP candidate Sarah Palin tonight at 10pm (ET) on 20/20.

» R.I.P. George Putnam: The legendary Southern California newsman and Talk radio broadcaster died early this morning. He was 94. Putnam had been in and out of the hospital for various ailments in recent months, however he continued to phone in reports to his long running CRN Digital Talk Radio program Talk Back. Thought to be the oldest nationally syndicated radio host in America, Putnam advocated many conservative viewpoints, but stated on numerous occasions that he was a "lifelong Democrat." Starting out at WDGY/Minneapolis in 1934, Putnam went on to notoriety as a longtime SoCal TV news anchor working for several Los Angeles television outlets including KTTV, KTLA, KCOP and KHJ. "George was an icon and true legend in the television and radio business," said CRN President/CEO Mike Horn. "He was a character whose story-telling abilities could not be beat, a patriot whose love for America influenced everything he did, and a friend who brought insight and laughter to everyone."

» Cuomo Feedback: We've received a number of comments on our story earlier this week about New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo launching an investigation into Arbitron's PPM Methodology. "Will Andrew Cuomo go to bat for every format which suffers a PPM dip?" asks Westwood One personality Jim Bohannon. "And is he more concerned with whether PPM is accurate or with sucking up to influential special interest groups?" WBAP/Dallas host Mark Davis adds his two cents on the topic saying, "The 'consequences' feared by the broadcasters whining to Cuomo are nothing more than accurate numbers at last, replacing the era of notoriously unreliable diaries. This will be good news for some stations, bad news for others. But all of them need to grow up and face what's coming without crying to 'Big Daddy' government."

» Man, That Huckabee Guy Gets Around: Pausing for a Kodak moment following last week's "Neal Boortz and Sean Hannity Uncensored Live" event -- sponsored by the aforementioned WSB/Atlanta -- are two ex-pastors who both changed their careers! That's former pastor-turned-politician Mike Huckabee (l) with former pastor-turned-talker Allen Hunt host of the weekly independently syndicated Allen Hunt Show.