Pete Kaliner: Hosting on WBT in Former Rush Limbaugh Timeslot ‘My Dream Job’

On March 15th, 2021, WBT launched a new midday show helmed by Pete Kaliner in the 12-3 PM timeslot previously occupied by Rush Limbaugh.

And as the four-year anniversary of his program’s debut approaches, Kaliner noted that he isn’t going to ever be able to Rush Limbaugh because no one can accomplish that feat.

“It was intimidating. I recognized the slot,” he told Barrett Media of his 12-3 PM timeslot on the venerable Charlotte news/talk station. “I first went to work in WBT in 1999 — I worked there until 2011 — so I’m very aware that this was Rush’s slot, and I knew right out of the gate that I was not going to ever be able to measure up to that. There’s no way anybody could. There was only one of him, and I was a fan. So I pay tribute to him through little things that I’ll say. I’ll drop these things in throughout the show. And people who listen to Rush, hopefully they hear it and they recognize it.

“But I quote him. I’ll say that I read his book and this is the impact on my life. He had an impact on all of the audience’s life. So it’s not like I’m trying to replace him, because no one can. I’m just trying to kind of honor him, but also all of the other people that do this job. I can make good, compelling content and let the audience decide. And so far, it’s been ok. So far people have received me well, and I’m humbled by that. I have no idea why they would find me to be compelling and interesting to stick around, but I am really appreciative of that. They’re the reason I get to keep doing this. It’s my dream job, and so I couldn’t imagine what it would be like otherwise.”

Pete Kaliner worked as a reporter at WBT before transitioning to working as a host. And he told Barrett Media that the transition didn’t happen overnight.

“It was gradual over time,” said Kaliner. “When I was a reporter and 9/11 hit, one of our sister stations wanted a one-minute news update … So I jumped over there and gave them a one-minute newscast, basically. And then they would start asking questions. One minute turned into five minutes. Then it turned into a segment. And then it was a half hour. So I kind of proceeded down this path like training wheels.

“But I grew up listening to talk radio,” continued the WBT host. “I’ve always been a fan of the spoken word format and and so I didn’t find it to be that difficult of a transition, because I still just kind of approach the topics like I do or did a story that I was working on: How do I make this story relevant? Why should people care? What are the different angles to it? And I just kind of lay it all out there as best I can for the audience.”

Pete Kaliner added he might be a rarity in the news/talk radio space due to his enjoyment of pushback from listeners.

“I actually prefer those calls the most, where people tell me I’m an idiot and they want to argue with me. I find those to be the most entertaining,” Pete Kalinder admitted. “I always say on the show that unchallenged ideas are very easy to hold. And if I think something and never tell anybody, that’s a really easy idea, a really easy opinion to hold. It’s through discourse, the back and forth, that you learn more about not just your opponent’s arguments, but yours as well. You learn what the weaknesses are, and then you can maybe better address them.”

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