''First Light'' is a news program airing on numerous
talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featur ...
stations,
syndicated
Syndication may refer to:
* Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system
* Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips
* Web syndication, ...
by
Westwood One
Westwood One is an American radio network owned by Cumulus Media. The company syndicates talk, music, and sports programming.
The company takes its name from an earlier network also named Westwood One, a company founded in 1978. The company w ...
, a
subsidiary of
Cumulus Media. The one-hour live program airs weekdays at 5:00 a.m.
Eastern Time
The Eastern Time Zone (ET) is a time zone encompassing part or all of 23 states in the eastern part of the United States, parts of eastern Canada, the state of Quintana Roo in Mexico, Panama, Colombia, mainland Ecuador, Peru, and a small por ...
and is hosted by Michael Toscano. The show features reports from
ABC News Radio
ABC News Radio is the news radio service of ABC Audio, a division of ABC News in the United States. Formerly known as ABC Radio News, ABC News Radio feeds, through Skyview Networks, five minute newscasts on the hour and news briefs at half- ...
, as well as guest interviews, a call-in segment and the short-form feature ''Last Night on
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It is the seventh in ...
''. A weekend version, ''The Week in Review'', for airing on Saturday mornings, is also available to
affiliates.
Dirk Van was the show's longtime host from 1989 to 2015, with Evan Haning taking the hosting chores upon Van's retirement.
In August 2018, Haning announced he would be stepping away from full-time hosting and Michael Toscano would replace him as host of ''First Light''. Haning will continue to occasionally fill in as host.
An alternate one-hour Westwood One news program, ''
America in The Morning'', hosted by John Trout, also airs at 5 a.m. Eastern Time. While the two broadcasts are separately written and anchored, some stories filed by field reporters are the same.
''First Light'' was the last program that continued to use the original
"NBC Radio" branding, via a short announcement at the end of the program and through the program's online and print logo (which included a "sunset orange" variant of the
NBC peacock). Westwood One (known as "Dial Global" from 2011 through 2013), owns the remains of the original NBC radio network through its purchase of
the original "Westwood One". When Westwood One retired the
NBC News Radio news service on December 15, 2014, ''First Light'' was rebranded as a "Westwood One" program. Haning is also one of the anchors on the hourly Westwood One newscasts, airing on stations owned by Cumulus Media and other owners.
On June 30, 2022, Westwood One informed affiliates that it would discontinue ''First Light'' at the end of July, with ''America in the Morning'' being offered to stations as a replacement.
In an interview with affiliate
WPHM, Toscano noted that it was a business decision by parent company Cumulus Media and not a reflection on the show's performance.
References
External links
''First Light'' official Web site
{{Westwood One
American talk radio programs
Westwood One