DES MOINES, IOWA — KXNO has restored a live local program to afternoon drive, placing familiar Des Moines personality Mike Wickett in the weekday 2–5 p.m. time period effective Tuesday.
Wickett will continue his national work for Westwood One Sports while hosting the new local program on KXNO’s 106.3 FM and 1460 AM signals and the iHeartRadio application.
A local show returns after cuts
The change arrives approximately three months after iHeartMedia layoffs ended KXNO’s local programming and displaced Sean Roberts and Lucas Strain, who had hosted Off The Bench in the afternoon slot.
Wickett is already familiar to central Iowa listeners. He co-hosted mornings on Lazer 103.3 from 2021 until March and has more recently handled weekend assignments for Westwood One Sports.
No additional co-hosts were announced. KXNO also has not said whether the afternoon launch represents the beginning of a broader restoration of locally produced programming.
The station is testing the value of familiarity
The decision gives KXNO a host who knows the market and can react to local teams, callers and breaking developments in real time. It also creates a useful test after listeners lost locally originated shows: will a recognizable live personality improve audience loyalty and advertiser interest?
The next questions concern production support, local reporting resources and whether KXNO will rebuild other dayparts around Des Moines voices.
Source: Barrett Media, September 29, 2026.