After six months away due to an injunction from a non-compete agreement, Charlottesville radio host Joe Thomas returned to the air Wednesday morning at WTON.
Last August, a judge ruled that Thomas could not host his program on WTON-AM due to the non-compete agreement he had with his previous home, WCHV.
Thomas was fired from his Program Director and morning show host role at WCHV in Charlottesville in May last year after he purchased WTON-AM in Staunton from Stu-Comm for $275,000. Staunton is roughly 40 miles west of Charlottesville but inside the designated market area.
Monticello Media, parent company to WCHV, filed a temporary injunction to stop Thomas from hosting a new morning show on the station he purchased, claiming it had lost upwards of $25,000 from advertisers after his exit. A judge sided with the radio company, arguing that “Monticello Media is entitled to its market. He can’t be on the air in the metropolitan statistical area.”
That injunction, however, ended on Wednesday, with Joe Thomas returning to the station he now owns.
“I feel nervous because my first day back on in the morning was supposed to have a blizzard, so perfect time for Joe to be back on the air,” Thomas said to 29 News. “It’s exciting. A lot has changed in six months.”
Thomas’ show will air in three markets in Central Virginia now that he is legally able to be on the air.
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