One of the Northwest's best-known conservative radio talk show hosts has changed channels locally.

Lars Larson, a midday talk-show host carried on Radio Medford's KCMX-AM for nearly five years, has shifted to KMED, at 1440 on the AM dial. Larson's show runs from noon to 3 p.m. and is slotted between conservative icons Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity.

"With Rush, Lars and Hannity, this is pretty much the third jewel in the triple crown," said KMED programming director Bill Meyer.

The change came when KCMX declined to air the third hour of Larson's daily weekday program. That allowed Portland's originating station KXL, which distributes the program via its Northwest Radio Network, to invoke a 90-day cancellation clause.

Larson, who is based in Portland, airs on KXL from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., zeroing in on Portland issues for the first hour before throwing the statewide switch for the final three hours of the day. Klamath Falls and Tillamook stations pick up the first hour as well.

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Larson's Northwest Radio Network flagship station is KXL, which syndicates his show on 16 stations.

His audience for the Northwest show averages 80,000 per day. His national show, launched in September 2003, is syndicated by CBS-owned Westwood One, which supplies programming to 7,700 of the nation's 11,000 AM and FM radio stations. His 1.5 million listeners on 175 stations is small compared to Limbaugh's 18 million, but puts him in the top 30.

The addition of Larson to KMED bumps Hannity, who is No. 2 behind Limbaugh nationally, to replay status in the 3-6 p.m. slot. Libertarian Neal Boortz gets reduced to two hours, replaying from 6 to 8 p.m.

Ron Hren, Radio Medford general manager and vice president for national sales, said the extra hour of Larson's show would have put a crimp in KCMX's local and live programming.

"We looked at our total lineup and where Lars fell in with our other programming and it didn't fit," Hren said. "We wanted to maintain the best in local programming and syndicated programming. In juggling those variables, we just could not maintain the request they had without doing damage some place else."

The ripple effect of Larson's departure means Laura Ingraham is now live from noon to 3 p.m. on KCMX, followed by Michael Savage at 3 to 6 p.m. Rusty Humphries, enters the mix live at 6 to 8 p.m.