Paterson\'s Radio Show Is Being Dropped

Fred R. Conrad/The New York Times Former Gov. David A. Paterson on the first day of his radio show in September 2011.

ALBANY - Former Gov. David A. Paterson's career as a radio host on WOR-AM (710) lasted little more than a year.

On Thursday, Mr. Paterson and another radio personality, Dr. Joy Browne, were dismissed as part of a takeover of the station by Clear Channel. The sale of WOR to Clear Channel closed on Thursday. Four other full-time employees were also let go.

The former governor had suggested he knew change was afoot once the Clear Channel acquisition was announced earlier this year.

Mr. Paterson's spokesman, Sean Darcy, said in a statement: “As someone who had to do significant housecleaning when he took over as chief executive, these moves by the new management come as no surprise.”

“In anticipation of this eventuality, Governor Paterson has been exploring a number of different options both in and out of the media and will be working towards finalizing some of those options after the New Year,” he added. “He has greatly enjoyed being part of the rich, proud history of WOR radio.”

Joseph M. Bilotta, the president and chief executive of Buckley Broadcasting Corporation, said Clear Channel had asked him to make the staff changes before the deal closed. Clear Channel increased by one-third the severance package for departing employees, Mr. Bilotta said.

Mr. Bilotta called Mr. Paterson “very professional and very gracious,” saying of the show's performance: “the revenue generation was probably greater than the ratings reflected.”

< p>Mr. Paterson, who is legally blind, has long talked about how natural a medium radio is for him.

“I don't have to worry about looking at the camera, whether my tie is in place, whether my hands are flying in one direction,” he once said. “I think it's the reason my conversation is a lot more fluid. In TV interviews, I have difficulty relaxing, because I'm trying not to look to one side of the room.”

One of Mr. Paterson's first guests on his show was his predecessor and onetime running mate, Eliot Spitzer, whose surprising resignation amid a prostitution scandal in 2008 shocked Albany and made Mr. Paterson the state's first black governor.

On the air, Mr. Paterson joked to Mr. Spitzer, “I finally got a job that you didn't have to give me.”

Mr. Paterson also frequently hosted as a guest his success or, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo.