Kirk Minihane, the contentious host who brought big ratings and frequent controversy to WEEI’s morning show before leaving in November, announced Tuesday he is no longer an employee of parent company Entercom.
“I am here to announce . . . everything was signed,’’ Minihane said on a Periscope video. “And I’m no longer an employee of Entercom. I am gone. It is over. The 10-year-run, or whatever, is over.”
Minihane had been in limbo since departing the “Kirk and Callahan” program, where he was a co-host since 2013.
He was supposed to host his own show on the Entercom-owned Radio.com app, and was still producing his popular podcast, “Enough About Me.”
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But the Radio.com role was slow to materialize, and last week Minihane gave the company an ultimatum with a Periscope video in which he said he wanted his own channel on Radio.com and did not want to be involved with their sports-only programming.
“We have mutually agreed to part ways with Kirk and allow him to pursue other opportunities,’’ Entercom said in a statement. “Over the years, Kirk has been a valuable member of the WEEI team, and a host of the ‘Enough About Me’ podcast.
“We wish him all the best on his future endeavors.”
Minihane predicted on his Periscope, which aired live while he was walking the aisles of a CVS in Lexington, that Entercom would wish him well in those future endeavors. The sentiment was not mutual.
“What’s next is whatever,’’ he said. “I don’t know what the next move is going to be but, but I’m just relieved. And I have nothing good to say about the place I was just at.”
He then explained his feelings in cruder language, criticizing past colleagues including co-host Gerry Callahan. Only Mike Mutnansky, who replaced Minihane on the morning show, was praised.
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Minihane did not comment when contacted via Twitter. He said in the video that he does not have a non-compete clause.
“Maybe I’ll go to an established national brand . . . Viva,’’ he said, using a word associated with Barstool Sports, an oft-rumored destination for him when his WEEI and Entercom relationships began to erode.
Minihane was front and center in WEEI’s morning show’s rise to a stretch of No. 1 finishes in the Nielsen Audio ratings, including the spring of 2017. “Mut and Callahan” was second in the winter ratings period released in April, but finished a significant distance behind rival station 98.5 The Sports Hub’s “Toucher and Rich” program (12.2 to 7.7).
Minihane, who has been candid about his battles with depression and has said in the past that the stress of his work situation was a factor, said on his video that he has no intention of trying to find a similar role in this market.
“It’s not going to be local, I know that. I don’t want to do radio locally. I have no interest.”
Chad Finn can be reached at finn@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeChadFinn.