Delaware Grieves the Death of Longtime Radio Newsman Allan Loudell
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By Peter Osborne
The former WDEL newsman passed away this week at the age of 64.
Praise from inside the WDEL newsroom and from outside came pouring in after news of the death of longtime Delaware radio newsman Allan Loudell.
There has been no date or cause of death announced for Loudell, who passed away at the age of 64.
Gov. John Carney took time during his weekly press conference Tuesday to say how sad he was at the news.
Allan Loudell
“I tell people that in my 30 years of public service I’ve developed a personal list of good guys and gals who were really good to work with,” Carney said. “He knew the issues in a very detailed way and was very fair about his questions. He always covered his subject matter in a way that most reporters didn’t.
Carney said he particularly liked Loudell’s 90-minute Del-AWARE podcast.
“He got below the surface [to get at] the underlying causes of a particular issue,” Carney said, adding that even if a question was tough it was asked “with a certain level of respect for the process. He was just a really interesting guy, a real gentleman.”
Loudell was part of a group of 10 WDEL staff members who were laid off in March as part of cost-cutting measures by Forever Media, which finalized its purchase of WDEL and nine other radio stations in May 2019.
WDEL published its obituary earlier today with a number of newsroom staffers reflecting on his life and career. He was also eulogized by U.S. Senator Tom Carper on the WDEL site.
“Allan Loudell was one of a kind,” said DBT and Delaware Today publisher Michael Reath, who worked with Loudell when he was vice president and general manager of WDEL from 2006 to 2017. “He was passionate about relentlessly covering stories from across the state and around the world. Allan was a true newsman who had mastered his craft and generously gave his time to mentor high school and college students interested in pursuing a career in journalism. Allan’s passing leaves a hole in Delaware’s media landscape that won’t soon been filled. I will miss Allan as well as his compelling interviews, unique reporting style and wonderful commentary on the news.”
Allan was born in Western Springs, Colorado, before moving to the Chicago area, where he grew up and attended Lyons Township High School–where he would be inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame in 1996. He went on to study communications at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, graduating in 1977.
Allan joined WILM Newsradio in Wilmington in 1987, working there for 18 years as program manager before joining WDEL in 2005, hosting morning and afternoon magazine-style programming during his time as an anchor and host before his departure in 2020.
Loudell was recognized a number of times over the years as Best Radio News Anchor by Delaware Today readers and editors in its annual Best of Delaware compendium, and was labeled as “Man of a Million Sources” from the publication in 2011.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
This story was written by and first published on Delaware Business Times, a sister publication to Delaware Today. Check delawarebusinesstimes.com for updates to the original post.