When I started co-hosting a radio show in January, I learned one thing very quickly: It’s much harder than it sounds. The sophisticated chatter churned out by real pros isn’t created simply by opening a bottle of Bombay and a two-liter of tonic and hitting record, but the best of the best make the impossible—speaking with authority on celebrity, politics, and that backup on the 405—make it sound just that easy. Sitting atop the Seattle heap is Rachel Belle, the 97.3 KIRO FM darling who reports by day and contributes the “Ring My Belle” segment to the station’s popular Ron and Don show during happy hour. As a student of our cultures, pop and otherwise, Belle addresses both the day’s Snooki and Sandusky stories with intellect and verve—in other words, smart, not snark. And, lucky for us, she even gives in from time to time and does the same in the pages of Seattle Weekly. CHRIS KORNELIS