There might not be a better moderator in all of Kansas City than veteran Mike Shanin, who has hosted KCPT’s popular “Ruckus” program now for 16 years.

The weekly show airs on public television on Thursday evening at 7 p.m. and is replayed Sunday morning at 11:30 a.m.

It features Shanin as its host and four local commentators referred to simply as “Ruckettes.”

The show discusses issues of interest to Kansas Citians and Shanin has masterfully overseen it the entire time it has been on the air. In fact, during that time he has only missed three shows— two of them when he was hospitalized.

The current panel of Ruckettes has been together for nine years and includes Kansas City Star editorial columnist Yael Abouhalkah, attorney and lobbyist Woody Cozad, Gwendolyn Grant, the head of the Urban League of Kansas City, and Mary O’Halloran, media maven and one-time boss of Shanin years ago when he briefly was with the government.

Shanin was also involved in the early days of “Kansas City Week in Review” (also on KCPT and hosted today by Nick Haines) which went on the air in October 1992 and was hosted by the late John Masterman. Shanin and Deborah Holmes were the regular panelists and joined by two others each week depending on the issues to be discussed.

He left that show to join Ruckus.

With such a diverse panel on Ruckus, Shanin often seems as if he is in the unenviable position of attempting to herd cats, but few things rattle the veteran media expert who was a fixture on local radio for years, including most recently with Scott Parks on KMBZ, and with broadcasting icon Jerry Fogel for 14 years on radio stations KCMO, KNHN and KPHN.

Shanin is able to masterfully direct conversations and bring panelists into discussions while balancing participation. And he makes that difficult task seem effortless.

Shanin, who it should be noted is exactly the same affable person quick-witted person with a quip on the air as he is off, discussed the show with Bottom Line and some of the highlights he’s experienced over the years.

“Some of the most memorable moments came when the late Rich Nadler was a panelist,” he says. ”Rich, a brilliant, conservative activist, despised the idea of the bi-state tax for Union Station.

“He and Steve Rose (former owner of Sun Newspapers and now KC Star columnist), also a panelist at that time, would get into heated shouting matches over it. Once, Rose asked Nadler what he wanted done with the facility. Nadler suggested demolition, but only if Steve were inside!”

Shanin can still recall a loud popping noise during one taping of the show that stunned the panel.

“During a vigorous discussion about violence at Planned Parenthood facilities, we heard a loud “pop,” that sounded much like a gunshot,” he relates. ”Everyone paused for a moment, looked around, saw no injuries and continued. The culprit turned out to be a studio light that exploded.”

Has he ever had the urge to strangle a panelist?

“With regard to acts of violence against panelists, I have never committed any, but have, on occasion, contemplated it,” he says with a chuckle.