An exemplary embodiment of a method is implemented in a wireless network and is advantageous in that an undesired interim media channel link which would have been used in prior art systems is identified during call setup and avoided. In response to a call request in the wireless network for a call with a first user's wireless subscriber unit, a determination is made if one of a calling home node and a called home node of the first user's wireless subscriber unit should not be used as a node in the media channel such as due to the one node's remote location relative to the rest of the nodes in the media channel. A resulting media channel is established so that the one of the calling home node and the called home node is not part of a path of the media channel thereby minimizing the total distance and delay of the media path.