Chicago Film Festival honors Jay Levine

Jay Levine

Jay Levine

Jay Levine, chief correspondent for CBS-owned WBBM-Channel 2 and a 41-year veteran of Chicago television news, will be honored for his work by the Chicago International Film Festival and Cinema/Chicago.

Levine will receive the Excellence in Investigative Journalism Award at the 51st Chicago International Film Festival Television Awards Ceremony April 22 at the Hyatt Chicago Magnificent Mile, 633 North St. Clair Street.

“Jay has long held an important place in Chicago’s broadcasting community, breaking stories that have shaped the lives of every Chicagoan,” Michael Kutza, festival founder and artistic director, said in a statement Wednesday.

“He also has taken Chicago viewers to the front lines of some of the most important events of the last 25 years, from the Gulf War to the Louisiana coast during Hurricane Katrina. We’ve always relied on his exceptional reporting to relay the stories that matter most,” Kutza said.

Levine, 67, joined CBS 2 in 1990 after 17 years at ABC-owned WLS-Channel 7. A New York native and graduate of Cornell University, he began his career as a radio reporter for WHCU in Ithaca, N.Y., and later worked as a reporter for WCAU in Philadelphia.

Also honored at the event will be Burrell Communications founder Tom Burrell, who will receive the Chicago Legend in Advertising Award, and Whitehouse Post, which will receive the Commitment to Excellence Award for TV Commercials.

The awards ceremony will be hosted by Dan Ponce, news anchor at Tribune Media WGN-Channel 9, and Ji Suk Yi, contributor to ABC 7’s “Windy City Live.” For ticket information see: chicagofilmfestival.com.