Jeff Glor
Robservations on the media beat:
Mosheh Oinounou
Mosheh Oinounou, who grew up in north suburban Prairie View and graduated from Stevenson High School, has been named executive producer of “The CBS Evening News.” His appointment, effective February 5, follows the recent promotion of Jeff Glor to anchor of the flagship newscast. The two previously worked together at CBSN, where Oinounou managed the launch of the live streaming network news service and was its first executive producer. "I look forward to working with Jeff and the talented team at 'CBS Evening News,'" Oinounou said in a statement Tuesday. "It is a privilege to have the opportunity to work on this broadcast as we make it even more relevant in the 24/7 digital world." He joined CBS News in 2011 as senior producer of “CBS This Morning.” With an M.A. in security policy studies and B.A. in political communication from the George Washington University, he previously worked for Bloomberg Television and Fox News Channel.
104.3 Jams
Chicago’s newest radio station, classic hip hop WBMX FM 104.3, continues its meteoric rise in the ratings. Nielsen Audio figures released Tuesday showed the Entercom station ranked third with 5.4 percent audience share — an all-time high for the frequency. The new 104.3 Jams launched November 17. As expected, Christmas music on WLIT FM 93.9 pushed the iHeartMedia adult contemporary station to the top with a whopping 12.4 share and a cumulative weekly audience of more than 3.1 million. It was followed by iHeartMedia urban adult-contemporary WVAZ FM 102.7 in second place with a 5.7 share. The holiday survey period ran from December 7 to January 3.
Adam Hoge
Tuesday marks the debut of “Sports Central,” a one-hour sports podcast streaming at 1 p.m. Monday through Friday on WGNRadio.com and the WGN Radio app. Hosted by Adam Hoge, the show will focus on the day’s top stories and highlights of sports content from Tribune Broadcasting news/talk WGN AM 720. “Listeners can interact with ‘Sports Central’ live while also having the freedom to consume it on-demand throughout the day,” Hoge said in a statement. The show will launch from Radio Row at the site of Super Bowl LII in Minneapolis.
Chris Krug
Illinois Policy Institute has shifted ownership of its media arm, Illinois News Network, to the Franklin Center for Government & Public Integrity, publisher of Watchdog.org. The non-profit news service provides coverage of state and regional issues to media outlets across Illinois. Chris Krug, publisher and general manager of INN since 2016, was named president of Franklin Center last April. Krug previously served as publisher of the Pioneer Press suburban newspaper chain under Sun-Times Media and as vice president of Shaw Media and editor of the Northwest Herald.
Barack Obama
“Making Obama,” an original podcast series about Barack Obama’s life and career before the White House, will premiere February 8 on interactive.wbez.org. Featuring interviews with the former president, key advisors, mentors and rivals, the six-part podcast traces Obama’s rise from South Side Chicago community organizer to rookie politician in the Illinois Statehouse and unsuccessful candidate for U.S. Congress. Hosted by Jenn White, it follows last year’s “Making Oprah” podcast series, produced by Chicago Public Media WBEZ FM 91.5.
Tuesday’s best comment: Michael Damsky: I think Mancow is right. It’s all just an opportunity to renegotiate the purchase prices of WLUP and WKQX. And Mancow’s contract is just collateral. He’ll get re-signed when it’s determined who will operate the stations (which I strongly guess will be Cumulus).