Robservations: WBEZ reporting project tackles gun violence

"Every Other Hour" (WBEZ)

Robservations on the media beat:

“Every Other Hour” has been a yearlong enterprising reporting project on Chicago’s gun violence epidemic, produced by Chicago Public Media WBEZ FM 91.5. (The title refers to the frequency of shootings in Chicago over the past two years.) The series will culminate October 12 with a community event at the Renaissance Collaborative in Chicago’s Bronzeville neighborhood. Young Chicagoans affected by gun violence will share the stage with local artists who’ll tell their stories. The event from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. also will stream live on WBEZ’s Facebook page. “This project has reinforced that young people are at the heart of the good coming out of the same communities where we see much of this violence taking place,” editor Cate Cahan said in a statement. “They have real ideas that can spark meaningful change. We wanted to provide an opportunity for engaged Chicagoans to be able to listen to and learn from them.” (The Daily Herald periodically runs stories from the WBEZ gun-violence series. Monday’s piece is about keeping kids safe and employed by hiring them during the summer to help fix rundown school auditoriums.)

Mike North

The inimitable Mike North uploaded his final “Sticks and Stones” podcast Friday, ending his run as a sportscaster. (Here is the link.) North announced last month he’s quitting sports radio for good — 25 years after he became one of the founding personalities at CBS Radio sports/talk WSCR AM 670. “I’m heading in another direction because I think the timing is right,” he said. North’s guest on his farewell show was Terry Boers, a fellow veteran of The Score and author of The Score of a Lifetime: 25 Years Talking Chicago Sports.

Chicago Cubs

Sports anchor Dan Roan and Cubs broadcaster Len Kasper will host “Cubs Nightly,” a live 30-minute show following the Chicago Cubs throughout their postseason run at 6:30 p.m. Monday through Friday on Tribune Broadcasting WGN-Channel 9, starting next week. It will preempt the second half-hour of WGN’s 6 p.m. newscast, which premiered in April. Featuring highlights, previews, reviews, interviews with Cubs players and more, the show also will be simulcast on Tribune Broadcasting’s CLTV cable channel.

Media Law Resource Center

Freelance journalists who don’t have legal support may be especially interested in a one-day workshop by the Media Law Resource Center. Top media lawyers will give practical advice to bloggers, reporters, editors, photographers, documentarians and podcasters to stay clear of libel and privacy suits and avoid other legal trouble. The event will be from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. October 26 at Tribune Tower, 435 North Michigan Avenue. Admission is $20 (including breakfast and lunch). For information see medialaw.org.

Here’s a photo of 33-year-old Hugh Hefner on the set of “Playboy’s Penthouse” at WBKB-TV (forerunner of WLS-Channel 7) in 1959. The Chicago-born founder and publisher of Playboy died Wednesday at 91.

Hugh Hefner "Playboy's Penthouse" (1959)