Mike Adamle
Robservations on the media beat:
Kim Adamle does most of the talking in the first half of a new documentary about her husband's struggles with the symptoms of chronic traumatic encephalopathy. But it's the sad and haunting look on the face of Mike Adamle that viewers will remember. NBC Sports Chicago spent a year chronicling their lives together in "The Adamles: Mind Over Matter," a half-hour documentary premiering at 7 p.m. Monday. There's some encouraging news for the former Chicago TV sports anchor and NFL star as Mike Adamle is shown responding favorably to treatments ranging from Ketamine infusions to dancing lessons. Produced, written and edited by NBC Sports Chicago’s Sarah Lauch, Ryan McGuffey and Matt Buckman, it's hosted by David Kaplan. “Mike and Kim’s story is one that we felt needed more than just one interview . . . we needed to experience their challenges with them over the course of a year to better enable us and our viewers to fully understand what they are going through on a daily basis,” said Kevin Cross, senior vice president/general manager of NBC Sports Chicago. “We couldn’t be more thankful to Mike and Kim for opening their doors and hearts to us and we are honored to tell this amazing story about their unwavering determination and love.”
Mark Zander
Mark Zander, longtime Chicago radio rocker, is joining Good Karma Brands ESPN sports/talk WMVP 1000-AM as a part-time and weekend host. Starting February 22, he'll be on with Fred Huebner from 9 a.m. to noon Saturdays. Calling Zander "a veteran on-air talent and program director," Mike Thomas, market manager for ESPN Chicago, said: "Just because he's never done sports radio shouldn't preclude him from talking about the teams he loves. He will be a great addition to the ESPN 1000 on-air team." Zander most recently was operations manager of Mid-West Family Broadcasting active rock WXRX 104.9-FM and sports/talk WNTA 1330-AM in Rockford. Earlier he was program director of Weigel Broadcasting’s soft rock/oldies WRME 87.7-FM and weekend host at Hubbard Radio classic hits WDRV 97.1-FM.
Luke Stuckmeyer
Luke Stuckmeyer, former anchor, reporter and host at NBC Sports Chicago, landed this week at CBS-owned WBBM-Channel 2. "I’m back," he tweeted. "Excited to be joining @MeganMawicke & @mattzahnsports on the @cbschicago sports team! See you tomorrow night at 5, 6 & 10 on CBS2." Until he was cut in October, the Arlington Heights native and graduate of Prospect High School and Valparaiso University was one of the originals at NBC Sports Chicago. He signed on at the inception of Comcast SportsNet Chicago in 2004.
Lauren Cohn
Lauren Cohn, who's been out of commission since January 22, says she hopes to return soon as afternoon news anchor at Cumulus Media news/talk WLS 890-AM. "I want to thank you and let you know I’ve been suffering from a severe back problem," Cohn wrote in a Facebook message Wednesday. "Anyone who has dealt with back issues knows how debilitating it can be. . . . I’m eternally grateful to my family and close friends for your round the clock help through this ordeal. I hope to be back on the air real soon delivering the news and contributing to the John Howell Show."
Ramblin' Ray Stevens
Also at WLS 890-AM, look for Ramblin' Ray Stevens to fill in today, Friday and Tuesday for morning host Erich Mancow Muller. It'll be the first time back in the host's chair at WLS for Stevens, who co-hosted mornings with John Howell there from 2016 to 2018. Earlier the West Chicago native co-hosted mornings with Lisa Dent at Entercom country WUSN 99.5-FM.
Jon Zaghloul
Jon Zaghloul, the 19-year-old south suburban journalist who hosts and produces the ambitious "Sports Talk Chicago" podcast, has added a second weekly podcast. In conjunction with The University of Chicago athletic department he just launched "The Maroon Made Podcast," featuring interviews with UChicago athletes and coaches. Zaghloul, who's majoring in economics at UChicago, continues as an on-air personality at the university's student radio station WHPK 88.5-FM and a freelance writer for 22nd Century Media.
Kim Foxx
What was behind that curiously enthusiastic endorsement Monday of Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx by the Sun-Times? According to Mark Konkol, a commentary writer for Patch and former Sun-Times columnist, it may have been influenced by owners of the Sun-Times, who've contributed $750,000 to Foxx's campaign — a fact not disclosed in the editorial. (Here is the link.) In response, Sun-Times editors pointed to an online explanation of their endorsement process and statement about their owners' interests. "In light of the diverse ownership of our newspaper, we're aiming to be transparent, including the tagline that Mark references at the end of every endorsement," said Sun-Times editor-in-chief Chris Fusco. "In the case of the Foxx endorsement, the editorial board reached consensus after a live-streamed interview session with all the Democratic candidates, and the arguments in the editorial reflect their hard work vetting them."
Wednesday's comment of the day: Richard Craig Friedman: Marquee [Sports Network] has made the easy deals. Time is getting short to make the hard ones. But if they don't, they could be a bust. If Marquee is smart, they at least have a stand-alone app ready to launch at the drop of a hat. And, hopefully, their vendor has nothing to do with the Iowa caucus.